''Pyongyang Nalpharam'' () is a 2006 North Korean film directed by Phyo Kwang and Maeng Cheol-min. It is a martial arts film set during the Japanese colonial rule of Korea. One of only two North Korean films released in 2006, it received ticket sales of 6 million cinema-goers in North Korea. Critics describe the film as "routine" and "adequate."

Plot

The film is set in the early 20th century, during the Japanese colonial rule of Korea. Jeong Taek is a master of Pyongyang Nalpharam, a form of the ancient

Taekkyeon Taekkyon, Taekgyeon, Taekkyeon, or Taekyun (Korean: 태껸/ 택견/ 托肩, ) is a traditional Korean martial art. It is characterized by fluid, dynamic foot movement called "''pum balki''" or Stepping-on-Triangles. Taekkyon includes hands and ...

martial art perfected on Mount Taeseong near

Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...

. He returns home one day to find his father poisoned by Korean-born Japanese woman Mieko, who claims that the elder was responsible for the death of her own father. At first mistaking the woman for his childhood sweetheart, So Gyeon, Taek is forced into action when Japanese forces lay claim to the sacred texts containing the secrets of Pyongyang Nalpharam.

Cast

* Ri Ryeong-hun ... Jeong Taek * Kim Hye-gyeong ... So Gyeon * Ri Yun-su * Yu Hye-gyeong ... Mieko * Kim Gweong-yeol * Nam Ryeong-woo * Kim Cheon-yeol * Choi Yeong-chun * Ri Seong-gang

Release

''Pyongyang Nalpharam'' was released in August 2006,Elley, Derek
"Yanks not invited: North Korean fest bars H'wood pix"
''Variety'', 25 September 2006. Retrieved on 27 October 2008. and received a reported 6 million admissions at the North Korean box office.Elley, Derek

''Variety'', 27 September 2006. Retrieved on 27 October 2008. It was one of only two North Korean films released in 2006—the other being ''

The Schoolgirl's Diary ''The Schoolgirl's Diary'' (or ''The Journal of a Schoolgirl'') is a 2007 North Korean film directed by Jang In-hak. It debuted at the 2006 Pyongyang Film Festival as one of two films produced domestically that year, and was released in France at ...

''—and both films were screened at that year's

Pyongyang International Film Festival The Pyongyang International Film Festival is a biennial cultural exhibition held in Pyongyang, North Korea. Until 2002, the film festival was reserved to "non-aligned and other developing countries". History The event originated in 1987 as the Py ...

.Elley, Derek
"Pyongyang pleases, teases and perplexes"
. ''Variety'', 29 September 2008. Retrieved on 27 October 2008. (Dead link)

Critical reception

Derek Elley of ''

Variety Variety may refer to: Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats * Variety (radio) * Variety show, in theater and television Films * ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont * ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...

'' described ''Pyongyang Nalpharam'' as "a routine period actioner... with flashes of interest for Asiaphile auds", reminiscent of 1970s Hong Kong "

chopsocky Chopsocky (or chop-socky) is a colloquial term for martial arts films and kung fu films made primarily by Hong Kong action cinema between the late 1960s and early 1980s. The term was coined by the American motion picture trade magazine ''Variety'' ...

" films. He regarded the action choreography as being "adequate", and considered only a single sequence during a "masked entertainment" to have any "real verve".

References

External links

* * {{IMDb title 2006 films 2000s Korean-language films 2006 martial arts films North Korean drama films