Seen at...
Weekends
Original Title
Wi-ken-jeu- Director: Dong-ha Lee
- Writer: Dong-ha Lee
- Producer: Min-kyung Kim
CGiii Comment
The great sadness is...very few people have seen or will get the chance to see this utterly delightful, gently hard-hitting film.
Dong-ha Lee has structured his film with a succinct and formidable intelligence...the journey begins with the warmth of geeky gay humour...and, involvingly & evolvingly, becomes a statement on solidarity, equality and kinship. Political activisim has never been this tuneful, political activism has never been this generous.
There are laughs and tears aplenty...the joys of singing are infectious...the horrors of homophobia could be crippling...but not for these choristers... they sing in the face of their enemies...even when the shit actually hits them!
Keep on singing, dear hearts, sing loud, sing proud...your world is a far better place because of it...and so is ours!
Dong-ha Lee...thank you...for such a memorable experience, watching your film.
Trailer...
The(ir) Blurb...
Every weekend the gay male choir G-Voice rehearses in Seoul – as they have been doing since 2003. The choir, being a kind of antidote to homophobic Korean society, makes the everyday lives of gay men its theme in an intelligent and humorous way. For their tenth anniversary, the members are planning to give their first big concert with ambitious arrangements, creative choreographies and many new pieces. This really puts these amateur singers to the test because the enthusiasm of some members outweighs their vocal abilities, whilst others work themselves into the ground as voluntary organisers. Besides preparing for their big day, G-Voice are also politically active, singing for equality and serenading against discrimination, and not just at LGBTQ demos.
Director Lee Dong-ha succeeds, almost incidentally, in giving an insight into gay life in Korea. He also accompanies choir members and organisers after the rehearsals, when conversations become more personal over a meal. Filmed in the style of glossy music videos, G-Voices’ set-pieces provide a commentary, among other things, on the men’s experiences of Korean society, their conservative families and a gay joy of life.