The Yellow Sea (Hwanghae) - March 26th, 2012

[kishiro]

I don't like this new trend that korean and japanese distributors have started by releasing shorter, so-called "international" versions of their movies to the foreign markets (i.e not to their domestic markets).

I know many business people don't like movies that are longer than two and a half hours for purely monetary reasons (you can have more screenings per day of a shorter movie). But come on Don't do it ! Now, I just can't worry about the Weinsteins, Disney and other companies cutting down foreign movies... I also have to worry about the rights-holders cutting down their own movies to what they believe will be more pleasing to the international distributors and foreign audiences. D*mmit!

It's sooo unnecessary. Especially for the home-movie market, where runtime dosen't matter!

"The Yellow Sea" has been cut by 16 minutes. I own the Korean BD, but I can't watch it because of the lack of subtitles...
I pray to god that they change practises, but the future dosen't look too good...


Examples:

The Yellow Sea - KR version : 156 min
The Yellow Sea - "Internatonal" v : 140 min

13 Assassins - JP version : 141 min
13 Assassins - "Internatonal" v : 126 min

1911 - HK version : 122 min
1911 - "Internatonal" v : 99 min

I Saw The Devil - "KR version : 144 min
I Saw The Devil - "Internatonal" v : 140 min*


*(PS; I Saw The Devil is a special case. The International version Looses two scenes, but contains more cannibal gore because the Korean censors forced the director to trim some scenes for the domestic market)