"Broker," which stars Song Kang Ho, IU, and more, continues to gain recognition internationally. It came after the movie scored the top prize at the 39th Munich Film Festival in Germany.
'Broker' Wins Best International Film of the Year at ARRI Award
According to an outlet, the Munich Film Festival website released the winners for the coveted ARRI Award, known as the highest award of the film festival.
Out of the 10 films invited, "Broker" bagged the CinemaStars competition and was selected as the best international film of the year.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: Song Kang Ho, IU's 'Broker' Exceeds 1 Million Audiences
Besides the South Korean movie, the CinemaStars section includes nominees such as Italian-language drama film directed by Felix van Groeningen and Charlotte Vandermeersch and Iranian drama film "Leila's Brothers" directed and written by Saeed Roustayi.
Interestingly, the jury of the Munich Film Festival was impressed by the movie written and directed by the Japanese filmmaker Koreeda Hirokazu. Award-winning German actress Gibel Kequili described "Broker" as "a film full of nostalgia, determination, and detours," she said adding that the "detours we have to follow in life sometimes to find ourselves and each other."
In addition, the festival revealed why they awarded the top category to the South Korean film saying that the line 'Thank you for being born' is the phrase that captivates viewers, adding "If every character, no matter how trivial, is ultimately multi-layered and lovable, then that is cinematic art."
From Receiving Standing Ovation to Winning Best Actor at Cannes Film Festival 2022
"Broker," which stars Song Kang Ho, IU, Kang Dong Won, Bae Doona, and Lee Joo Young, was invited to the 75th Cannes Film Festival alongside other Korean movies like "Decision to Leave," "Hunt," "The Next Sohee" and more.
However, only two K-content was invited to compete in the prestigious Palme d'Or category and fortunately, the Koreeda Hirokazu-directed film and "Decision to Leave," were among the contenders.
During the premiere, all the lead stars and the director were present except for Bae Doona who at that time was filming a project in the U.S.
Meanwhile, after wrapping up their Cannes debut, the cast was overwhelmed by the 12-minute long standing ovation from the crowd, signaling how great the movie was.
Korean portal, EDaily cited that the standing ovation began with Cannes Film Festival's executive director, Thierry Frémaux.
With this, director Koreeda Hirokazu expressed his gratitude and admitted that "it was a great challenge to have shot this movie amidst the COVID-19 pandemic," but was thankful for the "hardworking team [behind Broker] and everyone else who helped and shared this movie".
Besides the jaw-dropping response from the audience, Song Kang Ho was hailed the Best Actor at the Cannes Film Festival 2022 for his stunning performance as broker Sang Hyun.
He made history as the first South Korean male star to bag the award.
