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The 58th Edinburgh International Film Festival has announced a new Closing Night film for 2004 the UK Premiere of Untold Scandal E J-yong˜s magnificent South Korean remake of Dangerous Liaisons, replacing Wong Kar-Wai˜s 2046, which will not finish editing until the beginning of September.
In addition to forfeiting its UK premiere at EIFF˜s Closing Night, 2046 is also unavailable to screen at Toronto, Vancouver and San Sebastian Film Festivals, and will now be released in the UK in January 2005 by Tartan Films. Although an earlier version of the film screened at the Cannes film festival, Kar Wai˜s finished print will not be available in time for the EIFF closing night screening on Sunday 29 August.
"Obviously it˜s disappointing" says EIFF Artistic Director Shane Danielsen, "but it˜s not entirely unforeseen: ultimately, this is just one of the pitfalls of working with eccentric artistic geniuses. But we wish him well with the film which, when it˜s finally finished, will probably be even more amazing than it already is."
Says Tartan Films Managing Director Hamish McAlpine, 'I am devastated that the film will now not be shown at Edinburgh and I am desperately sorry this has happened for the EIFF. Shane was visionary in his choice of the movie as the closing film, but I guess artists will be artists. Having seen a recent edit of the film in Hong Kong, the film is getting better day by day. I can't wait to see Wong Kar-Wai's final version of the film. Everyone is going to be thrilled - 2046 is going to blow everyone's socks off!'
Says Danielsen, "Instead of searching for an obvious last minute replacement outside of the festival, it was decided that we already had a closing night film within our current program. Untold Scandal is more deserving of the closing night honour than many other films out there."
Directed by E J-yong, Untold Scandal is a visually stunning remake of Dangerous Liaisons - faithful to Choderlos De Laclos˜ original novel, and Steven Frears˜ 1988 classic. This lavish period drama is a true feast for the senses; a cavalcade of vivid colours and gorgeous sets, and a story of remarkable emotional force its tale of innocence corrupted just as relevant to Chosun-period Korea as to 18th-century France. Exquisitely acted by its emsemble cast (Bae Yong-jun, Lee Mi-sook and Jeon Do-yeon), it˜s also surprisingly sexy; a bold and thrilling adaptation of a respected classic.
"We˜re extremely proud to feature Untold Scandal as our closing night film", says Danielsen. "The great thing is that this gives us an opportunity to give a more prominent showcase to E Je-yong˜s magnificent Untold Scandal a film that˜s every bit as poetic, sexy and visually ravishing as 2046, and as such, fully deserving of the Closing Night slot. It also vindicates, I think, our faith in the richness of contemporary South Korean cinema, as evinced by the other four Korean films in the programme this year."
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