Waikiki Brothers

The Waikiki Brothers are a covers band going nowhere. After one more dispiriting night the saxophonist quits and the three who are left carry on. The band ends up in Suanbo, the bandleader’s home town, a hot spring resort that was popular in the eighties and has since gone quiet. Old friends, a love from long ago, unemployment and accounts that were never closed all come at him at once. It is Yim Soon-rye’s second film; she is among the leading women directors in Korean cinema. It opened the Jeonju film festival in 2001. It did no business at the box office but drew serious critical attention and has been reassessed over the years. Hwang Jung-min and Ryoo Seung-bum are also in the cast.