An interesting aspect of korean cinema is the variety of first features made overseas. The films in this year′s festival are as diverse as the differences among these countries. Shot in Poland, Taekwondo deals with nostalgia, while Bee Fly, from Russia, talks about myths. In the case of Too Tired to Die from the U.S., director Won-Suk Chin presents a different type of narrative and style. In the silent film sequence, Kenji, a Japanese man in New York, dreams of a man who meets the grim reaper and then tries to escape from her. Kenji tells his dream to others and and then bumps into the grim reaper again. That night Kenji has a dream of his family meeting this angel of death in the form of a Japanese film. The next day, the grim reaper announces he has only 12 hours left to live. He roams the streets of New York in order to give meaning to his last moments. Whether Kenji is able to accomplish this is the main question in this film. Too Tired to Die tackles both the heavy and light issues of life through innovative style. This may explain why the film seems to be caught between a light shifting style and the weight of Kenji′s impending death. This experimental approach that refuses boundaries may offer challenges to Korean cinema. (Kwon Yong-Min)