Great lines not to use

Koryo Simon staged another of his occasional screenings of North Korean (or North Korea-related) films at Bar Blu the other night. I couldn't post an advance notice for the event this time because I was without Internet access at the start of the week - ggrrrr.

The first film was a compelling Dutch-made documentary about a dashing young German conductor giving masterclasses at the Pyongyang Conservatory of Music (and encountering rampant sexism in the supposedly 'model Socialist republic'). The second, a popular North Korean romantic comedy - ponderously titled Urban Girl Comes To Get Married (can't find it on IMDB!) - was a surprising gem. Not quite such a riotous romp as the "Korean Godzilla" Pulgasari that we saw a few months back, but strangely charming and very funny in parts.

A beautiful city girl visits a rural village to help with the rice harvest (still a twice-yearly ritual for almost all of the DPRK's urban populace) and develops a crush on a dashing farmer. Unfortunately the young swain is rather brusque and stand-offish with her because he is obsessed 24/7 with striving to improve farming methods and build the "workers' paradise".

Amongst my favourite thigh-slapping lines were these:

"Whenever I see you I am filled with one desire. Yes, I desire to learn your skill of making dress." (The girl is a clothes designer. Can we see a gay sub-text in this request??)

And (when she visits his house late one night; surely a promising situation...).....

"You should go home now. I have to shovel duck dung into the gas burner."

And I thought my chat was bad!!