Film critics Darcy Paquet and Jason Bechervaise review to local releases ahead of the Lunar New Year holiday.  The first film is “The Point Men” starring Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin as government officials working to resolve a hostage crisis, based on the 2007 South Korea hostage crisis where 23 missionaries were kidnapped by the Taliban. Directed by Yim Soon-rye, this is the first film with a budget over 15 billion won to be helmed by a female director.  The other major release for the week is Lee Hae-young’s “Phantom” featuring actors Sol Kyung-gu, Lee Ha-nee, Park So-dam, Park Hae-soo, and  Seo Hyun-woo. Based on the Chinese novel “Sound of the Wind” by Mai Jia, the movie is set in Korea in the 1930s. While focusing on the Korean independence movement, the movie has put female characters under the spotlight.