新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2015/01/13（打印版）

Welcome to the Beijing Hour; we are coming to you live from the Chinese capital.

The warring parties in South Sudan have agreed to a new break in the fighting through the help of mediation by China.

French authorities say as many as half-a-dozen suspects connected to last week's terrorist attacks may still be at-large.

A few more details about Beijing’s bid for the 2022 Winter Olympics have been put out.

In business.... A division of Wanda set to launch a scaled-back IPO this week in Shenzhen.

In sports... Christiano Ronaldo is once-again awarded European Football's top individual award.

In entertainment.... the latest installment in the Night In the Museum film franchise tops the Chinese box office.

Beijing will have some smog tonight, with a low of minus 4. It might see some snow tomorrow, with a high of 2 degrees.　

Meanwhile Shanghai will have moderate rain tonight, with a low of 7, tomorrow will have slight rain, with a high of 11.

Chongqing will be cloudy tonight, 7 degrees the lowest, tomorrow will also be cloudy with a high of 14.

Chinese and Japanese defense officials have resumed talks on setting up a maritime crisis management mechanism to try to prevent clashes at sea.

The resumption of the talks follows a breakdown in discussions over maritime issues in 2012 when the Japanese government "nationalized" the Diaoyu Islands.

Working-level talks in Tokyo have seen the two sides agree to set up a hotline, use a common radio frequency for their ships and planes around the islands, and hold annual meetings.

Teng Jianqun with the China Institute of International Studies says the talks are the right step to further defuse tensions around the Diaoyu Islands.

"I think China wants to maintain stability in the East China Sea, which will bring benefits to both countries. It's in no one's interest to escalate tensions regarding the Diaoyu Islands issue."

China and Japan reached an agreement in November to try to better-manage their disputes and improve ties.

That agreement was made ahead of a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe during the APEC conference in Beijing.

The warring factions in South Sudan have reportedly reached an agreement to end their conflict and initiate a new peace process.

This follows mediation through Chinese foreign minister and the Inter-Governmental Authority for Development, a regional bloc in Africa.

South Sudan has been embroiled in a civil war between people loyal to President Salva Kiir and his former deputy, Riek Machar.

The two groups have agreed to form a transitional government and relieve the humanitarian situation in the conflict zones.

Clashes between the two sides have left thousands dead and forced close to 2-million people to flee their homes.

For more on the situation in South Sudan, we are now joined live by He Wenping, an African studies expert with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

French police says as many as 6 suspects in the Paris attacks may still be at-large.

Around 10-thousand troops have been deployed across France to protect sensitive sites in the wake of the attacks last week which left 17 people dead.

This is the first time in decades that French troops have been deployed within the country on such a large scale.

Nearly half of them will be assigned to protect the over 700 Jewish schools across the country.

"It's not only - this is something I want to emphasize - it's not only for Jews that this could be a danger, but this could be a danger for the entire world. These are people who are crazy."

Meanwhile, new video appears to show the girlfriend of the man behind last week's killing at a Jewish supermarket entering into Turkey 5-days before the killings.

The 26-year-old is believed to have crossed into Syria, with militants saying the woman has since met up with factions connected to the Islamic State.

Meanwhile, French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo is defying the attackers in last week's bloodbath by putting a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed on its next cover.

The weekly has released the front page of what it calls the "survivors' issue", which is due out tomorrow.

Charlie Hebdo has come under attack for depicting the Prophet Muhammed in its cartoons, as many Muslims believe depictions of Muhammed are sacrilegious.

A new round of anti-Islam rallies have been launched in the German city of Dresden.

The marches by anti-immigration activists have been taking place for months.

However, these are the first marches since the attacks in France which left 17-people dead.

Anti-Islam marchers have been carrying banners expressing solidarity with the French cartoonists killed by Islamic extremists in Paris.

"I am all for it that not so many foreigners, or rather Muslims, are coming to Germany any more. That's my opinion and that's why I am here. If others want something else that is up to them, but this is my opinion."

Elsewhere across Germany, tens-of-thousands of others have joined marches opposing the anti-Islamic factions in Germany.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is expected to join a protest organized by Muslim groups in Berlin later on this Tuesday.

Indonesian Transport Minister, Jonan Ignasius, has confirmed both black boxes of the downed AirAsia flight have been recovered from the Java Sea.

"We expect that our people will continue to search for the passengers, which is quite important because the FDR (Flight Data Recorder) and CVR (Cockpit Voice Recorder) have been found. But the search for passengers will be continued until as much as we can."

The black boxes are going to contain information that will be crucial for investigator trying to piece together the sequence of events which led to the Airbus A320 plunging into the sea on December 28th.

Initial indications are the AirAsia Flight went down in bad weather while on a flight from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore.

Palestinian researchers are now working on a possible filing to the International Criminal Court.

This follows on the heels of the United Nations accepting the Palestinians as an ICC member, over which the Israeli side is expressing disappointment.

The joining of the ICC has opened the door for the Palestinians to pursue war-crimes charges against Israel.

Human rights groups are now working on compiling allegations connected to the 50-day war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza last year.

"I believe that what human rights organizations are doing with field investigations and preparation of criminal files on the crimes committed by the occupation during the latest aggression will be used for the accountability of the occupation and all their political and military officials on their crimes."

New reports are suggesting Fidel Castro has sent a letter to football legend Diego Maradona in an attempt to quash rumors the former Cuban leader had died.

The 88-year old Castro had not been seen or heard from since October after publishing an editorial about Ebola.

"Look, I get goosebumps when you talk about death. If I have to be the spokesperson to say that Fidel (Castro) sent me this letter, I will say it. Fidel is very well and he sent me this letter. I told him, I said to him, why is CNN killing you off every day? And he said to me 'Diego, one day they are going to get it right, one day we all will die,' and he made me laugh a lot."

The new wave of speculation about his health has been prompted, in part, by his lack of comment after the US and Cuba declared a restoration of diplomatic ties last month.

Beijing's bid is based around three main concepts, including sustainable development, economics and a focus on the athletes.

The Beijing Olympic Committee's report has already been submitted to the IOC for review.

"Two thirds of the competition and non-competition venues are inherited from the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, so this will greatly reduce the cost of construction. In addition, more of the construction and repairs to the venues will be done by the private sector to reduce the burden on the tax payer."

Convenience for the athletes is also outlined as a primary consideration for Beijing 2022.

The last Winter Olympics in the Russian city of Sochi came under heavy scrutiny for the overall shape of the athlete accommodations, with many basic services such as showers and food left wanting.

Chinese lawmakers have announced plans to start drafting a civil legal code for the country, dealing with non-criminal cases.

The creation of a civil legal code in China has been put off a number of times already, with the last attempt to draft a civil code in 2002 suspended.

Sun Xianzhong is a civil law professor with the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

"The Civil Code makes our legislation more systematic and scientific by integrating civil laws to eliminate conflicts between them. This will ensure judicial procedures are more transparent, and further protect people's basic rights."

Sun Xianzhong says the lack of a cohesive civil code has left gaps and loopholes in the system.

"When I worked on the real estate registration regulations, I found there is discord between the Contract Law and the Property Law. The former stipulates that property transactions only have to be done through contracts. However, the latter requires registration during the transfer of ownership."

Sun Xianzhong expects the drafting of a new civil code will take anywhere from 5 to 8 years.

Three people of Chinese descent have been convicted of manslaughter in connection with a factory fire which left 7 Chinese migrants dead in Italy in 2013.

The Chinese part-owner of the factory, along with two of the factory's managers, has been sentenced to multi-year terms behind bars.

"The victims' relatives have lost their loved ones, and they are workers and people from the countryside. It's not been easy for them to deal with the Italian justice system."

The courts have determined the factory's fire exit was blocked by piles of flammable fabric, something the defense disputed.

The three defendants have also been convicted of exploiting clandestine labor and failing to use proper safety measures.

First, let's have a look at the numbers across the Asian markets this Tuesday evening.

Chinese markets rebounded from a three-day losing streak today as the software sector led the recovery.

Five stocks in the software sector expanded to the daily limit of 10 percent, following the announcement of State Preeminent Science and Technology Award last week.

Across the board, the gains were tempered as investor took profits from the financial sector and the sectors related to "the Belt and Road Initiatives".

In Hong Kong, the Hang Seng added four fifths of a percent on back of the strong performance in the commerce and industry and the properties sub-indices, both of which added 1 percent.

In Japan, the Nikkei was down over half a percent; South Korea's KOSPI, down a fifth of a percent; Australia's ASX 200, down a third of a percent.

And finally in Singapore, the Straits Times Index lost slightly one ten of a percent.

China's biggest movie theatre operator, Wanda Cinema Line, has priced its impending IPO at 21 yuan, or 3.5-US dollars, a share.

Wanda cinema is trying to raise just over 200-million dollars through its impending listing in Shenzhen this week.

This is down sharply from the roughly 370-million dollars Wanda Cinema was originally planning to raise.

However, regulators rejected the prospectus, saying its valuation was too high.

Wanda Cinema Line's IPO will be the second Wanda listing after the company's property arm went public in Hong Kong at the end of last year.

For more on Wanda Cinema Line's IPO, the Beijing Hour's Shane Bigham spoke earlier to Gao Shang, analyst with Beijing-based Guantong Futures.

The latest customs data show exports from China posted a surprise rebound in December, increasing almost 10 percent year-on-year.

That's up significantly from the 4.7-percent growth in exports seen in November.

Overall imports into China have decreased by around 0.5-percent this past year.

"The steep fall in the prices of several major commodities had helped cut the growth rate of China's import value by 3.3 percentage points."

2014 is the 3rd year in a row where China's foreign trade volumes have missed official targets.

Two-way trade with the European Union and the United States led growth last year in China.

Trade with the EU picked up by 9 percent, while overall trade with the US has come in up over 5 percent.

On the flip side, mainland trade with Hong Kong dropped over 7-percent last year, while trade with Japan dipped by 1-percent.

The US Department of Agriculture says the Chinese government has suspended all imports of US poultry and poultry-products amid concerns about a strain of the bird flu.

China is destroying all poultry imports which came from the US after last Thursday.

The move by mainland authorities follows on the heels of Hong Kong suspending imports of certain US poultry products a few weeks ago after two bird flu strains appeared in the US states of Washington and Oregon.

China imported around 300-million dollars' worth of poultry and poultry products from the US last year.

A private Chinese trading company has aquired an iron ore mine in Greenland, the first deal of its kind by an Asian country in the Arctic region.

General Nice has purchased the mine after its former owner, London Mining, went bankrupt last year.

But reports are suggesting the Chinese company paid around 2 billion US dollars.

The mine is located around 150 kilometers northeast of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland.

Observers are suggesting General Nice may have challenges ahead of it when it comes to staffing and environmental regulations in Greenland.

Official customs data shows the import of iron ore in China hit a record high of nearly 87 million tons last month.

The sharp rise in imports comes amid an almost 50-percent downturn in the price of the commodity this past year, as slumping prices have boosted demand for overseas supplies.

Chinese authorities have announced plans to invest around 1 trillion US dollars on infrastructure this year.

The price of oil has fallen to a near 6-year low today, decreasing 2.5 percent overnight.

The cost of oil continues to come down, despite new data suggesting countries like China have been moving to replenish their strategic reserves amid the cut-rate prices.

China added 30 million tons to its reserves this past month, a month-on-month increase of some 20-percent.

The downturn in the price of oil has prompted a new statement from the United Arab Emirate's oil minister, saying OPEC doesn't anticipate the price of oil to rebound in the near-future.

The minister says OPEC will digest the figures through the first half of this year before considering any reaction in the second half.

Volkswagen Sales in China Sees Double-digit Growth despite Row with Car-owners

Volkswagen has announced its China sales increased by double-digits this past year, despite an overall slowdown in the Chinese auto market.

The company sold 3.6 million vehicles in both the mainland and Hong Kong last year, up over 12-percent year on year.

China and Japan have agreed to re-establish a mechanism to deal with maritime disputes.

The agreement has been made as part of a series of meetings among defense officials from the two countries in Tokyo.

High-level discussions on maritime issues between China and Japan first began in 2012.

The talks were suspended after Japan's government took steps to "nationalize" the Diaoyu Islands.

An Egyptian court has accepted an appeal of the sentence handed to ousted President Hosni Mubarak connected to his embezzlement conviction, ordering a retrial.

This could pave the way for Mubarak's release from jail while awaiting his new trial.

Mubarak was convicted of embezzling public funds last year worth around 14-million US dollars.

Mubarak and his two sons, along with a number of aides, were among those convicted and sentenced to 3-years in jail.

This is the latest legal victory for the 86-year-old Mubarak, who's conviction for ordering the killing of protesters, has already been overturned.

Mubarak has already been behind bars for more than 3-years since being detained in April 2011.

U.S. President Barack Obama says Washington remains committed to preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.

Obama's comments come ahead of a new round of nuclear negotiations with Iran this week.

US Secretary of State John Kerry says the forthcoming meeting with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif in Geneva later this week is to review the past rounds of talks and look ahead to the latest round of talks.

Iran and the 5-permanent members of the UN Security Council, plus Germany, are due to sit down for another round of negotiations starting Sunday.

Senior Chinese lawmaker Bai Enpei has been removed from office and the party amid a graft investigation.

China's anti-graft authorities say Bai is believed to have broken the law and has violated party rules by taking huge amounts of bribes.

Bai, the former party chief of Yunnan, was also the deputy head of the NPC's Environment and Resource Protection Committee.

It's being reported Bai Enpei has been involved in deals where mineral resources in Yunnan were sold at cheaper price to private companies.

China's Confucius Institute Headquarters says the closure of its branch in Sweden is not the start of something bigger.

The Confucius Institute at Stockholm University is due to shut down in June.

The institute in Sweden, established 10-years ago, is a partnership between Stockholm University and Fudan University in Shanghai.

There are around 470 Confucius Institutes and 850 Confucius Classrooms in 120 different countries and regions.

A health official says China will ask the nation's blood stations to employ more accurate testing methods to detect viruses this year.

This follows reports that a girl contracted HIV through a blood transfusion.

The Nucleic Acid Test or NAT, a technique used to detect viruses or bacteria, can shorten the "window period" when viruses or bacteria go largely unnoticed by blood tests.

Using traditional testing methods, it takes about 20 days for HIV antigens to be detected after the virus enters the human body.

HIV-positive blood donors unaware of their status may pass the virus to others if donations happen during that 20-day window period, as the virus cannot be detected by tests.

The NAT can also be used to control risk for other blood-borne diseases, such as hepatitis.

Beijing Foreign Studies University or BFSU has established a Silk Road Research Institute.

This aims to provide intellectual support to the country's strategic plan to better connect China and the rest of the world by land and sea.

The institute will build on the university's strengths to better serve the country's "economic belt along the Silk Road" and the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road".

President Xi Jinping said in a speech in Kazakhstan in 2013 that China and the Central Asian countries will build an "economic belt along the Silk Road" and the "21st Century Maritime Silk Road", aiming to connect China and the rest of the world.

A senior official says that the university has the advantages of language training and public diplomatic researches, which are very important to solve pragmatic problems in building the "One Belt and One Road".

A Cambridge University study has shown that computers can determine people's personality better than friends, just by analyzing the posts they have 'liked' on Facebook.

The researchers, by analyzing self-reported personality scores for the "big five" psychological traits, have created an algorithm which can accurately predict personalities simply based on Facebook interactions.

The team found that their software was able to predict a study participant's personality more accurately than a work colleague by analyzing just 10 'Likes'.

Inputting 70 'Likes' allowed it to obtain a truer picture of someone's character than a friend or room-mate, while 150 'Likes' outperformed a parent, sibling or partners. It took 300 'Likes' before the program was able to judge a character better than a spouse.

Likes are used by Facebook users to express positive association with online and offline objects, such as products, activities and sports, and represent one of the most generic kinds of digital footprint.

A new study conducted by University of Missouri has found separation from cell phones can have serious psychological and physiological effects on iPhone users, including poor performance on cognitive tests.

It is found that when users are unable to answer their ringing iPhones while solving simple word search puzzles, their heart rates and blood pressure levels increased, as did feelings of anxiety and unpleasantness.

Also, performance, or number of words found on word search puzzles, decreased as compared to when iPhone users completed similar word search puzzles while in possession of their iPhones.

Researchers suggest that iPhone users should avoid parting with their phones during daily situations that involve a great deal of attention as it could result in poorer cognitive performance on those tasks.

Musical theatre observers in New York are suggesting that original Chinese productions, a sector still developing compared to major New York productions, are starting to have a promising future on the global stage.

Four theaters for staging musicals will open in downtown Beijing this October. They are located in Tiaoqiao Art District and close to the Chinese National Ballet and several crosstalk studios.

It is the latest sign that musicals are gaining in popularity in China's first-tier cities. In the latest round of its mainland tour, the Mandarin version of Mamma Mia pocketed 200 million yuan, with some 400 performances staged. Also, The Phantom of the Opera drew more than 100-thousand people and took in 60 million yuan in two months.

Now, an increasing number of Chinese producers are trying to tap the robust domestic market for musicals and they are not satisfied with just buying Broadway shows – they want to do something original.

Zhang Yu is the president and general manager of the state-run China Arts and Entertainment Group. His company will run the four theaters at the Tianqiao Art District.

"As long as the market needs this, then all depends on how hard you will work on it. If we do nothing in the coming 20 years, I can guarantee you China won't have original musicals by then."

His company did not buy any Broadways last year and focused on two original productions. Zhang says they intended to use the two low-budget shows to test whether the market is ready for original works. According to him, original Chinese musicals are not in the experimental phase anymore.

In fact, some Broadway producers have already realized the growth of the Chinese market and the potential of original works on the global stage.

Robert Nederlander Jr., President and CEO of Nederlander Worldwide Entertainment, is one of them.

His family has run Broadway theaters and shows for three generations and his company recently brought a Spanish version of Broadway classic RENT to Cuba in coincide with the rapprochement of the US and Cuba.

"It is vibrant. It continues to grow rapidly. It is a market that we are very excited about. We are going to continue to collaborate both in bringing great shows to China and take Chinese shows to the United States."

Nederlander says in the first several years of collaboration with his Chinese partners in Shanghai, they had to explain what Broadway is to half of the audience, but things have changed a lot.

When it comes to original productions, he suggests Chinese producers examine the key to the success of Broadway: great stories.

"We want people to say it is a great show, not a great Chinese show. They are seeing it because it is tremendous entertainment that happens to coming from China and telling the Chinese story. That is the recipe for success."

That is exactly what Chinese producers are doing now. As China Arts and Entertainment Group Chief Zhang Yu points out, they see producing the Mandarin version of Broadway classics as part of the learning curve and they are not in a rush to emphasize the Chinese identity too soon.

"It makes no sense if somebody claims he will grow 'Chinese pears' if he has never tasted a pear at all."

Zhang says a successful project, no matter if it is from Broadway or from China, will help to nurture the young Chinese musical market, as well as its audience and talent.

"A successful work is capable to double the audience number, double the market share and double the production capacity."

Real Madrid and Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo has won a second successive FIFA Ballon d'Or award in Zurich, Switzerland.

Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Manuel Neuer were the three players vying for the world's best player of the previous year on Monday night.

Ronaldo was joined on the stage by his son, Cristiano Jr and offered his thoughts on receiving the honor.

"I was hoping that I had a good chance but, in the beginning one day they mentioned the name, the heart started to beat fast and adrenaline and it's a hard moment to be honest, but I think I deserve. Neuer deserve too and Messi but, last year I deserved more so I'm really pleased for that."

Neuer was bidding to join Lev Yashin as the only other goalkeeper to hold the Ballon d'Or.

He said that he would continue to focus on his goalkeeping in seasons to come.

"It is always a real battle between a goalkeeper and a striker and it's often not easy. Hopefully in the next few years, I can achieve new levels as a goalkeeper."

Ronaldo scored 61 goals in all competitions in 2014 and set a new record with 17 goals in the Champions League, leading Real to a record tenth title in European club football's premier competition.

Ronaldo had previously won the Ballon d'Or in 2008, when the award was only for the European player of the year.

Karolina Pliskova, of the Czech Republic, has downed Nicole Gibbs, of the United States, in straight sets, 6-0, 6-0.

Spaniard Carla Suarez Navarro has taken out 6th seeded Ekaterina Makarova of Russia, 4-6, 6-1, 6-4.

Tsvetana Pironkova, Bulgaria, beat Madison Keys, of the United States, 4-6, 4-1.

Garbine Muguruza, Spain, beat 3rd seeded, Agnieszka Radwanska, Poland, 3-6, 7-6(7/4), 6-2.

Juan Martin del Potro, of Argentina, beat Sergiy Stakhovsky, of Ukraine, 6-3, 7-6 (7/4).

Pablo Andujar, of Spain, took out Jarkko Niemenen, of Finland, in straight sets, 6-2, 6-2

7th seeded, Jeremy Chardy, of France, downed Sam Querrey, of the United States, in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4

And it was Viktor Troicki of Serbia, taking out 8th seeded Martin Klizan, of Slovakia, 6-2, 6-3.

Japan's Hideki Matsuyama and Jimmy Walker were tied for the lead at 17-under heading into the final round of the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii.

Walker, a three-time winner on the PGA Tour last season, birdied the third and fourth holes to take a two-shot lead at 19-under.

Walker birdied holes eight, nine and ten to jump out to a three-shot lead at 22-under.

Patrick Reed holed from 83 yards for an eagle at the 16th to grab a share of the lead with Walker at 21-under.

After a bogey at the 17th, Reed (67) closed with a birdie on the last hole to join Walker (69) in a playoff.

Reed made a 19 foot putt for birdie on the first playoff hole to capture the Hyundai Tournament of Champions - his fourth career win.

James Harden scored 30 points, carrying Houston on a night when Dwight Howard did little after fighting with Kevin Garnett, and the Rockets beat the slumping Brooklyn Nets 113-99 earlier today.

Garnett was ejected in the first quarter after head-butting Howard in the face and throwing the ball at him, while Howard received a technical foul after appearing to punch or slap Garnett in the neck.

Jared Sullinger had 27 points and 10 rebounds,　Marcus Smart made the key 3 in the closing minute, and the Celtics beat the New Orleans Pelicans 108-100.

Brandon Jennings had 34 points and 10 assists, leading the Pistons to a 114-111 victory over the Toronto Raptors.

Nikola Vucevic had 33 points and 11 rebounds, and the Magic snapped a six-game losing streak with a 121-114 victory over the Bulls.

Jake Voracek was one of five Flyers to score in the second period, leading Philadelphia to a surprise 7-3 win over the Tampa Bay Lightning.

And it was the Los Angeles Kings shutting out the Toronto Maple Leaves 2-0.

The Ohio State Buckeyes have won their first College Football Playoff National Championship, upsetting Marcus Mariota and Oregon 42-20 on Monday night.

With this win, the Buckeyes (14-1) complete a remarkable in-season turnaround with a dominating performance against the Ducks (13-2).

Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb has topped the Chinese box office with a 26 million dollar week.

The film was released on Sunday a week ago and did not have a chance to make a big impression on the previous weekend's chart. But the weekly score helped it to a healthy 30 million eight day total.

Second place went to Twenties Once Again, a Chinese South Korean co-produced remake of last year's Korean body swap hit Miss Granny with 19 million dollars in four days.

In third place was The Taking of Tiger Mountain which added 17 million dollars to extend its 20 day cumulative score to 128 million.

This year's Art Basel will embrace new galleries in the region and art collectors with its newly appointed director for Asia, Adeline Ooi leading over 200 galleries across the globe.

Thirty three of the galleries are from China and some of these are from second tier cities taking part in an international art fair for the first time. A total of 29 well known Western galleries will also take part in the fair.

Art Basel Hong Kong is different from shows in Miami and Switzerland because it focuses on Asian art.

Art Basel was brought to Hong Kong in 2011 under the brand of Art Hong Kong.

In 2013, the name was changed to Art Basel Hong Kong, and this year's show will be the third edition.

The fair has attracted an increasing number of visitors. Last year, around 65,000 people visited the show over a three-day period. This year, the organizers are confident that the number will grow.

South Korean actor Lee Seung-gi has spoken about making his movie debut in Love Forecast.

The actor stars in romantic comedy Love Forecast, a film about two best friends who fall in love with one another after knowing each other for 18 years.

"This is my first film.　When I was watching it in a theater, I was watching so intensively, as if I was watching someone else's movie."

In the film, Lee plays a teacher, who is always unlucky in love. Finally, he finds true love in his good friend of 18 years, a fun-loving, feisty weather girl, played by Moon Chae-won.

28-year-old Lee is a popular singer, television actor, and variety show host in South Korea.

Marvel have released a new look at the next adventure in the Avengers series.

The much anticipated Avengers: Age of Ultron film sees Ultron, an artificial intelligence along with his forces, turn on humanity with the avengers not quite up to the task of stopping them.

Fans are even treated to a better look at a fight scene between the Hulk and Tony Stark's Hulkbuster.

The second trailer premiered during ESPN's College Football National Championship game.

R&B singer The Weeknd has been arrested after allegedly punching a police officer in Las Vegas.

The singer whose real name is actually Abel Tesfaye was allegedly involved in an incident at the Cromwell Hotel.

The singer was arrested on one count of misdemeanor battery of a protected person.

The singer's song Earned It from the soundtrack for film Fifty Shades of Grey was named one of Spotify's most viral tracks last month.

The US adaptation of the British series returned this month averaging almost 6 million views across multiple viewing platforms.

Shameless has been a solid performer for Showtime since its 2011 debut but it hasn't generated the same level of pop culture sizzle as other Showtime hits like Dexter and Homeland.

The John Wells dramedy from Warner Bros television recently received awards nods with William H. Macy earning Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild nominations.

新闻纵贯线 The Beijing Hour updated 20:00 2015/01/13（在线收听）