Por Will Ripley, CNN

Una película norcoreana cautiva al público con escenas e historias nunca antes vistas en una película aprobada por el Estado.

En “Días y Noches de Confrontación”, un hombre es asfixiado con una bolsa de plástico. Un personaje particularmente desafortunado es apuñalado por su propio esposo, posteriormente herido tras ser atropellado por un coche y finalmente asesinado. Un chaleco bomba suicida aparece en pantalla con los cables expuestos. Hay una aventura extramatrimonial e incluso un breve desnudo parcial.

Tras atraer multitudes a los cines norcoreanos el año pasado, “Días y Noches” alcanzó una audiencia mucho mayor este mes al emitirse por primera vez en la televisión estatal, lo que marca la aprobación oficial de una película que rompe tabúes cinematográficos de larga data en la industria del entretenimiento controlada por el Estado.

La identidad del productor de la película —el estudio coreano 25 de Abril, responsable de las películas de mayor relevancia ideológica de Corea del Norte— hace especialmente notable su adopción de la violencia gráfica y la narrativa de suspense.

“Un personaje asfixiándose con una bolsa de plástico… eso es algo que definitivamente nunca había visto en una película de la RPDC (República Popular Democrática de Corea)”, dijo Justin Martell, cineasta estadounidense que asistió al Festival Internacional de Cine de Pyongyang el año pasado.

El contenido sexual, moderado para los estándares internacionales, también es sorprendentemente explícito en la conservadora Corea del Norte.

“Y debo decir que también había algo de desnudez parcial, algo que ciertamente tampoco he visto nunca en una película de la RPDC”, añadió, usando las iniciales del nombre oficial de la nación aislada.

Las películas norcoreanas suelen disfrutarse colectivamente. El público las ve en salas abarrotadas o en proyecciones organizadas por empresas en centros culturales, donde las reacciones son visibles y compartidas. Risas, exclamaciones y aplausos son comunes, según desertores y visitantes extranjeros que han asistido a tales eventos. En ese contexto, una película diseñada para impactar cobra un peso adicional.

La historia se ambienta a mediados de la década de 2000 y se centra en la traición, tanto personal como política, que culmina en un complot para asesinar al difunto líder norcoreano Kim Jong Il, padre del actual líder Kim Jong Un, mediante la explosión de su tren.

Debido al estricto control de la sociedad norcoreana, es imposible obtener testimonios independientes del público cinéfilo común. Pero nada de esto habría superado la censura ni siquiera hace una década. Sin embargo, “Días y Noches” se promocionó como una producción de prestigio y fue galardonada en el festival de cine de Pyongyang con los premios a Mejor Actor y Mejores Efectos de Sonido.

La película es provocadora, pero no subversiva. Se inserta en el rígido universo moral de Corea del Norte: la traición lleva a la ruina; la lealtad al Estado es el único refugio seguro. Lo novedoso es la entrega. Los valores de producción son más altos, el ritmo más rápido, el estilo inconfundiblemente moderno. Adopta la gramática visual de los thrillers de Hollywood de maneras que el cine norcoreano evitó durante mucho tiempo.

Este cambio podría reflejar una comprensión dentro del gobierno del líder Kim Jong Un sobre en qué se está convirtiendo su público y qué se necesita ahora para captar la atención de los jóvenes.

Martell afirmó que la industria cinematográfica y televisiva norcoreana había cambiado poco en décadas.

“La producción cinematográfica y televisiva nacional… se ha basado en gran medida en argumentos y enfoques de producción ya conocidos”, explicó. La industria ha enfrentado un aparente estancamiento en los últimos 20 años, y durante este período, Martell señaló que se produjo material modesto y de bajo presupuesto e

By Jack Guy, CNN

(CNN) — Michael O’Leary, CEO of Europe’s biggest airline, Ryanair, says his ongoing feud with tech billionaire Elon Musk has boosted the budget carrier’s ticket sales.

“It is very good for our bookings,” O’Leary said at a news conference in Dublin on Wednesday, highlighting the fact that the company has been running a “Big Idiot Seat Sale” in recent days.

“We love these PR spats that drive bookings on Ryanair,” he said, adding that the airline would be offering Musk a free ticket.

The squabble began after the Ryanair (RYAAY) boss said on January 14 that he wouldn’t install Starlink satellite Wi-Fi technology, which is made by Musk’s firm SpaceX, on the airline’s planes, due to concerns over drag and an associated increase in fuel costs.

In a post on X the same day, Musk said O’Leary was “misinformed.”

“I doubt they can even measure the difference in fuel use accurately,” he added.

Musk also called O’Leary “an utter idiot” and a “retarded twat.”

On Friday, O’Leary, who is famously outspoken and known for his skill in harnessing publicity, fired back during an interview with Irish radio station Newstalk.

“I would pay no attention whatsoever to Elon Musk. He’s an idiot — very wealthy, but he’s still an idiot,” he said. “What Elon Musk knows about flights and drag would be zero.”

SpaceX, which Musk founded, is a rocket manufacturer and space transport services company.

CNN has contacted Ryanair and SpaceX for comment.

On Wednesday, O’Leary said he took “no insult” from Musk’s comments.

“As anybody with teenage children would know, you’re frequently called an idiot and a twat at home,” he said. “I don’t need to go outside to be insulted.”

O’Leary also provided further details behind the decision not to offer Starlink internet connectivity on Ryanair planes, as an increasing number of other airlines have started to do.

“It is a very good system,” said O’Leary. “The problem is if you put it on board aircraft, there is a cost.”

O’Leary estimates that it would cost Ryanair around $200-250 million a year in installation fees and increased running costs due to fuel drag caused by the two antennae that would have to be installed on the fuselage of each of the company’s 643 planes.

Ryanair would not be able to recover these costs by charging passengers to use the service, according to O’Leary.

Although Starlink claims that around 90% of passengers are willing to pay for internet access, the airline has found that less than 10% would do so, he said.

O’Leary also expressed his surprise that the decision had resulted in a feud, which has also seen Musk raise the possibi

By Patrick Snell, CNN

(CNN) — Property, passports and Pokémon! Three things that are very much front and center now for a tennis coach from Sydney who’s just become Australia’s newest millionaire.

Life, it turns out, will never be the same again for Jordan Smith.

“Just smiles on people’s faces, it’s been awesome. It’s been crazy,” Smith told CNN Sports about what’s happened after winning the “One Point Slam.”

“People off the streets have been wanting photos and autographs, I could never imagine that, so I’m loving it,” he added.

The 29-year-old amateur from the family-run Castle Hill Tennis Academy won 1 million AUD ($670,000) after sealing victory in the aforementioned competition in the build-up to this year’s Australian Open in Melbourne.

The innovative event – with all matches lasting just one point – featured a star-studded field comprising amateurs and professionals and included six-time grand slam champion Carlos Alcaraz and two-time defending Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner, who Smith beat on the way to the title.

“To be fair, I didn’t hit a ball against him. I was very lucky that he missed that serve because I was going to be in a lot of trouble if I had to rally with him,” Smith said.

“(It was) just unbelievable just being on the court with such a champion – a player, (who was) so nice, so down to earth. He wished me the best.”

And then came the moment that changed Smith’s life forever as he defeated Joanna Garland in the final by clinching the point that netted him his million-dollar payday.

“I was obviously very shocked and seeing my family and friends after on the court, and just hugging and kissing, crying and laughing. I just can’t believe it. I wake up every morning, and I don’t know how it happened. It’s just unbelievable!”

Overnight celebrity

Overnight, the man from Sydney – who took up tennis at the age of three – had been well and truly thrust into the global spotlight.

Alcaraz proclaimed his name over social media while there was even time for a meeting with Swiss icon Roger Federer, winner of 20 grand slam singles titles during his storied career.

“It was about a 15-to-20-minute chat. We got photos with my girlfriend and I. (Federer) was so down to earth, like the nicest guy I’ve ever met,” the Australian reflected.

“It’s such an unbelievable experience. I got a nice photo and I’m going to frame it for sure and put it in my room.”

For now, Jordan still lives at home but not, it seems, for too much longer.

With a substantial boost to his bank balance, Smith is hoping to break into the pricey Sydney property market, and he’ll be dusting down his passport too for a possible trip to Japan with his girlfriend Jess.

“I think a million where I’m living in Castle Hill would probabl

Por EFE

La presidenta encargada de Venezuela, Delcy Rodríguez, anunció este martes el ingreso de US$ 300 millones al país “producto de la venta del petróleo”, días después de que Washington anunciara un acuerdo de venta de crudo del país suramericano por US$ 500 millones.

“De los primeros 500 millones, han ingresado 300 millones”, afirmó Rodríguez durante una visita a una base de comunas en Caracas, en un acto transmitido por el canal estatal Venezolana de Televisión (VTV).

Según indicó, estos ingresos se destinarán a “cubrir y financiar” el ingreso de los trabajadores, así como “protegerlo de la inflación” y del “impacto negativo de los vaivenes en el mercado cambiario”.

La moneda legal de Venezuela es el bolívar, pero el dólar estadounidense -y en ocasiones, el euro- se utilizan como referencia para fijar precios de bienes y servicios.

El tipo de cambio oficial lo fija el Banco Central de Venezuela (BCV). No obstante, existe un mercado paralelo con un valor superior, lo que ha causado una brecha entre los tipos de cambio, por lo que los productos pueden tener distintos precios de acuerdo con la moneda que se use para la compra.

Como explicó la semana pasada, la mandataria encargada reiteró que estos ingresos de la venta de crudo serán “utilizados y empleados” a través del mercado cambiario, en la banca nacional y a través del BCV, “para consolidar y estabilizar el mercado”, agregó.

El pasado jueves, la portavoz de la Casa Blanca, Karoline Leavitt, destacó un acuerdo cerrado entre Washington y Caracas, valorado en 500 millones de dólares, por el cual EE.UU. comercializará hasta 50 millones de barriles de crudo venezolano y gestionará los ingresos antes de transferirlos al país suramericano.

Leavitt afirmó entonces que el Gobierno encargado de Delcy Rodríguez ha cumplido con “todas las exigencias y solicitudes” de la administración de Donald Trump.

Rodríguez asumió el Ejecutivo tras los ataques de EE.UU. en Caracas y otros tres estados que terminaron con la captura del presidente venezolano, Nicolás Maduro, y su esposa, la diputada Cilia Flores, quienes permanecen encarcelados en Nueva York.

Desde entonces, Trump afirmó que pidió “acceso total” a los recursos petroleros venezolanos, mientras que su secretario de Energía, Chris Wright, aseguró que EE.UU. controlará la venta del crudo de Venezuela por un tiempo “indefinido”.

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By Kaanita Iyer, David Goldman, CNN

(CNN) — Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Wednesday offered some biting words about Denmark, which maintains territorial control over Greenland, after the European country’s pension fund announced it would unwind its investment in US government bonds.

Bessent said in response that Denmark and its investment in the United States were “irrelevant.”

“Denmark’s investment in US Treasury bonds – like Denmark itself – is irrelevant,” Bessent told reporters at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, when asked how concerned he is about institutional investors in Europe potentially pulling out of Treasuries.

“It is less than $100 million. They’ve been selling Treasuries. They have for years,” Bessent continued, adding, “I’m not concerned at all.”

Bessent was referring to AkademikerPension, the Danish pension operator, which said this week it was dumping its $100 million worth of US Treasury holdings because of “poor government finances.”

The $100 million makes up a very small portion of the $30.8 trillion US Treasury market but Denmark itself holds just under $10 billion worth of US bonds. As Bessent noted, that investment has been on the decline for several years – the country held just under $18 billion of US Treasuries as recently as 2021.

The European Union collectively owns $8 trillion of America’s Treasuries, making it the largest financer of US debt.

Bessent’s comments come as President Donald Trump has set his sight on acquiring Greenland and has threatened to slap significant new tariffs on any ally that opposes his efforts.

European countries have criticized Trump’s plan, and several NATO members have deployed small numbers of military personnel to Greenland to participate in joint exercises with Denmark.

A Deutsche Bank analyst this week warned that Trump’s actions in Greenland risked the EU unloading US debt, a move that could have significant impacts, including raising borrowing costs and exacerbating cost of living problems. Bessent on Wednesday criticized that analysis.

“This notion that Europeans would be selling US assets came from a single analyst at Deutsche Bank. Of course, the fake news media, led by the Financial Times, amplified it,” Bessent told reporters. “And the CEO of Deutsche Bank called to say that Deutsche Bank does not stand by that analyst’s report.”

Throughout Trump’s tariff saga and other disputes between the US and other countries, Wall Street analysts have theorized that America’s largest debt holders, including Japan ($1.2 trillion), China ($682 billion) and Canada ($472 billion), could begin to unwind their US Treasury holdings, preventing Congress from raising money to fund the massive debt. But that hasn’t come to pass – demand for US Treasuries has remained high, affording Trump and Congress the ability to pay for his domestic policy agenda and tax cuts, which added to the country’s already high debt load.

On Tuesday, Trump sugges