Park Hae-Il 박해일 [Movies: “Decision to Leave”, “Hansan: Rising Dragon”]

[Helena]

Park Hae-il 박해일

 

PROFILE
Name: Park Hae-il [박해일]
Born: January 26, 1977 | Seoul, South Korea
Body: 177cm | 68kg | Type O
Family: Wife, 1 son, 1 daughter
Education: Hwagok High School > Namseoul University (English major / dropped out)
Debut: 2000 theater ‘Ode to Youth 청춘예찬’

Military Service: Exemption (aftereffects of leg surgery - car accident riding motorcycle in HS)
Religion: Irreligion
Hobby: Watching movies, listening to music, reading, playing computer games
Specialty: Singing, playing guitar, table tennis, baseball
Agency: SMWP ENTERTAINMENT [ homepage | instagram ]
Links: [ hp@SWMP | hp@HM Enter ] | namu

 

[ The 32nd Blue Dragon Film Awards: Best Actor Park Hae-il | Cr: Chosun]

[ kofic ] Park Haeil, born in 1977, started his acting career early on with a first experience on stage in his childhood. Having won Best New Actor in the theatre category of the Baeksang Arts Awards in 2000 for his role as the lead in the Korean play <Ode to Youth>, filmmakers took notice of him and were drawn by his somewhat boyish appearance, which could be seen at odd with the great maturity in his acting. Following a supporting role in the inspirational indie favorite <Waikiki Brothers> (2001) from YIM Soon-rye, he took on the lead role in another well-known indie drama, <Jealousy Is My Middle Name> (2002). A new chapter in his filmography was opened when he was cast against type in the role of an unsettling innocent-looking suspect of a series of gruesome murders in Bong Joonho’s universally acclaimed <Memories of Murder> (2003). Speaking on these conflicting impressions the actor would give, Bong compared him to “a soap-smelling pervert”. Park then played an unscrupulous womanizer teacher who keeps hitting on his new colleague in <Rules of Dating> (2005), a far cry from the ideal image of a romantic and bright man he had in <My Mother, The Mermaid> (2004), which had won him many fans. From then on, he would steer away from romantic fare to expand his acting repertoire. He reunited with director Bong for <The Host> (2006). Following the thriller film <Paradise Murdered> (2007), Park worked again with director Kim Hanmin for <War of the Arrows>, which became the biggest box-office draw of 2011 with over 7 million admissions. Park’s performance was particularly praised and earned him awards from the Blue Dragon Film Awards and the Grand Bell Awards, preceded by another accolade at the Bucheon Fantastic Film Festival. He stretched his acting scope further still as he took on the role of an elderly poet in the acclaimed 2012 feature <Eungyo>, for which he was grimed to look 40 years older. The Song Haesung family drama <Boomerang Family> followed in 2013 before he returned to romantic fare, his first since 2005, in the Zhang Lu film <Gyeongju> (2014). Two more high profile roles followed later that year with Lee Haejun’s second solo direction effort <My Dictator>, in which he played Sul Kyunggu’s son, and Yim Soonrye’s <The Whistleblower>, where he played a journalist who becomes the target of a mobbing campaign and political pressure after he reveals that a high-profile stem cell research project is nothing but a fraud. Slowing for a moment, Park only appeared in Zhang Lu’s anthology <Love and…> before returning in 2016 to the commercial fold, with an appearance in Hur Jinho’s Colonial Era romantic drama <The Last Princess> (2016). With the historical war drama <The Fortress>, Park went back to the exact same period that was depicted in <War in Arrows>, but this time to portray the notorious ruler of that time, King Injo of Joseon, as he was forced to surrender to the Qing army after a long siege in the mountains. After another critically acclaimed collaboration with Zhang in <Ode to the Goose> (2018), Park played the monk who largely contributed to the creation of the Korean alphabet in the historical drama <The King’s Letters> (2019). In 2022, he starred in two of the most important releases of the year. He was first seen as the male lead role in Park Chanwook’s <Decision to Leave>, which earned the filmmaker the Cannes award for Best Director, and soon after that film’s Korean release, Park was back at it again as he played the young historical hero Admiral Yi Sun-shin in <Hansan: Rising Dragon> (2022), his third collaboration with Kim Hanmin.

Spoiler

[ koreanfilm ] Park Hae-il (b. January 26, 1977) began appearing in theatre productions ever since childhood, and he first established himself on stage rather than on the screen. In 2000 he was awarded the Best New Actor award in the theatre category of the Baeksang Art Awards for his role in the play "Cheongchun-yechan". His film debut was in a minor role of Yim Soon-rye's Waikiki Brothers, however he left a major impression in his second film Jealousy Is My Middle Name, in which he played a conflicted young man who develops a fascination/hatred for his boss, who has stolen two women from him. The film won the top prize at the Pusan festival in 2002, and was released commercially the following spring.
 
Throughout his career Park has been cast in two different types of roles: innocent-looking, boyish characters, or else men who hide a dark streak under a nice-looking exterior. After Jealousy, Park would take on his darkest role of all in the acclaimed smash hit Memories of Murder, where he portrayed a man suspected of committing serial murder. Yet the following year he was just as effective appearing in a romantic role opposite Jeon Do-yeon in time-travel drama My Mother, the Mermaid.
 
In 2005 he once again played characters of completely opposite temperament. In Rules of Dating he plays a dirty-minded, scheming high school instructor who sets his mind on a pretty student teacher played by Gang Hye-jung, while in The Boy Who Went to Heaven he plays a young boy who suddenly finds himself an adult one day, ala Tom Hanks in Big.
 
2006 will see him return to work with acclaimed director Bong Joon-ho in the big-budget monster movie The Host.

 

Park Hae-il as the master archer Choi Nam-yi in War of the Arrows

 

FILMOGRAPHY
 
MOVIE (Src: kobis)
Opening Year | Title | Role | Total Admissions (people)

• 2023 ‘Heaven: To the Land of Happiness | 행복의 나라로’ as Nam-sik 남식 // Im Sang-soo
• 2022-11-16: ‘Hansan REDUX | 한산 리덕스‘ as Admiral Yi Sun-Shin 이순신 // Kim Han-min
• 
2022-07-27: ‘Hansan: Rising Dragon | 한산: 용의 출현’ as Admiral Yi Sun-Shin 이순신 [7,264,230] // Kim Han-min

• 2022-06-29: ‘Decision to Leave | 헤어질 결심‘ as Chang Hae-joon 장해존 [1,889,968] // Park Chan-wook
• 2019 ‘The King’s Letters | 나랏말싸미‘ as Monk Sin-min 신미 스님 [958,775]
• 2018 ‘High Society | 상류사회‘ as Jang Tae-joon 장태준 [768,442]
• 2018 ‘Ode to the Goose | 군산 : 거위를 노래하다‘ as Yoon-young 윤영 [15,447] // Zhang Lu
• 2017 ‘The Fortress | 남한산성‘ as King Injo 인조 [3,849,087] // Hwang Dong-hyuk 
• 2016 ‘The Last Princess | 덕혜옹주‘ as Kim Jang-han 김장한 [5,599,229] // Hur Jin-ho
• 2015 ‘Love and... | 필름시대사랑‘ as 1st lighting assistant [1,611] // Zhang Lu
• 2014 ‘My Dictator | 나의 독재자‘ as Tae-sik 태식 [385,934] // Lee Hae-joon 
• 2014 ‘The Whistleblower | 제보자‘ as Yoon Min-cheol 윤민철  [1,755,181] // Yim Soon-rye
• 2014 ‘Santa Barbara’ as reporter (voice cameo) [16,626]
• 2014 ‘Gyeong-ju | 경주‘ as Choi Hyun 최현 [63,456] // Zhang Lu
• 2013 ‘Boomerang Family | 고령화 가족‘ as Oh In-mo 오인모 [1,141,222] // Song Hae-sung 
• 2012 ‘A Muse | Eungyo | 은교‘ as Lee Jeok-yo 이적요 [1,346,274] // Jung Ji-woo
• 2011 ‘War of the Arrows | 최종병기 활‘ as Choi Nam-yi 최남이 [7,482,180] // Kim Han-min
• 2011 ‘End of Animal ‘ as baseball cap [1,030]
• 2011 ‘Heartbeat | 심장이 뛴다‘ as Lee Hwi-do 이휘도  [1,006,947] // Yoon Jae-keun 
• 2010 ‘Moss | 이끼‘ as Ryu Hae-guk 류해국 [3,408,144] // Kang Woo-suk 
• 2009 ‘A Million | 10억‘ as Han Kae-tae 한기태 [438,833]
• 2008 ‘Modern Boy | 모던보이‘ as Lee Hae-myung 이해명  [758,473] // Jung Ji-woo 
• 2007 ‘Paradise Murdered | 극락도 살인사건‘ as Jae Woo-sung 제우성 [2,259,511] // Kim Han-min
• 2006 ‘The Host | 괴물‘ as Park Nam-il 박남일 [13,019,740] // Bong Joon-ho
• 2005 ‘A Boy Who Went to Heaven | 소년,천국의 가다‘ as Bae Ne-mo 배네모 [242,053]
• 
2005 ‘Rules of Dating | 연애의 목적‘ as Lee Yoo-rim 이유림 [1,735,977] // Han Jae-rim 
• 2004 ‘My Mother, the Mermaid | 인어공주‘ as Kim Jin-guk 김진국 [661,679] // Park Heung-sik
• 2003 ‘Memories of Murder | 살인의 추억‘ as Park Hyun-gyu 박현규 [5,255,376] // Bong Joon-ho
• 2003 ‘Jealousy is My Middle Name | 질투는 나의 힘‘ as Lee Wong-sang 이원상 [62,788] // Park Chan-ok
• 2003 ‘Scent of Love | 국화꽃 향기‘ as Seo In-ha 서인하 [837,236]
• 2003 ‘Mobile’ {short film} // Yim Pil-sung
• 2003 ‘Audition | 오디션’ as Yoon Ji-seok 윤지석 {short film} // Lee Kyoung-mi 

• 2002 ‘Who are You? | 후아유‘ as man in photo (cameo)
• 2001 ‘Waikiki Brother | 와이키키 브라더스‘ as young Sung-woo 성우 [88,214] // Yim Soon-rye

 
THEATER

• 2003 ‘Generation After Generation | 대대손손’
• 2000 ‘Ode to Youth | 청춘예찬”
• 1999 ‘Family Baguette | 패밀리바겟트’
• 1998 ‘Othello | 오델로’

 

[ 48th Grand Bell Awards: Best Actor Park Hae-il ]

AWARDS
[2023-02-24] 21st Director's CUT Awards: Film Actor of the Year (Decision to Leave)

[2022-12-20] Cine21 Movie Awards: Actor of the Year (Decision to Leave)

[2022-12-19] 42nd Gold Awards Festival: Best Actor (Decision to Leave)

[2022-12-09] 23rd Busan Film Critics Association (BCFA) Awards: Best Actor (Decision to Leave)

[2022-12-09] 58th Grand Bell Film Awards: Best Actor (Decision to Leave)

[2022-11-25] 43rd Blue Dragon Film Awards: Best Actor (Decision to Leave)

[2022-11-11] Asian Journalist Association Award 2022

[2022-10-06] 31st Buil Film Awards: Best Actor (Decision to Leave)

[2022-09-30] 27th Chunsa Film Arts Awards: Best Actor (Decision to Leave)

[2017] 1st ShinFilm Art Film Festival: Commercial Film - Actor Award
[2017] 22nd Consumer Rights Day Award: Cultural Person (The Fortress)
[2017] 1st Screenwriter Association Awards: Best Actor (The Last Princess)


[2017] 37th Gold Awards Festival: Best Actor (The Last Princess)


[2012] 7th Asia Model Festival Awards: Asia Special Award
[2011] 19th Korean Culture & Entertainment Awards: Grand Prize in Film (War of the Arrows)
[2011] 27th Korea Best Dressed Swan Awards: Best Dressed Movie Star
[2011] 48th Grand Bell Awards: Best Actor (War of the Arrows)
[2011] 32nd Blue Dragon Film Awards: Best Actor (War of the Arrows)


[2011] 15th Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival (PiFan): Actor Award 
[2008] 16th Korean Culture & Entertainment Awards: Excellence in Film (Modern Boy)


[2007] 3rd Andre Kim Best Star Awards: Best Male Star


[2006] 9th Director's CUT Awards: Best Ensemble Acting Award (cast of The Host)
[2004] 9th Female Audience Film Awards: Most Hopeful Male Character (My Mother, the Mermaid)
[2003] 6th Director's CUT Awards: Best New Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)
[2003] 26th Korean Society of Cinematographers Awards: Best New Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)
[2003] 8th Female Audience Film Awards: Best Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)


[2003] 4th Busan Film Critics Association (BCFA) Awards: Best New Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)
[2003] 11th Chunsa Film Arts Awards: Best New Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)
[2003] 2nd Korean Movie Awards: Best New Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)


[2003] 23rd Korean Association of Film Critics (KAFC) Awards: Best New Actor (Jealously is My Middle Name)
[2003] Cine21 Movie Awards: New Actor of the Year (Jealously is My Middle Name)
[2000] 36th Baeksang Arts Awards: Theater Best New Actor (Ode to Youth)

REVIEWS

• Boomerang Family: hangukyeonghwa | 
• Decision to Leave (2022): KyuHyunKim | HollywoodReporter | Screen | Variety | Deadline | Indiewire | Guardian | Telegraph | LittleWhiteLies || FilmStage | RogerEbert | Scmp | 
• The Fortress: ACC | 
• The Host: DarcyParquet | hangukyeonghwa | ACC | 
• Jealousy is My Middle Name: KyuHyunKim | 
• Memories of Murder: DarcyParquet | hangukyeonghwa | PaulQuinn | ACC
• Moss (2010): hangukyeonghwa | PaulQuinn | yonhap | 
• A Muse: PierceConran | hangukyeonghwa | PaulQuinn | 
• My Mother, the Mermaid: KyuHyunKim | 
• Ode to the Goose: ACC | 
• Paradise Murdered: KyuHyunKim | 
• Rules of Dating (2005): Mr X | KyuHyunKim | yonhap | 
• Waikiki Brother: PierceConran | 
• War of the Arrows: KyuHyunKim | hangukyeonghwa
• Whistle Blower: hangukyeonghwa | 

 

NEWS

tbd

[2020-05-27] PARK Hae-il to Play Admiral Yi Sun-sin in HANSAN: x
[2020-05-20] Park Hae-il offered lead in Park Chan-wook's new film: x
[2019-11-04] CHOI Min-shik and PARK Hae-il Travel TO THE LAND OF HAPPINESS: x


[2017-10-04] [Interview] Why Park Hae-il is called a ‘blank sheet’
: x

[2015-10-29] At a crossroads in filmmaking, a labor of love
: x

[2011-01-04] Park Hae Il: ‘I Want to Present Diverse Acting’
: x

[2010-07-16] [INTERVIEW] Actor Park Hae-il – Part 1 + 2


[2010-07-02] Park Hae Il: I Want to Become Good Actor Completely Immersed in Movie:x
[2010-06-30] (Review) Kang Woo-suk's 'Moss' keeps audience guessing with eerie twists
: x

[2006-07-04] Bong Joon-ho creates a sympathetic monster in 'The Host'
: x

[2005-06-09] (Review) 'Rules of Dating' is predictable but funny: x

Thread created by Thunderbolt (miss and love you Thundie).
Data: gathered/translated/updated from namu | kobiz | kobis 
Images: re-uploaded from Naver + CTTO (all copyrights/credits belong to original sources/creators)

RULES [ Soompi ForumRules | K-Dramas/Movies/Actors/Actresses ForumRules ]

[armanigurl]

OMG!!!!! I LOVE THIS MAN!!!!!

heard that his latest movie was DA BOMB!

can't wait to watch it

thank u for starting his thread... i luve uuuuu~~~

[Guest thunderbolt]

Hey, AG, good to see you! And thanks for the great caps from My Mother the Mermaid and Scent of Love. *muak!*

I just watched Rules of Dating. You're right. It was da bomb! Great acting from the leads. I love the honesty in the movie. And his character's opening line in the movie... *censored* Please watch it. I wanna discuss this movie with someone so bad.

More PHI pics:

(credit: yahoo; uploaded by thunderbolt)

***************************

His debut movie, Waikiki Brothers (2001):

(credit: hancinema; uploaded by thunderbolt)

Waikiki Brothers was nominated for four awards and won three:

Best Film Winner (100 Sang Film Award 2002)

Best Supporting Actress Winner (Blue Dragon Film Awards 2001)

Technical Work Winner (Blue Dragon Film Awards 2001)

Netpac Award Nomination (PUSAN International Film Festival 2001)

[Guest thunderbolt]

[9th Piff] - Interview With Park Hae-il: Actor and Movie Lover Takes In PIFF (2004/10/10)

By Kim Tae-jong

Staff Reporter

``This year is my third time to visit PIFF and I think every year I come to Pusan, I see improvement in the festival,’’ Korean actor Park Hae-il said.

Park, whose films include ``My Mother, the Mermaid’’ and ``Memories of Murder,’’ arrived in Pusan Thursday to take part in the opening ceremony, and is sticking around to enjoy the atmosphere of the festival. He believes the festival has definitely become an event for moviegoers, not only for actors or filmmakers.

The 28-year-old has received acclaim for impressive performances on stage as well as in films. He dazzled audiences in a supporting role as a coldhearted murder suspect in the hit thriller ``Memories of Murder.’’ In his most recent movie, ``My Mother, the Mermaid,’’ which is screening in the Korean Panorama section, Park plays a kind and gentle postman that falls in love with an uneducated diver.

Park says he likes his supporting role in the 2001 movie ``Waikiki Brothers’’ the most among the characters he has played, since it was his debut film and the character resembled him in many ways when he was in high school.

``When I get a movie script, I try to spend most of my time thinking about the role. I usually ask myself, lying on the floor, `If you were the person in the movie, what would you do?’ And then afterward, I also get some tips by discussing the role with the director,’’ he said.

Among the films Park plans to see in Pusan are ``So Cute,’’ ``My Generation,’’ ``Blood and Bones’’ and ``Ocean Fever.’’

``I think this is a really good opportunity to see a variety of movies in one place so I can learn how other famous actors play their roles in many different movies,’’ Park said.

Although he likes every element of the festival, he wishes people could see the movies shown in PIFF even after the festival ends, since there are so many good movies but not enough time to see them all.

Apart from watching good movies at PIFF, Park thinks that meeting and chatting with people in Pusan is another attraction that draws him to the festival.

Park is now choosing his next film, which would start shooting this winter. ``I’d like to play a character that is a bit different from what I have played before. I think it will be better in developing experience as an actor,’’ he said.

Source : www.koreatimes.co.kr... ( English Korean )

[armanigurl]

Hey, AG, good to see you! And thanks for the great caps from My Mother the Mermaid and Scent of Love. *muak!*

I just watched Rules of Dating. You're right. It was da bomb! Great acting from the leads. I love the honesty in the movie. And his character's opening line in the movie... *censored* Please watch it. I wanna discuss this movie with someone so bad.

hey thundie u actually inspired me to start a new thread for his new movie Rules of Dating..

u can discuss the movie with people who have watched it over there which is wat u have done

so far 2 people said the movie was provoking.. hehe..

i just wanna see park hae il act again.. i loved him the most in scent of chrysanthymum. then i loved him even more in memories of murder..

there's a quiet charm in this man.. which makes me so curious about his role in rules of dating and how he's gonna turn 360 on his usual quiet type characters.

anyway, mr park has a new movie for us to look forward to...

here's some info about it:

THE BOY WHO WENT TO HEAVEN. ("Sonyeon, Cheonguk-e gada") Yeom Jeong-ah (The Big Swindle, Lovely Rivals) and Park Hae-Il (My Mother The Mermaid, Memories Of Murder) team up for a new romantic-fantasy under the direction of Yun Tae-Yong (Vanishing Twin). Yeom plays Bu-Ja, a 29-year old single mother of a four-year old. In order to make a living for herself and her son, Bu-Ja works in a comic book store during the day and sings in a cabaret at night. Bu-Ja meets a naive and pure man whom she falls in love with. However, he is so innocent that he actually seems to be regressing in age. Also appearing in this Sidus production are Oh Kwang-rok (A Moment To Remember, Oldboy), Jo Min-su (TV's Piano, Daemang) and Park Eun-su returning after a long break following his role in TV's Spider in 1995. Scheduled for a November 11 release.

source: koreanfilm

[Guest thunderbolt]

Ha, AG, you beat me to it. Was just about to post that info from koreanfilm.org about his Nov movie.

Here's the cast for his 2006 movie, The Host:

from left: Bae Doona, Park Hae-il, Song Kangho, Byeon Hee-bong, director Bong Joonho

The Host will reunite PHI, SKH and PD BJH from Memories of Murder.

(credit: koreanfilm & popcornfor2)

**************

Official site for PHI's new movie, The Boy Who Went to Heaven:

http://www.cineseoul.com/movies/cinedata.html?cinemaID=26265

Some caps from official site:

Ha, looks like he's playing another wacko character!

[Guest thunderbolt]

PHI's movie, Jealousy is My Middle Name, was invited to the 2003 Edinburgh Film Festival. Here's a review published in The Scotsman:

Jealousy is My Middle Name

Alistair Harkness

Directed by: Park Chan-ok

Starring: Moon Sung-Keun, Bae Jong-ok, Park Hae-il, Seo young-hee

A TITLE like this might have you expecting a bloody little revenge thriller, something along the lines of the recent Sympathy for Mr Vengeance, but this South Korean film from first-time director Park Chan-ok has a different agenda and becomes instead an intriguing and quite sinister, take on the genre.

Quiet, intelligent, solemn and recently dumped by his girlfriend, graduate student Lee Weon-san (Park Hae-il) takes a job at a literary magazine, ostensibly to supplement his income, but really to get close to the editor - the reason he’s now single. The editor, unaware of who Lee is, takes a shine to him and makes him his personal assistant. He likes having him around as he’s the only person he feels comfortable with, which means he often takes advantage of Lee’s passive nature, making him run errands for him all over town.

The fiercely independent Lee, however, works without complaint, having started a new relationship with part-time photographer/part-time vet Park Seong-Yeon. When she takes a full-time job at the magazine, however, Lee pleads with her not to get involved with the editor, a plea that goes unheeded and sets Lee thinking once again about vengeance. It’s here that the film really starts to veer from the conventional path.

It’s never clear just what Lee has in mind, indeed he seems a little too pathetic to work any kind of scheme, but a sub-plot in which he impregnates, then abandons, his troubled landlord hints at the callousness he’s capable of. Park offsets the darkness of the story with some quite beautiful imagery. The ending, though somewhat ambiguous, should leave you in no doubt that things are not going to turn out well.

(credit: hancinema; uploaded by thunderbolt)

************

"Extrano," "Jealousy," and "Lilya" Win 32nd Rotterdam Tiger Awards

by Eugene Hernandez

Three films shared Tiger Awards at the 32nd International Film Festival Rotterdam in The Netherlands; prizes were presented Friday night at the Festival. Winning the three equal VPRO Tiger Awards were Santiago Loza's "Extrano" from Argentina, Park Chan-Ok's "Jiltoo-Neun Na-E Him" (Jealousy is My Middle Name) from South Korea and Larisa Sadilova's "S Ljubov' Ju" (With Love. Lilya) from Russia.

Each Tiger Award, presented to a first or second-time filmmaker, carries a €10,000 award as well as a broadcast on VPRO and a guaranteed Dutch art house distribution. Fourteen films competed in the 2003 IFFR competition.

Jurors included former director of the Venice Film Festival Alberto Barbera, filmmaker Mahamat Saleh from Chad, Thai producer Duangkamol Limcharoen, filmmaker Olivier Assayas from France, and sales agent Christina Saredi from Switzerland.

"Extrano" was selected, in the words of the jury, for being "a confident and mature debut that takes a bold risk, inventing its own visual language to describe the outer and inner world of a man who has become a stranger to life." "Jealousy Is My Middle Name" was hailed for being "an ambitious film about human relations, written and directed with confidence and sensitivity, and supported by strong ensemble acting."

source: http://www.indiewire.com/onthescene/onthes...030131rott.html

(credit: asianb)

[Guest thunderbolt]

I first saw PHI in Memories of Murder. His character freaked me out; he was so creepy! I didn't know his name but I certainly remembered his role. When I watched My Mother the Mermaid, I found him so familiar. Hmm... was he that creep in MOM? So I rewatched the last part of MOM just for him and OMO, same guy!

MOM cap (PHI's character is the faint image in the pic the the two cops are holding):

(credit: hancinema; uploaded by thunderbolt)

Here's an excerpt from a Memories of Murder review that mentions PHI:

Although this movie features one of the best performances ever from Song Kang-ho, one of Korea's most talented actors, the film's amazing ensemble cast almost succeeds in stealing his spotlight. Minor characters such as the old police chief (played by Byun Hee-bong), the slightly retarded Baek Kwang-ho (played by theatre actor Park No-shik, who now has his own fan club), violent investigator Yong-gu (Kim Rae-ha, in his most prominent role to date), Song Kang-ho's girlfriend Sul-young (played by Jeon Mi-seon, who was Han Suk-kyu's old flame in Christmas in August) and the new police chief (Song Jae-ho, also in Double Agent) are only a few of the memorable characters created by this skilled cast. Park Hae-il from Jealousy Is My Middle Name also takes a role towards the end of the film that is sure to stay in the memory of viewers.

(credit: koreanfilm.org)

[Guest iamstellar!]

i love pak hae-il!!! he has such a genuine, down to earth look to him...i adored him in "scent of love" and "mermaid"....i look forward seeming him in other movies....he seems so underrated..he should get more recognition for his great work! ....kudos to thunderbolt..whom created this thread..you rock my socks!!

[Guest thunderbolt]

hi iamstellar!

Glad to see another PHI admirer here. Yes, he's really underrated and does not have hordes of fans. However, I believe he's well-respected in the industry because he has done some very good movies in a short span of 4 years.

What other PHI movies have you watched? My favorite is still My Mother the Mermaid - I watched it again and again! I have seen all his works except for Waikiki Brothers and I plan to get that one soon.

Some pics from My Mother the Mermaid:

(credit: mplanet & hancinema; uploaded by thunderbolt)

[Guest atel]

this guy is a good actor.

i remember watching a ng thing on an entertainment show. he was filming rules of dating with kang hyejeong and i guess her shirt was open (part of the script) and he flubbed his line... he got distracted by glimpses of her breast

[Guest thunderbolt]

I hope to make this thread as informative as possible so I'll post reviews of PHI's movies when I come across them. Brickbats or praise, I'll post what I can find.

Among PHI's movies, the one that I didn't particularly enjoy was Scent of Love. I don't know... people who have watched this movie either love it to bits or hate it with a venom. I'm sort of neutral about it. I watched Scent of Love and Jealousy is My Middle Name one after another and I definitely preferred him in Jealousy. I think I'll rewatch Scent of Love to see if I'll feel differently about it this time. I like the female lead, Jang Jin-young a lot.

Here's a lively discussion of Scent of Love which contains some strong criticism of PHI's role in this movie:

http://www.koreanfilm.org/dc/dcboard.php?a...sg_id=123&page=

Scent of Love was PHI's first lead role in a movie:

(credit: movie.naver.com & movist.com; uploaded by thunderbolt)

[Guest thunderbolt]

Friday, November 4, 2005

'Boy, Goes to Heaven' conjures up body-transference fantasy tale

If you are not a fanatic fan of the cinematic fantasyland, especially the body-transference genre in which a boy turns into an adult overnight, stop reading here.

Now that you've ignored the kind warning and decided to read on at your own risk, there's one more thing you have to do. What is the 1988 body-swap classic film in the United States? The BIG hint: Tom Hanks starred in it.

The answer is of course "Big," and this silly question-and-answer has something to do with "Boy, Goes to Heaven," the latest Korean boy-into-a-man film directed by Yun Tae-yong.

Both films belong to the peculiar genre, and their backgrounds are set in the 1980s. Unfortunately, their similarity ends just there. While "Big" is a hilarious body-swap comedy that showcases Hanks's amazingly flawless acting, "Boy, Goes to Heaven" is a fantasy-driven melodrama that evokes not so much laughter as memories about the 1980s.

And number "three" seems important in "Boy, Goes to Heaven" as the boy in question is 13 and turns 33 before reaching his ultimate age of 93.

The "three" characters in the film also matter most: Nae-mo, the precocious 13-year-old boy played by Kim Gwan-wu and Park Hae-il, and Bu-ja, a sort of femme fatale by Yeom Jeong-ah.

The young Nae-mo, played by Kim Gwan-wu, is the only son of a single mother who runs a watch repair shop in a small town. He loves singing the popular songs of the 1980s and looks cheerful, but wonders why he isn't allowed to know about his father whom he never met.

Nae-mo is indeed an interesting character. Since he has an unmarried mother and thinks he understands the loneliness of his mother, Nae-mo decides to marry an unmarried mom in the future.

His life suddenly takes a drastic turn when his mother commits suicide out of despair and sorrow. Nae-mo is now living alone, managing his own household alone (don't ask why and how a young boy is left alone in the empty house instead of being sent off to an orphanage since this is, well, a pure-play fantasy).

Where there was his mother's watch store, a comic book rental shop comes in - along with its female owner named Buja who turns out to be an unmarried mother.

Nae-mo instantly falls for Bu-ja since she is the dream-come-true woman for his life. Not only is she an unmarried mother with a son who's younger than Nae-mo, Bu-ja is also a sexually attractive and sensuously irresistible lady.

The transformation happens at a movie theater (which is a symbolic place as it's the center of boyhood fantasy). When a fire breaks out at the theater, Nae-mo stays inside to rescue Bu-ja's son and somehow he dies instead.

Or so he thinks. It turns out that a death messenger get things mixed up and Nae-mo's real father also plays a role mysteriously to resurrect Nae-mo. The catch is that his life restarts at the age of 33 (body only) and his age advances quite rapidly (one day in his new life is a year passed). He is supposed to live until 93, and that's 60 more years, but thanks to the pact with the death messenger, it translates into just 60 more days.

The 33-year-old Nae-mo, who is now played by Park Hae-il, pretends to be his own father since nobody believes he's the young boy in a grown-up's body. And his quest for marrying the unmarried mother Bu-ja gains momentum.

The movie is supposed to feature Nae-mo's pure emotions. He is not only in love with Bu-ja but also protects the unmarried mother and becomes a father for her son, who needs a father like he did.

But Nae-mo's pure-heart aspect is sidelined not least because of the Bu-ja character played by Yeom. Bu-ja's nightly job (she's already the so-called two-job member in the 1980s in Korea) is singing in a tawdry dance club, and her gorgeous appearance and strong sexuality as a single mother in her mid-30s virtually obliterates the simple boyhood purity.

Another not-so-kiddie problem is that Bu-ja has sex with Nae-mo, falsely believing he's a grown-up. And even before she unknowingly commits the child molestation crime, she says she could have married the young Nae-mo, who truly and wholeheartedly loved her, if she had waited for just seven years - the time when Nae-mo turns 20 and becomes eligible as a husband. Bu-ja is not a pedophile but she clearly - and at least initially - doesn't have motives as pure-hearted as Nae-mo's.

In all fairness, Kim Gwan-wu's acting as the young Nae-mo is impressive and believable. Park Hae-il, one of Korea's top-rated actors, is also true to form and fame.

But Yeom's sexual appeal is too strong and too much emphasized in a hackneyed fashion. Some wonder why Yeom keeps taking up such roles involving kids and yet her image on the big screen is still directed towards her sexual attractiveness.

No big deal. Director Yun emphasized the film is designed as a fantasy tale for adults, meaning that you are not allowed to ask too many questions. Given that actor Park is dubbed "Korea's Tom Hanks" in the film's official PR brochure, director Yun seems to hope that "Boy, Goes to Heaven" would emulate the classic body-swap comedy "Big." But that is just a big fantasy.

(insight@heraldm.com)

By Yang Sung-jin

2005.11.04

Source: The Korea Herald

http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/SITE/data/htm...00511040024.asp

(credit: rubie, Soompi)

[Shorti Inji]

yea i only recognize him in rules of dating... which i hven't finished watching

[Guest thunderbolt]

Presenting Korea's New Tragic, Comic Monster Film: 괴물 (The Host)

(Posted In Asia Comedy Drama Film News Interviews )

"... there was nothing to hold onto - except each other"

(Invasion of The Body Snatchers, 1956)

In 1990, Bong Joon-Ho was a young student, who drew cartoons for his school newspaper and took various part time jobs at film companies. Although his major at Yonsei University was sociology, his lifetime dream was to become a filmmaker. So after finishing college, he enrolled in the Korean Film Academy, from which he graduated with a short film called 지리멸렬 (支離滅裂, Incoherence). The short won him awards overseas, and great acclaim at home; he became one of the hot new kids on the block, creating a lot of expectations in the industry. But he never jumped the gun, slowly climbing towards the upper ranks of the industry. He helped write the script of 모텔 선인장 (Motel Cactus) and 유령 (Phantom: The Submarine) in the late 90s, and then it was time for his feature debut. In 2000 he made his big splash in Chungmuro with 플란다스의 개 (Barking Dogs Never Bite), an off-kilter black comedy which received great praise. But between his first feature film and the incredible critical and popular success of his second, the memorable 살인의 추억 (Memories of Murder), Director Bong was preparing something else. When Choi Yong-Bae of Cheongeoram asked him to work together, he had something in mind, something he dreamed of making since he was in college. But he already knew it was something which could take years to make. But what was that project about, and why would it take so long?

Although Japan's 怪 (Kaiju, monster) culture has created a huge niche even in the West, its Korean counterpart 괴수 (怪獸, Gwesu, monster) never really had any impact on the public, both at home and abroad. Although the first tentatives of the genre started in the early 60s, with Kwon Hyeok-Jin's 우주괴인 왕마귀 (Space Monster Demon King), the genre was never able to crack into the mainstream, even with works like 용가리 (Yonggari) - which did make decent money, but probably turned the whole nation off monster films. SF had never been one of Korea's favorite genres, and monster films were often associated with cheap special effects, bad storytelling and acting. So when one of the most talented filmmakers in the country announced he was making a 10 Billion Won monster film, a lot of people had only one question in mind: why?

Bong could have made anything he wanted. After striking the ball out of the park twice with his first two films, he could have played safe, make a little film to satisfy his appetite for genre Cinema, a big star vehicle with his distinctive touch but an eye to the box office. Anything. But why such a huge budget, and why one of the genres Koreans have never shown any interest in? You could consider it a mere challenge Bong is taking, but 괴물 (The Host) won't be your average monster film, just like 'Memories of Murder' wasn't your usual whodunit thriller, and 'Barking Dogs Never Bite' your usual comedy. The film could be compared to Hollywood films like 'Invasion of The Body Snatchers', although it will still carry genre specific elements. Using the monster as a metaphor for the witch hunting created by McCarthy-ism during the Cold War era, and the powerful and menacing threat of Soviet influence, the film bears a resemblance to some of those classic Hollywood films. But it will also retain that Koreanness, that unique humour of Bong's other works.

Starring Song Kang-Ho, Bae Doo-Na, Park Hae-Il, Byun Hee-Bong and Oh Dal-Soo, 'The Host' is set for Summer 2006.

--

Instead of our usual Q&A excerpts, I tried something different for this special. Since a lot of interviews used for this article were a little old, and things changed between then and now (like scripts being completed, actors cast, contract signed), I put different comments from director Bong on separate sections dealing with the same argument.

THE HOST

"We started pre-production with the working title 더 리버 (The River). I always wanted to do a Korean style monster movie from the beginning, so I met with Cheongeoram president Choi Yong-Bae in 2001, and presented him the project. I've been working hard every day ever since. We started with a simple and slightly absurd concept: what if a monster appeared on the banks the Han River? When I was in high school, you'd always hear those news stories, like the appearances in Lochness or Mt. Baekdu, so why not Seoul? The film tells the story of a family of four people, running a small shop near the Han River. But one day a strange creature emerges from the waters of the Han River, and it starts injuring people. 'The Host' is a film about a simple family fighting with this mysterious monster."

WETA, ORPHANAGE AND CGI

"To be honest, when I started thinking about 'The Host', I was worried Korean film technology wasn't up to the standards the film required - or that it would cost too much to do it. I didn't think we would be able to make such a fully 3D creature, so that was a really serious concern at the time. Since they have a lot of experience in dealing with things like this, they [Weta, Creative Workshop, Orphanage] lifted one big weight off my shoulders by working with us, and taking care of CGI. When we first met with Weta, they were surprised we'd even make a film like this in Korea. But the next time we met Robert Taylor, he was a little anxious because [in Korea] we don't usually blow large sums of money on special effects, and was afraid we'd propose some preposterous figure. After all, it's hard to turn down someone who came such a long way to work with you. Anyway, we told him it would be US$ 3 Million, and he quickly replied, worried: 'for the entire film?'. When we told him it would be 3 Million for the special effects only, he was really happy, and told us they could certainly do what we wanted for that sum of money. That's when things started, and we worked really fast from there. They thought the kind of monster we designed had really oriental features, so we scouted famous monster designer 'hellnaut' [who worked on many Korean online games] to do it."

MY OWN GENRE

"Everyone thinks 'The Host' will be an SF film, but that's not the case. This film will have that kind of humour which lies dormant inside all my films, and comes from my own subconscious. So instead of following the basic tropes of surrealist films of this genre, 'The Host' will be much more concerned with realism, both in form and storytelling. Don't we live in an odd country? Our big, strong bridge finally collapses, a lot of people lose their lives, that supermarket which looked so solid vanishes into a pile of dust and debris in a matter of moments... so is the appearance of a monster that weird? This is a film walking the line between the real and surreal."

MONSTER

"'The Host' is not all about the monster, but it was something we definitely had to deal with. We couldn't just put some fur on two assistant directors and let them prance around pretending they were a monster. It had to be a perfectly realistic living creature. We had a lot of up and downs, but I'm really happy with the final result. This is not the kind of Hollywood film where you see the formation of the monster after 10 minutes, its tail and feet a half hour later, and the main character having a stylish fight with it in the climax. Yes, Kang-Doo's family has to face tragedy thanks to the monster, but it's not one of those glamorous situations where a few families unite and decide to fight the monster together. The people in my film can't help but shed tears in front of their impending and tragic situation."

COMIC TRAGEDY

"Disasters might be scary and tragic, but on the other hand they might have a farcical side to them. When that mall collapsed [he's talking about a real event from the mid 90s the film was vaguely based on], I felt sad and shocked. Looking at that mess every day though, I saw people using golf clubs to search for buried money, and all the thieves in the city were there... doesn't that make you laugh? Comic and tragic seem to always go hand in hand when disasters like that happen. Especially all those families who weren't prepared for the consequences became victims of that situation, it was inevitable. As a whole, it might be a film about a family's fight against the monster, but they're not gonna use some fancy laser guns to fight it, so all that's left to them is laugh. But that doesn't mean we'll consciously try to force comedy out of those situations. Korean disasters always seem to have that feeling, just like an absurd theater play."

HAN RIVER

"We've shot so many photos of the Han River, it feels like home now. We persistently hunted for locations both in a microscopic and very detailed way: different hours of the day, different weather, different shooting angles and lenses, high, clean and dirty waters... we shot them all. I wanted to show the innumerable faces of the Han River in 'The Host', but it's not merely eye candy, it has a connection with the drama in the film. There's also a reason why we chose a lot of locations during the rainy season. It's not like we're making a video for the promotion of tourism, but if the Han River didn't have a connection with the story, why even bother shooting there? I wanted to dissect and look at all the parts that make the Han River what it is, just like picking every single one of the 200 and more bones that make a person, or the blood vessels that flow through our veins. The monster's form is the core of the production. If we can't create a realistic creature, the film will be never able to strip itself from the legacy of other 괴수영화 (monster movies). That's why we decided to work with world famous WETA, responsible for the special effects in the 'Lord of the Rings' series."

BURDEN

'Why shouldn't one be burdened by many things. I have no interest in normal films, in things you'll understand in 5 seconds. I'm thoroughly working hard to make sure everything turns out as planned. And it's been the same from the beginning, during the first, second, third... many years of preparation. It's not like we're in an embarrassing or dramatic situation, we're not on the verge of jumping off the Wonhyo Bridge. If you just work with that mentality, then you can relax and focus on what you have to do."

INFLUENCES

"It bears some resemblance to 'Signs', and even Spielberg's 'Jaws'. When I first talked about the film, people were confused about the size of the monster, expecting something gigantic like 'Godzilla'. But that's not the case, it's more like the kind of creature you see in 'Alien'. Anyway, there's really no film you can compare 'The Host' to: even when the marketing team was asking me a reference to compare 'Memories of Murder' with, I just told them there was nothing I could single out, that it was just a 'rural thriller', the 전원일기 (Lifetime in the Country) [THE family Drama in Korean TV history] version of 'Se7en'. So, in a way, you could call this the 한강수 타령 (Ode to The Han River) [a recent Family Drama] version of 'Alien'."

ISSUES

"'The Host' is full current political and social issues helping paint the progression of the story. I don't know why I did that, perhaps it's because I was influenced by my previous film. That's not only a kind of genre-specific tendency, but also also something we can put into a certain context, and help it become a topic of discussion. Kang-Doo is not one of those 'people in high places', like a staff member of 119 rescue squads, or someone doing a briefing about measures to counter the problem. He's the kind of person who would ask you what kind of sauce you wanted with your instant noodles, going as far as checking the water's temperature. But when a calamity approaches the everyday life of people like him, they can't even imagine its repercussions. And then the viewers become one with them, they relate to his problems. I can't reveal what those social and political issues will be, until the film is released in theaters. But that will be a really important element of the film, and I wanted to have a little fun with that kind of idea, like in classic Hollywood SF films. It might be a deleted scene, but in Kubrick's 'Dr. Strangelove', there's a moment when Americans and Russians fight throwing cake at each other; and then there's that moment when one character acts like a cowboy on a nuclear missile... that kind of mood, you know? That kind of atmosphere fits really well with this genre, and would give the film a very bizarre energy."

Via Film2.0, nKino 1, nKino 2, Maxmovie, Chosun Ilbo via Naver Blog

» Posted by X at November 19, 2005 08:17 AM

http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/004199.html#more

[Guest thunderbolt]

괴물 (The Host) Wraps Up Shoot

The monster... the one bothering your whole family, destroying what you once called 'normal life', making every single day a struggle against forces you can't fight, and you don't know how to control.

You probably know by now I adore Bong Joon-Ho's films. Darkly humorous, obsessed with cultural details, full of great intensity and with some of the best scripts around. First 플란다스의 개 (Barking Dogs Never Bite) in 2000, a quirky black comedy about 'higher animals', us humans. Then, the big shocker, 2003's 살인의 추억 (Memories of Murder), the best, most intelligent Korean 'commercial film' of the last 5 years (emphasis on 'commercial', because Cannes says so, right?). It was inevitable expectations would be high for Bong's next project, especially with THAT cast. Song Kang-Ho, Bae Doo-Na, Park Hae-Il and Byun Hee-Bong. And the monster, boy, the monster. Helped by foreign CG and FX wizards Orphanage, Weta and Creature Workshop, this is the first big Monster film coming to Korean shores in a long time, with the exception of Shim Hyung-Rae's 디워 (D-War). But of course, knowing Bong, you know it won't just be that.

Well, after such a long wait, here's the first good news: 괴물 (The Host) wrapped up its 6 month long shoot last January 8, and will now enter its lengthy post-production process. When can we see this big baby? Right after the World Cup, next July. That's just too damn long, if you ask me. In the meantime, enjoy a new still shot, right up there.

[source: nKino]

» Posted by X at 11:49 PM

(credit: X at http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/004759.html)

[Guest xosandy]

After marrying his longtime fiancee last month, Park Hae-Il was instantly cast in a new film, which looks quite interesting. Park will star in first-time director Kim Han-Min's debut 극락도 살인사건 (Murder at Heavenly Island), a 'rural thriller' in the vein of 살인의 추억 (Memories of Murder), the film which made Park a star. Just like Memories, the film is set in the mid 80s, as a murder troubles the lives of an entire village in a small Island. The film is in pre-production, and the rest of the cast should be announced before the end of the month. Shooting will start in May, for an end of 2006 release. Park was last seen in 소년, 천국에 가다 (The Boy Who Went To Heaven), and will of course come back to theaters in July, with Bong Joon-Ho's 괴물 (The Host).

http://www.twitchfilm.net/archives/005790.html

hmm.. seems like PHI has a lot of new projects recently.

[Guest lunae]

^ dats great news!! dont hafta wait soo long to watch Park Haeil in another flick I liked him when watching My Mother Mermaid, his character is sooooo gentlemanly and nice in it, I just cant resist his charm. I continued watching his other movie, Rules of Dating, Memories of Murder and Boy Goes to Heaven non-stop, and I'd say this guy is a chameleon He surprised me in RoD with his superb performance, and how can you accuse him as the culprit in MoM? BgtH sorta dissappoint me, but the movie is, not Park's performance. The storyline is too banal, making the movie just OK. Haha, but Park is suitable to play kid-like roles cuz he's cute and naughty looking!

Cant wait to see The Host. Song Kang Ho, Bae Doo Na.... wow... GREAT casts. Still unable to watch Jealousy since cant find it in any clubbox. And downloading Scent of Love after this [altho the reviews are not too good... give it a try, cuz got the talented Jang] I hope Park's career soars up high, and for him to put his best performances in all of his upcoming movies

[Guest thunderbolt]

Park Hae-il married his girlfriend of 5 years in March this year. Some belated pics:

credit: yahoo; jisubaddicts.com

[Guest mj07]

phew, glad to see we DO have a thread for PHI!! Love the wedding pics, but look whose cheeky smile is in the background of two of them (hint: RSB)! Was he the best man? He's wearing the same flower!