Lee Byung Hun 이병헌 Byunghun Lee

[rubie]

ylin, thanks for the MU link.. slowly dl-ing now.. *mwah*

but.. veve.. what are you saying? How can it be banned.. when TBS has the rights to the series? Is it the lawsuit thing again? I've checked the Korean media sites, nothing saying about IRIS being banned from public broadcasting. Oh gosh.. now it's a company in Tokyo that's getting the lawsuit out.. just as soon as TBS started airing the series. Seems that these Korean & Japanese lawsuits (last year & recently) on IRIS.. had both originated from Taewon

If it's true.. such unfortunate problematic situation..that TBS already spent a fortune ..*aigoo*

[Guest veve111]

ylin, thanks for the MU link.. slowly dl-ing now..

but.. veve.. what are you saying? How can it be banned.. when TBS has the rights to the series? Is it the lawsuit thing again?

Such problematic situation..

rubie..rubie.. :( i dun know how it's happened...the IRIS' copyright was transfered(money..money...money!!!)to another production company due to the financial problem??!! And, right now, TBS has to deal with this new production company about the copyright thing(money!!! money!!! money!!!) and TBS was banned to broadcast IRIS untill the cpyright thing was solved!!

[rubie]

rubie..rubie.. :( i dun know how it's happened...the IRIS' copyright was transfered(money..money...money!!!)to another production company due to the financial problem??!! And, right now, TBS has to deal with this new production company about the copyright thing(money!!! money!!! money!!!) and TBS was banned to broadcast IRIS untill the cpyright thing was solved!!

Ohh dear.. it's really not IRIS if there's no bumps along the way, huh. You're so right, veve.. it's always all about money.. money.. money!!

Don't know how TBS especially and Taewon (they should already see this coming if anything is true) going to handle this when the next episode is supposed to be aired tomorrow. Talk about a "sudden death lawsuit" situation.. this is certainly spot-on. Maybe Sungja can enlighten us on this if it is indeed an irreversable unresolved serious issue for IRIS in Japan.

Oh gosh.. I hope this doesn't affect the upcoming IRIS Concert.. can't handle another shortlived good news.

[Guest celebrities88]

TBS

[Guest Sung-ja e Seiko]

Ohh dear.. it's really not IRIS if there's no bumps along the way, huh. You're so right, veve.. it's always all about money.. money.. money!!

Don't know how TBS especially and Taewon (they should already see this coming if anything is true) going to handle this when the next episode is supposed to be aired tomorrow. Talk about a "sudden death lawsuit" situation.. this is certainly spot-on. Maybe Sungja can enlighten us on this if it is indeed an irreversable unresolved serious issue for IRIS in Japan.

Oh gosh.. I hope this doesn't affect the upcoming IRIS Concert.. can't handle another shortlived good news.

Hi all,

Don’t panic!

I just linked the article with Google translated since I do not have time to translate it into English right now.

Nothing has been changed yet. It is not banned.

They will air IRIS as usual today.

Unfortunately it is far difficult to find someone who is not involved in law suit case in Korean Showbiz.

And this law suit had been going on already when IRIS was aired in Korea.

But KBS aired it without any problem.

The thing made a bit more complicated now is that Chung Tae Won ssi has been indicted.

But TBS Producer Ms Yoshino who is in charge of IRIS says “TBS will release the official comment later somehow but we IRIS team do what we have to do for IRIS as planed. So please do not worry. “on Twitter.

http://translate.google.com/translate?js=y...sl=ja&tl=en

[rubie]

Thanks Sungja-ssi.. for the latest update and clarification. You are most certainly right, it's just difficult to find someone not being sued in the Korean showbiz these days. The one in Korea I think is still unresolved.. no.. not one.. but two cases .. although IRIS managed to be aired till the end, Taewon really should solve everything and anything for once. This is why I'm more than sceptical at Taewon Ent's ambitious rush for IRIS 2 and Athena.. etc etc..

Nevertheless.. it's good to know that IRIS in Japan has not been banned (it would have created a havoc I'm sure)... no wonder no Korean media are writing about this.. yet. Hope things will be resolved soon.. for the audience & fans watching the primetime series. Luckily.. nothing happened while BH was in Japan last week.

[parkmisoo]

Thanks Sungja for the clarification on the IRIS airing in Japan-- what a relief to know that all is OK, it will air as scheduled.

Thanks so much for the great news about Kim So Yeon and Kim Tae Woo being added to the IRIS Concerts--this is fabulous news- great to see the cast will be together for this important event. Fans in Japan are so lucky to go to such an event--I truly envy you- how amazing to see Byung Hun in person !!

[rubie]

Found this blurry pic (yup, it's not a clear image) posted at nate. I can't recall at the moment if this is a new pictorial, CF or some photoshoot that BH did for something recently. Maybe someone would know or have better pics from this new CF.. old CF? or something. Anyone? http://i20.photobucket.com/albums/b230/wub...titledblurr.jpg

In the meantime.. some random updates.. from the list of most popular actors in the first half of 2010, Byunghun-ssi is in the fifth place of the men's category topped by actor JDG and actress Kim Hye Soo respectively. Speaking of the hubby-and-papa-to-be Jang Dong Gun whose wedding of the century to actress Go So Young will be held this Sunday, May 2.. the preparation is going smoothly for the ultra private ceremony, obviously.

Not too sure about this -- it's mentioned that BH will start a tight filming schedule (different location) for ISTD starting May but he's trying to fix & fit his schedule to attend the wedding. So are a number of other actors (also currently filming) -- many would not want to miss JDG's posh wedding, as he's well-known to be everyone's friend in the industry.

Hopehopehope we will see our Hunnie on Sunday.

[rubie]

IRIS DVD Japan Version

Copied from GBW cafe.daum 5822

IRIS DVD & Production Field document released in Japan ★ Lee Byeongheon's appreciation

Source: Japan TBS IRIS Homepage iris.html / tbs.co.jp

Only the first time inclusion benefits:

NSS replica ID cards

Special Post Card Set 3

Inclusion benefits: Benefits disk (information pending), Data Book (24P)

★ ★ drama IRIS & Production Release documents determine the field! ★ ★

● DVD IRIS "no-cut full edition> BOX I

July 2, 2010 Major Release 6 ¥19,950

● DVD IRIS "no-cut full edition> BOX II

Released on September 15, 2010 six major ¥ 19,950

● 〔〕 IRIS "no-cut full edition> BOX I】 【Blu-Ray

August 3, 2010 Release 6 major ¥ 25,200

● 〔〕 IRIS "no-cut full edition> BOX II】 【Blu-Ray

October 20, 2010 Major Release 6 ¥ 25,200

IRIS 〔〕 ● DVD PRODUCTION DIARY BOX I of Hungary flights】 【】 【Part Akita

June 16, 2010 released two major ¥ 7,980

IRIS 〔〕 ● DVD PRODUCTION DIARY BOX II Korea pyeonhupyeon】 【】 【pyeonjeonpyeon Korea

September 15, 2010 Release 2 major ¥ 7,980

Direct online-translation for BH's message (Japanese text to English)

"Message from Mr. Lee Byung"

Hi this is Lee Byung Hun.

"IRIS" that is the mood you for enjoying.

"IRIS" when he visited Japan in promotions, TBS had sent from the DVD, from 1.2 you saw the pair talking about the outlook.

The people you cast voice actors, they are expressed great characters and their emotions, very impressed, want to thank once again to tell, I decided to write a message like this.

Tatsuya Fujiwara are responsible and my voice, the voice I have basically different personality and charm, you can not hear the first time I felt a little story progresses, the person The acting did understand the sensitivity of the features and performance, and watched unawares empathy with nature, too.

As I have heard, it can feel very good actor, good experience became.

At this rate, I'd like to continue.

And you also "IRIS" We hope you enjoy to the end.

[rubie]

Harper's Bazaar May 2010, fan-scans copied from GBW cafe daum 5823 ♥

So love the BH-KJW combo

[rubie]

April 29, 2010

Lee Byung Hun - Kim Tae Hee, Japanese Netizens photo events

Source: news.nate.com

[Guest jspark]

OMG.. I still can't believe that he dumped this canadian-american girl & left her all alone in korea.... lol.. that's why she wants to sue him for some reason... because he promised her marriage?! and then decided to dump her..

[rubie]

Also...the new info about the IRIS ost:

IRIS OSTスペシャルパッケージ版発売決定！【4/20】

IRIS Original Sound Track : Perfect Box

（アイリス　オリジナル・サウンドトラック：パーフェクトボックス）

★商品詳細は下記特設サイトをご覧ください★

IRIS Soundtrack Perfect Box（4月21日（水）OPEN予定）

日本盤特別挿入歌　イ・ビョンホンの新曲「Stay」、「Endless Road」

（日本語 / 韓国語バージョン）

cr: ameblo.jp & silk@fc2.com

The following link about the info of the coming IRIS OST and few of the songs' demo could be listened:

http://beinggiza.com/iris-ost/#tracklist

>>Endless Road （Japanese Ver.）_ イ・ビョンホン

>>Love of Iris _ シン・スンフン

>>忘れないで _ ペク・チヨン

>>IRIS Main Title 　

I think I got this from GBW cafe daum, can't remember the exact link but with gratitude as always for the fan-sharing.

IRIS OST The Perfect Box

[rubie]

April 28, 2010

Andy Klein on 'The Good, the Bad, the Weird'

08:50 AM PT, Apr 28 2010

Though it may have roots in other countries' adventure traditions, the western is, by definition, the most American of all genres. Luckily, foreign filmmakers occasionally take a whack at it, infusing the frequently exhausted form with new angles.

Most significantly, the proliferation of “spaghetti westerns” in the '60s blew the traditions wide open, prime among them Sergio Leone's “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.” Korean director Kim Jee-woon clearly acknowledges Leone's influence with the title of his new film — “The Good, the Bad, the Weird.”

Kim's filmography has skipped from comedy (“The Quiet Family”) to horror (“A Tale of Two Sisters,” remade in Hollywood as “The Uninvited”) to hard-boiled noir (“A Bittersweet Life”) and now to what he has referred to as a new genre, “the kimchi western.” Indeed, this appears to be the absolute first Korean western — the IMDb supports that contention — and it is dandy from start to finish.

Kim has borrowed not just the title but also Leone's general plot structure. In a frontier setting during a period of civil strife, three very different men are racing to locate and snatch a buried treasure. But this time, the frontier is Manchuria; the time is the late 1930s; and the strife involves Japanese, Koreans, Manchurians and Chinese.

The Good is Do-won (Jung Woo-sung), a soft-spoken bounty hunter. The Bad is Chang-yi (Lee Byung-hun), a sullen gang leader who cherishes the idea of being, not just the bad, but the very baddest. And the Weird is Tae-goo (Song Kang-ho), a low-rent crook who is no less ruthless for being goofy.

In the first major sequence, director Kim throws us into the action without a paddle: While holding up a train, Tae-goo comes across the treasure map, which a traitorous Korean has sold to the Japanese; just as he's about to steal it, the train is attacked by Chang-yi's gang; and soon everyone's being shot at by Do-won on horseback.

At first, you may despair that Kim presumes we have knowledge of local history and context. But then the camera pulls back to reveal the leaders of another local gang, looking down from a bluff. “Do you know what's going on?” one asks the other. After a long, very funny pause, the response is simply a bewildered “No.”

Tae-goo ends up with the map, but everyone else knows he's got it, so they're all after him — leading to the next of several action scenes that make up most of the film. Kim's pacing is perfect; he alternates these with quieter scenes where we get to know our three “heroes.” Most of the time, we are with Tae-goo, who is the most talkative and entertaining. Like Eli Wallach's Tuco in the Leone film, he provides the comic relief, despite being a villain.

The part is perfect for Song, whom Americans are most likely to recognize as the slow-witted protagonist of Bong Joon-ho's horror film “The Host.” Song is an extraordinarily versatile performer: If you've only see him in these two films, you'd assume that his goofy face would limit him to comic roles; but, in fact, he has been a credible, serious lead in Bong's “Memories of Murder” and Park Chan-wook's “Thirst.”

Lee's resume is almost as diverse: Early on, he starred in several romances — no surprise, given that he is almost absurdly handsome.

Twenty seconds after Lee walked on screen here, a friend turned to me and said, “Brad Pitt!” But he more exactly corresponds to early Alain Delon — almost too pretty to seem strong — whom he seemed to be channeling in Kim's terrific 2005 doomed gangster film, “A Bittersweet Life.” It's a shame that more Americans probably saw him in last year's “G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra” than in all his other films put together.

The only problem with having two such charismatic and (to fans of Korean cinema) well-known leads in “The Good, the Bad, the Weird” is that Jung, the third of the trio, barely gets to leave an impression.

People who regard “Kill Bill” as too derivative may have the same complaint regarding “The Good, the Bad, the Weird.” Besides Leone, Kim shows the influence of Kurosawa (but who doesn't?), John Woo and, yes, even Tarantino. (Among other things, one of his music cues is the same version of “Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood” that appeared in the first “Kill Bill.”)

But the whole, as they say, is more than the sum of its parts. The result is sheer invigoration.

--Andy Klein thisisbrandx.com

[rubie]

April 29, 2010

Korean western film takes pastiche to another level

By john wheeler · Daily Trojan

The Good, the Bad, the Weird really moves. Oozing style from every frame, Kim Jee-woon’s Korean western starts with a thrilling train robbery in Japanese-occupied China and rarely slows down. Here is a film that understands the simple pleasure of a moving camera and moving characters.

Shootout · The Good, the Bad, the Weird uses 1930s Manchuria

as a setting akin to the American West. - Photo courtesy of IFC Films

Kim’s movie is an absurd, gorgeous mash-up of Western and Eastern iconography: deadeye Koreans in cowboy hats, Chinese ghost towns and a roaring Gatling gun.

Bounty hunter Du-won (Jung Woo-sung), “the Good,” forms an uneasy partnership with “the Weird,” Tae-goo (Song Kang-ho), an amoral bandit looking for a legendary Chinese treasure trove. “The Bad,” gang leader Chang-yi (Lee Byung-hun), seeks both the map to the treasure and revenge on Tae-goo.

Almost inevitably, the good character becomes lost against his more engaging counterparts. Byung-hun — tragically best known to Americans for his turn as evil ninja Storm Shadow in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra — plays Chang-yi over the top, with a vicious style to match his menacing and carefully put together hairdo. Dressed in black from head to toe and never without a cold sneer, Chang-yi epitomizes the tone and style of Kim’s movie: cool on a plane that most pastiche pieces never quite reach. The chubby, crazy-eyed Kang-ho, who has played variations of “the Weird” in films like Bong Joon-ho’s The Host or Park Chan-wook’s Thirst, steals his scenes with an effortlessness that has defined his career.

One thing to appreciate about Kim’s films compared to other Korean action movies is his almost-American obsession with the power of the gun. His excellent A Bittersweet Life riffed on the normally martial arts-based Korean gangster genre by letting its protagonist bring a gun to a knife fight. The Good, the Bad, the Weird takes his fetish to a further extreme, seriously challenging the classic Golan-Globus American action movies from the Reagan era for the “most bullets expended over 120 minutes” world record.

Kim calls The Good, the Bad, the Weird an “Oriental western,” an emerging subgenre pioneered by Asian directors with roots in Sergio Leone and Clint Eastwood pictures. Takashi Miike made a truly bizarre take on Akira Kurosawa’s western-inspired Yojimbo in Sukiyaki Western Django, but where that film felt like homage without much new to say, Kim’s version really strives to reinvent the classically American genre with the sensibilities of a modern Korean action movie.

The Japanese occupation of Northern China in the ’30s is as close as East Asia gets to a Wild West. In focusing on Korean immigrants fighting Japanese soldiers, Chinese bandits and each other, The Good, the Bad, the Weird is ripe for political analysis, but Kim’s film is so stylized and frantic that it resists such readings.

Even just 80 years removed from that dark history, still very much an open wound on the collective East Asian psyche, Kim’s Manchuria feels like a mythic setting, a world as far removed from reality as the Texas-Mexico border in Leone or Sam Peckinpah’s films.

The production design deserves special mention — the film was made inexpensively by American standards but the worlds it creates through digital effects and traditional sets flow together almost seamlessly into a fantastic vision of a ’30s China that never existed.

Kim’s reference-heavy old-becomes-new style demands comparison to the last decade of Quentin Tarantino’s work; the director even uses Chingon’s “Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” and some Ennio Morricone samples to the same effect Tarantino uses in his Kill Bill movies. Kim cares much less about dialogue than the often self-indulgent QT, and The Good, the Bad, the Weird feels much leaner than Tarantino’s bloated recent work.

Putting plot and character second to action finally catches up to Kim in a final showdown predicated on some poorly telegraphed plot twists, which carries less dramatic heft than it could otherwise, but the film earns a rare pass in putting style over substance.

The plot also sags terribly when it slows down even briefly, but while such pauses are necessary for any coherent action picture, Kim fails to handle them in an interesting manner.

As in his previous work, Kim’s senses as an action director are strangely flawed. The staging becomes so cluttered and the camera becomes so delirious with movement that scenes sometimes lose their sense of direction. A climactic desert chase featuring dozens of pursuers after the heroes runs so long and features so many changes of direction by the camera and characters that trying to follow it logically becomes an exercise in frustration.

But individual images from Kim’s relentless bombardment of action choreography stand out as better than their sum — try and find a cooler moment in any action movie this year than the rifle-bearing Du-won turning his horse around and riding into the pursuing Japanese army.

Source: dailytrojan.com

Anyone interested to join BH40, to make it 10 in the group?

[Guest kaoruinoue]

Hi all,

Don’t panic!

I just linked the article with Google translated since I do not have time to translate it into English right now.

Nothing has been changed yet. It is not banned.

They will air IRIS as usual today.

Unfortunately it is far difficult to find someone who is not involved in law suit case in Korean Showbiz.

And this law suit had been going on already when IRIS was aired in Korea.

But KBS aired it without any problem.

The thing made a bit more complicated now is that Chung Tae Won ssi has been indicted.

But TBS Producer Ms Yoshino who is in charge of IRIS says “TBS will release the official comment later somehow but we IRIS team do what we have to do for IRIS as planed. So please do not worry. “on Twitter.

http://translate.google.com/translate?js=y...sl=ja&tl=en

Just like what you wrote. It's not true. IRIS aired in Japan as scheduled. Besides TBS has so much faith in the series even putting it on prime time.

[Guest KTH393]

What is the rating of IRIS after 4 series on aired at TBS?..

[tanio12]

OMG.. I still can't believe that he dumped this canadian-american girl & left her all alone in korea.... lol.. that's why she wants to sue him for some reason... because he promised her marriage?! and then decided to dump her..

well it's more to the story than that. and only LBH and the ex knows but everything ain't always what it appears to be and that is the end of that.

[Guest veve111]

BH's new AD>>Shilla DFS : :D

http://www.shilladfs.com/jp/dutyfree/main.jsp

[Guest Sung-ja e Seiko]

What is the rating of IRIS after 4 series on aired at TBS?..

IRIS Apr 28 was 8.8%

(Dropped from 10.1% the previous-debut week. )

http://audience-rating.seesaa.net/category/6392061-1.html

【4月28日（水）の視聴率】

11.2% 21:00-22:00 NHK ニュースウオッチ9

13.7% 21:00-21:54 NTV ザ!世界仰天ニュース

*8.8% 21:00-21:54 TBS IRIS－アイリス－

*12.9% 21:00-21:54 CX* ザ・ベストハウス123

16.9% 21:00-21:54 EX 臨場 (Rinjyo)

*6.2% 21:00-22:54 水曜シアター9・死の標的