Lee Byung Hun 이병헌 Byunghun Lee

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January 29, 2020

 

INTERVIEW: Actor Lee Byung-hun proves brand power through new movies

 

Lim Chang-won Reporter(cwlim34@ajunews.com) | AJU Business Daily

 

[Courtesy of ShowBox]

 

SEOUL -- Lee Byung-hun showed his brand power as a leading actor in South Korea, starring in two movies that premiered one after another in a month. His delicate performance shone through "The Man Standing Next," which has attracted 3.4 million moviegoers in seven days after its release on January 22.

 

Lee's previous work, Ashfall, a science fiction film that depicts an inter-Korean operation to cope with the volcanic eruption of Mount Paektu along the border between North Korea and China, has been watched by 8.2 million people since it was released on December 19 in South Korea.

 

The back-to-back box office hit demonstrated the brand recognition of the 49-year-old who has received critical acclaim for his work in a wide range of genres. In Hollywood, he portrayed Storm Shadow in G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra (2009) and its sequel G.I. Joe: Retaliation (2013), and starred alongside Bruce Willis in Red 2 (2013). He portrayed T-1000 in Terminator Genisys (2015) and Billy Rocks in The Magnificent Seven (2016).

 

"It's very rare in my filmography to see the release of films by a month. I don't think it's polite to movie fans who have seen movies and characters deeply, but actors don't decide when to release movies," Lee said in an interview with Aju Business Daily. "I've been worried a lot, but I'm glad (the audience) showed a good response."

 

Based on a true story, The Man Standing Next depicts the turbulent 40-day period leading up to the assassination of South Korea's ex-president Park Chung-hee on October 26, 1979, by his intelligence chief at the height of pro-democracy protests. Lee played the role of intelligence head Kim Kyu-pyeong in the movie.

 

As it is such a famous historical event, it's easy for him to provide the agony and perspective of a real person who once headed the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA). However, he said that he decided to star in the movie because the director promised to make it with an objective view.

 

"There are movies that are defined by the idea of writers or directors. I wouldn't have participated if this work had any of those tendencies," Lee said, preaching his philosophy. "I thought that historical mysteries should remain mysteries even in movies."

 

The emotional line of each character was delicate. Lee decided to keep the character's hairstyle and glasses as he heard from those who had met with the KCIA head. 

 

[Courtesy of ShowBox]

 

"Until I tested the camera, I was really worried about whether I should adjust the external synchro rate. But I thought emotions and psychological conditions were more important between the characters, and I decided not to think of appearance, voice and tone," Lee said, describing the former KCIA head as a "very sensitive" figure who needed a lot of non-expressive acting.

 

"At that time, I was impressed by the way he was sweeping away his long bangs, and I wanted to imitate it. He was a real person, so I had a lot of data and indirect access. It helped me to act," Lee said. Through the film which showed unusually many close-up shots, he said he was able to closely commune with the audience by portraying subtle changes of emotion and worries.

 

The director always wanted to take a close-up shot, but Lee did not feel pressured about that. "I thought if If my feelings were full, I would be able to convey it to the audience."

 

As a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Lee said he would cast a ballot to support an Oscar campaign by Director Bong Joon-ho and the cast of "Parasite," the genre-bending family satire nominated in six categories. It is the first time that a South Korean-made film has earned a nod for one of the world's biggest film events.

 

"Anyway, the first time is probably the hardest. It would be nice if Parasite would be the starting point," Lee said.

 

This year, he is set to appear in "The Declaration of Emergency," an aviation disaster film, and a TV drama that tells the story of an international nonprofit organization. "The fact that work keeps coming in means (fans) want to see me. I'm just thankful. I want to keep working until someone wants to see me." 

 

(This interview was conducted by Aju Business Daily reporter Choi Song-hee)

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January 29, 2020

 

Movie Information:

EMERGENCY DECLARATION to start filming in March 
 

Source: Naver via Extreme Movie (Google translate)

 

 

As early as March, they will begin filming the movie Emergency Declaration (director Han Jae Rim). The aviation disaster movie has emerged as one of the most anticipated works produced this year due to the collaboration of three top Korean stars recognized as representative actors of Korean films both at home and abroad.

 

Emergency Declaration depicts the struggles of those who died to prevent disasters inside the aircraft. Song Kang Ho and Lee Byung Hun will be playing characters struggling on the ground & on the plane to protect loved ones, and overcoming the disaster. Jeon Do Yeon is playing the role of minister.

 

An official of the production announced on January 28, "We are also working on casting the rest of the cast in addition to the main roles."

 

EMERGENCY DECLARATION

Director: Han Jae Rim (The Show Must Go On, The King)

Starring: Song Kang Ho, Lee Byung Hun, Jeon Do Yeon

Distribution: Showbox

Net production cost. 15 billion ₩ (approx: 12 Million USD)

 

A disaster thriller about the story that ensues when an aircraft disaster declares an emergency declaration

 

2020 opening

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January 20, 2020

 

Throwbacks from his location shooting of "The Man Standing Next" at Washington D.C.

 

 

 

 

 

 

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January 29, 2020

 

Source: BH Entertainment Naver Blog

 

"Every time I encounter a new story, I struggle with
similar weights, I never felt acting easy. "

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

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Source: HeraldPop  // BH Enrertainment

 

Lee Byung Hun's Unique & Intense Eye Acting

 

 

 

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Source: HeraldPop  // BH Enrertainment

 

Lee Byung Hun.. Charismatic masculine beauty

 

 

 

 

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TMSN Art by jalgeuryeo

 

 

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Thanks to the fans' highlight on twitter, Lee Byung Hun has a new series of endorsements with FromBio 프롬바이오's Red Ginseng and Mastic Gum.

 

Published on January 30, 2020 by [fromBIO] 프롬바이오

 

Wisdom Health Mastic TVCF (30 seconds)

 

 

Lee Byung Hun's Red Ginseng recommendation

 

 

 

Thanks to @ByungBlue

 

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Two more new clips from  [fromBIO] 프롬바이오

 

 

 

Captures, thanks to @ByungBlue

 

 

 

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This capture from ASHFALL, the photo below is not a big spoiler since we already knew about Jeon Do Yeon's cameo as BH's wife before the release. However, their actual scene would be a major spoiler to fans who have not seen the movie.

 

Anyway, this was posted on IG by the mother of the child(baby girl) playing Ri Jun Pyung's daughter in the family photo.. 

 

Photo: s.yooha (disclaimer: Google translate)

 

Finally, I can watch the movie Baekdusan on TV
My friend called and sent it to me.
The chubby Soi just appeared
Actor Jeon Do Yeon came into my family photo
In this movie that Lee Byung Hun's paternal love was outstanding
As a childhood daughter of Lee Byung Hun, I was in their family photo.
It looks like synthetic but it was taken with real actors lol
Soy cried too, and the photo came out with sad eyes
Just meeting some really great actors
Thank you so much 
#This looks amazing
#Go and keep it

 

The Legacy of Ri Jun Pyung..

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THE MAN STANDING NEXT Two Actors Chemistry!

ZOOM Lee Byung-hun x Lee Hee-jun W pictorial shooting 

 

Published on January 31, 2020 by BH Entertainment

 

 

February 1, 2020

 

January Male Advertisement Model Brand Reputation Rankings Revealed
 

Source: Soompi by E. Cha

The Korean Business Research Institute has announced this month’s brand reputation rankings for male advertisement models!

 

The rankings were determined through an analysis of consumer behavior, using big data collected from December 25 to January 26. The Korean Business Research Institute evaluated the participation, communication, media, and social values of 50 male advertisement models in order to calculate each star’s total brand reputation index for January.

 

Spoiler

 

Gong Yoo topped this month’s list with a brand reputation index of 1,575,676. The actor’s highest-ranking related terms included “release,” “envy,” and “talk,” while his positivity-negativity analysis revealed a score of 74.03 percent positive reactions.

 

Celebrity chef Baek Jong Won took second place in the rankings with a brand reputation index of 1,316,871, while singer Yang Joon Il came in third with a total index of 1,227,975 for January.

 

 

Check out this month’s top 30 below!

 

1. Gong Yoo
2. Baek Jong Won
3. Yang Joon Il
4.Yoo Jae Suk 
5. Son Heung Min
6. Hyun Bin
7. Lee Byung Hun
8. Jo Jung Suk
9. Kang Daniel
10. Kwon Sang Woo
11. BIGBANG’s G-Dragon
12. Namgoong Min
13. Seo Jang Hoon
14. Park Bo Gum
15. Ha Jung Woo
16. Jung Woo Sung
17. Jang Sung Kyu
18. Jung Joon Ho
19. SF9’s Rowoon
20. Ma Dong Seok
21. Lee Sang Min
22. Jun Hyun Moo
23. Kang Ha Neul
24. Shin Dong Yup
25. ASTRO’s Cha Eun Woo
26. Park Seo Joon
27. Song Joong Ki
28. Lee Si Eon
29. Yang Se Hyung
30. Lee Min Ho

Source (1)

 

 

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January 31, 2020

 

Reasons for success of "The Man Standing Next"

 

Source: OSEN via ChannelsVlive

 

After premiering right on the Lunar New Year, the movie "The Man Standing Next" (directed by Woo Min Ho) is earning good reviews of moviegoers from all walks of life. Recently, BTS members also contributed to marking the success of the movie when going to the theater to enjoy it.

 

The film is showing a formidable momentum when it holds the throne at the box office for nine consecutive days, from the first day of its premiere (December 22, 2019) to yesterday (January 30, 2020). With the rate of 29.5% recorded by 11:24 am (KST) January 31, "The Man Standing Next" has never lost the top of the reservation rate chart since its premiere until now, which is expected to continue to attract moviegoers for a long time.

 

Currently, the cumulative moviegoers of "The Man Standing Next" reached 3,743,586 (provided by Korean Film Council) and it is expected to hit 4 million this weekend.

 

Adapted into a movie from a non-fiction work of the same name, "The Man Standing Next" (distribution: Showbox, production: Hive Media Corp.) is set in the Blue House of Korea in October 1979. The film revolves around the story taking place 40 days before the National Intelligence Service director (played by Lee Byung Hun) - who is viewed as the country's second most powerful person - carries out the assassination of President Park (played by Lee Sung Min).

 

Based on a true story, but this format is not like a political drama. It's because the drama contains the psychological flow and conflict in the human relationship that can draw sympathy from office workers, government officials to the students who live in present.

 

The film was successful thanks to not only the main cast including Lee Byung Hun, Lee Sung Min, Kwak Do Won, Lee Hee Joon but also the excellent support from the supporting cast. Along with the assessment that the cast has created their own life-time roles, the film was also commented as helping director Woo Min Ho to have one more classic work after ''Inside Men'' (2015).

 

Rather than categorizing it into the political genre, "The Man Standing Next" can be put into the psychology genre or a noir film. Although it is based on a real-life event - the assassination of President Park Chung Hee, the movie's director doesn't give any political conclusions of who was right and who was wrong. From the beginning to the end, the movie maintains the plot that focuses on the struggle for power, as well as the prejudices, conflicts, indignation, and betrayal of those who rank below the most powerful man in the country to ingratiate him.

 

After the premiere of "The Man Standing Next" in the United States on January 26, the movie has begun to receive attention from global fans as soon as it was reported that BTS went to see it at a cinema in LA.

 

On the other hand, "The Man Standing Next" will be premiered in countries such as Japan, the Philippines, Singapore, and Taiwan.

 

OSEN = Reporter Kim Bo Ra / purplish@osen.co.kr

Photo = Movie's poster

Everything Idol, Everyday Exclusive 

 

Source: Showbox

 

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February 1, 2020

 

Lee Byung-hun sticks to the script: The veteran actor plays a former Korean CIA head who murders the president

 

BY LEE JAE-LIM INSIDE Korea JoongAng Daily

 

 

As a veteran actor with a wealth of experience, actor Lee Byung-hun has portrayed many famous historical figures. But he’s never before played a character based on a real person that has had such an impact on contemporary history, until his most recent role that is. Lee takes on the lead role of Kim Gyu-pyung in the noir “The Man Standing Next.”

 

Lee’s character Kim is modelled after the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) Kim Jae-gyu who worked during the Park Chung Hee regime and assassinated the president on Oct. 26, 1979.

 

Speculation and rumors about what drove Kim, known to be the second most powerful person in the country back then, to make such a radical choice remain hot topics to this day.

 

“That was what I had to do, convince people why Kim had to make the decision that he did through my character,” Lee said in an interview at a cafe located in Samcheong-dong, central Seoul. “[I did not] understand Kim’s actions and words 100 percent the first time I traced his history. But I think it’s the actor’s role to build up their characters to persuade the audiences, to make them understand the character.”

 

While Kim’s motive behind the assassination is still subject to debate, Lee and director Woo Min-ho unanimously agreed from the beginning of the film’s production that the plot should be told through a third person perspective, sticking to the facts instead of trying to pinpoint a specific reason why Kim did what he did.

 

“What remains a mystery to this day should still remain a mystery at the end of this film,” Lee said. “I hope that the audience leave their seats still curious about Kim’s motive - why did he do it? Was it planned or a spur-of-the-moment decision? Was it truly done for the greater good or was it personal?”

 

A scene from “The Man Standing Next” shows a meeting in Washington D.C. between Kim Gyu-pyung (played by Lee Byung-hun) and ex-director of the KCIA, Park Yong-gak (played by Kwak Do-won). [SHOWBOX]

Kim’s position as the head of the KCIA during the time not only signified his utmost devotion to President Park, but also symbolized that the president had placed his highest trust in Kim.

 

But Kim’s decades-long loyalty begins to waver as his beloved leader seems to neglect his advice, instead favoring the company of the president’s chief bodyguard, Kwak Sang-chun (played by Lee Hee-jun).

 

In the movie, Kim attempts to hide his anxiety, and his uneasiness is only shown through minute changes in his facial expressions or subtle movements.

 

“My character wasn’t one to express how he felt,” Lee said. “And considering the film’s personality, and especially its genre being a noir, it sets the movie in a dark mood, without that much dialogue. Such films like ‘A Bittersweet Life’ (2005) [that I featured in] tend to zoom tightly into my face [so that the audience is able to decipher my emotions easily].

 

“In extreme instances of close-ups, my face completely fills up the big screen and if I act the way I used to, people might be overwhelmed. So in such cases, I believe that if the actor just feels what they need to feel inside [instead of showing it], then that is enough to convey their emotions to the audience.”

 

Despite the fact that the story is centered upon a specific political event, Lee thought that the film could earn empathy from the public, especially those facing the monotony of having to get up from bed every day to go to work.

 

“I think all workers can sympathize with the film,” Lee explained. “Even though the movie covers a dramatic and specific event, at the end of the day, it’s very private, as if the characters are playing mind games against one another. It’s about their delicate feelings and conflicts - loyalty, jealousy, betrayal and envy - things that any worker would be able to comprehend. I think that’s the real takeaway of this film that the audience would find entertaining.”

 

As much as the film was careful not to deviate from the actual history, Lee was extra careful to stick to his scripts as well.

 

“For instance, in ‘The Fortress’ (2017) and ‘Masquerade’ (2017), the characters [I played] were from a long time ago, and thus the data on them was lacking. So actors and directors had some room left [to add their own thoughts and creativity],” Lee said. “But contemporary figures leave very little room for that. So I tried to bar any personal thoughts and feelings [when I acted] and worked within the script as much as possible.”

 

But Lee did add a noticeable detail to the character - whenever Kim is feeling nervous or agitated, he irritably smooths out his hair to maintain its perfect shape.

 

The actor was inspired to add the detail when he saw an actual video clip of the trial of Kim Jae-gyu.

 

“Maybe it might not have been his usual habit, but [at the trial] he had already spent some time in prison and his hair was growing out. Since there wasn’t any product, his hair naturally fell on his forehead and I saw him flipping his hair over in a very skittish and edgy way. After watching that clip, I thought I could apply this to my role.”

 

At the end of the interview, Lee also expressed his excitement for the approaching Oscars.

 

“The amount of spotlight ‘Parasite’ is receiving and its achievements will be very critical to the future of Korean cinema,” Lee said.

 

“This is the 101st year of the birth of local film, and if [‘Parasite’] can be the first to shine through at this important event, I believe that things may be very different for Korean cinema from that moment on. [Receiving an Oscar] might give the local film industry the boost it needs.”

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Source: 헤이 @heysuit

 

 

 

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   C  O  N  G  R  A  T  U  L  A  T  I  O  N  S  ! 

 

T H E  M A N  S T A N D I N G  N E X T                                                           

4  M I L L I O N  A D M I S S I O N ! 

 

Source: Showbox

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

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This "interview" on YT is so funny.
I wonder why they agreed to do it, and be interviewed by someone who does not know Korean? Maybe they did not know in advance.  Maybe, as Lee Byung-Hun told his fellow actors - that Koreans will be watching it too. Anyway, the first part is funny. The latter part, after the guy who does know Korean joins, it gets more interesting.

Introducing Korea’s A-List Actors to Isaac’s Toast…

 

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February 2, 2020

 

Byung Hun-ssi must have enjoyed watching this movie in Los Angeles.  

 

 

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Photo: redshoes0522

 

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Another glowingly cool review for TMSN , this HanCinema reviewer is quite a fan..

 

February 1, 2020

 

Hancinema Film's Review: THE MAN STANDING NEXT

 

Review by Panos Kotzathanasis on HanCinema.net
 

 

The days of the Third Republic and particularly Park Chung-hee's reign in the 70s, including the implementation of the Yushin Constitution and his assassination by his close friend and director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, Kim Jae-gyoo, is among the darkest in modern Korean history. Based on the homonymous novel by Kim Choong-sik that narrates the final days of both Park and Kim, Woo Min-ho directs a spy film that has already topped the box office since its release on January 22.

 

The story deals with the events that led to the assassination of President Park and Cha Ji-chul (Kwak Sang-cheon in the film), chief of the Presidential Security Services, 40 days before the actual deed, focusing on Kim Jae-gyoo (Kim Kyoo-pyeong in the film). Being a friend of President Park and one of the key members of the coup that brought him into power, Kim is loyal and always willing to do his President's bid, even if his orders border on the illogical. However, after meeting the previous head of the KCIA, Park Yong-gak, in the US, where he has defected, Kim learns of the existence of another secret service, whose men report directly to President Park, even unbeknownst to him, and his mentality starts changing. At the same time, the constant antagonism between him and Kwak Sang-cheon, a war-thirsty simpleton with too much power on his hands, is putting even more strain on Kim, particularly because President Park seems to encourage this "competition" between the two men. As Kwak's's cries to declare martial law are getting louder and more appealing to Park as the Bu-Ma Democratic Protests were in full bloom, Kim finds himself alienated and in a very difficult position of choosing between the wellbeing of his country or his close friend and comrade.

 

As mentioned in the intro text of the film, Woo Min-ho took a number of creative liberties, which are justified, to a point at least, since Kim Jae-gyoo's reasons for the assassination were never fully revealed. Apart from the depiction of the real events, which seems to suffer a bit from the Hollywood, impression-focused tactics, the film as a cinematic work is exceptional. Woo creates a web of treacheries, lies, paranoia, and stupidity that seems to capture the general circumstances of the era quite intriguingly, and placing Kim in the middle, thus explaining his growing discomfort that eventually led to despair and the aforementioned deeds.

 

This aspect owes much to Lee Byung-hun's exceptional acting, whose struggle to retain both a composure of and his actual logic and dignity, and failing, are a treat to watch. Although in laconic fashion, this struggle is palpable, while the few scenes where he cannot keep his calm are excellently portrayed and well placed.

 

 

At the same time, and through the constant changes on the upper hand regarding the favor of President Park between Kim and Kwak, Woo Min-ho retains a psychological agony that matches the ones deriving from the actual events, thus overcoming the reef of the lack of mystery regarding who the traitor is. The fact that everyone's phones seem to be bugged, a tactic that allows the script to move on in a number of situations that would be difficult to portray otherwise, may seems excessive at times, but since the story takes place during the Cold War Period, could be the truth as well.

 

This constant and permeating atmosphere of agony benefits the most from the events that unfold in torrenting fashion, with the rather fast pace implemented by frequent cuts working quite well for the narrative. The cinematography again follows Hollywood "rules", being quite polished and stylistic, but once more, I felt that it suits the general "spy  game" aesthetics quite nicely.

 

Lee Sung-min as President Park is quite good in presenting his growing paranoia, while Lee Hee-joon highlights all the characteristics of Kwak Sang-cheon with gusto. Kwak Do-won is also good as Park Yong-gak, although his character suffers a bit from the lack of screen time.

 

"The Man Standing Next" is an exceptional mainstream film that uses the true-story setting to present a captivating spy thriller whose atmosphere, acting and direction will satisfy all viewers looking for entertainment along with elements of historical context.

 

Panos Kotzathanasis is a film critic and reviewer specialising in East Asian Cinema. He is the founder of Asian Film Vault, administrator of Asian Movie Pulse and also writes for Taste of Cinema, Eastern Kicks, China Policy Institute and Filmboy.

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February 3, 2020

 

Lee Byung Hun selected as FromBio's new model, TV advert airing in February

 

Source: Future Korea 1 // 2 (Google translate)

 

 

Actor Lee Byung Hun was recently selected as an advertising model of 'FromBIO', a health functional food specialized company.

 

Lee Byung Hun will be endorsing the main products such as articular cartilage boswellia, stomach health mastic, and the newly launched red ginseng in 2020.

 

FromBIO is a health functional food brand that produced boswellia for pain in arthrodial cartilage and stomach mastic gum, both recognized by the Ministry of Food and Drug Administration. Meanwhile, red ginseng is reasonably priced by in-house production that prioritizes the use and content of pure raw material for consumers.

 

 

FromBIO representative stated, 'The model selection was based on Lee Byung Hun's stability and work trust that matched the FromBIO brand image. As we aim to become a global health functional food specialist, we expect brand image reconsideration through world class actor Lee Byung Hun".

 

Source: frombio_official // 헤이 @heysuit // @ByungBlue 

 

There was an earlier post on the official IG to guess the new model based on the silhouette before the CF feat. LBH was released.

 

 

 

Spoiler