Lee Mi Sook 이미숙

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March 27, 2012

Why 'Love Rain' Failed to Relate to Its Viewers

Source: CJ E&M enewsWorld Lee, InKyung Translation Credit : Erika Kim

KBS2’s new drama Love Rain, which stars the big hallyu names Jang Keun Suk and Yoona, is in danger of becoming a drama solely for overseas sale. The drama aired its first episode on March 26, and despite its top star stacked deck, it managed a mere 5.8 percent (AGB Nielsen Media Research) viewership rating, falling flat among the time slot’s other dramas. The number doesn’t even reach the 6.6 percent of the last episode of its predecessor Dream High 2.

Especially as Love Rain was produced by the hallyu producer Yoon Suk Ho, the man behind the popular four season series, many were looking forward to seeing a high quality drama.

The curtain finally rose, but the drama was abandoned with the evaluation that it was a vague piece that failed to relate to both the old and new generation.

Love Rain boasted it would be an analogue and traditional melodrama.

Producer Yoon Suk Ho aimed to revive the pure emotions that more recent generations never get to feel by drawing out a 1970s analogue and retro sensitivity. His attempt, however, came to be a failure.

Viewers showed they were let down, saying, ‘It’s just like a 70s tear-jerker’, ‘I think I’ve seen this before somewhere’ and ‘Even my mom could guess what was going to happen next’.

The reactions were completely different from how the film Sunny was received, as last year it succeeded in bringing together the old and new generation with a retro code, and also the evaluations of the more recent Architecture 101, which marked a success in the box office with a 90s mood that channeled the pureness of first love.

They’re all about the same analogue, retro and first love themes; why were they received so differently?

First of all, viewers pointed out that the story was too slow and was too centered on producing beautiful videos. Sunny and Architecture 101 quickly alternated between the past and the present, arousing the curiosity of their audience like the compact 100 minute pieces of art they were supposed to be, but Love Rain talked for a long hour about how the two leads continued to run into each other on campus and slowly fell in love with each other.

Viewers already used to disastrous and speedy stories said, ‘We know it’s supposed to be a nice drama, but it’s too slow’.

The characters also failed to reach the hearts of their viewers. The female lead was too wishy-washy, and the male lead was too timid, hiding his emotions and sulking over it by himself, making viewers feel suffocated by the lack of action.

In Ha (Jang Keun Suk) falls in love with Yoon Hee (Yoona) while he helps her avoid the rain with an umbrella he found, but he never confesses his love for her. He even gives her up when his friend Dong Wook (Kim Si Hoo) says he likes her.

This type of love will never draw any emotion from the new generation, while the older generations are already immersed in MBC’s Light and Shadow, which is about show business in the 70s, making them reluctant to turn their channels to Love Rain.

Love Rain could make a comeback by grabbing the attention of viewers when the story is passed to the sons and daughters of In Ha and Yoon Hee. More viewers could also fall for producer Yoon Suk Ho’s brand of slow stories and video-centered scenes.

It is true, however, that the results don’t live up to the name of a hallyu drama starring Jang Keun Suk and Yoona. As these two are hallyu stars who won many awards for their acting and for which viewers hold no doubt about their acting skills, the results are all the more disappointing. Whether Love Rain will become a mere overseas publication right selling drama is yet to be seen.

Its competitors, MBC’s Light and Shadow and SBS’ Fashion King, each scored 20.6 percent and 9.2 percent in viewership ratings.

Photo credit: KBS

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March 28, 2012

KBS 2TV's 'Love Rain' off to a gloomy start

Source: koreajoongangdaily.com

Not even the fame of the “Prince of Asia,” Jang Keun-suk, could help lift the new KBS 2TV drama “Love Rain” when it first aired on Monday.

The new program featuring a stellar cast of Jang, Girls’ Generation beauty queen Yoona and actress Lee Mi-sook peaked with viewer ratings of just 5.8 percent, according to statistics released by AGB Nielsen yesterday.

The new drama is a love story that jumps between the 1970s and the present and has the major characters playing two roles each.

In the first episode, viewers of “Love Rain” were introduced to the 1970s university students played by Jang and Yoona.

Meanwhile, competing shows “Light and Shadow” on MBC and “Fashion King” on SBS accrued 20.6 percent and 9.2 percent viewer ratings, respectively.

In comparison to “Love Rain,” this year’s hit MBC drama “The Moon Embracing the Sun” received 18 percent ratings for its first episode in January.

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March 26, 2012

Film Review: An Affair

by Andy H easternkicks.com

E J-yong’s impressive feature-length debut starring Lee Mi-sook and Lee Jung-Jae that defies the romantic drama conventions…

Asked to help out her sister’s fiancé when she is unable to get back from Los Angeles, So-Hyun (Lee Mi-sook, Actresses, Untold Scandal) soon finds herself attracted to the younger man (Lee Jung-Jae, The Housemaid, Typhoon, Il Mare, in his breakthrough role). Unfulled in her own life as housewife and mother, she realises that she has feelings for him that she never had for her husband (Song Yeung-chang, Duelist, The Foul King, Nowhere To Hide) and their affair begins.

But nothing can stay secret forever, and So-Hyun must decide what she truly wants from life.

In a film that could so easily have been mawkish, director E J-yong keeps incredible restraint over the emotions. In our interview with E J-yong recently, he discussed how he wanted to defy conventions for a romantic drama, avoiding big melodramatic scenes and restraining the soundtrack from maudlin accompaniment. And the result, rather like Wong Kar-wai’s sublimely poetic In The Mood For Love, which had the other half’s betrayed in an affair get together, is all the more powerful for it.

It’s an exceptionally confident and accomplished debut work. I wondered if his previous experience in documentaries had helped this minimalist approach, but in discussion J-yong revealed he had deliberately wanted to create film that would not become dated. Watching it over a decade after it was originally filmed, it’s hard to express just how successful he was. But with it’s muted tones, minimalist sets and non-specific gadgets, it truly is a timeless tale.

The beautiful Lee Mi-sook – who E J-yong said he considered to be a ‘godess’ when he frost worked with her – is terrific in the lead. It’s a beautifully understated performance from an actress best know at that point for her TV work of a woman who has let control of her life get away from her. I couldn’t help but compare with the character Yoo Ho-jeong recently played in Sunny, another disenfranchised housewife, again with a child, and wonder where J-yong’s sophistication in dealing with the subject had gone.

Lee Jung-Jae also gives a fine performance, if setting a precedent for exposing his bum tin later roles. Though South Korea and its cinema may have been opening up, the mature but explicit way J-yong deals with sex still feels more adventous than much of Korean cinema of the time.

For those of you that have seen the film, J-yong gave an interesting answer in our interview to what he felt would happen to the couple, whether they would end up together, that underlines his defying of romantic conventions.

An Affair is an intelligent film that surpasses expectations. Even if romantic dramas are not your thing, it’s hard not to be moved by E J-yong’s film. An impressive debut, and like Actresses one that deserves a wider UK and international release.

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April 2, 2012

Yoona and Lee Mi Sook Show Striking Resemblance for 'Love Rain'

Source: Nate++ L CJ E&M enewsWorld Lee, JinHo Translation Credit : Erika Kim

Yoona and Lee Mi Sook are supposed to play the same person in different timelines for KBS2’s Love Rain, but their resemblance is taking the feat to a new extreme.

Yoona plays both Kim Yun Hee of the 70s and Jung Ha Na of 2012. When the time period of the drama shifts to 2012, the middle-aged version of Kim Yun Hee will be taken over by Lee Mi Sook.

The two are showing they’re more than up for their roles with their doppelganger looks. They will be playing mother and daughter in the 2012 portion of the drama, and their looks, especially their side profiles, resemble each other so much it won’t be hard to make their viewers believe in their roles.

As soon as Lee Mi Sook and Yoona’s similarities were revealed, netizens voiced their surprise, saying, ‘Their profiles really resemble each other!’ ‘The two look really similar in the photos’, ‘Like mother, like daughter. Beauty passed on through generations!’ and ‘Lee Mi Sook seems to channel Yun Hee’s sadness of the 70s!’

An official from the production company Yoon’s Color said, “Lee Mi Sook and Yoona are not only supposed to be mother and daughter, but also the young adult and middle-aged version of one character, Kim Yun Hee. You can look forward to the new story these two surprisingly similar yet different women will tell in 2012.”

Love Rain will air its third episode on April 2.

Photo credit: Yoon’s Color

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April 16, 2012

Lee Mi Sook Debut in Love Rain with Elegant & Mature Charm

Source: asian-drama.org

Nate

In KBS 2TV episode 7 of Love Rain broadcast on April 16th, 2012, the mother of Jung Ha Na (Yoona), plant nutritionist Kim Yoon Hee (Lee Mi Sook) is making debut appearance.

Lee Mi Sook makes her first appearance in the drama in the courtyard full verdant plants in full bloom. With natural hair, grass green sweater, bright yellow diary on the hand and blooming flowers in the yellow pots, it’s just like a landscape, very beautiful. In particular, the elegant and refreshing charm of Lee Mi Sook combined with her mature and meticulous acting, perfectly shaped the image of middle-aged Kim Yoon Hee.

Lee Mi Sook who falling into beautiful first love memories when young while looking at the diary, is overlapping with the image of Yoona looking at the diary while sitting on the bench in fine arts university in the 1970s, perfectly portrays the same character, very eye-catching. She who gazes at her daughter gently with loving eyes, is raising the expectation to the cooperation of both persons in the drama.

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April 27, 2012

Lee Mi Sook Cosmetic Pictorial Shows Goddess Charm

Source: dramahaven.com

The actress starring in South Korea hit series “Love Rain“, Lee Mi Sook, recently shot the pictorial photos for the endorsement of a cosmetic brand.

In the photo, the elegant straight hair and innocent makeup of Lee Mi Sook attracting the vision.

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May 24, 2012

Actress Lee Mi-sook in court again

By Carla Sunwoo Korea JoongAng Daily

Actress Lee Mi-sook’s former agency, The Contents Media, revealed on Tuesday that it had paid large amounts of money to a male escort Lee was seeing some time ago in order to uphold Lee’s image in public.

During a court proceeding that took place at the Seoul High Court, the agency said its former talent was in a relationship with a male escort 17 years her junior.

In order to keep the man from talking, the agency said that it bribed him with millions of won.

The agency has remained tight-lipped about the ordeal, saying it won’t make an official statement until the final court proceeding that will take place on June 28.

The Contents Media sued Lee back in November of last year for breaching the exclusive contract she signed.

The court agreed that Lee was guilty and ordered her to pay 100 million won ($85,349) in penalties.

However, The Contents Media said that the agency was owed at least double the amount of the fine and appealed for a second trial.

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June 14, 2012
Journalist accused of libel strikes back at Lee Mi-sookBy Carla Sunwoo Korea JoongAng Daily 


The journalist being sued by actress Lee Mi-sook for libel says he has evidence to prove his innocence.
The reporter in question appeared on an entertainment news program on SBS on Wednesday night and said he had documents, including a handwritten note from Lee’s former younger boyfriend, of Lee’s extra-marital affair prior to her divorce in 2009.
“Lee Mi-sook should handle the situation better. I stand by what I said earlier... I did not say anything false about her,” said the journalist.
He said he obtained the documents when Lee’s agency and the boyfriend, who is 17 years her junior, were in a dispute over a contract that would prevent the boyfriend from talking to media about the affair.
On June 7, Lee filed a lawsuit accusing the journalist and her former agency of spreading lies about her.
Lee’s former agency has said it paid large sums of money to a male escort Lee was seeing years ago to protect Lee’s public image. Lee is seeking 1 billion won ($856,986) in damages.

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July 1, 2012
Legal damage claims are mountingBy Moon Gwang-lip Korea JoongAng Daily
Legal disputes involving actress Lee Mi-sook and her former agency, The Contents Entertainment, are getting uglier with the money claimed in pending lawsuits reportedly growing to 3 billion won. 
Last Friday, the agency filed a lawsuit against Lee and two others for breach of contract and defamation and claimed 2 billion won in damages.
Lee’s former manager, identified only by his surname Yu, and Song Seon-mi, another actress formerly with the agency, were also named in the lawsuit. 
In 2009, Lee and Song moved to an entertainment company set up by Yu, called Hoya Entertainment.
Lee countersued last month when a media outlet quoted company officials saying that Lee had an “inappropriate relationship” with a male host 17 years younger than her. In the suit, filed against the company as well as the two journalists who reported the story, Lee claimed 1 billion won in damages. Lee denied the report. The 53-year-old Lee debuted as a TV actress in 1978. She received the best actress award from MBC in 2008.

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July 10, 2012
Lee Mi Sook Appears at Police Agency as Accuser in Defamation CaseCJ E&M enewsWorld Choi, EunHwa Translation Credit: Erika Kim  
Lee Mi Sook was questioned as the accuser in her false information and defamation case.
On July 10, Lee Mi Sook appeared at the Seocho Police Agency with her lawyer and agency official to testify against the head of her former agency and two reporters. 
She had sued them in a civil and criminal suit for spreading false information and defaming her name.

The actress arrived in a van. When the press asked her to make a comment, she passed them by without a word and headed inside the police agency.
While filing her civil lawsuit for defamation, Lee Mi Sook had said that she would clear her name as an actress and mother. She also showed she was willing to take strong measures by appearing to testify in person, and this day she lived up to her word.
The head of Lee Mi Sook’s former agency accused Lee Mi Sook of having an affair with a host 17 years younger than her before her divorce, and said that this incident was related to the documents that started the scandal regarding the late actress Jang Ja Yeon. 
Lee Mi Sook sued the agency head and two reporters for failing to check the facts before breaking the news.
Photo credit: Hea Jung Min / Nate

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September 12, 2012
Lee Mi-sook turns into a fierce mom (again) for cable dramaby javabeans dramabeans.com

Cable channel JTBC is readying a new drama, and Lee Mi-sook (Love Rain, Cinderella’s Sister) is the first star to be attached. The drama is titled Could We Marry (literally, it’s like asking “Will we be able to marry?” but that has a clunkier ring to it, as far as titles go), and, naturally, is themed around weddings and marriage.
That sounds generic, I know, but there’s room in there for some heartfelt and meaty character stuff: the drama will follow the marriage stories of four couples. For instance, one story thread features a bride-to-be with 100 days till her wedding, full of family interactions and wedding preparation details. The show touts the message that preparing for a wedding is not the same as preparing for a marriage and a lifetime of living together, which seems like an obvious statement but could make for nice themed storylines. I say this one’s all going to hinge on execution, and at least JTBC has a solid track record in that regard.

Lee Mi-sook plays a strong, meddling mother with daughters to marry off, which makes me think she’s reprising her role from Thousand Day Promise. Which could be a good thing; she was a hoot in it, and often the sole comic relief in an otherwise dreary story. Lee does sharp and biting in the funniest way, and that makes her more absurd than unlikable since the outrageousness is the point.
In this drama, her character owns a cosmetics store and raises her two daughters on her own. Mom considers money the most valuable thing in the world — which makes her single-minded in the pursuit of prospective son-in-laws. Her own marriage experience was unhappy, so she’s set on making sure it’s different for her children. An admirable prospect, for certain, though you wonder if she’s living vicariously through them to right that wrong, which is less admirable.
She marries off the elder daughter to a doctor, then turns her attention to the younger. Only to have the daughter reveal that she wants to marry an ordinary salaryman. Gasp! Conflict ensues.
Could We Marry will premiere in October.
Via Joins MSN

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October 27, 2012
'Can We Get Married' Draws 50,000 Views In 1 Day
JTBC new Mon/Tues mini-series "Can We Marry" is already seeming like a big deal
Source: KpopStarz
'Can We Get Married' Draws 50,000 Views In 1 Day
JTBC new Mon/Tues mini-series "Can We Get Married" already seems like a big deal.
On Tuesday, the drama held a press conference, at which they showed the entire first episode.
The drama is now being lauded as the one that will take the place of JTBC's other hit "A Wife's Credentials" and showed Lee Mi Sook as she rattled on her dialogue about the truth behind marriage and its realities.
The drama also made an incredibly bold decision to premiere its first episode online rather than on the air and the pilot episode recorded 50,000 views on just the first day, which shocked everyone.
The drama is about a couple played by Jung So Min and Sung Joon, who are about to get married in 100 days and the story revolves around them and their families. It makes you think about all the different kinds of marriages that exist with all the different couples. Lee Mi Sook has transformed into an overbearing mother and Kim Sung Min is returning after a long hiatus. 
What's also drawing attention is that the drama is by director Kim Yoon Chul, who created "My Lovely Sam Soon" and broke the godly 50% viewer ratings mark. This is his first return in 2 years. 
He is known to be a perfectionist and pushes everyone until he is completely satisfied. Though many cast and crew members often become exhausted by his efforts, they all agreed that it was worth it when they finished previewing the first episode.
The drama begins airing next Monday, on the 29th. 

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October 29, 2012

Lee Mi-sook's boy-toy letter on MBC

By Carla Sunwoo Korea JoongAng Daily



Lee Mi-sook’s boy-toy scandal continues to unravel in public after MBC aired a handwritten letter supposedly written by Lee’s former lover who was 17 years her junior.

On an episode of “Good Day,” the network revealed the note that was supplied to the agency by the journalist who is currently being sued by Lee for libel.

The reporter had for some time claimed that he had the letter in his possession and at last proved it with a note that contained a lot of gratitude and a promise to keep quiet.

“I met her while I was a student in the United States. She offered me a lot of emotional and material support, and for that, I’m thankful,” the letter read.

Furthermore, the man apologized for asking Lee to “give some more” in the past and then promised, “I won’t go around tarnishing her name.”

The note doesn’t say outright whether there was an affair that took place. The reporter said he obtained the document when Lee’s agency and the boyfriend were in a financial dispute.

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January 20, 2013
Producer Song Gwang-jong casts Lee Mi-sook
Source: TVdaily via Hancinema.net

Lee Mi-sook has been cast in "Miracle Korea".
Producer Song Gwang-jong revealed the reason why he cast Lee Mi-sook at the press review event of JTBC program "Miracle Korea" on the 20th.
Song claimed, "I was already Lee Mi-sook's fan since university. Apparently, she gladly accepted my offer. The first reason why I cast her is because she has the fanciness of a wealthy family's daughter-in-law. She also has a humanly side to her in dramas so I thought she would be good for an MC".
Meanwhile, "Miracle Korea" starring Lee Mi-sook, Kim Yeong-kwang and Seong Joon, is highly expected by many as it is full of people who create miracles.

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February 3, 2013
Lee Mi-sook in "Lee Soon-sin is the Best" as IU's mentor
Source: SportsSeoul via Hancinema.net

Lee Mi-sook has come aboard the new KBS weekend drama, "Lee Soon-sin is the Best".
Popular character Deul-ja from the JTBC drama, "Can We Get Married??" has joined a new upcoming drama.
She takes on the role of Song Mi-ryeong, the greatest actress in the time who one dominated all men with her popularity. Even at a middle age, she maintains her beauty and is a role model for many younger actresses.
She discovers the talent in Lee Soon-sin (IU) and helps her to grow. She is also going to create a tense relationship with Soon-shin's mom because of her secret relationship with her.
Lee Mi-sook said, "I was appealed by the firm story line of the synopsis and I was sure of this drama after I met the director. I think it's going to be fun".
"Lee Soon-sin is the Best" is about the happiness and love of a mother and daughter who suffer a tough time after the sudden death of the father.

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February 12, 2013
Lee Mi-sook mentions her so called 17 years younger boyfriend
Source: SBS via Hancinema.net

Actress Lee Mi-sook made a statement about the boyfriend of hers who was supposedly 17 year younger than her.
On the JTBC TV program "Miracle Korea" which Lee Mi-sook stands MC for, Lee responded wittily to a joke involving the '17 years old younger man'.
Counter Tenor Lee Dong-gyoo appeared on this day's program and revealed that he was her fan. She said, "Are you 17 years younger than me?"
Lee Mi-sook wore a wedding dress and appeared from the ceiling with the support of wires, making a fancy entrance..
"Miracle Korea" casts miraculous people from all over the world who create miracles out of effort. There are shows and performances and influences the judges sitting by the audience.
A cast with 100 votes wins a prize of 10 million won.

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February 21, 2013
Veteran actress loses appeals trial
By Ahn Joo-hee contributing writer Korea JoongAng Daily

Lee Mi-sook, a veteran actress who has been embroiled in a boy-toy scandal, lost an appeals trial in which her former agency filed a damage suit against Lee for breaching her contract. 
The Seoul High Court ruled yesterday that Lee should pay 120 million won ($110,604) to her former agency, The Contents Media. 
Back in January 2009, The Contents Media filed a lawsuit against Lee demanding 200 million won in damages, claiming that she broke the four-year exclusive contract she signed in 2006. 
The agency has been in hot water with the actress over the scandal. It has been alleged that the star was involved in a romantic relationship with a man 17 years her junior, and that the agency had to pay large amounts of money to the young former lover to keep him quiet to keep the affair a secret. 
Despite the scandals, Lee continues to pursue her acting career. Currently, she is appearing as the host of JTBC’s “Miracle Korea.” She has also been cast in a new KBS2 drama which will be aired from March 9.