Lee Jung-Jae 이정재 [Movie “Hunt” | Upcoming: Star Wars series “The Acolyte” (Disney+)]

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September 12, 2013
‘The Face Reader’ selected as the opening movie of AKFF... released in America on October 4th
Source: Innolife Korea


‘The Face Reader’ which noticed box office, grabbing the 370,000 audiences, will meet the foreign viewers. 
The 12th Atlanta Korea Film Festival (AKFF) announced that they selected ‘The Face Reader’ for the opening movie of the second AKFF on 20th. ‘The Face Reader’ which will be released on October 4th in US, will be seen for the first time through this AKFF. It is about the accident that the best face reader in Joseon got caught into Gyeyoojungnan. It is based on the story which won the grand prize at Senario Contest on 2010. Song Gang-Ho, Lee Jung-Jae, Jo Jung-Seok, Baek Yoon-Shik, Kim Hye-Soo, Lee Jong-Suk appear in the movie. 
Hong Sung-Goo the secretary general of AKFF said, “We selected the movie with box office“ and “As we made the theater near the Korean town, I wish many Korean people enjoy the festival.” The specific information can be seen at the official homepage of the festival. ‘The Face Reader’ started as the box office top. It is on the theater in whole country.

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September 14, 2013
8 icons in Korean film industry gather for Good Downloader Campaign
BNTNews


[by Cho Suyoun] Magazine InStyle and eight actors gathered at one place to shoot Good Downloader Campaign.
Since 2008, ‘Good Downloader Campaign’ has been held to support continuous growth of Korean film industry and culture of healthy contents consuming. Every year, many film professionals participated in the Good Downloader Campaign’ and supported the idea.
During the interview, actor and chairman of Good Downlader Campaign, Ahn Sung ki said, “Compared to old days, the percentage of people downloading illegally has reduced so much so the film market has revived again. We are glad that people pay attention to the campaign.”
For this year, fashion brand Loius Quatorze and magazine InStyle co-produced and directed the collaboration project as 2013’s theme was ‘intellectual elegance’ that changes the world beautifully. Ahn Sung ki, of course, participated again this year and other influential actors such as Ryu Seung ryong, Jung Woo sung, Han Hyo joo, Lee Jung jae, Ha Ji won, Go Ah sung and leading star Kim Woo bin joined the campaign and shooting.
Since the concept of the shooting was ‘Another Red Carpet,’ the actors dressed up in chic suit and dresses as how they wear for red carpet events. The actors showed facial expressions as if they are faced with some unexpected situations occurring at filming scenes. The special illustrates and interview of eight stars gathered to celebrate 5th anniversary of Good Downloader Campaign will be available in October issue of star & fashion magazine InStyle. (photo by InStyle)

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Nate

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September 15, 2013
‘Physiognomy’, a million audiences in 3 days… same record with ‘The Thieves’
Source: Innolife Korea


Movie ‘Physiognomy’ reached a million audiences in 3 days since it premiered. 
According to Collective Network of Movie Ticket on September 14, movie ‘Physiognomy’ reached 1,137,087 audiences. ‘Physiognomy’ premiered on September 11 and it is expected to make explosive hit as it reached a million audiences only in 3 days. 
It is same record with ‘The Thieves’, which was a great hit last year. ‘Physiognomy’ is ranking top on Box Office since it premiered. 
‘Physiognomy’, directed by director Han Jae-Rim, drew expectation even before the premiere with spectacle casting. The best actors from Chungmuro, Song Gang-Ho, Lee Jeong-Jae, Jo Jeong-Seok, Baek Yoon-Shik, Kim Hye-Soo and Lee Jong-Seok gathered together. 

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September 16, 2013
“The Face Reader” Smashes Weekend Box office
by Lee Hye Ji TENASIA 
Korean period-set movie “The Face Reader” made a smashing debut atop local weekend box office over the weekend.
“The Face Reader” attracted a whopping 1.89 million moviegoers during its opening weekend from September 13 to 15 and topped the weekend box office, the Korean Box Office Information System (KOBIS) showed on Monday.
The star-studded film, starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Jung-jae, Cho Jung-seok and Lee Jong-suk, centers around a natural-born face reader Nae-kyung (Song) who aims to changee the fate of Joseon Dynasty after finding out Sooyang Daegun’s (Lee Jung-jae) conspiracy to rise in revolt.
Sitting at the No. 2 position is last week’s chart-topper “The Spy: Undercover Operation.” The Korean comic action pic drew in over 377,000 audiences in the same time frame.
U.S. action adventure “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones” made a debut to number three with some 176,000 tickets sold, while “Monster University,” Pixar’s 14th animated picture and prequel to “Monsters, Inc.,” grabbed the fourth place after attracting over 175,000 animation lovers.
“Percy Jackson and Sea of Monsters,” the sequel to 2010 fantasy adventure “Percy Jackson & The Olympians,” rounded off the top five with 158,000 tickets sold.
Other movies much enjoyed over the weekend are U.S. animation “Despicable Me 2,” Hollywood crime thriller “Now You See Me,” Korean hit thriller “Hide and Seek,” director Bong Joon-ho’s first global project “Snowpiercer” and Hong Sang-soo’s newest art house film “Our Sunhi.”
Reporter. Lee Hye-ji hjlee@tenasia.co.kr
Courtesy of Showbox

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September 16, 2013
THE FACE READER Crowned King of the Box OfficeBig Start for Period Drama ahead of Chuseok Holiday by Pierce Conran KOFIC
 Box office was brought back to fighting form this weekend after a sluggish early September following the release of the big-budget period film The Face Reader. Directed by HAN Jae-rim and starring SONG Kang-ho, LEE Jung-jae, BAEK Yoon-shik, KIM Hye-soo, JO Jung-suk and LEE Jong-suk, the well-received pictured drew 1.89 million admissions over the Friday to Sunday period. As the film was released on Wednesday, it has already accrued 2.6 million admissions, putting it on the fast track to profitability.
 After the romantic film Rules of Dating (2005) and 2007’s gangster feature The Show Must Go On (also starring SONG Kang-ho), director HAN Jae-rim tackles his first period film with The Face Reader. SONG plays a face reader during the Joseon era who becomes embroiled in a case of courtroom intrigue for the king’s throne. With the Chuseok holiday falling on a Thursday this year (September 19th), which means that Wednesday and Friday will also be public holidays, The Face Reader is expected to put up strong numbers throughout the coming week. Also released to capitalize on the Chuseok holiday was the action comedy The Spy: Undercover Operation, starring SEOL Kyung-gu, MOON So-ri and Daniel HENNEY. However, it has failed to gain the same kind of traction, having amassed only 1.66 million admissions in 11 days.

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September 18, 2013
'Physiognomy', recorded 3 million view
Source: Innolife Korea

A movie 'Physiognomy' recorded more than 3 million view boasting off its popularity. According to 'Show Box media plex', the distribution company, it recorded 3 million 3 thousand 1 hundred forty three of audiences in 7 days. Its speed is remarkable even comparing with 'Gwang Hae, who became a king'. 'Gwang Hae' recorded about 2 million of audiences. It notices its popularity continuing in Chuseok holidays. [Picture=Poster] 

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September 20, 2013
Lee Jung Jae's old photos revealed STARN News 
Old photos of Lee Jung Jae are becoming a hot issue among many fans.
Recently, a photo titled 'When Lee Jung Jae was 25' was uploaded on an online community board.
The photo shows when Lee Jung Jae casted in movie 'Phoenix'. Even though it was taken a long time ago, he is still showing the same look as now.
Netizens who saw the post left comments, such as "That is amazing", "Lee Jung Jae and Jung Woo Sung were two most handsome guys", "He did not get old at all", and "I don't think nobody is as handsome as he was".
Meanwhile, Lee Jung Jae recently casted in movie 'The Face'.
/Reporting by Oh jin ju en@starnnews.com

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September 19, 2013
'Physiognomy' gets over 4 million audiences in 9 days.. dominates movie market during Chuseok 
Source: Innolife Korea
The historical movie 'Physiognomy' (directed by Han Jae-Rim), in which Song Gang-Ho (46), Kim Hye-Su (43), Lee Jung-Jae(40), and other top stars made appearances, broke through 4 million audiences in 9 days since premiere.
According to the distributing company Showbox Media Plex, 'Physiognomy', which was premiered on last 11th, recorded 4 million and 19 thousand and 505 as the number of accumulated audiences, with 19th 1:00 AM as criteria. Previously, this movie had over 2 million audiences in 5 days, and three million in 7 days since the premiere.
The speed of 'Physiognomy' breaking through 4 million, is faster than 'Gift from Room No.7' (broke through 4 million in 12 days since the premiere), the third rank of the success report of Korean movies throughout the generations, and 'Gwang-Hae, the man who became a king' (broke through 4 million in 13 days), which had premiered during the Chuseok season last year.
The movie's plot describes Chosun's talented Physiognomer (played by Song Gang-Ho), getting involved in tragic revolt of the year Gye-Yoo.
'Spy' (directed by Lee Seung-Joon), which had been released during Chuseok season, along with 'Physiognomy', got over 2 million accumulated audiences on the same day, which was 14th day since the premiere. According to the distributing company CJ Entertainment, 'Spy' reached 2 million audiences on 10:00 AM on this day. Its plot describes the best secret spy in Republic of Korea 'Cheol-Su'(played by Seol Kyung-Ku)'s wife 'Young-Hee' (played by Moon So-Ri), who doesn't know her husband's reality, getting involved in the plan while Cheol-Su implementing the most special plan which the nation's fate depends on.

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September 21, 2013
The movie 'Physiognomy' breaks through 5 million audiences... Captivates the audiences from all the generations, even results in second watching!
Source: Innolife Korea
'Physiognomy', which has broken through 2 million audiences in 5 days, 3 million in 7 days, 4 million in 9 days since the premiere on September 11th, has broken through 5 million audiences in one day since the breaking through 4 million (criteria from the real-time tabulation of the distributing company Show Box- September 20th (Friday) 1:00 PM with criteria- accumulated audiences 5093428). Such record is the faster speed when compared to not to mention the ten million movie 'Gwang-Hae, the one who became a king', which had been premiered on last year's Chuseok season, but is the fourth movie that broke through 5 million audiences among Korean movies throughout the generations, following Snowpiercer, Thieves, The Host, which had broke through 5 million audiences in 10 days since the premiere, so there is deeper meaning.
Furthermore, 'Physiognomy' is not only recording the high reservation rate of 55% and the first rank of box office for 2 weeks since the premiere, but is also resulting in the trend of re-watching already, among the audiences who had already watched the movie, so it is expected that the success of 'Physiognomy' will be continued after Chuseok holiday.
The audiences are leaving the comments through SNS, such as "the actors' performance were really great, and the story full of tension was also good. It is the movie that leaves deep impression", "Physiognomy is the best! The acting is good, the visual is good, and the implication is also good! It is the general gift set of Chuseok, which 140 minutes were interesting!", etc. The attention of the theater is focused upon the record of new Korean movie, which , which has broken through 5 million audiences, will be making. 

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September 22, 2013
‘The Face' Viewers showing explosive reactions for Lee Jung Jae's acting STARN News

'The Face' is getting attended by more and more people, and viewers are showing explosive reactions for the work that Lee Jung Jae showed in the movie.
On September 22nd, Lee Jung Jae's management agency, C-JeS Entertainment, told that many viewers are showing explosive reactions for Lee Jung Jae's acting.
Even though he makes his first appearance after 1 hour, Lee Jung Jae still made a very strong appeal with his great charisma.
Recently, many netizens are making parodies of the lines that Lee Jung Jae speaks in the movie, and viewers are also requesting director Han Jae Lim to release director's cut.
Meanwhile, 'Lee Jung Jae Exhibition' will be held at KOFA located in Sangam-dong, Seoul from September 24th.
Lee Jung Jae will be visiting the exhibition on September 28th, and meet up with his fans. /Reporting by Lee Mi-Ji en@starnnews.com

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Source: Nate

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September 23, 2013
'Face Reader' Exploits Changing Trends to Race up Film Charts
Source: The Chosun Ilbo
Director Han Jae-rim's "The Face Reader" is fast establishing itself as the nation's next box-office hit. The movie, which revolves around a power struggle in the Chosun Dynasty, attracted over six million viewers by Sunday, within just 12 days of its release.
Pundits say that part of its success can be attributed to its all-star cast, and part to the way in which it has grasped the changing trends of the market in terms of target viewers and themes. 
It already ranks as the third-fastest Korean movie to attract this many viewers after "The Host" and "The Thieves," both of which subsequently went on to break the 10-million mark. The former sold 13.01 million tickets and the latter 12.98 million. 
Since it was released, "The Face Reader" has accounted for 50 percent of all domestic box-office sales. On Friday alone, it was seen by over 900,000 people. This puts it just shy of the daily record of 910,000 for a Korean movie, which was set by "Secretly Greatly" on June 6.


◆ Star-Studded Cast
The movie features six A-listers, including both young and veteran actors. Song Kang-ho, Lee Jung-jae, Kim Hye-soo and Baek Yoon-sik all have proven hits behind them and established fan bases, while promising actors Cho Jung-seok and Lee Jong-suk will draw the interest of young viewers. 
Although Song's titular role propels the plot, all six actors are granted similar screen time and equal importance in the film. 
This kind of star-studded cast helps broaden the film's appeal to a wider audience, given the range of characters and the actors' varying ages.
◆ Engaging Family Flick
Film booking site MaxMovie polled its customers before the Chuseok holiday to find out who they planned to watch the movie with, and some 63 percent of the respondents said they planned to make it a family affair. 
Kim Hyung-ho at MaxMovie said, "While many people take their kids to the movies during the summer holidays, the demographic changes to adults accompanied by their parents for the big traditional holidays." As such, films that can be enjoyed with elderly parents soar in popularity over Chuseok. 
"The Spy," a comedy made specifically for the holiday season, has emerged as the biggest rival to "The Face Reader" at the box office. But while it featured famous actors Moon So-ri and Sol Kyung-gu, the cast was not broad enough to engage teenagers or parents in their 60s. 
No Hollywood productions have also been able to match the success of "The Face Reader" this year. "The Conjuring," a supernatural horror, "Monsters University," an animation, and "Superbad 2" have only ha

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September 24, 2013
'The Face Reader' tops 7 million in audience mark
YonhapNews
SEOUL, Sept. 24 (Yonhap) -- A Korean costume drama about a Joseon era physiognomist has drawn an audience of more than 7 million, a market tracker said Tuesday.
"The Face Reader" surpassed the 7 million milestone in the cumulative audience number on Monday in 12 days since its release, the Korean Film Council (KOFIC), a state agency for promoting Korean films, said.
Directed by Han Jae-rim, the movie is about a talented physiognomist named Nae-gyeong who tries to change the fate of Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) in peril after reading Prince Suyang's future as a traitor from his face. Actor Song Gang-ho played the face reader.
Despite Nae-gyeong's efforts, Prince Suyang takes the throne from his young nephew Danjong in a coup and becomes the seventh king of Joseon in 1453.


sshim@yna.co.kr

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Missed this review earlier on...
September 13, 2013
'Face Reader' a smart, gorgeous tale of destiny
By CARLA SUNWOO Korea JoongAng Daily


Song Kang-ho stars in “Face Reader” as Nae-kyung, a man with a special gift for knowing people just by examining their heads. Provided by Showbox
With an all-star cast like Song Kang-ho, Lee Jung-jae, Baek Yoon-shik and Kim Hye-soo, you might think “Face Reader” has the makings of a hit - and you’d be right. 
Released on Wednesday, “Face Reader” is already dominating the box office, earning 2.5 billion won ($2.30 million) on Wednesday alone and accounting for 78 percent of the day’s ticket sales.
Set in the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897), “Face Reader” is a tragic yet moving story about a group of people whose destinies are intertwined around a man with a nearly magical ability to read faces. 
The face reader in question, Nae-kyung (Song), has been living a humble life in the mountains with his son (Lee Jong-suk) and brother-in-law Paeng-heon (Jo Jung-suk), when Yeon-hong (Kim), madame of a well-known brothel in the capital city Hanyang comes offering a business proposal. 
Tempted by the possibility of turning things around for himself and his son and brother-in-law, Nae-kyung sets out for the capital.
Once there, it’s not long until Nae-kyung’s knack for reading faces and the future is discovered by members of the royal court. After a few twists and turns, Nae-kyung is brought to the court to advise the king and high-ranking officials.
The first half of the movie is full of laughs, in particular Paeng-heon as a fish-out-of-water in the big city.
But all good things must come to an end, as troubles close to the king begin to loom over Nae-kyung, too. Before long, Nae-kyung finds himself in the middle of a power struggle between Grand Prince Soo-yang (Lee Jung-jae) and the faithful scholar Kim Jong-seo (Baek). 
Although the plot is somewhat predictable, the storytelling is done with style and all the actors bring much nuance and depth to their roles. In particular, Kim and Lee are riveting as ambitious, calculating and charismatic characters, both bringing unique forms of charisma.
Song, as always, has a strong presence on screen, displaying an array of emotions and behaviors, sometimes lazy, others drunk, but more importantly a father who is willing to put his life on the line for the sake of his only son. Paeng-heon, Nae-kyung’s brother-in-law and sidekick, brings humor, while bad boy Prince Soo-yang is a forceful villain, as fascinating as he is cruel and scary. Newbie Lee Jong-suk also proves his worth as a rising Hallyu star. 
In addition to the superb casting of some of Korea’s finest actors, the cinematography, costumes and set designs are also truly delightful. The pace of the story - galloping toward doom - is fast enough to keep the viewers attuned. 
However, it does not take a magical face reader to guess how this tale will unfold, and most viewers will be able to guess the ending. 
Although the movie kicks off with laughs, it’s not long before jokes give way to a more sinister, action-packed sequence of events. But unlike the non-stop frenzy of summer blockbusters, there is thoughtfulness and nuance in “Face Reader” that lurks behind each pull of the bow and swipe of the sword.
The movie transcends just the subject of reading character and faces, touching on the value and significance of family. The irony of subscribing to a world belief system based on destiny is questioned and the ending leaves viewers wondering about whether the story was really fate or a series of self-fulfilling prophecies. Or, as Nae-kyung puts so eloquently, “knowing how high the waves will be don’t stop them from crashing down.” 
“Face Reader” is a superb tale that asks big questions about life but also highlights the mundane, precious moments that inevitably lead to death.

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September 25, 2013
“The Face Reader” to Donate Profit to Charity
by Kang Jung Yeon TENASIA

The production company of highly-successful Korean period-set pic “The Face Reader” will be making big donation.
Jupiter Film, the production company of “The Face Reader,” will be donating half of the film’s profit to Korean charity foundation The Beautiful Foundation, an official with the charity told TenAsia over the phone Wednesday.
The official explained that Jupiter Film agreed to donate half of the film’s profit to The Beautiful Foundation during the movie’s filming. It is unusual to decide to donate a movie’s profit in such an early stage, since the success of the film can not be predicted.
The donation will be made after the film ends its successful run, now grabbing over 7 million moviegoers in only two weeks of its opening, thanks to the long Chuseok holiday, Korea’s Thanksgiving Day, last week. The production company will calculate the profit and then make the donation, the official added.
Starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Jung-jae, Cho Jung-seok, Lee Jong-suk and Kim Hye-soo, the film centers on a talented face reader Nae-kyung (Song) who tries to stop Sooyang Daegun’s (Lee Jung-jae) conspiracy to rise in revolt.
Founded by Seoul’s mayor Park Won-soon, The Beautiful Foundation is a philanthropic group that promotes volunteerism and community service and addresses issues of income inequality.
Reporter. Kang Jung-yeon atoz@tenasia.co.krEditor. Lee Hye-ji hjlee@tenasia.co.kr

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September 23, 2013
Movie Review: Oh! Brothers by refresh_daemon 
http://www.dramabeans.com/2013/09/movie-review-oh-brothers/

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September 28, 2013
Lee Jung Jae releases a new pictorial STARN News 
The best photographers teamed up for Lee Jung Jae's new pictorial.
On September 28th, actor Lee Jung Jae's management agency, C-JeS Entertainment, told that Lee Jung Jae had a pictorial shooting with 4 photographers for October edition of 'Esquire'.
The four photographers, Hong Jang Hyun, An Joo Young, Kim Neo, and Mok Na Jung expressed different impressions of Lee Jung Jae.
Lee Jung Jae also showed amazing looks and different expressions.
The photographers each described Lee Jung Jae as 'a man with handsome face and handsome heart', 'an iconic guy', 'a recordable face', and 'born with sexiness'.
During an interview that he had after the shooting, he said, "I always try to show different faces. An actor is like a flower. Even if you are a beautiful rose, you should always give efforts to show different color and aroma."
Meanwhile, Lee Jung Jae will be attending 'Lee Jung Jae Exhibition'.
/Reporting by Oh jin ju en@starnnews.com

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September 30, 2013
“The Face Reader” Takes 3rd Crown on Weekend Box Office
by Lee Hye Ji TENASIA Korean period-set film “The Face Reader” achieved noticeable success after taking the third top spot on Korean weekend box office.
“The Face Reader” pulled in over 641,000 moviegoers during the weekend from September 27 to 29, securing its top place for three weeks running, the Korean Box Office Information System (KOBIS) showed on Monday.
The star-studded film, starring Song Kang-ho, Lee Jung-jae, Cho Jung-seok, Lee Jong-suk and Kim Hye-soo, has now surpassed eight million audiences in less than 20 days of its opening with its interesting subject of face reading and story of success and fail.
Sitting at No. 2 is U.S. horror film “The Conjuring,” which drew in some 448,000 moviegoers in its second week of opening, elbowing out Korean spy comedy “The Spy: Undercover Operation” to the third place after selling 234,000 tickets.
“Runner Runner,” singer-actor Justin Timberlake’s crime thriller, made its debut to No. 4 after a bit disappointing ticket sales of 94,000, while Pixar’s animated pic “Monsters University” took one step down and rounded off the top five with 90,000 tickets sold.
Other movies much beloved last weekend were U.S. animation “Despicable Me 2,” Woody Allen’s new drama “Blue Jasmine,” fantasy adventure “Percy Jackson and Sea of Monsters,” action adventure “The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones” and Korean romantic suspense “Jit.”
Reporter. Lee Hye-ji hjlee@tenasia.co.kr

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October 1, 2013
'Face Reader' Attracts 8 Million Viewers
The Chosun Ilbo


"The Face Reader," directed by Han Jae-rim, has attracted over 8 million viewers within just 19 days of its release. 
The film drew 1 million spectators in its first three days of hitting cinemas on Sept. 11 and a total of 2.5 million after five days. 
Due to its popularity over the recent Chuseok holiday, tickets sales swelled to 4 million in nine days and 6 million in 11 days. 
It became the fourth movie this year to draw over 8 million viewers after "Miracle in Cell No. 7," "Iron Man 3" and "Snowpiercer."