[Movie 2018] The Drug King 마약왕

[Go Seung Ji]

 

[rubie]

November 20, 2018

 

Star-Studded Crime Flick to Hit Theaters Next Month
 

Source: The Chosun Ilbo

 

A new crime flick is raising expectations with its star-studded cast ahead of its release next month.

 

Based on the true story of a Korean narco kingpin in the 1970s, the film stars Song Kang-ho in the lead role, Cho Jung-seok as a devoted prosecutor determined to track him down, and Bae Doo-na as an influential lobbyist who helps the main character's drug business.

 

The three attended a press conference in Seoul on Monday along with other cast members and director Woo Min-ho. 

 

Cast members pose at a press event for director Woo Min-ho's new film in Seoul on Monday. From left, Kim So-jin, Cho Jung-seok, Song Kang-ho, Bae Doo-na, Kim Dae-myung and Woo

 

Woo said, "I didn't think this cast was possible. But I knew if we could get Song to participate, we could put together a great cast around him."

 

Song downplayed his importance to the film, however, saying, "Woo says he was able to cast other actors because of me, but that's not true. I think actors trust him. I think this is the first film to deal primarily with the underground drug world, although it has been partially addressed in many other films. I think the actors, including myself, were attracted by this."

 

Woo's other works include "Inside Men," for which he won the best director award at the annual Daejong Film Awards in 2016. 

 

The new film will hit local theaters on Dec. 19. 

 

Source: OhMyStar

 

 

 

 

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November 21, 2018

 

New Stills and Character Posters Added for the Upcoming Korean Movie "Drug King"

 

Source: HanCinema.net // Naver news

 

 

 

[rubie]

November 26, 2018

 

Song Kang-ho Is Terrifying in Newest Poster for "Drug King"

 

Source: HanCinema.net

 

 

"Drug King" (2017)

Directed by Woo Min-ho

With Song Kang-ho, Jo Jung-suk, Bae Doona, Lee Sung-min, Kim Dae-myung, Kim So-jin...

Wrapped up filming : 2017/10/10

 

Synopsis
Based during the Japanese invasion, a drug king sells drugs to China and Japan and uses the money on the Joseon Independence movement.

 

Release date in Korea : 2018/12/19

 

November 27, 2018

 

Korean Movie Actors with highest ticket power 2018

 

Source: Naver via KoreanUpdates! @KoreanUpdates

 

Song Kang Ho claims his spot for 3 year in a row as the Korean actor with strongest ticket power.

 

Based on the survey conducted by portals MyDaily & MaxMovie from November 1 till November 23 involving 12,890 participants.

 

The top 10 actors:

 

1. Song Kang Ho

2. Ha Jung Woo

3. Ryu Jun Yeol

4. Lee Byung Hun 

5. Ma Dong Suk 

6. Kang Dong Won

7. Hwang Jung Min

8. Yoo Hae Jin

9.  Cho Jin Woong

10. Kim Yun Seok

11. Joo In Sung

12. Ju Ji Hun

13. Choi Min Sik

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Published on November 27, 2018 by EonTalk

 

Drug King (2018) 마약왕 Movie Trailer 2 

 

Source: 10Asia

[rubie]

November 19, 2018

 

‘Drug King’ to bring out gritty side of Song Kang-ho

 

By Yoon Min-sik  The Korea Herald
 

Song Kang-ho, arguably the best actor in Korean cinema today, is definitely an artist of range. But many of his iconic roles are as the everyman caught up in extraordinary situations, which is why upcoming crime drama “Drug King” will be an intriguing change of pace.

 

“The audience is used to seeing (me portray) characters that look like an everyday man, the guy next door, so I think ‘Drug King’ will feel different,” Song said, during a press conference for the film in Seoul on Monday. “It is an unconventional subject, and as an actor I’m happy to deliver a unique cinematic charm through that story.”

 

“Drug King” / Showbox

 

In the film, he plays titular “drug king” Lee Doo-sam, a figure depicted as the kingpin of the illegal drug market in 1970s Korea.

 

While Hollywood has seen some truly iconic drug lords like Tony Montana, played by the great Al Pacino, such an attempt has been rare in a country where drug use is strictly punished by the law and more greatly stigmatized by society. 

 

Song said the film focuses on a realistic depiction of the drug world and 1970s Korea, adding his character is linked to the society of that time and problems it had.

 

Inspired by real-life events of the times, the flick will portray Lee’s rise to power and riches while depicting both the positive and negative aspects of Korea’s rapid economic growth.

 

Director Woo Min-ho said the film has many different aspects.

 

“It’s not the typical crime film, but more of an adventure,” he said. 

 

Comparing “Drug King” to “Inside Men,” another crime film he directed in 2015, he said this is a very different film.

 

“It is a film that focuses on the people. I think people of the 1970s have been depicted in various ways over a span of 10 years (in the film). It won’t be just a dark film, but it also won’t be light-hearted.” 

 

Bae Doo-na, playing the role of a lobbyist Kim Jeong-ah, said she had a blast filming it. 

 

“I’ve always played roles that are relatively ‘plain.’ But here I wear a lot of fancy clothing and makeup,” she said, adding that her character not being the rubber-stamp lobbyist stereotype helped make it more interesting.

 

Jo Jung-suk, playing prosecutor Kim In-goo, performs alongside Song for the first time since “The Face Reader” in 2013.

 

“Drug King” hits theaters on Dec. 19. 

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)

[Go Seung Ji]

Character Posters

 

 

 

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If not mistaken, the VIP screening will be held on December 17.

 

Source: CINE21

Source: Sports Donga

 

 

 

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[Go Seung Ji]

 

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Source: CINE21

 

NO.1185

2018-12-18 ~ 2018-12-25

 

[rubie]

December 16, 2018

 

Herald Review

‘The Drug King’ has strong acting by Song, but not much more

 

By Yoon Min-sik The Korea Herald
         
“The Drug King” is not a flop by any means. On the contrary, it is probably one of the better South Korean films of the year.

 

But when you have masterful Song Kang-ho as the protagonist, plus the brilliance of Bae Doo-na, Jo Jung-suk, Lee Sung-min and so many other talented actors and let it all go to waste, that just doesn’t cut it.

 

Woo Min-ho’s upcoming crime drama about a 1970s drug lord is funny, visually impressive and well-acted by the always-dependable Song, but it suffers from a weak story, wasted plot points and a failure to use its great supporting cast.

 

“The Drug King” (Showbox)

The film starts off in 1970s Busan with Lee Doo-sam -- Song -- a small-timer in a drug-smuggling ring looking to make ends meet for his wife and children, as well as his three sisters. After his boss sells him out and he does time in prison, he decides to expand his activities by extending his trade across the sea to Japan, associating with more dangerous people such as the yakuza.

 

A life of crime has its perks, and Lee’s parade of bribes earns him various honors, not to mention connections with bigwigs and an affair with well-connected lobbyist Kim Jeong-ah, played by Bae Doo-na. But in the course of these adventures he is chased by hard-nosed prosecutor Kim In-gook -- Jo Jung-suk.

 

The biggest and most obvious strength of the film is the lead. I’ve rarely seen Song strike out in a movie and “The Drug King” is no exception. He absolutely shines -- sometimes he’s funny, at other times menacing and complicated.

 

Having said that, the rest of the cast is just wasted. 

 

If you know anything about Korean cinema, you know that Woo commanded a dream team cast. That’s hard to tell from the film, though.

 

Bae is a talented actress, but her performance here is just ... dull. Her acting is unbelievably poor for a person who has received so many accolades, although I’m willing to give her the benefit of the doubt given her past work and the fact that her character was written poorly.

 

Jo is another actor who can pull off both serious and funny -- but in this film, he is neither. In the “The Face Reader,” for example, the Jo-Song team had the audience rolling over one minute, then in tears the next. How do you make Jo this unimpressive?

 

Lee Sung-min can carry a whole movie by himself, but here he contributes almost nothing. That’s excusable because he had so little screen time. Even so, Kim So-jin, Lee Hee-joon, Yoon Je-moon and Yoo Jae-myung are all excellent actors who just fade away.

 

Jo Woo-jin was the brightest spot in this year’s “Default,” but he does not leave much of an impression in “The Drug King.”

 

The film is visually impressive, though not stunning. The sight of Lee Doo-sam sitting alone behind a flamboyant desk is symbolic of his hollow ambitions. The costumes and scenery effectively convey the empty splendor that is the “drug king’s” empire.

 

Lee’s desk is reminiscent of the image from “Scarface” from 1983. In fact, the parallels with the Hollywood classic starring the legendary Al Pacino keep popping up so frequently that it’s annoying. Whether this is intentional or not, the imagery, the characters, their lust, their rise and fall feel similar -- and cliche-ish. 

 

In fact, the movie at one point appears to be galloping toward a “Scarface” ending, and then just bail -- perhaps because the director realized it in the nick of time.

 

I initially thought “The Drug King” would more closely resemble the 2012 Korean flick “Nameless Gangster: Rules of the Time,” a black comedy that was blacker and more comedic than this one.

 

As a black comedy, “The Drug King” is pretty funny thanks to a wonderful performance by Song. His chemistry with Kim So-jin isn’t bad, but it’s not outstanding either. Overall, moments of really good chemistry between actors in this film are few and far between. For the most part, the chemistry is passable at best. 

 

Relationships between the characters tend to develop off camera, which is why scarcely anyone other than the protagonist gets any substantial character development.

 

And while we’re talking about waste, many plot points go nowhere too. Lee’s family serves as a plot device, his bad blood with a government official who tortures him and creates an unwanted connection with a gangster doesn’t really pan out, and Kim In-gook’s pursuit of Lee doesn’t add that much drama. 

 

Perhaps my expectations were too great for the man who directed the poignant “Inside Men,” which looked at the corrupt networks among politicians, media and conglomerates. But while “Inside Men” had wit, powerful subject matter and an iconic line that struck the hearts of Korean moviegoers, its story too was somewhat forced. Its main strengths were great characters and great acting.

 

Is “The Drug King” that god-awful a movie to deserve so much bashing? Absolutely not. It has some genuinely funny moments, and Song is as brilliant as ever. It is a film that is at least passable.

 

But it should have been much, much more. When you have a beyond-awesome cast and an interesting (if somewhat overused) premise, this shouldn’t be the best that you can do.

 

“The Drug King” opens in theaters Dec.19.

By Yoon Min-sik (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)

[rubie]

December 17, 2018

 

Yonhap Interview 

'Drug King' is a throwback to Song Kang-ho's dark side
 

By Park Boram

 

SEOUL, Dec. 17 (Yonhap) -- Song Kang-ho is arguably the most successful South Korean movie actor working today, having in 2016 become the first actor to achieve the milestone of playing lead roles in films that sold a cumulative total of more than 100 million tickets.

 

His recent hit movies, like "A Taxi Driver," "The Age of Shadows," "The Attorney" and "Snowpiercer," established his cinematic image as a man of virtue with a humble demeanor.

 

Song's upcoming film, "Drug King," set for opening on Wednesday, however, is a major turnaround from such images, with him cast in a role that brings out playful and gangsterish elements.

 

"Over the past ten years, I have often played roles of common people who delve into justice. It wasn't out of my deliberate intention," Song said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency and other media outlets on Monday ahead of the new film's release.

"

The latest work will put forth other sides of actor Song Kang-ho," he said. "They are close to the characters that I played some 20 years ago (at the start of my cinematic career), including 'Green Fish' or 'No. 3.'"

 

"Audiences may be delighted to see again what I looked like when I debuted ... and I myself was very excited while filming it because it had a lot of scenes that I couldn't act for a long time," he said.

 

This image of Song Kang-ho is provided by Showbox, the distributor of "Drug King." (Yonhap)

 

The film, by director Woo Min-ho, the creator of the 2015 hit film "Inside Men," depicts Song as Lee Doo-sam, a fearless drug lord operating against the backdrop of South Korea's heady industrialization drive in the 1970s.

 

Starting off as a petty smuggler going between South Korea and Japan, his gut and grit made Lee an enormously rich and influential leader of the biggest drug ring based in the port city of Busan. Allied with the leader of a Japanese yakuza group, he also runs a major drug distribution network in Japan, a story director Woo drew from a group of real-life drug dealing cases in the '70s.

 

As his drug export business thrived, Lee bribed his way to the top of the drug underworld, greasing the palms of law enforcement officials and buying politicians with bribes.

 

Lee's gradual descent into drug addiction and his eventual fall are organically intertwined with the political ambience peculiar to the dictatorial period.

 

"The 1970s was a time of brilliance and dynamism. It was a time when our parents sacrificed their lives for the upbringing of their children, to make them better off than themselves," according to Song. "Lee Doo-sam is also one of them. But he chose illegal means and came to embody social evils. That is how (the drug lord) was born."

 

It was a big acting challenge, even for the well-rounded veteran actor, to incarnate a drug addict in a country where there are few high-profile criminal cases or cinematic archives on the themes of drug use.

 

"It was a real challenge to me as an actor to bring to life a world that I have never encountered. How to bring out all the little details of a drug world was really demanding," Song noted.

 

"As some say that actors and actresses are chronically lonely beings, nobody can help them in front of the camera. They are left wholly alone there," the actor said.

 

Despite the heavy title of being South Korea's most commercially successful actor, Song tries to free himself of any pressure. "It would be a lie if I say I don't feel any pressure of having to come up with good (box office) performance every time," according to Song.

 

"But my top priority is showing up with a face that is not obsolete every time I shoot a new film. Regardless of the results, what challenge I come to deal with is the most important thing."

 

pbr@yna.co.kr

[rubie]

Source: Soompi

 

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December 18, 2018

 

[INTERVIEW] Song Kang-ho's 'hallucinating' acting stands out in 'Drug King'

Actor Song Kang-ho poses prior to an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe in Seoul, Monday. /Courtesy of Show Box

 

By Park Jin-hai The Korea Times

 

Award-winning actor Song Kang-ho, who has been acclaimed for his subtle portrayal of ordinary citizens in various films, has bagged the strongest character ever in his career _ a lesser-known Korean drug king.

 

In his latest crime drama "The Drug King," directed by Woo Min-ho of crime action "Inside Men" (2015), Korea's top grossing R-rated movie of all-time, Song portrays Lee Doo-sam, an ordinary small-time narcotics dealer who becomes an infamous drug lord in Korea during the 1970s.

 

The R-rated film is based on the real life story of a drug smuggler named Lee Hwang-soon who built his empire in Busan's crime underworld in the '70s. Although drugs are prevalent in many Hollywood films, it is rare for Korean movies to center on the country's drug cartels. 

 

"Although local audiences might find themselves unfamiliar with the story material, it will leave a strong impression on viewers," said the 51-year-old actor during an interview with the Korea Times in Seoul, Monday. "But it is more than the strong feelings its poster emanates. It is about a person's obsession with money that leads him to his doom. It portrays human desire, obsession and destruction through the dramatic life of Lee. It is not intended to put the country's underground drug trafficking world under the microscope." 

 

In the 139-minute film, Song shows the dramatic rise and fall of petty smuggler, Lee. After being involved unwittingly in drug deals, Lee was quick to learn about the business and rose to the position of drug lord going between Korea and Japan. Under the authoritarian government of Park Chung-hee, when the country ran the nation-wide Saemaeul campaign to modernize the rural Korean economy and promote exports, the government turns a blind eye to the drug trade. Using connections within the government and bribing officials, Lee manufactures drugs and accrues enormous wealth by exporting them with the "Made in Korea" brand to Japan. But, in the end, he becomes an addict and his insatiable obsession for money leads him to a tragic end. 

 

He said there were technical difficulties when depicting Lee under the influence of drugs. "There was a lack of Korean films that I could use as references when trying to show Lee's hardcore addiction. The references available for the local drug rings were all written texts, while the film's script just says Lee suffers from a addiction. So I had to work hard, using my imagination to portray Lee's addicted state realistically," said Song. 

 

"Acting is a lonely job, because after all it is left to the actor to shape the scripted character and bring them to life. But I felt even lonelier shooting this film, with nobody to advise me how to act like a drug addict."

 

Song returns to the big screen, one and a half years since "A Taxi Driver," where he took on the role of an ordinary taxi driver who came to be involved in the events of the Gwangju Democratization Movement in 1980. With his many projects including "The Host" (2006), "The Attorney" (2013) "A Taxi Driver" (2017), Song appeared as an ordinary father, a good-willed lawyer and a taxi driver who stands up for what's right. 

 

"Over the past ten years I've happened to bag roles playing many seemingly ordinary characters who stand for justice. But in my new film, audiences might be reminded of my earlier acting seen in, say, 'Memories of Murder.' Viewers might find it amusing I think," he added. 

 

Song tried hard to show his character's inner turmoil, "Since the film doesn't lean on the confrontation between good and evil characters carrying the story, I thought the depth of acting performance matters. So I tried hard to depict Lee's internal pains and skewed obsession entangled within and to show how they change the person," he said. 

 

Song said he particularly likes the film's unconventional ending. "The film doesn't follow the familiar structure of giving catharsis to viewers. Instead, it ends by questioning viewers if the evil seed for one's destruction has gone for good. It doesn't have the typical closing the box ending. I hope movie fans will also find the director's unconventional ending fresh."

 

jinhai@koreatimes.co.kr 

[Go Seung Ji]

1st Day: 249,042 admissions

 

 

 

source

[rubie]

Source: Cine Made in Asia @cinemadeinasia

 

 

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December 20, 2018

 

When a good guy goes bad: In “The Drug King,” Song Kang-ho plays a smuggler who becomes a kingpin

 

Source: INSIDE Korea JoongAng Daily

 

[SHOWBOX]

 

While there have been several Korean films over the years that indirectly deal with drugs, like the 2006 noir action title “Bloody Tie” - a story about a drug dealer and a hard-nosed cop trying to arrest him - the topic remains a taboo theme to feature at the center of a major production. 

 

The recently-released “The Drug King,” however, is a rare Korean title with a plot that openly touches on the topic.

 

Set in the southern port city of Busan in the 1970s, the crime drama revolves around Lee Doo-sam (Song Kang-ho), a petty smuggler who barely makes ends meet to feed his wife, a piano teacher, and two children. But after he starts smuggling drugs by chance, Lee follows his instinct and ultimately builds an underground criminal empire, becoming a drug kingpin. The film is inspired by the notorious real-life figure. 

 

“‘The Drug King’ tells the life story of a man who used to be naive and simple, but is later destroyed by his own ambition and greed after getting a taste of wealth and authority,” said Song during an interview held in central Seoul on Monday. “Drug issues are deeply rooted in countries like Mexico or the United States. Korea, however, is a drug-free nation, and therefore, was difficult [for me] to play the role.

 

“I did not refer to any previous movies or videos to play Doo-sam because the character has his own unique background story that leads him to behave in certain ways,” Song added. 

 

Directed by Woo Min-ho of the acclaimed crime film “Inside Men” (2015), the movie co-stars Bae Doo-na as a lobbyist who guides Doo-sam into the upper echelons of the drug trade and Cho Jung-seok as an ambitious and hard-nosed prosecutor chasing after Doo-sam. Kim Dae-myung plays Doo-sam’s younger cousin with whom he has a strong bond. 

 

Things in the movie start to pick up when Doo-sam’s boss sells him out. After he serves time in prison, he gradually starts to expand his smuggling activities across the sea to Japan, giving him helpful yet dangerous connections to bigwigs. 

 

Song Kang-ho, center, plays a drug kingpin in “The Drug King,” which is set in Busan in the 1970s. [SHOWBOX]

To Song - who is best known for his working class roles like the one he played in last year’s

 

“A Taxi Driver” and 2013’s “The Attorney” - pulling off a villainous character like Doo-sam was a new challenge.

 

“Over my more than two decades as an actor, I have landed a number of roles representing justice. But building this kind of resume was not intentional,” said Song. “So [though Doo-sam may seem quite villainous], I hope the audience will welcome this character because it shows different aspects of my acting capabilities.”

 

Song added, “I didn’t choose ‘The Drug King’ to show off an unseen part of me. I was simply interested in a story that delves into a man who goes through joy, anger, sorrow and pleasure in life, and ultimately gets destroyed by his own crooked ambition. I was interested in how Doo-sam gradually turns into a beast to survive in a chaotic world.”

 

When asked whether he shares any similarities with his character, the actor firmly said, “I aim to make good movies for audiences. But I neither chase after money, nor authority.”

 

The time period is a crucial part of Doo-sam’s character, according to Song.

 

“Korea had dynamic moments in the ‘70s. During that time, many parents sacrificed themselves in the hopes of providing better lives for their children. I guess Doo-sam was one of those parents.”

 

One of the most interesting parts about this film to Song was its ending. 

 

“The ending of this movie is quite different from most films. I think it may get a divided response from audiences, but I respect director Woo Min-ho’s choice in how the film finishes.”

 

Song added, “The film’s ending suggests that even though Doo-sam may see an end [to his wealth and reputation], there is a possibility of another Lee Doo-sam, meaning the existence of this kind of social evil could continue to persist.” 

 

Even for an experienced actor with such strong ticket power, leading a big budget movie that cost more than 15 billion won ($8.9 million) to make is a huge responsibility.

 

“I can’t say that I’m free from the pressure of the film’s box office performance, but I try not to feel or think about it too much.”

 

That doesn’t mean he does not have career goals.

 

“The biggest goal is to give audiences new movies and avoid becoming lazy.” Song added,

 

“Instead of being an actor who can sell more than 10 million tickets, I would like to be described as a refreshing actor who works to surprise viewers.” 

 

Released on Wednesday, “The Drug King” is rated 18 and above.

 

BY JIN MIN-JI [jin.minji@joongang.co.kr]

[Go Seung Ji]

2nd Day: 184,704 admissions

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[Go Seung Ji]

1st Saturday: 299,506 admissions

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[Go Seung Ji]