[Current Drama 2022 & 2024] Pachinko, 파친코 - Lee Min Ho, Youn Yuh Jung, Jin Ha, Anna Sawai, Minha Kim, Soji Arai, Kaho Minami - Streaming on Apple TV+ | Season 1 & 2

[Ameera Ali]

Hansu all episode your are clever girl  , smart girl  , at end poor Sunja isn’t smart after all , she didn’t know he married, only want mistress 

 

 

 

 

**Just  glad that experience would make her smarter , stronger in the future 

 

[Ameera Ali]

 

what do HUNSU & school have in common ?  

They both 

 

 

[nina_mitrokhina]

 

How Apple TV+’s ‘Pachinko’ Delivers A “Conversation Between Generations” On-Screen & Behind The Scenes

 

By Alexandra Del Rosario

March 25, 2022

 

Apple TV+’s newest drama Pachinko, based on the award-winning book by Min Jin Lee, offers poignant takeaways about family, survival and love. But, viewers should also expect to walk away with The Grass Roots’ “Let’s Live For Today” stuck in their heads.

The psychedelic anthem scores the series’ title sequence, which weaves together a visual tapestry with the past and present of Korea’s sprawling history. (You can watch it below.) As The Grass Roots sing of living and loving for today, age-worn images of Korean women and men in traditional wear lead to baby photos from the late 20th century, which transition into footage of a bustling Shibuya Crossing in Japan. A convergence of old and new, the high-energy opener is just one of the ways Apple TV+’s Pachinko highlights the link between the present and the generations that came before.

Pachinko, featuring Minari Oscar winner Youn Yuh-jung and newcomer Minha Kim, follows four generations of a Korean immigrant family who fight to realize their dreams across Korea, Japan and America. The main protagonists are Zainichi Koreans, ethnic Koreans who came to Japan during Japanese colonial rule of Korea, and their descendants, who faced discrimination and marginalization. The series begins with a secret romance that develops into a trilingual saga that explores love, loss, home and identity over nearly a century.

‘Pachinko’ Trailer: Youn Yuh-Jung, Minha Kim & Lee Min-ho Embody Min Jin Lee’s Multigenerational Drama

When Hugh decided to adapt the sweeping 2017 novel, she knew that she didn’t want to redo the book page-for-page, but rather bring her own vision to the story. Those who have read the original source material will notice that Apple’s take on the heart-wrenching account of Sunja and her enduring family boasts a less chronological approach. While skipping between time periods allows the series to feature more characters and plot at once, Hugh said she wanted the show “to be this conversation between generations.”

 

Spoiler

 

Soo Hugh

‘Pachinko’ showrunner Soo Hugh

“I feel like that third generation point of view really needs to be put up to mirror that first generation in order to reveal the big themes. Otherwise, I think the themes would have just taken too long to play out,” she added. “I really wanted to crosscut the two storylines and create my own version of the story.”

Teenage Sunja’s departure from Busan to Japan for a better life runs parallel to grandson Solomon’s unrelenting efforts to persuade an elderly Zainichi woman to sell her home. Talk of sunken costs and abundance at an Osaka fish market in the present speaks directly to the poverty and lack of resources Sunja and many Korean families endured when arriving in Japan in the 1930s. With this structure, it’s readily evident how decades-old stories of family hardship, which often go unexpressed and hidden from younger generations; paved the way for the present.

Behind the scenes, Hugh said historical research for Pachinko, which included interviews with Zainichi women who lived during the Japanese occupation (1910-1945), allowed her to fill the “many blank spaces in my family history.” She added that her family’s experiences in that time period were too heavy to discuss openly.

It was the opposite case for star Youn Yuh-jung, known for her work in Korean titles including The Housemaid and My Dear Friends. She told Deadline about her personal ties with the Japanese occupation of Korea. Youn, who plays the 75-year-old Sunja in the 1980s, shared that her mother, born in 1924, and her family lost their land at the time.

 

Spoiler

 

Youn Yuh-Jung as 75 year-old Sunja in ‘Pachinko.’
Apple

 

“It hurt me to play this role, I felt like I’m my mother…that’s why I kind of have a mission to expose this part of our history” she said. “Whether you like it or not, it already happened to us, and we don’t have to be ashamed or proud.”

Similarly, breakout Minha Kim, who portrays the teenage Sunja, said that she learned about the Japanese occupation in school and at home. Kim told Deadline she referred to her grandmother’s personal experience when preparing for the role.

“[My grandmother] spoke to me…’I’m really happy that you got this role, but I’m also very sad that you have to play this role. You have to suffer in that situation, even though it’s just a performance,’” Kim recalled.

While it’s easy to focus on the pain Sunja endured, both Youn and Kim said they wanted to center the hope and humanity that helped the protagonist endure the hard moments of her life. Also joining the project with their own ties to the difficult time in Korea’s history are Korean drama vet Lee Minho, Devs alum Jin Ha and Zainichi Korean actor Soji Arai (Dead of Night).

 

Spoiler

 

Yu-na Jeon as child Sunja in ‘Pachinko.’
Apple

 

With opportunities to tap into ancestral experiences, the cast of Pachinko confronts a history of resilience to celebrate the growth and love it provided to future generations. The result is an eight-part, trilingual season that brings the multitudes of the Korean diaspora to a more global audience and accepts the past as matter of fact – just like the Zainichi women Pachinko seeks to highlight.

Like the Korean elders who smile and laugh while reflecting on their experiences of survival for future generations, Hugh said that facing the past doesn’t have to be heavy.

In Pachinko, all four generations of characters and the actors who portray them share the screen for only one sequence – the opening title. They all spin, jump, shuffle and rock out in a pachinko parlor to The Grass Roots’ “Let’s Live For Today.” For Hugh it was important to “not only to have that conversation [between generations], but to have that conversation be joyful.”

Pachinko is available to stream now on Apple TV+.
 

https://deadline.com/2022/03/how-apple-pachinko-delivers-conversation-between-generations-on-screen-behind-the-scenes-interview-1234986489/

 

****

 

 

 

Netizens explode with the hot scene of Lee Min Ho in the new drama

 

March 25, 2022

 

This is also the first hot scene in Lee Min Ho’s acting career.

After a long time of anticipation, Lee Min Ho‘s Pachinko finally released the first 3 episodes in a row. While episode 1 opens up the story of the main character, from her birth to the loss of her father, intertwined with the scenes in the present, episode 2 gives a look at the childhood of Sun Ja (Kim Min Ha), when she got to know Han Su (Lee Min Ho).

 

Spoiler

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105907/pachinko-25032022-1.gif

 

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105904/pachinko-25032022-6.gif

 

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105901/pachinko-25032022-5.gif

 

 

Han Su is a Korean businessman who recently returned from Japan. Rich and handsome, but in the eyes of the people, Han Su is just a cold and bloody merchant who does the dirty work for a powerful man and lives a debauchery and wasteful life. Sun Ja just knows about Han Su through such gossip while Han Su falls in love with the girl from the first time he accidentally sees her. Han Su once helped Sun Ja when she was arrested by two Japanese men who tried to rape her, from when the two became close. Sun Ja realizes that Han Su is not as bad as rumored, she also knows from him the promised neverlands, where the electric lights are always available and the people have everything in their hands.

 

Spoiler

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105857/pachinko-25032022-1.png

 

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105854/pachinko-25032022-4.gif

 

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105849/pachinko-25032022-3.gif

 

https://cdn.kbizoom.com/media/2022/03/25105845/pachinko-25032022-2.gif

 

 

At the end of episode 2, when she had not known Han Su for a long time, Sun Ja had it away with this man she adored. The hot scene in the middle of the forest is not revealing or offensive, it just stops at a kiss and focuses on the female lead’s expression. However, this hot scene still caused a fever on social networks, the reason being because this was the first time Lee Min Ho acted in a hot scene in a drama.

Korean dramas are different now.
The female lead is good at acting, and this Lee Min Ho’s first hot scene in his life but he didn’t have to act much in it.
My boy has grown up. Although he is 18 years older than me.
While all of his on-screen ex-lovers got married, he had his first hot scene in his career.
But the female lead’s acting is so good, Lee Min Ho doesn’t even need to act in this scene
Pachinko airs every Friday on Apple+.

 

https://kbizoom.com/netizens-explode-with-the-hot-scene-of-lee-min-ho-in-the-new-drama/

 

[syntyche]

Pachinko's Soo Hugh and Lee Min-ho explain the joy behind that opening credits sequence

 

Pachinko episode one spoilers follow, but they're very minor.

 

A young girl ventures through tall reeds that bend gently in the wind while dragonflies dance just out of reach. Sunja is so entranced, so in awe of the world around her, that she barely hears her father calling out her name. And when they do meet, it's clear that Hoonie shares the same childlike awe as his own daughter. Together, they giggle and smile as a dragonfly lands on his outstretched finger.

 

There's so much warmth and joy in this early scene. The comfort and connection that Sunja and her father share practically beams out of the screen. And that only intensifies when the camera suddenly lingers on Sunja's smile before the credits kick in for the very first time.

 

Despite these sweet, humble beginnings, Pachinko can be a challenging watch. Just like Min Jin Lee's novel of the same name, this moving saga follows Sunja's immigrant family and their fight to survive across multiple generations.

 

People struggle. Dreams are broken. And loss is felt acutely throughout, whether it's the loss of actual people who died or a loss of belonging, which creates an almost unbearable yearning for the homeland that this family left behind to survive.

 

But thankfully, Pachinko's opening sequence don't wallow in this misery. Yes, it does reflect some of the pain that Sunja's family went through, particularly later on as the credits change to match the show's evolving tone, but crucially, these credits also pick up on the initial joy of that reeds scene and magnify it tenfold.

 

As old clips and pictures of Korean immigrants start flashing across the screen — including actual cast members in character — we're reminded that struggle alone doesn't define this family or others like them. There's a defiance etched across their faces, interspersed with moments of overwhelming happiness. Because no matter how hard things get, there's still some joy to be found in the here and now.

 

That sentiment is buoyed by the Grass Roots' version of 'Let's Live For Today', a song played in the credits that encourages us to stop worrying and focus on living in the moment. Which is exactly what the cast do as they start dancing to the track, truly giving it their all with a euphoric, almost rapturous energy.

 

Throughout this dance segment, family members who are scattered across space and time all come together in one brightly coloured, almost magical Pachinko parlour to forget the "dreams that can't come true". Teenage Sunja (Kim Min-ha) swirls her dress around. An older Sunja (Minari's Youn Yuh-jung) sways her arms side-to-side. Lee Min-ho slides forward towards the camera. And Soji Arai does a cute little jig with his arms.

 

Watching these characters break free and throw everything they have into the song is deeply cathartic, especially as the show's darker themes gradually come to light across the first season.

 

Speaking exclusively to Digital Spy, showrunner Soo Hugh reveals that she wrote these opening credits into the script for that exact reason.

 

"I knew that because there are some heavy moments in this show, I really wanted the opening titles to be a celebration. It’s a gift to the audience, to say, 'It’s important to laugh and smile as well.' The word that I told everyone is 'exuberance'. I want the titles to feel exuberant."

 

It's hard to imagine Pachinko without this much-needed release, but Soo tells us that the opening credits were actually cut completely at one point, saying: "When we were putting the show together in prep, it was such a crazy schedule for the show. There’s so many scenes to shoot over multiple countries. It became huge. And there was no place to put the opening titles, so we cut them. Then we went to Vancouver for the second half of the show. And I was like, 'No. Oh my God. It’s a mistake. We need those opening titles back, please.' I said, 'We have to figure out a way to do it.'"

"I really wanted the opening titles to be a celebration"

 

And figure it out they did. But it wasn't easy, not by any means. "It’s a testament to this cast and crew," Soo said. "They came in on two days, on their days off, bone-tired. We had a skeletal crew. We didn’t have a key grip. We didn’t have a gaffer. It was so run-and-gun. And for two days, we shot it."

 

It might surprise you to learn that 'Let's Live for Today' wasn't actually written for Pachinko specifically, even though it fits so well with the show's themes and what Soo was looking for. In fact, the song was actually penned by David "Shel" Shapiro and Italian lyricist Mogol in the '60s before American rock band the Grass Roots popularised it in 1967.

But when the cast were called in, they actually shot this opening sequence to completely different music. In her original script, Hugh planned to use a Rolling Stones song, but, "I knew by the time we were shooting, we couldn’t get the rights to that," she said.

 

"So I didn’t know what the song was going to be. For each actor coming out, I would play a different song, and they would just dance to the music. It was such a fun two days of shooting."

 

Soo commends the cast for fitting this extra shoot into their already-busy schedule, but to the actors involved, it was just as cathartic to let go in this scene as it is for viewers watching them dance back home.

 

"For me," said actor Lee Min-ho, "I didn’t really have a scene where I was laughing or smiling for the entire shoot. There weren’t many scenes where I was joyful. So the opening credits was the only time when I felt happy and liberated."

"The opening credits was the only time when I felt happy and liberated"

 

Co-star Minha Kim echoes these words, telling us exclusively that. "I had to dance for two hours in the morning for those opening credits. But we really enjoyed that moment because it was kind of like a first… It was like, we all smiled and laughed, and we did whatever we wanted with the dance," Kim said. It was the only moments that we didn’t have to think about those kind of intense situations. So we got to laugh and enjoy the ride."

 

Even when later versions of the credits become slightly more melancholic in tone, they still provide release by reminding us that these characters are multifaceted in their experiences. No matter what hardships they face in the main narrative, there's always a capacity for joy as well, even in fleeting moments like an older man's fist bump in the air or a little girl's smile at her father as the sun fades away.

 

Pachinko launches its first three episodes globally on March 25, 2022, and then airs weekly on Apple TV+.

 

https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/a39499915/pachinko-opening-credits-song-dancing/

 

 

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‘Pachinko’ Cast Preview An Epic Story of Love, Loss, and Laughter Among the Tears

 

AppleTV+’s Pachinko is an impressive series, carefully crafted to tell the story of four generations of a family whose lives are caught up in events taking them from South Korea to Japan.

 

The secret ingredient to what makes this series engrossing and heartfelt is the nuanced performances by an extraordinary cast, helmed by South Korean superstar Lee Min Ho alongside newcomer Minha Kim and Oscar-winning Yuh-Jung Youn, as well as showcasing the gifted talents of co-stars Jin Ha, Eunchae Jung, Steve Sanghyun Noh, Soji Arai, Junwoo Han, and Kaho Minami.

 

As the ‘Pachinko’ tale unfolds, each character draws the audience in so much that viewers will want to spend more time with them.

 

Pachinko starts off by focusing on the sweeping romance of Sunja (Minha Kim) and Hansu (Lee Min Ho), a self-determined young woman and a world-savvy businessman, who fall in love and then follows the path of their pragmatic life choices that shape the two generations of children and grandchildren.

 

Pachinko deftly weaves Sunja and Hansu’s love story among the flashforward fates of Sunja and Hansu’s son Noa and his half-brother Mozasu, while interweaving the life of Sunja’s grandson Solomon, whose own fate is closely linked to the events of the prior generations’ cruel circumstances.

 

The Hollywood Premiere of Pachinko

 

While on the red carpet for the Hollywood premiere of AppleTV+’s new drama series Pachinko, cast members Eunchae Jung, Junwoo Han, Steve Sanghyun Noh, and Soji Arai provided insight into the epic 4-generational story set among a family desperate to survive, while still honoring their love for each other and tenaciously pursuing their own dreams.

 

Eunchae Jung

 

 

Eunchae Jung (also known professionally as Jung Eun-chae) portrays the young Kyunghee, whose story intersects at a critical time period for Sunja, when Sunja desperately needs someone who would stand by her and provide the emotional support she would need as she created a new life for her family.

 

Kyunghee is a young wife herself and her generosity and compassion are exactly the solace and comfort that Sunja needed most. During interviews on the red carpet at the premiere, Eunchae Jung provided her insight into her character and the series:

 

Can you tell us a little bit more about your character Kyunghee? This is an amazing role since this is such a soft role compared to the character you portrayed in THE KING: ETERNAL MONARCH. It is a character with a lot of heart, who helps connect with other characters. What do you like and appreciate about Kyunghee?

 

EUNCHAE JUNG: She is very warm-hearted, kind and so generous. She is good to everyone. I really like her because she changes her character slightly after meeting Sunja and their relationship. It allows her to finally get to know herself: what she really thinks, and what she really likes and hates. She really grows up throughout the story. So I really love her and I can’t wait to see how she changed after Season 1.

 

Kyunghee and Sunja’s relationship is pivotal throughout the entire series. How would you describe your relationship with Minha Kim?

 

EUNCHAE JUNG: I have an older brother and I always wanted to have a sister in my life, and after meeting Minha [who portrays Sunja], we just bonded with each other instantly. We have the same ideas and thoughts. I got so much inspiration from her. We always talked about our ideas before scenes and during read-throughs. It was just amazing.

It seemed like meeting each other gave both Sunja and Kyunghee a ‘voice’. Like they did not have much to say aloud before they had met each other; but once they met, they got to know each other and it gave them a chance to say what they were thinking, and after that, they had a lot more to say to others in the world. It is like they gave each other permission to voice what they wanted to say out loud — so it was like a journey to discover that they can say something and they were empowered by that.

EUNCHAE JUNG: When Kyunghee sees Sunja for the first time, she sees a ‘mirror’ in her. Like seeing her past years and wanting to help her more. But then time flies and Sunja becomes more like a leader to her, and she leads Kyunghee. That happens on the set too: Minha is my hero. I am much taller than her, and she’s so small, and yet I always follow her. She’s like always saying, “come here”. She’s amazing. I really love her.

They are incredible characters and I can’t wait to see where they both go in the second season.

EUNCHAE JUNG: [Laughs] Me too!

Have they given you any clues as to what could happen in Season 2 with your characters?

EUNCHAE JUNG: [Laughs] No, I don’t think they are going to tell us. But I want to see Kyunghee and how she grew up and her character before and then how she changed in her life and found her own emotions and thoughts, and how she became more brave and powerful.

For you, what was this experience like? What did you love about working on ‘Pachinko’?

EUNCHAE JUNG: It’s a story about a family with a historical background of four generations. It’s about a lot of subjects: like gender issues and its multi-cultural — like how you affect the times now — between Japan and Korea and their relationship. But I think it’s more about issues of love and hate, and faith and sacrifice, which we all deal with every day. So I am sure all the generations and genders, no matter where you are from, I am sure can get into the story straight away and fall in love with it.

How do you see Hansu? Is he the villain in the story?

EUNCHAE JUNG: [Laughs] I don’t think he’s the villain in the story. But it is amazing to see a different side of Minho playing Hansu. He’s a perfect match for it.

We are looking forward to seeing a bit more of that then.

EUNCHAE JUNG: [Laughs] Yes, please do! Have you seen the episodes?

Yes, oh yes. There is a lot of ambiguity for that role. That’s why I am asking.

EUNCHAE JUNG: We have gotten so many amazing critics’ reviews.

It’s an amazing show. I got the screeners on Christmas Day and spent Christmas Day watching it. That’s how good it is.

EUNCHAE JUNG: Thank you so much. So touching.

 

Junwoo Han

 

Spoiler

 

Junwoo Han (also known professionally as Han Joon-woo) portrays Yoseb, husband to Kyunghee and brother to Isak, although by circumstance, Kyunghee, Yoseb and Isak become Sunja’s family once she relocates from Korea to Japan.

 

Thus, their lives and fates become so integral and vital to each other that the only way that each will survive is by working together in spite of the hardships they encounter and endure. During interviews on the red carpet at the premiere, Junwoo Han provided insight into how he sees Yoseb and Isak’s relationship, as well as how Yoseb sees Sunja:

 

You portray the character of Yoseb, who is brother to Isak. What can you describe about the brothers’ relationship?

JUNWOO HAN: They have very close relationship together as brothers. Yoseb is always ready to sacrifice for Isak because they have been apart from each other for a long time, and then they get to meet again.

 

What is Yoseb’s impression of Sunja? It seems like he is not very fond of her initially.

 

JUNWOO HAN: I think that is the most important thing about this story — it’s more about the relationship between Yoseb and Sunja — and he doesn’t like her that much. Becoming family with a total stranger all of a sudden, I think that dynamic is pretty interesting.

 

For you, what was the draw of this project? What excited you?

 

JUNWOO HAN: I get to be a part of a unique part of the story about family and ancestors — fathers and grandfathers. It’s a profound story, mostly based on familial ties, and the human side of every aspect.

 

What are you looking forward to as the series progresses, as I understand the series goes beyond the first season?

 

JUNWOO HAN: I just hope a lot of people watch it and share in the emotions, like for their own families and grow to appreciate what they currently have.

 

Steve Noh

 

 

Steve Sanghyun Noh (also known professionally as Steve Noh) portrays Yoseb’s brother Isak. Sunja and Isak’s relationship is one of those key relationships that propels Sunja’s life beyond the world that she was born into and carves out a place for her in a new world. During interviews on the red carpet at the premiere, Steve Noh talked about the brothers’ bond between Isak and Yoseb and how important that relationship was in ‘Pachinko’:

 

I love your character Isak and his relationship with Sunja. What can you share about who Isak is?

STEVE NOH: Just to give a little about his background: he’s sick. Isak grew up sick all of his life and he wants to learn about the world, but the only medium was through books and Sunja was the first time that he actually went through a big transformation of his life internally. He feels a lot of admiration for her and he is just enlightened when he meets Sunja. So Sunja is such a big part of pretty much everything, and through the journey, you will see the story of how Sunja affects Isak in every way.

 

Isak also has a very good relationship with his brother. How would you describe the fact that Isak goes into the political world, which endangers his brother Yoseb who he loves so much?

 

STEVE NOH: Away from Yoseb, Isak feels a duty to really help others. He is committed to helping others and he really feels a responsibility to get all the community together and help each other. It wasn’t his intention. He was just engaging them in the community and it just happened to put them in danger. He did not mean anything like that. He is just following his values.

 

Soji Arai

 

Spoiler

 

Soji Arai (also known professionally as Sohee Park) portrays Mozasu, Sunja’s second son, and father to Solomon. Intriguingly, Mozasu, becomes the linchpin between the story of Sunja and Hansu and the subsequent generations, including Mosazu’s son Solomon. During interviews on the red carpet at the premiere, Soji Arai talked about who his character Mosazu is and the role he has to play in ‘Pachinko’:

 

You portray Mozasu, Solomon’s father, and it is a murky role initially. We really don’t know yet if his intentions towards his son and his family are as pure as they seem in the first season because of his business associations through the Pachinko parlors.

 

SOJI ARAI: Yeah, he used to have some kind of relationship with the Yakuza. But now, he is the Pachinko parlor’s owner.

 

Is he now trying to be a good man?

SOJI ARAI: Yes, always. He is a warrior and guardian of his family. He is a good son of Sunja and a good father of Solomon. So he cares for his family all the time.

 

This journey is filled with some terrifying circumstances that the characters go through. Yet they seem to find the bright spot in the middle of that. So what do you think are your character’s moments of joy, or what draws him to the light in the midst of all this?

SOJI ARAI: Mosazu is about to open his second parlor and his business is flourishing, and he is happy with his lover, and his son is coming. So he’s happy. But it feels like: what is going to happen next?

 

As AppleTV+’s hottest new drama series, Pachinko is the riveting tale of four generations of a family whose fate is foreshadowed by natural disaster, war, racial tension, and hostility, while enduring human exploitation and illness, and showcases their indomitable spirit to survive and thrive.

 

To see how each endures and the remarkable choices each makes, be sure to tune in when Pachinko premieres exclusively on Friday, March 25 on AppleTV+. The first 3 episodes are available on March 25 and then new episodes are released each Friday after that through April 29.

 

https://www.fanbolt.com/121334/pachinko-cast-preview-an-epic-story/

 

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Apple TV+'s Sprawling, Multilingual Pachinko Is a Winner

 

It’s interesting that a series named Pachinko would hardly feature the gambling game throughout the eight-episode first season. But Apple TV+’s new series, based on the 2017 best-selling novel by Min Jin Lee, winningly examines four generations of a Korean family during the Japanese occupation of Korea and the subsequent racism that followed. It’s an epic story of family, race, and the great burden passed on from one generation to another while searching for great success. (And, it does feature a fantastic opening sequence in a pachinko parlor that you won’t want to miss).

 

Korean entertainment continues to make big waves in America after the successes of Squid Game, Minari, and Parasite. Even though Pachinko is based on a best-seller and features some spectacular talent, it’s still a risky endeavor for Apple as the first major trilingual U.S. series told in Korean, Japanese, and English. Thankfully, it’s up to the task and is already one of the best series available on the service.

...

Still, Pachinko is a sweeping epic filled with fantastic performances and a captivating story of survival. The entire ensemble is excellent, especially with Youn Yuh-Jung and Lee Min-ho showcasing their immense talent. Even though this is a specific story about Koreans and their lives over the last century, many of the hardships they face are universal. Apple TV+’s gamble has paid off— or in pachinko terms, they hit the jackpot.

 

https://www.pastemagazine.com/tv/apple-tv-plus/pachinko-review/

 

[Ameera Ali]

Him : 

Could you leave your hometown for some faraway land , If someone ask you to turn the page , given enough time could you care for someone new ? 

 

 

she is like : 

 

Hell yes , I will turn THE PAGE and even BURN IT too , for someone with the face like yours , kind heart like yours 

 

 

[nina_mitrokhina]

‘Pachinko’ Review: A Moving Journey Through Generational Trauma

 

The eight-part adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s novel captures the book’s heavy, wide-ranging subject matter.

 

 

Youn Yuh-jung in ‘Pachinko’
PHOTO: APPLE TV+

By John Anderson
March 25, 2022 

 

There are many distractions in and around the eight-episode epic “Pachinko,” including a multigenerational storyline, a multinational production and a multitude of characters, but what lingers on the palate is the credit sequence—which is not a good thing, even if the strategy behind it is logical. Set to a version of the old Grass Roots hit “Let’s Live for Today,” it features the principal characters, gathered from the 1900s to the 1980s, dancing through an arcade/casino (as suggested by the title), and creating a kind of overage K-pop dance party. Given the somber nature of most of Min Jin Lee’s popular and in many quarters beloved novel on which the series is based, it feels as if the show is using the recurring sequence as an antidote for itself.

It’s a benign example of the reticence exhibited by the filmmakers—including executive producers Justin Chon and the single-named Kogonada, who directed four episodes each, and series creator Soo Hugh—toward a story that originally dealt bluntly with occupation, oppression, cultural displacement and genocide. One of the reasons the book was so absorbing for so many was its linear structure, a largely chronological account of a family’s struggle over four generations, eight decades, three countries and multiple conflicts. But the “Pachinko” producers have tried to ease the pain, as it were, with a kind of stutter-step approach, jumping from the childhood of the valiant Sunja—played as an elderly adult by Youn Yuh-jung, last year’s Oscar winner as best supporting actress (“Minari”)—to 1989 and the story of her grandson, Solomon (Jin Ha), a banker who lives in New York but is heading back to Tokyo to parlay his Korean ethnicity into a real-estate deal. “The whole Koreans versus Japanese situation—why can’t people just get over that?” asks Solomon’s American boss ( Jimmi Simpson ). Just ask grandma.

But you won’t have to: “Pachinko” takes an often beautiful, artfully cinematic and languorous journey through the history of 20th-century Korea, and Koreans, in a tale that might impress Americans by being about immigration in which we’re not the villains. That’s refreshing. The story’s timeliness vis-à-vis Ukraine isn’t insignificant, being as it is about a brutal regime reducing people to second-class citizens in their own country—and mistreating them when they emigrate. But considering the catalog of characters and multiple languages—helpfully, the Japanese subtitles are in blue and the Korean in yellow, linguistic orthodoxy being a critical aspect of the story—it might be tough for some of us English-speakers to engage, especially given all the flashing back and forth. In this case, an ever-shifting storyline is a deterrent to traction.

 

https://www.wsj.com/articles/pachinko-apple-tv-min-lin-lee-soo-hugh-justin-chon-kogonada-youn-yug-jumg-jin-ha-jimmi-simpson-11648158012?mod=books_arts_lead_pos4

 

[partyon]

I have now watched the first episode and half of the second episode, and I am not convinced.

 

@CarolynH warned me that there would be a lot of changes compared to the book, and she was totally right. Not sure why they have glamorized and made it "in your face" Hollywood style instead of keeping the pace of the novel?

The time jumping between the early 1910s and 1989 must be also quite confusing for folks who haven't read the book?

 

The lighting is also non-existent and I am squinting my eyes to see the darker scenes. I'm starting to sound like my @Lmangla sweetie here.

 

I am gonna try and finish ep 2, but I am unsure if I will continue the drama after that. I'm just not feeling it unfortunately.

[syntyche]

APPLE TV’S PACHINKO IS AN ENTHRALLING HISTORICAL EPIC

 

 

A show that redefines what a ‘tentpole’ series can be

 

Watching Pachinko is to have an audience with something deeply sacred and profound. Adapted from Min Jin Lee’s bestselling novel of the same name, Apple TV Plus’ most ambitious project yet is a sublime epic that questions cultural identities, national histories, and intergenerational memory and mourning.

 

The eight-episode series follows Sunja through the upheavals in her life across the 20th century, starting from her birth in the southern coastal city of Busan during the Japanese colonization of Korea. An exceptional boldness and truthfulness in vision reverberate through every layer of Pachinko: its story is full of searing humanity, its casting is thoughtful, and the project boasts a formidable multi-national team of producers, consultants, and crew. Even details like the subtitles — colored in yellow for dialogue in Korean and blue for Japanese — inscribe cultural nuance and complexity, demanding a less familiar viewer to engage actively with the text.

...

In many ways, the enormity of the Pachinko series extends far beyond the small screens we watch it on. It speaks to — and also challenges — our cultural moment. Pachinko is a (long overdue) redefinition of what “tentpole” content from a major streamer can be: whose story it tells, where it comes from and who should have more seats at the table. Pachinko has the qualities to become the new standard-bearer of what a show on a streamer can aspire to be, given the international resources, expansive global reach, and creative expression that a streaming platform like Apple TV Plus offers. In Pachinko, Apple has woven together an extraordinary project that will hopefully herald many more to come.

 

https://www.theverge.com/22994343/pachinko-review-apple-tv-plus

 

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Pachinko turns a heralded novel into a laser-focused epic

 

 

Historical epics aren’t new. Nor are family dramas that span generations, or period pieces. We’ve all seen them: shows with perfectly curated and historically accurate set decor; intergenerational family dramas which end with the youngest generation learning about their heritage and coming to a new understanding of themselves; stories of enslavement, torture, resilience, and struggle. And yet, Apple TV Plus’ newest drama, Pachinko, manages to take all of these tropes and refine them into something beautifully specific and new: a Korean family epic.

 

Pachinko doesn’t fit into one genre box because it escapes the trappings of traditional historical fiction. The intricacy of the sets and the costumes is gorgeous, but unlike other period shows, the eight-episode series doesn’t suffer from being so overloaded with visual detail that it sacrifices the story. It tackles the history of the Japanese occupation of Korea and racism in Japan and abroad without being too educational or preachy. Most importantly, it tells the story of one woman surviving tragic injustices without fetishizing her suffering.

...

Such dedication to Sunja’s early life, especially her young adulthood, makes the series incredibly focused, leaving many questions unanswered. Throughout the series, there are references to Noa, her eldest, but he never appears as an adult, and his nephew doesn’t seem to know he existed at all. Then there’s the question of how much Sunja’s son and grandson even know about her experience as an immigrant. The show also stops short of Japan’s entry into WWII, which would certainly have created even more hardship for Sunja. It’s unclear whether or not Pachinko will get a second season (right now it’s billed as a limited series, but showrunner Hugh’s plan is to run for four seasons) but one hopes that these facets of Sunja’s life were left unexplored to create space for more futures in the story.

 

At its core, Pachinko is about the intergenerational trauma of colonialism and immigration; it would have been easy to focus primarily on Solomon, learning and using Sunja’s story as a way to force him to confront his family’s past. It’s certainly a tried and true formula. Solomon does go through his own journey, specifically in processing his experience growing up as a second-generation Korean Japanese citizen. But he doesn’t do this through his grandmother. Her painful past does not make him enlightened, similar to the seminal 1993 film Joy Luck Club. By prioritizing Sunja, Pachinko allows not only for her to have more agency and ownership of her own story, but for Sunja and Solomon’s experiences to stand on their own. Sunja and Solomon might be tied together as family living through turbulent times, but that doesn’t mean their stories need to be identical or complementary. The experience of an immigrant who moves to a land where she doesn’t speak the language and is treated like a second-class citizen is not the experience of a second-generation man who struggles to balance his identities as Japanese and Korean. And they don’t need to be

 

https://www.polygon.com/reviews/22994599/pachinko-review-apple-tv

[confusedheart]

17 hours ago, syntyche said:

@confusedheart yep, tough wait for LMH to show up on screen. But a treat to see a different dimension to his acting; different from the swoony roles he played before. Eye-catching, nevertheless.

 

Undoubtedly, chingu! I am liking his swag in the drama. He has come a long way since his BoF days. I definitely like this older mature look of LMH. 

 

@syntyche Thanks for the pics. They are so lovely!

12 hours ago, Ameera Ali said:

 what kind of pick up line is [ let’s go pick up a mushroom ]  naughty oppa picking up more than a mushroom  

 

This was actually in the book. He tagged along with Sunja to ummm collect mushrooms.  He is definitely a smooth operator chingu.  He does these 'Bad Boy' characters so well.   Just the kind of guy, our mothers warned us against and advised us to stay away from. One who spell trouble!

 

 

15 hours ago, CarolynH said:

@confusedheart I prefer LMH in more intense roles, a complicated romance like Pachinko.  I also like young Sunja.  She certainly had some spunk!

Chingu, I have only watched BoF before and although he was a complete jerk, I found him endearing.

As much as I have read Pachinko, (just Book 1), Hansu is a complete jerk and I am a little heartbroken because this could have been a another story, another romance. 

Quote

The lighting is also non-existent and I am squinting my eyes to see the darker scenes. I'm starting to sound like my @Lmangla sweetie here. 

 

 

@partyon Thank you for confirming. I thought I was the only one who thought it was too dark. @Lmangla Agreed with @partyon here. It would have driven you nuts. 

[syntyche]

Five TV Shows We're Loving Right Now

 

 

I’ve been eagerly awaiting the debut of this Apple TV+ adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s bestselling 2017 novel of the same name, and I am happy to report that it’s fantastic. Gifted with a presumably sprawling budget, showrunner Soo Hugh has crafted an ambitious story about four generations of Koreans living in Japan, featuring a combination of familiar faces — Minari’s Youn Yuh-jung, who plays the main character Sunja in her older years, Korean star Lee Min Ho as a wealthy businessperson named Hansu — as well as breakout actor Kim Min-ha, who plays Sunja as a teen. The series, which has eight episodes in its first season, intersperses Sunja’s story — from growing up as the adorable only child of a poor couple who own a boarding house in Japanese-occupied Korea to her teenage affair with Hansu, which sparks her eventual journey to Japan — with that of her grandson Solomon (Jin Ha). He’s an investment banker who lives in America but has come to Japan to help close an important business deal. With the help of esteemed Korean directors Kogonada and Justin Chon, an inspired score by composer Nico Muhly, and a writers room that includes author EJ Koh — Pachinko is a stunning, if not always easy watch about one indomitable family amid the backdrop of colonialism and trauma. —Tomi Obaro

Where to watch: Apple TV+

 

https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/tomiobaro/new-tv-shows-on-netflix-hulu-hbo-max-pachinko-atlanta

 

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The 10 Best TV And Film Opening Credits From 2022 (So Far)

No. I do not want to "skip intro."

 

Between network television largely axing theme songs, Netflix slapping the "skip intro" button on every opening, and movies bumping credits to the end, we've been going through a drought when it comes to good title sequences. Seemingly, however, Hollywood execs did a little brainstorming during lockdown and decided 2022 was the optimal time to bring back fun, musical opening credits. Apple TV+ seems to be leading the way, uninhibited by the added two minutes to each episode, but plenty of other networks (and even a few films) have decided to reclaim the magical feature.

...

The answer as to why great opening credit sequences are back may remain a mystery, but what we do know is that 2022 has provided a boon of great title sequences. Here are some of my favorites so far: 

 

Pachinko

 

 

Is this the best television show of 2022? I'm willing to say yes. Sorry April to December premieres. And will this be the best title sequence of 2022? Undoubtedly. Find me another one where Oscar winner Youn Yuh-jung dances through a pachinko hall in an '80s windbreaker to "Let's Live for Today" by the Grass Roots. I'd like to see anyone else flip out their jacket like Jin Ha. The show, based on Min Jin Lee's hit novel, is a masterpiece that deserves to sweep the Limited Series Emmy prizes, and the title sequence is pure joy. The entire cast, wearing Korean/Japanese garments from across a century, dance their hearts out as if they're on Soul Train, and I'll watch it again and again and again. 

Watch it on Apple TV+. 

 

https://www.buzzfeed.com/amphtml/matthewhuff/best-opening-credits-2022

[Thong Thin]

6 hours ago, confusedheart said:

Undoubtedly, chingu! I am liking his swag in the drama. He has come a long way since his BoF days. I definitely like this older mature look of LMH. 

 

@syntyche Thanks for the pics. They are so lovely!

 

 

You should watch The Heirs, you would love the boyish look of LMH.

[CarolynH]

@partyon Chingu, do you think you would enjoy it more had you not read the book?  I'm glad that I did, so I had a head start on understanding (and remembering the names) of most of the characters.  

*********

@confusedheart I recommend Legend of the Blue Sea for a LMH drama.  A little bit of everything sanguek, melo, comedy.  It's my favorite LMH drama.

**********

I like the opening sequence of Pachinko; totally unexpected and unique.  

*********

My friend is watching the first 2 episodes of Pachinko tonight.  She's not a kdrama fan, but read the reviews, so she's excited to watch.   I'm interested to hear her comments.

[partyon]

3 hours ago, CarolynH said:

@partyon Chingu, do you think you would enjoy it more had you not read the book?  I'm glad that I did, so I had a head start on understanding (and remembering the names) of most of the characters.  

 

I probably would have dropped it faster... Not liking the time jumping back and forth.

[syntyche]

Exclusive: ‘Pachinko’ Stars Lee Min-ho and Kim Min-ha Get Personal About Their Roles

 

 

In a Hong Kong exclusive interview, the actors dish on the brand new Apple TV+ series—and what playing their roles meant for them

 

Pachinko, the TV adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s best-selling 2017 novel, premieres today (March 25) on Apple TV+. 

The star-studded series stars Lee Min-ho, one of the biggest names in South Korean entertainment, and newcomer Kim Min-ha. The story follows four generations of a Korean immigrant family in the 20th century, and their epic journey between Korea, Japan and America.

 

The two portray star-crossed lovers. Lee plays Hansu, an enigmatic and wealthy merchant who falls in love with the young and fierce Sunja, a woman who hopes for a better life for her family, portrayed by Kim.

 

In an exclusive interview with Tatler, the two stars dive into their emotional journey in playing their Pachinko characters what they want the audience to take away from the series.

 

What were your first thoughts about the script?

Kim Min-ha (KMH): I initially thought of the feelings that I needed to be able to tell this story. I even thought: “Should I do this?”—and if I could bring justice to the story.

Lee Min-ho (LMH): I thought it was a very strong story. While it was set [in a time period] years ago, I can still resonate with it. I also think that it’s a story that people nowadays can relate to.

 

What attracted you the most to the character you were cast in?

KMH: Sunja’s both fragile and resilient. She knows how to survive and how to adapt to a new environment. Those traits appealed to me the most. I had a lot of pressure when I first got this role because Sunja has a big responsibility that later affects her family.

LMH: Hansu didn’t have a choice as to what kind of life he wanted to lead, especially in those times. He could only think of survival. To me, that was the most appealing part of the character.

Compared to others, he chose a darker path to survive during such difficult times. In some ways, I can understand him and also resonate with his feelings.

 

How did you prep for these roles?

LMH: I tried to portray younger Hansu as someone who has a heart of gold—but because he has to survive, he had to make decisions that eventually put him on the bad side. I [also] wanted to make that clear distinction between the young kind Hansu and the older Hansu.

KMH: In order to properly portray teenage Sunja, I had to understand her as this young girl who is living in isolation. To show how she changes as a woman, I had to look at her history and her feelings and convey it to the viewers.

 

Your characters are rarely seen smiling—except for the opening sequence. What was your experience in filming that scene?

LMH: My character is someone who was really tough and had a rough history, so I couldn’t believe it myself [the character smiling]. I actually asked [screenwriter and showrunner] Soo Hugh a few times if Hansu could laugh and have some fun. I really enjoyed filming that sequence, because Pachinko itself is quite heavy—that was the only time I felt liberated.

KMH: The opening sequence was the only time where I didn’t have to really think about anything. They just played the music for us. I just stood there at first because there were no directions. Like Min-ho, it was the only time that I really felt free and I had so much fun filming it.

 

What was the most emotional scene for you?

KMH: Sunja’s scenes are all very emotional and very intense. But if I had to pick, it’d be the scene where I say goodbye to the members of the boarding house [run by Sunja’s family, which she departs from]. It was so emotional that I couldn’t help but cry.

LMH: I’d definitely choose the scene when Hansu first met Sunja. I think it isn’t just love at first sight, but much more than that. They were attracted to each other as human beings, and it left a really big impact on both of them. 

When we talk about events that had such a big impact on our lives, it could be when we first fell in love or the first time we see our baby. For Hansu, I think seeing Sunja is like one of those moments.

 

Are there any similarities between yourselves and the characters you play?

LMH: Hansu and I are the same when it comes to our goals. When I have a goal I want to achieve, I would do anything to achieve it without any hesitation.

KMH: We’re both fragile, but also resilient. We have this hidden strength inside of us. But at times, we are also very vulnerable.

 

What do you want viewers to get out of Pachinko?

KMH: I hope viewers will see this as a story of love, and remember the sacrifice that their families had to do in order to survive. I’d also love for them to see the tragedies, reflect on history—and know that they are not alone. We are all going through various hardships together.

LMH: We now live in a very fast-paced society, and we sometimes lose track of what we have and what is really important to us. I hope that people can take a look at our older generation through Pachinko and resonate with the universal values that are present in the series. Take some time to look back on themselves and the people around them and their families. It’d also be nice if they can think about what’s the best path forward.

 

 

https://www.tatlerasia.com/culture/entertainment/pachinko-lee-min-ho-kim-min-ha-interview

 

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How Apple TV+ Made Pachinko, One of the Biggest Multilingual Shows Ever

 

In 2017, when film and TV agent Theresa Kang-Lowe read Min Jin Lee’s epic novel Pachinko, which tells the story of a poor Korean family through generations and across borders, she feared it didn’t stand a chance of receiving Hollywood’s attention. “I thought it was an impossibility,” she says. “This was pre–Crazy Rich Asians, pre-Parasite, pre–Squid Game. We had never seen something like this in series form.”

 

Five years later, on March 25, the first season of Pachinko—for which Kang-Lowe serves as an executive producer—will arrive on Apple TV+ in a vastly different landscape. Television shows from around the world, including South Korea’s Squid Game, the Paris-set Lupin, and the U.S.-Mexico drama Narcos: Mexico, have found rabid audiences on Netflix. These shows have proved that contrary to decades of conventional Hollywood wisdom, viewers are willing to read subtitles and eager to consume global stories centering people of color.

 

While Pachinko could ride this larger wave of global representation to success, the show is still a precarious risk for Apple TV+ and its filmmakers: it’s a trilingual, big-budget period piece that hopes to attract audiences without superheroes, sex, or dramatic action sequences. Pachinko’s ability to find viewers could have a ripple effect on whether similar concepts are greenlit for years to come. “Right now, stories about diverse people are largely relegated to a certain budget level,” says Kang-Lowe. “Pachinko is a first, and we don’t want it to be an only.”

 

Bringing Korean History to Hollywood

Pachinko is the second novel by Lee, who is Korean American and, several decades ago, became fascinated by the struggles of Korean immigrants in Japan in the 20th century. She wove together the story of one family across four generations, through the Japanese colonization of Korea, the impact of the atomic bombs on Japan, and the Westernization of Japanese life. The main character is Sunja, who is born in the early 1900s and stoically absorbs the suffering of everyone around her as she perseveres through one crisis after another.

 

The novel, a 2017 National Book Award finalist, struck a chord, especially with many Asians and Asian Americans who saw echoes of their own familial histories in Lee’s work. One of those readers was writer and showrunner Soo Hugh (Under the Dome, The Terror), who was given the book by Kang-Lowe in the hopes that she might want to spearhead the adaptation. When Hugh read Pachinko, she was bowled over. “It was such a shock: they were my mother and grandmother,” she says. “It was so visceral, that feeling of: finally someone had the bravery to put these people’s stories to work.”

 

But Hugh was “terrified” of leading such an important project and had to be convinced by Kang-Lowe that she was the right person for the job. “I told her, ‘If you don’t take this on, it’s going to take another seven to 10 years for another Asian American writer to rise through the ranks to get where you are as a really high-level showrunner,’” Kang-Lowe recalls. “And we need to tell the story now.”

 

There were many factors working against Kang-Lowe and Hugh as they began shopping the concept around to streaming services. Not only did the show need to have an all-Asian cast, but it also needed to be told in three languages: Korean, Japanese, and English, as its characters migrated across the world. Asian histories told by Hollywood, excluding war stories like Letters From Iwo Jima or The Last Samurai, were few and far between. And the Pachinko team was requesting an enormous budget, on par with that of The Crown or Succession, in order to convey the book’s epic scope. Kang-Lowe says that while many streamers were initially interested in the concept—especially enticed by the allure of courting Asian audiences—they balked at the price tag. They told her: “We wouldn’t do that for this show.”

 

Kang-Lowe says Apple and Netflix eventually offered what the creators were looking for—and the team decided to go with Apple, thanks in large part to the support of executive Michelle Lee, who is now the streamer’s director of domestic programming. Apple was trying to position itself as a home for international series and prestige fare with shows like Dr. Brain, and Pachinko hit both targets. Having an executive like Lee was “everything,” Hugh says. “She also comes from the immigrant experience and knows these characters inside out.”

 

Adapting a Masterwork

After getting the project greenlit, adapting the 500-page novel was another challenge completely. For one, the author was initially involved, but left the project for unspecified reasons. (“Although I did not write or create the series, I wish them well,” Lee wrote in an email.)

 

And while the book unfolds chronologically at a methodical pace similar to that of the film Boyhood, Hugh felt the adaptation needed to be re-arranged and placed into dual timelines, one starting in the 1910s and the other starting in the ’80s. “The greatest thing about film and TV is playing with time,” she says. “All of a sudden, when we moved things around, the show became a thesis statement of, How do you have a conversation with the past? How do you, from the past’s point of view, leave something indelible for the future?”

 

The restructuring led to the character elevation of Sunja’s grandson Solomon, an ambitious young banker determined to prove himself at his American firm, even if it means betraying his roots. Hugh hopes that Solomon resonates with a younger generation. “I connect very strongly to Solomon and the feelings of both immense gratitude and burden from what your parents and grandparents sacrificed for you,” she says.

 

A Global Cast

The show’s cast features a mix of newcomers and superstars. Minha Kim, making her television debut as teenage Sunja, stars opposite Lee Min-ho, who is one of South Korea’s foremost idols. Hugh says that she didn’t receive any pressure from Apple to cast marquee Korean stars, and that even Lee, who hadn’t had to audition for a role for 13 years because of his megafame in his country, had to try out for the role of Hansu. “This challenging next step in my career in an unfamiliar working environment set my heart aflutter a bit,” he wrote in an email. “I am so thankful that we are living in a time where this diversity and globalization is accepted.”

 

For the actor Soji Arai, who plays Sunja’s son Mozasu, Pachinko offered a rare opportunity to showcase his own Zainichi (the term for ethnic Koreans living in Japan) heritage. Arai’s grandparents immigrated to Japan at the same time Sunja did, and his parents were activists who fought against discrimination. Arai says it’s still very rare for Japanese stories to feature Zainichi characters or for Zainichi celebrities to proudly showcase their ethnicity, which makes this role all the more special. “I’m so happy, because now people all over the world will know who Zainichi people are, maybe for the first time in history,” he says.

 

Arai and the rest of the cast are waiting to learn if they will return to their roles. While Hugh wrote the show to last four seasons, the series has yet to be picked up by Apple beyond its first eight episodes. These days, it’s not uncommon for ambitious shows to be canceled prematurely: HBO’s fantasy epic Lovecraft Country, for example, was axed after just one season. Kang-Lowe recognizes that there’s more riding on Pachinko’s success than her résumé. “Any project with this scale and scope needs to perform better because of the financial investment,” she says. “I’m really hoping that people watch and streamers take notice and say, Oh, look, we could do a big epic with other stories about people of color.”

 

https://time.com/6157906/pachinko-apple-tv/

 

*************************************

 

On Location: How ‘Pachinko’ Transports Viewers Through Time From 1910s Korea to 1980s Japan

 

Lifting the curtain on the destinations behind the season’s most exciting new releases.

 

For directors Justin Chon and Kogonada, each location of their new television show Pachinko, an adaption of Min Jin Lee’s award-winning novel of the same name, acted as a key pillar of their storytelling—whether it was a rural fishing village frozen in time or the pachinko parlors of 1980s Japan. “It can be emotional leaving a location,” says Chon. “Especially when you feel connected to that place.”

 

Spanning multiple generations and told in three languages—Korean, English, and Japanese—Pachinko is a sweeping period piece that follows a Korean immigrant family through the eyes of its matriarch, Sunja, beginning in 1910 Yeongdo, a rural village near Busan, and ending amid the shimmering skyscrapers of New York some 70 years later. “This is a story of a family that had to go to another country and establish themselves,” says Kogonada. “There are a lot of us around the world who have parents or grandparents who talk about these stories from a distant land that we know we are both a part of, but not a part of.”

 

We sat down with Chon and Kogonada to hear about how they recreated multiple eras for the show, the challenges of filming a pivotal earthquake scene, and the locations that have stayed with them well beyond the day filming wrapped.

 

Filming took place in both Vancouver and Korea. What was the most memorable location for you both?

Kogonada: Yangdong. It's a folk village north of Daegu. It was incredible and we were able to build the boarding house right in the middle of someone’s backyard. The village is almost like a museum and you can still visit it today. If you travel down to this village from Seoul, you really get to see this period of time preserved. The boarding house had a view of the mountains, and there are rice fields and a river that runs alongside. It really provided so much texture for our story—for the origins of young Sunja. That was certainly my favorite location, and really one of my favorite sets. It’s the one that I will take with me.

Justin Chon: We also shot in the fall, so we got to see the seasons change while we were shooting. When we drove in the leaves were this beautiful golden amber. There was not much to be done in terms of the setting because it was just so beautiful. You couldn't plan any better in terms of going to set everyday, just the feeling you got of how special the place was.

K: And the fog that was rolling in! In episode four, Justin captured three of our characters walking along the mountainside in this incredible fog. It is really one of the most beautiful shots. I was jealous when I saw that shot. That's an incredible scene. You guys didn't use fog machines, right?

JC: Most of our budget went to that fog [laughs].

 

Pachinko takes viewers and readers through multiple decades and generations, starting at the turn of the 20th century and ending in 1980s Japan. What were the creative challenges of transforming locations or sets into these different historical eras?

JC: It was one of the biggest challenges. That ‘80s Japan stuff was incredibly difficult because none of that exists anymore, anywhere. There were some real key ‘80s sets: the offices, which were really masterfully designed; the house; the pachinko parlor. We really leaned into those as representing our ‘80s Japan. They were built from scratch with a lot of authenticity, a ton of research.

But, you know, we don't have an unlimited budget, so how do we work smart to recreate that? You have to be crafty. For this season, we shot in Korea and Vancouver, so the stuff in Vancouver is mostly on a set. And then in Korea we had to find the right pockets and then be kind of imaginative in a way that would allow us to authentically represent all those different time periods. I think that's what makes this show incredible: We can travel through time. The true test [of getting it right] is if you can get a grandparent to say, ‘Oh, that's how I remember it.’

 

 

There's a massive earthquake that takes place within the story. What was it like to create and film those scenes?

K: It was fun for two people who are a part of the indie world to suddenly get to approach that kind of event building. We knew it was going to be a challenge, but it was also an opportunity. There were a lot of moving parts. Credit to Soo [Hugh], our showrunner, because she had a real vision for that story. She had done a ton of research about that event and the time that certain things had happened, so we were trying to capture the rhythm of this long, long day [in history]. It was amazing to work with all these extras in Korea to coordinate that. It was one of the coldest days when we shot and they were so dedicated; everyone held little heating packs because they just did that scene over and over. And of course, Lee Min-Ho was phenomenal—he had a lot to do that day and a lot of emotions in the midst of that chaos. And there were a lot of moving parts: explosions, dust, fire. It was really an experience. And yeah, it was fun.

 

Were there any other real life locations beyond the fishing village that have stayed with you since you wrapped filming?

JC: A small town called Shinju in Korea that we shot at for a little bit. There's a lot of Buddhist culture in Korea and that particular town had this energy about it that just felt intimate and sacred, and I was fortunate enough to have a day to go to a temple and walk around. That place…I just had some sort of weird emotional connection with it. And there was this river, it was a life force flowing through the town that I just thought was incredibly powerful.

So much of Pachinko is about memory and how it connects and shapes generations within a family. How do you hope you brought that to life on screen?

JC: Well, for me, it just comes down to how it makes you feel. And I do think that the show accomplishes that in a sort of reverent way. There's a lot of contemplation and thinking about the past, but also still having to be present in letting the older storyline play out. I think it is a beautiful dance. Soo and the writers room gave Kogonada and I such a wonderful, foundational platform to create a tapestry of just like, visceral beauty. There is an echo. The voice of Sunja passes through to the other parts of the story in a way that I think is beautiful.

K: That's lovely. I think the echoes, you know, between the present and the past is what the series really captures. It is this echoing reverberation, the way the story is told and the layers within the stories.

JC: I just hope that people feel something. That's the ultimate goal.

 

https://www.cntraveler.com/story/on-location-pachinko

 

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'Pachinko' offers a sweeping family saga that earns your tears

 

(CNN)With the sweep of a historical epic and a format that focuses on one family across decades, "Pachinko" evokes memories of other ambitious TV sagas, perhaps foremost "Roots." Deeply emotional, this eight-episode Apple TV+ series barely scratches the surface of the novel upon which it's based, and will surely leave a core audience clamoring for more.

 

Spoiler

Boasting a terrific cast, the story begins in Korea during the early 20th century with its colonization by imperial Japan, proceeding into the 1930s and the looming specter of World War II. That alternates with the challenges faced by the grandson of the central character, who returns from America to Japan in 1989 in pursuit of a major financial deal, but whose experiences will force him to revisit the family's history as well as his own.

 

Alternating between Korean, Japanese and English (cleverly color-coding the subtitles), the international production's heart and soul revolves around Sunja, played by Minha Kim as a young woman and Yuh-Jung Youn -- an Oscar winner for "Minari" -- as an older one. With a gleam in her eye and the weight of all the hardship she has borne in her expressions, Youn should be in the conversation to collect additional trophies, although the ensemble nature of the story makes it difficult for any one of the principals to stand apart.

 

With her poor family laboring under Japanese rule, Sunja quickly falls for Hansu (Lee Minho), whose pointed stares demonstrate that the feeling's mutual. Yet a cruel twist in the relationship places her on a different path, one that, juxtaposed with the future version of her, raises tantalizing questions about what happened during the intervening years.

 

Written and produced by Soo Hugh ("The Terror"), with Kogonada and Justin Chon splitting directorial duties, "Pachinko" is peppered with heartbreaking situations and brilliant dialogue. As a little girl, Sunja's father tells her, "I would do anything to keep the ugliness of the world from touching you." Later, when the older Sunja cries, a contemporary chides her grandson, saying, "Don't look down on her tears. She earned the right to those."

 

That she did, and for those unaware of this history, parts of the series -- adapted from Korean-American author Min Jin Lee's book -- will surely provide an education. Yet other aspects speak to broader concepts, such as an emotionally devastating scene where the young Sunja must leave home, as good a representation of the immigrant experience -- with hopes chased and loved ones left behind -- as you're apt to see.

 

"Pachinko" also mirrors HBO Max's "Peacemaker" (an unlikely comparison otherwise, admittedly) in making the most of its opening credits, featuring the cast members dancing to the 1960s Grass Roots song "Let's Live For Today." It's an incongruous choice that, like almost everything else here, works beautifully in the way it's executed.

 

Television and film have taken on a more international flavor, with the success of "Squid Game" and "Parasite" among recent examples. In the case of streaming services that's partly due to necessity, looking beyond the US in an effort to find product to keep their shelves freshly stocked.

 

Hopefully, that increasing openness to watching subtitled content will work to the benefit of Pachinko," which, from the first frame to the last, earns your attention -- and occasionally, your tears.

 

https://edition.cnn.com/2022/03/25/entertainment/pachinko-review/index.html

 

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Stream It Or Skip It: ‘Pachinko’ On Apple TV+, A Generation-Spanning Drama About A Korean Family Who Leaves Their Homeland For Japan

 

Pachinko is an ambitious adaptation of Min Jin Lee’s sprawling novel, and it takes producers from Japan, South Korea and the U.S. to tell it. But it deftly handles the multiple languages and cultures, creating a generation-spanning picture of what things were like for Koreans during Japan’s occupation, as well as what was in store for Korean families that migrated to Japan.

...

Our Take: Based on Min Jin Lee’s epic novel, Pachinko has the feel of an epic series, easily moving between time periods as it weaves the story of how Sunja grew her family after a life-changing move from her native Korea to Japan.

 

The first episode of the series, created by Soo Hugh and directed by Kogonada, does an excellent job of immersing viewers in its various time periods. With some simple symbolism, like showing the Koreans bowing in the presence of the Japanese cops, the show communicates the degree of repression the Koreans were subject to, which is why sixty-plus years later, an older Sunja is able to tell Solomon with confidence that Koreans are second-class citizens in Japan, even decades later.

 

The performances are excellent across the board, but Youn Yuh-jung is fantastic as the older and wiser Sunja. She’s uprooted her life, started a family, and knows what it’s like to have your culture subjugated by an occupying country. Her wariness and weariness is what is going to inform the entire series as she looks back on her life in order to inform both her son and grandson.

 

The flashbacks from 1989 to the 1920s and ’30s, however, are more intriguing, mainly because they’ll show Sunja’s journey. We’re just beginning to see the affect meeting Baesk Isak has on her life, but given what we know, his influence will be world-changing for her, and we’ll be intrigued to see how the teenage version of Sunja handles it.

 

Is the 1989 segment as effective? The jury is still out. Solomon has to make his big deal in order to get back to his career path in the U.S., but there’s the complicating factor of Hana (Mari Yamamoto) a childhood friend and love interest whose life has gone awry. But it does show how it doesn’t take too many generations for people to start forgetting the lessons of the past, even when there are people like Sunja around to tell people what it was like.

 

Sleeper Star: Yu-na is compelling as the school-age version of Sunja. She has a bold personality that questions authority, even at that age. Also, here’s a good place to cite the show’s translators and caption writers; they took the simple but critical step of putting Korean translations in yellow and Japanese translations in blue, even showing both colors in sentences where Solomon and others mix both languages. It really gives a feel for how easily subsequent generations of Koreans flowed between languages, especially after they migrated to Japan.

 

Most Pilot-y Line: As much as we like seeing Jimmi Simpson in pretty much anything, we’re not sure what his role as Tom will be. He’s Solomon’s boss, but what he has to do with the part of the story where Koreans are treated like second-class citizens in Japan is still up in the air.

 

Our Call: STREAM IT. Pachinko is an epic that truly has the feel of an epic, but with a through-line of oppression and racism that permeates every time period it portrays

 

https://decider.com/2022/03/25/pachinko-apple-tv-plus-review/

[Thong Thin]

4 hours ago, CarolynH said:

 

I like the opening sequence of Pachinko; totally unexpected and unique.  

 

My friend is watching the first 2 episodes of Pachinko tonight.  She's not a kdrama fan, but read the reviews, so she's excited to watch.   I'm interested to hear her comments.

 

as far as i know off, none of the kdrama that I have watched have such unique opening where the main casts dance and move so freely, even Youn Yuh-Jung at age 74 did it. 

 

Luckily i have read the book, at least I get to know what's going on when they did the time jump and also there's some differences (till ep 3) on what's being written in the book.

 

Yes, do give us some feedback after your friend has watched the episodes.

 

 

[JoannaID]

18 hours ago, partyon said:

 

@CarolynH warned me that there would be a lot of changes compared to the book, and she was totally right. Not sure why they have glamorized and made it "in your face" Hollywood style instead of keeping the pace of the novel?

The time jumping between the early 1910s and 1989 must be also quite confusing for folks who haven't read the book?

 

Yes, they make the drama in a Hollywood style but perhaps it's because the main target audiences of this show are Americans or at least immigrant Americans, majority of these are more familiar to Hollywood style than K-drama or Asian drama style. Apple TV has started to add several LMH's dramas to the US Apple TV now, it seems this is their intention. LMH also is more appealing to more diverse type of audiences with his unique look (still looks Asian but not 'too Korean'). 

 

Well I am definitely biased since I'm a huge LMH fan.  

I initially watched Pachinko because of LMH but I ended up liking the series it self and the other characters too. The style of storytelling is kinda refreshing for me, it's a different alternative than the usual K-drama I often watch nowadays.

 

 

[syntyche]

"Even the most wretched of creatures yearn to live."

"She needs to know there's such a thing as kindness in this world. She'll grow up stronger for it."

 

These are the lines that are most notable for me in episode 1. They basically set the tone of this story of a family's quest to thrive and survive over four generations. A story set during the war would often entail resilience to survive, so it's interesting to see how kindness would come into play towards the family's journey to survival.

 

Young Sunja has an amazing presence on screen with her tenacity and spunkiness. I admire her closeness with her father. His early demise must have been her initiation to survive a tough life.     

 

Although having not read the book yet, the interplay of the 1915-30's and 1980's scenes worked well for me, as I see the parallels and "conversation between generations," as the exec producer put it. At times, however, I would have to remind myself of whether the current scene is set in Japan or Korea. Meanwhile, I think the idea of the color-coded subtitles is primarily to show how the Japanese language has mingled into the Korean language; and this can be seen especially in Solomon's lines.         

 

The standout scene for me is the first meeting of Hansu and Sunja (discounting that I'm a LMH fan ). The yellow light shining on Sunja seems to put a spotlight on her, and the way she stood tall despite everyone around her bowing to the Japanese, inevitably drew Hansu's attention. Being aware myself of the history of Japanese colonialism over some Asian countries, seeing this scene where a girl stands mighty tall while the Japanese rulers actually tolerate her, says a lot about the strength of character of Sunja. Hence, intrigued Hansu can't help but approach her.      

 

 

LMH might have had a very few minutes of exposure at the very end of this episode, but his acting with those expressive eyes were enough to arrest the audience (well, me) and make his mark in this episode and the succeeding ones to come.   

 

In episode 2, Sunja is now the intrigued one as she sees firsthand Hansu's altercation with a fisherman. Kim Minha's expressions perfectly captures Sunja's innocence and wonder.

 

We are introduced to Naomi, a character not in the book, who I guess was added to the adaptation to provide that layer of insight into the current experience of Asians in the west, as she was having a conversation with fellow Asian, Solomon, on the guessing game of "Which Asian am I?" So far, Naomi's character blends in well for me (what are your thoughts?).

 

Spoiler

 

As most critics have mentioned, the series does have beautiful cinematography. The sepia-tone reminds me of decades-old movies. 

 

   

Again, I have to admire Kim Minha's portrayal in the scene where she is hit with the reality that Hansu will not marry her. The slightest movement of her lips, eyebrows, would let you feel sorry for her at the very least, and at most enraged with the predicament she is in. 

 

 

And LMH, how glad I am that he bravely took on the challenge of portraying the character of Hansu, a 180-degree turn from most of the roles in his filmography. The dimensions of this character allowed him to tap into his potential and showcase his acting range.   

 

Spoiler

 

As for Youn Yuh Jung, I like her scenes with Solomon and the other grandma. Grandma inviting them to eat despite their unannounced visit is seen in Asian culture. It's heartwarming to see the two grandmas actually having that deep conversation and understanding as if they have known each other for decades. 

 

Spoiler

 

Meanwhile, Solomon embodies the modern experiences of children of immigrants who are in fact burdened by the sacrifices of their parents and grandparents. Hence, his go-getter attitude (and Naomi, too) to achieve the highest of goals despite the discrimination that hound them - the same discrimination his grandma has experienced, albeit in a different form, in a different timeline.

 

Isak, on the other hand, I still have to see more of him, as I find his offer to Sunja rather rash.

 

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Chingus, drop in your comments and thoughts on the episodes! 

 

[syntyche]

LEE MIN HO ads

Date : 22. 03. 25 - 22. 03. 31

Ads Product : Times Square Giant Art Canvas

 

cr: aboutfanO

 

 

 

 

Spoiler

 

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So the poll on the Dramas You are Looking Forward To has closed and the most voted is Pachinko!

 

Thanks to the EOs @partyon, @agenth, @confusedheart, @Sleepy Owl  

 

 

 

23 hours ago, Sleepy Owl said:

The poll has closed, and we have the results!!!! 

 

As per the poll results, the following 3 dramas are the top 3 most anticipated upcoming dramas:

 

1. Pachinko - 35 Votes (Hope you guys enjoyed the first 3 episodes )

 

 

Spoiler

 

 

[confusedheart]

Watched Ep 3 too. Yes, he is still a jerk. 

And says all the nasty things that he says in the novel too.

Isak looks the part. A decent and honourable guy that Hansu wasn't.

 

The pace is still zzzz...  I still feel that the novel was better. It had more depth. They are butchering it badly to condense it into 8 episodes. Doing great injustice to a fine story. This is a family saga. It cannot be condensed. The intention is well but the execution is extremely poor, given they had such a large canvas to work on, and no money spared.  

 

I still don't like Solomon.  Not really invested in his character.

 

I liked the two conversations - between Sunja and that old lady who refused to sell her property, and between Sunja and the pastor, Isak.  There was some depth in that but then it was so because it was in the novel. 

[Lindyloo421]

Synthche- You asked about our comments and thoughts. I really enjoyed it and found it totally engrossing. Even without LMH I would have watched it because I liked the book. I found the flashback/flash forward events ok 

because I had read the book. The only bit I thought people might get confused  with was Solomon’s calls with Hanna and was glad they showed her mother frantically looking for her so viewers would realise who she was.

The cast were so good and honestly there were moments in the scenes between Sunja and Hansu where I “forgot” it was LMH and was just carried away by the intense chemistry between the two actors.

 

The cinematography was wonderful. I know some people said it was dark in places. After saving up for ages I treated myself to an oled TV recently so it didn’t appear dark at  all- but it’s a shame if it spoilt some others enjoyment.

 

I see that one of the actors has been involved in a scandal and online some people are saying they won’t watch Pachinko because of it. I know that some dramas in SK have been impacted by scandals recently and really hope this doesn’t happen to Pachinko.

I am so proud to be a LMH fan and it has been lovely to see his name mentioned in reviews in the UK press even if one review called him a Korean pop star!