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Korea Herald
17-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
‘Omniscient Reader: The Prophet' bets big with star power and fan-favorite IP
Cast and director discuss high-stakes adaptation at Seoul press event What happens when you're the only person who's read an obscure web novel, and then its story becomes reality? That mind-bending premise drives 'Omniscient Reader: The Prophet,' this summer's most ambitious tentpole in local theatres, built on a web comic juggernaut that's amassed over 425 million views worldwide since its launch in 2020. Adapted from the smash hit web novel "Omniscient Reader's Viewpoint" which first launched in 2018 and later spawned the comic, the film has everything riding on it — a bankable IP, cutting-edge visual effects, and a marquee cast including Lee Min-ho and Blackpink's Jisoo. With a reported 30 billion won ($22.5 million) production budget, it's Korean cinema's biggest bet this season, with industry eyes watching whether it can revive a historically sluggish box office. On Tuesday, director Kim Byung-woo and the main cast gathered for a press conference at Lotte Cinema Konkuk University, with Jisoo absent due to scheduling conflicts. The weight of adapting the beloved source material was not lost on anyone present. 'The pressure of it all was real,' said Ahn Hyo-seop, who makes his feature film debut as Dok-ja, the story's everyman protagonist suddenly thrust into a collapsing world. 'But rather than thinking of it as my big movie debut, I just focused on playing a character I found fascinating.' Lee Min-ho spoke about the unique challenge of portraying Joong-hyuk, the novel's near-mythic character who relives time in endless loops to perfect survival. 'I usually stay away from characters who are overly idealized or already fan favorites,' he said. 'Joong-hyuk is already so complete. It felt like a lot to live up to. I don't know if I'd meet the fans' expectations, but I really gave it my all.' The film delivers no shortage of spectacle. Trailer clips shown to the press revealed effects-heavy set pieces stretching from subway tunnels to city-wide chaos, with each character boasting their own weapon and skillset in full RPG style. 'I found myself falling in love with action through this project,' said Nana, who takes on her first action role as the dagger-wielding Hee-won. 'Now I want to become an action star.' Her intensity seemed to have left an impression. Lee Min-ho joked that her 'raw, hungry eyes were kind of intimidating.' But beneath the epic scale, director Kim emphasized the story's grounding in the real world. 'I didn't want this to feel like a fantasy removed from our lives,' he said. 'The point was to root it in something familiar because these characters are facing challenges that reflect our own reality.' Lee Min-ho built on that idea, noting how the film taps into timely social themes. 'We live in such a disconnected, individualistic world,' he said. 'But this story shows that even in the middle of collapse, people can still find strength through each other. That really stuck with me.' As promotional materials for the film began rolling out, fans of the original series raised concerns over changes made in the adaptation -- especially the decision to have Jisoo's character use guns instead of her signature swords. Director Kim addressed the shift head-on: 'As someone who loves the original, I understand those concerns. But when adapting for film, certain changes are necessary to fit the medium.' 'We were fully aware of how tough things are for cinemas right now,' he added. 'That's exactly why we didn't want to lean on the usual tricks. We wanted to deliver something truly fresh.'
Korea Herald
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
'Magic Candies' brings Oscar buzz to local screens
Oscar-nominated animated short marks first Korean children's book adaptation by major Japanese studio This year's dearth of Korean works at major film festivals and awards shows — no feature films made it to the Oscars or Cannes — has left local film fans searching for bright spots. One of the few silver linings came from an unexpected source: "Magic Candies," a 21-minute animated short based on Korean author Baek Hee-na's children's book that landed an Oscar nomination for best animated short film in January. With the short film now heading to Korean theaters, the children's book author Baek and Japanese producer Takashi Washio gathered for a press conference at Lotte Cinema Konkuk University in Seoul on Friday. While buzz around the film here largely centered on whether it would score an Oscar, Baek noted that awards were not the main draw for her. "When we made this animation, the goal wasn't commercial," she said. "Every time I write a book, what's really important to me is the personal feeling of having created something I can be proud of anywhere." The project marks the first collaboration between a Korean children's book and a major Japanese animation studio. It brings together established talents: Baek won the prestigious Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award in 2020 for her body of work, while Toei Animation's Washio and director Daisuke Nishio are industry veterans behind hits like "Pretty Cure" and "Dragon Ball Z." The film forgoes the sleek polish of mainstream animation in favor of something quirkier and more expressive. Its rough, textured look stays true to Baek's distinctive approach — she is known for building miniature sets with clay figures, then photographing them under carefully arranged lights to create her storybook illustrations. For Baek, who herself studied animation in college, preserving the original's handmade sensibility was crucial. "I was worried about losing the analog feel if it went CG," she said, referring to computer graphics. The back-and-forth took nearly a year. "They said they'd create CG models of all the characters first and show me. If I liked it, then I'd give permission." That attention to detail extended beyond aesthetics. Washio, working with Korean material for the first time, took pains to capture the authentic local feel. "We did location scouting in Seoul several times," he explained. "I told the director I saw a lot of magpies when I came to Korea, and he looked it up and found out magpies are Korea's national bird. That's how we got to put one the opening scene." The film combines Baek's original "Magic Candies" with elements from another work ,"I Am a Dog," for a more complete narrative arc. "When I first read 'Magic Candies,' I thought it might be too short for a film," Washio said. "But after reading 'I Am a Dog,' I thought it was excellent and would work well from Dong-Dong's perspective." The cross-cultural collaboration paid off beyond expectations. The film has won eight awards across seven international festivals and earned official invitations to over 30 others before landing its Oscar nomination. The biggest revelation for Baek came from something she had never considered. "When I write picture books, I think a lot about the characters' expressions and movements, so seeing them move wasn't that surprising," she said. "But I'd never imagined the character's voice. So when I first heard Dong-Dong speak, I got really emotional — it was like I'd eaten a magic candy myself."
Korea Herald
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Comic action 'Hi-Five' readies for release amid star's absence
Yoo Ah-in once again scrubbed from promo events following drug scandal The press conference for the upcoming superhero comedy "Hi-Five" convened Monday at Lotte Cinema Konkuk University in Seoul, with director Kang Hyung-cheol and his cast in attendance. Conspicuously absent was Yoo Ah-in, who has vanished entirely from public view following his drug conviction in September. "I wanted to make a fun, entertaining film — the kind you'd find in video rental shops back in the day," said Kang, explaining his vision. "I've been fortunate enough to direct several films, and this time I wanted to create something that audiences could watch comfortably and enjoy." Kang reigns as Korean cinema's go-to hitmaker for modest crowd-pleasing comedies. The box office numbers speak for themselves — his 2008 debut "Scandal Makers" racked up an impressive 8.3 million admissions, and his sophomore effort "Sunny" (2011) defied expectations by turning a high school reunion story into a 7.4 million smash hit. Ahn Jae-hong, who plays one of the five protagonists, cited the director as his primary motivation for joining the project. "More than anything, the fact that this was Kang Hyung-cheol's film drew me in immediately," he said. "The way he conceived this story, the premise, the flow — it seemed incredibly exciting." Oh Jung-se shared similar sentiments after his third collaboration with Kang. "Director Kang's films still have that old-school movie magic," Oh said. "That's why whenever people ask me what kind of film I want to do next, I always say 'a Kang Hyung-cheol film.'" "Hi-Five" follows five ordinary individuals who suddenly develop superpowers after receiving organ transplants from a man with psychic abilities. The ensemble cast features, among others, Lee Jae-in as a taekwondo enthusiast with super strength, Ra Mi-ran as a mysterious yogurt seller and Kim Hee-won as a factory manager with healing powers. Yoo Ah-in plays Ki-dong, an unemployed man who gains electromagnetic vision after a corneal transplant. The trailer screened at the event showcased a deliberate B-movie aesthetic — over-the-top effects, goofy sight gags and outsized action — all true to the director's knack for feel-good, broad comedy. Notably, not a single frame of Yoo made it in. Addressing the film's approach, Kang highlighted the contrast between fantasy powers and everyday characters. "Yes, it's a comedy that deals with the unrealistic concept of superpowers," he explained. "But precisely because we're using such a fantastical premise, I wanted to ground everything else in reality." Ahn added, "All the characters have such distinct personalities. When such different characters from different worlds come together, fun things naturally happen. The way they interact creates something incredibly fun that I think audiences will enjoy." When asked about Yoo's drug scandal and subsequent exile from the promotional circuit, Kang responded with measured composure. "It's unfortunate — something we wish hadn't happened," he said. "At that time, the film wasn't yet completed, and we were in the middle of postproduction. A leader needs to focus on solutions when problems arise."
Korea Herald
28-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Killer at sixty-one
Age meets action in 'The Old Woman with the Knife,' a Korean thriller that made an unexpected splash at Berlinale "I got the role because I haven't had Botox," said Lee Hye-young, sending the room into laughter at Thursday's press conference for "The Old Woman with the Knife" at Lotte Cinema Konkuk University. The 61-year-old actor, whose illustrious career spans four decades of Korean cinema, stars as a legendary assassin thrust into one last deadly chase in director Min Kyu-dong's action thriller. "There are plenty of good actresses my age in Korea," she added. "I kept wondering why they picked me. Now that we've wrapped, I'm finally getting those injections." Based on Gu Byeong-mo's bestseller, the film follows Hornclaw (Lee Hye-young), a veteran killer who's spent nearly 50 years taking out "society's worst" for a clandestine outfit. Her carefully ordered existence unravels when she crosses paths with Bullfight (Kim Sung-cheol), a young hitman who dogs her steps with a fixation that goes well beyond personal vendetta. The film's inclusion at last month's Berlin International Film Festival drummed up buzz. Getting picked for Berlinale's Special — one of the festival's most eclectic sections — was unexpected for a Korean action flick. Min reflected on how the festival's embrace of boundary-pushing cinema created the perfect launching pad for the film. "Screening at a festival that values deep perspective and artistic experiment before our Korean release was both thrilling and an honor," Min said. "When foreign viewers called it 'brutal yet poetic' and 'violent yet beautiful,' I felt they really got what we were going for." For Lee, whose relationship with Berlinale spans decades, the premiere was a homecoming of sorts. She first appeared at the festival with "The Blazing Sun" (1985), where she played the female lead in what would become a Korean cinema classic. She returned with "Passage to Buddha" (1993) and more recently in arthouse icon Hong Sang-soo's "The Novelist's Film" (2022) and "A Traveler's Needs" (2024), both of which won the Silver Bear Grand Jury Prize. "I read the book first and thought, 'How the heck are they going to turn this into a movie?'" Lee said. "The action scared me — you see, I'm not exactly in my prime anymore." She credited the stunt team for helping her through multiple injuries. "This isn't the kind of action where you bulk up and flex for the camera," she said. "It's just regular-looking people who snap into violence out of nowhere. That made it tough." Kim Sung-cheol recalled the director's exacting standards with a grimace. "I figured my first scene would take maybe five takes. The director wouldn't give me the OK, and we shot the thing 17 times," he said. The cast and director spoke at length about how the film upends expectations for the action thriller genre. Min said he aimed for something deeper than action alone. "The characters don't just fight with their bodies — they're grappling with their lives," he said. "Hornclaw has lived in isolation for nearly 50 years. Her work is clinical. It's almost a form of art." Bullfight, on the other hand, is "flashy, cocky, a showboat," Min said. "He wants to kill her, but he also needs her. It's like they're seeing versions of themselves in each other." When asked what audiences should expect, Lee didn't mince words: "It's Min's best film, honestly. I don't care much for his other stuff, like 'Antique,'" she said, referring to Min's 2008 Berlinale entry. "But this one's definitely Min's triumph." Min responded instantly, saying, "No, this film is Lee Hye-young's triumph." "The Old Woman with the Knife" will hit Korean theaters on May 1.
