Dare to think and dare to shoot is a distinctive label of Korean film and television works.
They focus their lenses on sharp issues, flying in scale and depth, and have always been talked about by the audience.
At the beginning of 2024, I believe that many people have heard or watched the bold political thriller "Seoul Spring".
When the film was released in South Korean theaters at the end of last year, the number of moviegoers exceeded 13 million, that is, an average of 1 in 5 Koreans**; The box office is as high as 4600 million yuan, it is the sixth highest-grossing local film in Korean film history.
Taking the opportunity of the recent launch of "Seoul Spring", let's talk about this blockbuster film and make an extension of a good film of the same genre.
Seoul Spring" is based on the real 1979 Double 12 military coup in South Korean history: **After Park Chung-hee was assassinated by Intelligence Minister Kim Jae-gyu, Chun Doo-hwan, then head of the martial law command, and his confidant Roh Tae-woo launched a military rebellion to confront the troops led by General Jang Tae-wan.
In the film, the security commander Chun Doo-gwang played by Hwang Jung-min is ambitious, and his prototype is Chun Doo-hwan who took advantage of the national turmoil to expand his wings and finally seize power; Li Taixin, the commander of the capital garrison played by Zheng Yusheng, is playing with Zhang Tai, he is loyal and fearless in the face of the disparity in the strength of the enemy and the enemy.
The climax of the film is the life-and-death confrontation between the rebels and the repressive army on the night of December 12: the arrogant and arrogant Chun Doo-kwang is good at forming parties for personal gain, controlling most of the country's military power, and has a strong personal incitement drive, occupying an absolute advantage.
Lee Tae-shin showed the tragedy of a lonely hero, he will be loyal to the end, but he has more than enough heart and not enough strength, and all his efforts are tantamount to using his mantis arm as a car.
For viewers familiar with Korean history, the mystery of "Seoul Spring" has long been out of suspense.
Chun Doo-hwan won a complete victory to start the military ** rule, Jang Tae was imprisoned for playing a bell, the process of democratization in South Korea was blocked, and then the tragic Gwangju incident occurred, so the "spring" of the title is ironic.
But here's the beauty of "Seoul Spring": audiences who don't know history can also experience the cruelty of political struggle and the death of heroism in the thrilling competition between the two sides.
This is mainly due to the superb performances of the two actors, Huang Zhengmin and Zheng Yusheng. They collaborated on the crime film "Asura" 7 years ago, and also participated in the ** film "Hunting" directed by their friend Lee Jung-jae.
Asura, 2016
"Elevator God of War" Huang Zhengmin is a recognized actor who is a treasure of change.
can play the thief and the way, the *** gangster ("New World"), can play the pure love warrior who deceives everyone's tears ("When a Man is in Love"), can interpret the loneliness of a foreign miner ("International Market"), and can also give the role of the criminal police a different sense of justice and humanity ("Veteran").
But this is the first time he has played the role of an authoritarian leader.
In order to get close to the prototype, Hwang Jung-min deliberately shaved his head, polished his round nose, and imitated the habit of trembling lips when he spoke, so as to be closer to Chun Doo-hwan in appearance.
The melancholy male god "Zheng Yusheng is an acting school delayed by his handsome appearance, and his early roles were delicate and introverted, such as "The Eraser in My Mind", "Sad Movie" and "Daisy".
After the age of forty, he was full of aura, and his temperament turned to a tough guy type, and in recent years, he has performed well in the action blockbusters "Iron Rain", "Asura", and "Hunting".
When Jung Woo-sung saw Hwang Jung-min's appearance for the first time on the set of "Seoul Spring", he had a sense of crisis: "He is like a fire, and I must not be suppressed by this momentum." ”
Kim Sung-so ("Flu", "Asura"), the director of "Seoul Spring", intimately supported him, allowing Zheng Yusheng to find a "watery temperament" with reference to the ** of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) goodwill ambassador, and Hwang Jung-min undoubtedly has to exert a "fire-like temperament", so as to present great character tension.
In recent years, South Korea's historical and political thrillers have produced a number of masterpieces, often adapting real events, reinforcing dramatic conflicts to highlight tension, and inducing the audience to reflect on the silhouette of history.
In terms of the same theme, "The Ministers of Namsan", which is based on the assassination of Park Chung-hee ** in 2020, can be regarded as a prequel to "Seoul Spring", which traces the undercurrent of the Ministry of Intelligence 40 days before the incident. The film is also a double actor drama: Lee Sung-min plays Park **, and Lee Byung-hun plays the assassin Minister Kim.
Lee Sung-min played Zheng Yusheng's superior in "Seoul Spring"**.
The aforementioned "Hunting" is a sequel to "Seoul Spring", which begins with the story of Chun Doo-hwan's visit to the United States and being assassinated.
Made in Kings (2022) focuses on the electoral politics of the Park Chung-hee era, detailing the game between Kim Dae-jung, Kim Yong-sam and their military advisors. Xue Jingqiu ("Mint Candy") and Yoo Jae-ming ("Silent") contributed quite wonderful performances.
The above-mentioned works are inextricably linked to real history, and the expression method is also biased towards realism.
There are also some films of the same genre that have been more dramatized, making the historical background the general environment of the film: for example, "Sibi Island", "Taiji Flag Flying", and "Joint Security Area" reflect inter-Korean relations, and "Gorgeous Vacation" and "1987" are set against the background of the Gwangju incident.
"Iron Rain" and "**" go one step further, accurately grasp the balance between reality and fiction, and boldly put the story into the paradigm of action genre films, so that the audience can experience the pleasure of watching the movie in the high-intensity and high-density rhythm and plot.
The popularity of "Seoul Spring" will continue from 2023 to 2024, and it will also bring a good start to the Korean film market this year.
Its production company, Hive Media Corp, has created hit films such as "The Insider", "The Ministers of Nanshan", and "Save Me from **".
The success of Seoul Spring made them decide to continue making historical films in the next phase.
Currently on the agenda are the South Korean version of "Changjin Lake" and the political thriller "YS Project", which will tell the story of Kim Yong-sam, who came to power after Chun Doo-hwan and Roh Tae-woo, to dismiss "Ilshinhui" (Chun Doo-hwan's partisan organization).
Harbin, which will be released later this year, starring Hyun Bin and Lee Dong Wook, is a portrait of independence fighters who fought against Japanese imperialism in the early 20th century.
In addition to historical and political themes, Korean films in 2024 can be regarded as blooming and diverse.
We finally waited for the AI-themed blockbuster "Dreamland", which was postponed indefinitely due to the epidemic, which gathered heavyweight stars such as Tang Wei, Kong Liu, Park Bo Jian, and Bae Su Ji, and was directed by Tang Wei's husband Kim Tae-yong ("Late Autumn").
Well-known directors Bong Joon-ho and Park Chan-wook have new trends: Bong Joon-ho's international sci-fi blockbuster "Mickey 17" uses Robert Pattinson and Steven Yuan to play the clone dilemma.
Park Chan-wook's "War, Chaos" is quite epic, telling the story of childhood friends who turn against each other.
"Crossover" starring Hwang Jung-min and Yeom Jing-ah is a bit like the Korean version of "Mr. and Mrs. Smith", the male protagonist is a former ace ** who washes his hands and makes soup, and is involved in a crime with his wife, who is an Interpol.
"Broken Tomb" starring Choi Min-sik, Kim Go-eun, and Lee Ji-hui is a new work directed by Jang Jae-hyun ("Bo Sao River", "Black Priests"), which focuses on the exorcism contest between feng shui masters, witches and mortuary masters.
Speaking of Lee Ji-hyun, we can't fail to mention his girlfriend "Yeon-jin" Lim Ji-yeon's new film "Left ***" starring Jeon Do-yeon and Ji Chang-wook, which tells the story of a former policewoman seeking the truth, and Lee Jung-jae will also participate in this film.
In terms of IP sequels, "Veteran 2" partnered by Huang Zhengmin and Ding Hae-in, and "Crime City 4" by Uncle Ma Dongxi's re-fight are worth looking forward to.
It seems that after the popular "Seoul Spring", there will also be a spring of Korean films.
So, which of the 2024 Korean movies do you want to watch the most?