"Do you like ssanghwacha?"
A press screening of the film "The Assassins" was held on the 8th at Megabox COEX in Gangnam District, Seoul. One of this year's most anticipated Chuseok holiday releases, the film is directed by Hur Jin-ho, whose credits include "Christmas in August" and "The Last Princess," and produced by Hive Media Corp, which established itself as a top domestic production house with "12.12: The Day" and "The Man Standing Next." With a cast that includes Yoo Hae-jin, known for his string of films drawing more than 10 million viewers, the dependable Park Hae-il and Lee Min-ho, a lasting star of the Korean Wave, expectations ran high even before the screening.
Reviews of the film and interviews with the cast and director will follow, but today the focus is on Lee Min-ho. He plays Han Young-il, a rookie reporter from a wealthy family who chases the truth. Having held his place as the king of romantic comedies for more than a decade, Lee has widened his range this time. From a quick-witted cub reporter to a sly performance in which he wins over a source with bashful flirting, critics say Lee has finally found freedom as an actor.
The scene in which he approaches a source and shyly asks, "Do you like ssanghwacha?" — a traditional Korean herbal tea — drew laughter. It could well rival "I like you," actor Oh Jung-se's line from "Wild Thing" that became this year's biggest viral moment.
With stage greetings now a fixture at screenings, requests for Lee to ask audiences whether they like ssanghwacha are expected to pour in.
The atmosphere at the press conference was electric. From the revelation that lingering questions surrounded an incident audiences thought they knew, to visuals that seem to transplant the air and mood of the 1970s wholesale, the film never lets the eye wander. Its brisk pacing deepens the immersion. Some at the venue called it "Hur Jin-ho's version of 12.12: The Day."
Young-il, the character Lee plays, is a reporter present from start to finish at the scene of the shooting of the first lady. Lee, who fits the role of a rookie reporter naturally, described what it was like to play a journalist.
"Living in the world these days, I have felt at moments that this is an era in which a more sensational headline takes precedence over the truth. It seems to be a reality where it is hard even to tell what is real and what is fake. I found myself missing the conviction of people in the past who pursued the truth so fervently. I have always wanted to become that kind of person myself, so I kept that conviction and attitude in mind while acting."
It also raises the question of whether a reporter this stylish existed some 50 years ago. What did the actor have to say about that?
"From the moment I read the script, I talked with the director about wanting my rookie reporter to feel like a live fish, while the senior editor is a static character who expresses his inner life. We also discussed a lot of blocking that would let me use my body. Because the character comes from a well-off family, rather than trying to hide the styling, I tried to bring out its strengths without overdoing it." (Laughs)
From a reporter chasing the truth to sweet flirting aimed at the audience — "The Assassins" is expected to show that romantic comedy star Lee Min-ho is maturing and expanding as an actor.
Yeon Seung's Entertainment Talk
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