Park Jin-hai primarily focuses on K-dramas, entertainment shows and actor interviews. Beyond that, she also pens articles covering the broader arts scene, with a particular emphasis on classical music, dance and various aspects of lifestyle. Since joining The Korea Times in 2013, she has made significant contributions in the realms of hallyu (Korean wave), industry news and international affairs.
INTERVIEW Song Kang-ho's 'hallucinating' acting stands out in 'Drug King'
Actor Song Kang-ho poses prior to an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe in Seoul, Monday. /Courtesy of Show Box
By Park Jin-hai
By Park Jin-hai
Award-winning actor Song Kang-ho, who has been acclaimed for his subtle portrayal of ordinary citizens in various films, has bagged the strongest character ever in his career _ a lesser-known Korean drug king.
In his latest crime drama “The Drug King,” directed by Woo Min-ho of crime action “Inside Men” (2015), Korea's top grossing R-rated movie of all-time, Song portrays Lee Doo-sam, an ordinary small-time narcotics dealer who becomes an infamous drug lord in Korea during the 1970s.
The R-rated film is based on the real life story of a drug smuggler named Lee Hwang-soon who built his empire in Busan's crime underworld in the '70s. Although drugs are prevalent in many Hollywood films, it is rare for Korean movies to center on the country's drug cartels.
“Although local audiences might find themselves unfamiliar with the story material, it will leave a strong impression on viewers,” said the 51-year-old actor during an interview with the Korea Times in Seoul, Monday. “But it is more than the strong feelings its poster emanates. It is about a person's obsession with money that leads him to his doom. It portrays human desire, obsession and destruction through the dramatic life of Lee. It is not intended to put the country's underground drug trafficking world under the microscope.”
In the 139-minute film, Song shows the dramatic rise and fall of petty smuggler, Lee. After being involved unwittingly in drug deals, Lee was quick to learn about the business and rose to the position of drug lord going between Korea and Japan. Under the authoritarian government of Park Chung-hee, when the country ran the nation-wide Saemaeul campaign to modernize the rural Korean economy and promote exports, the government turns a blind eye to the drug trade. Using connections within the government and bribing officials, Lee manufactures drugs and accrues enormous wealth by exporting them with the “Made in Korea” brand to Japan. But, in the end, he becomes an addict and his insatiable obsession for money leads him to a tragic end.
He said there were technical difficulties when depicting Lee under the influence of drugs. “There was a lack of Korean films that I could use as references when trying to show Lee's hardcore addiction. The references available for the local drug rings were all written texts, while the film's script just says Lee suffers from a addiction. So I had to work hard, using my imagination to portray Lee's addicted state realistically,” said Song.
“Acting is a lonely job, because after all it is left to the actor to shape the scripted character and bring them to life. But I felt even lonelier shooting this film, with nobody to advise me how to act like a drug addict.”
Song returns to the big screen, one and a half years since “A Taxi Driver,” where he took on the role of an ordinary taxi driver who came to be involved in the events of the Gwangju Democratization Movement in 1980. With his many projects including “The Host” (2006), “The Attorney” (2013) “A Taxi Driver” (2017), Song appeared as an ordinary father, a good-willed lawyer and a taxi driver who stands up for what's right.
“Over the past ten years I've happened to bag roles playing many seemingly ordinary characters who stand for justice. But in my new film, audiences might be reminded of my earlier acting seen in, say, 'Memories of Murder.' Viewers might find it amusing I think,” he added.
Song tried hard to show his character's inner turmoil, “Since the film doesn't lean on the confrontation between good and evil characters carrying the story, I thought the depth of acting performance matters. So I tried hard to depict Lee's internal pains and skewed obsession entangled within and to show how they change the person,” he said.
Song said he particularly likes the film's unconventional ending. “The film doesn't follow the familiar structure of giving catharsis to viewers. Instead, it ends by questioning viewers if the evil seed for one's destruction has gone for good. It doesn't have the typical closing the box ending. I hope movie fans will also find the director's unconventional ending fresh.”