Baek Byung-yeul is a journalist at The Korea Times focused on cultural content, including films and cultural events in South Korea. You can contact him at baekby@koreatimes.co.kr to share your insights.
Black comedy 'Good News' reimagines real-life hijacking for modern era
From left, actors Sul Kyung-gu, Ryoo Seung-bum and Hong Kyung pose during a press conference for Netflix movie “Good News” at the JW Marriott Dongdaemun Square Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap
By Baek Byung-yeul
The upcoming Netflix movie "Good News" is based on a true story but will present a narrative that can resonate with the current generation through reimagined characters, director Byun Sung-hyun said.
"This film was inspired by the true story of a plane hijacking incident that occurred in the 1970s. It doesn't completely follow the true story," Byun said during a press conference at a hotel in Seoul Tuesday.
"We incorporated a story that can be relevant to the current generation. We wanted to show this through recreated characters, not real people."
The black comedy film is based on the Yodogo hijacking incident, a 1970 event where nine members of the Japanese communist group Red Army Faction hijacked a plane traveling from Tokyo to Fukuoka and demanded the pilots fly to North Korea. Yodogo was a nickname for the aircraft.
Sul Kyung-gu, one of the lead actors, plays Nobody, a mysterious troubleshooter whose name is not known.
Sul said he had many concerns about playing the character.
"This character was neither this nor that and just called as Nobody. So, honestly, I was confused," said Sul, who has worked with Byun on three other projects. "No matter how many times I read the script, he was a character who didn't blend in with the others.”
Actor Sul Kyung-gu in a scene from Netflix movie "Good News" / Courtesy of Netflix
Actor Ryoo Seung-bum plays Park Sang-hyeon, the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency, who is in charge of the operations for the incident.
He said his character's dual nature best delivers the director's message in the film.
"He was a captivating character where his two-sided nature clashed. As I familiarized myself with the script, I felt that Sang-hyeon, more than any other character, clearly carried the director's message he wanted to convey," Ryoo said.
Actor Hong Kyung, who plays Air Force Lt. Seo Go-myung, revealed that he had to take on various challenges, including acting with lines in English, Japanese and Korean, as well as operating the radar control system.
"When I first received the screenplay and read my role, I felt a spark. I was drawn to the ambition to move forward and achieve something, which looked like the youthful recklessness one might have at a young age," Hong said.
"Good News" had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival and its Asian premiere at the Busan International Film Festival last month. Both screenings received a warm reception.
"Since they speak English in Toronto, I was curious if they would understand the film, but they were very responsive from the start. I felt good," the director said.
"I had a good memory of the friendly reception in Toronto, so I was confident about the Toronto Film Festival. The concern was the Busan Film Festival, so I watched it with Hong Kyung because I wanted to see the audience reaction one more time and I was satisfied because the reaction seemed good," Sul added.
“Good News” will be released on Netflix on Friday.