Dramabeans » 200 Pound Beauty

Point-counterpoint: Pursuing beauty in 200 Pound Beauty

javabeans — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 01:41:56 +0000

In last week’s Open Thread, a back-and-forth developed between two commenters that caught my eye, because it dealt with a point that had been at the back of my mind for a while. Ever since I first saw the smash 2006 romantic comedy 200 Pound Beauty [미녀는 괴로워], in fact.

The comments dealt with 200 Pound Beauty’s plastic-surgery themes, and echoed some of my own reservations with the movie. Don’t get me wrong; I totally enjoyed watching it — it was light, funny, nicely acted — but something just didn’t sit right with me at the end. And the conversation that emerged last week captured that debate very well, I thought.

So, I asked both Sere and Samsooki if they would be okay with furthering the discussion in a sort of point-counterpoint conversation (similar to how Dahee and I discussed a particular drama character previously). They’ve both graciously agreed to go with it, and here’s the result.

Hope you enjoy!

SONG OF THE DAY

200 Pound Beauty OST – “Beautiful Girl” by Kim Ah-joong. [ Download ]

(...)
Read the rest of Point-counterpoint: Pursuing beauty in 200 Pound Beauty (4,021 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2009. | Permalink | 127 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 200 Pound Beauty, guest bloggers, Kim Ah-joong, movie reviews

200 Pound Beauty musical opens

javabeans — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:02:38 +0000

If you’re a regular reader here, you probably won’t have that much trouble placing this particular famous singer in the lead role of 200 Pound Beauty, the musical edition, which held its “press call” and open rehearsal on November 26.

Song Chang-eui of Golden Bride plays the role originally played by Joo Jin-mo in the film, with Kim Ah-joong’s lead role played by two actresses alternating as the overweight singer with the powerful voice who undergoes plastic surgery to become a kpop success.

(...)
Read the rest of 200 Pound Beauty musical opens (83 words)

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 12 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 200 Pound Beauty, musicals, Song Chang-eui

Musical 200 Pound Beauty set to take the stage

javabeans — Sun, 09 Nov 2008 05:23:23 +0000

Song Chang-eui (Boys Don’t Cry) poses with pop singer Bada and musical actress Yoon Gong-joo (really, parents, gong-joo?) as they promote their new musical, the adaptation of sleeper hit 200 Pound Beauty.

The 29-year-old Song plays a PD main character, while Bada and Yoon alternate in the lead female role originated by Kim Ah-joong. The names in the musical are changed from the film, which hints that the musical, while sharing the main idea of the movie, may take certain departures.

Song last stepped onto the musical stage two and half years ago in the production of Hedwig, and the actor feels an affinity for the stage: of all the experiences he’s had, “musicals are still the most fun.”

The musical opens on November 27.

Via Newsis

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 22 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 200 Pound Beauty, Bada, musicals, Song Chang-eui

News bites: November 3, 2008

javabeans — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 17:09:02 +0000

Actor Go Soo, above, held his first Japanese fanmeeting on Saturday, and apparently the only news agency sent to cover it was Yonhap News, whose pictures uniformly suck. [Yonhap News]

Koyote singer and actress Shinji (Unstoppable High Kick) was hospitalized on November 3 with acute kidney infection. Her manager reported that she had a fever of over 39 degrees Celsius (102.2˚ F) and was also diagnosed with overworking and stress. [Star News]

Rain’s little sister is getting married! It’ll happen sometime next year and Rain is feeling both brotherly and fatherly: “You know how they say fathers feel odd when their daughters get married? That’s how I feel, because she’ll become part of someone else’s family.” [Asia Economy]

Oh, and now that Rain has announced he once dated a “top model,” fans are clamoring to know who she is. He’s not telling, but he did promise to have a son eventually and raise a “second Rain.” Um, I don’t remember asking for that, Rain. [Hankook Ilbo]

Also, rumors of Rain’s death have been greatly exaggerated, and he is not happy. He says that he heard reports that he’d committed suicide when he was in China, and they were “hard to bear.” His first clue? When he started receiving a flood of concerned phone calls asking if he was okay. His reaction after reading reports was to think, “I’m really going to live a long time” to prove them wrong. Or, you know, he could just show up somewhere. [Mk.co.kr]

Korea’s film industry is in a slump, so Kim Rae-won has taken a pay cut for his current film, Insadong Scandal. The star commands top dollar after the recent success of Gourmet, but reduced his salary to ease the burden on the film production. [Sports Chosun]

Wang Bit-na (she of Merry vs. Daegu Battle and the fab tartan gown at the recent “Love Your W” fundraiser) is taking to the jazz stage. On November 20-21, she’ll take part in the jazz concert “Yoon Hee-jung and Friends” and sing two songs herself. [Yonhap News]

Things look to be getting uglier in the custody battle for Choi Jin-shil’s kids. Following Choi’s suicide last month, her brother Choi Jin-young (also an actor, of Okay to Love) has taken care of her two children, but her ex-husband Jo Sung-min, who’s been a deadbeat dad for the past four years and has been known to previously have beaten his wife, has suddenly decided he wants to raise his kids, and Choi’s brother and mother are not having it. Mom says, “He left his wife and kids because he didn’t want them and thinks he has a claim to them — how does that make sense? He’s done nothing as a father. I cannot recognize his parental right.” Jo counters, “It isn’t that I gave up my rights, but that I relinquished them to Choi Jin-shil. I’m the only parent they have now, so the rights automatically come to me.” Yeah, automatic parenting! One step up from deadbeat parenting! [Segye, Sports Seoul]

Bada is set to take the role originated by Kim Ah-joong in 200 Pound Beauty in the musical adaptation. Critics are readying to compare her to Kim, saying, “She’d better bring it!” and Bada is responding, “Oh, it’s already been broughten!” Okay, maybe the actual words were more like, “I’m confident I can do it.” She also feels kinship to her character because in her SES days, her groupmates Eugene and Shoo wore sizes 44 and 55 (U.S. sizes zero through 4-ish) and she was the sole 66. Sure, 66 and obesity are totally the same thing. [Hankook Ilbo]

Ready to greet the newest adorabuhl 5-year-old child star? Say hello to Park Sarang, who’s playing Ji Jin-hee’s (Spotlight) daughter in the film Parallel Life, which also stars Ha Jung-woo (HIT) and Lee Jong-hyuk (Rivals). [Newsis]

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 21 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 200 Pound Beauty, Bada, Choi Jin-shil, fanmeetings, Go Soo, Jo Sung-min, Kim Rae-won, musicals, news bites, overworking, Rain, Shinji

Get the fat suit ready for Bada

javabeans — Mon, 18 Aug 2008 02:31:46 +0000

While news is quiet of the 200 Pound Beauty sequel, plans are under way for a musical version, starring SES lead singer Bada. (The film sequel will be losing the sleeper hit’s original plastic-beauty Hana, star Kim Ah-joong, who opted not to return to the franchise in favor of other projects now that she’s catapulted to stardom.)

This musical version will be the follow-up stage role to Bada’s previous theatrical turn as Esmerelda in Notre Dame de Paris, for which she received favorable reviews. She’ll share the double-cast role of Hana with musical actress Yoon Gong-joo (really, Yoon parents? You named your kid “Princess”?). The male lead role, originated by Joo Jin-mo in the movie, is yet to be cast.

The musical version of 200 Pound Beauty will begin its theatrical run on November 27.

Via My Daily

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 200 Pound Beauty, Bada, Kim Ah-joong, musicals, sequels

Fat again?

javabeans — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 20:06:11 +0000

Sleeper romantic-comedy hit 200 Pound Beauty is preparing its sequel, because what’s more natural after a film unexpectedly hits big than to milk that cash cow for all it’s worth? Still, despite my problems with the way the film resolves, it was more entertaining than I’d expected, and the writing was a cut above your average Korean rom-com fluff-fest. So maybe there’s hope for a sequel yet, although first the producers will have to win over the breakout star of its original, Kim Ah Joong.

Kim Ah Joong has had CF contracts and lots of offers post-200 Pound Beauty, but hasn’t struck it big with a follow-up project, so her wariness is understandable. Her management states that “as the lead actress in the original, it’s natural for people to wonder over her role,” but her participation is by no means definite: “The production company is still in the process of making its sequel, and we’ve asked to see the screenplay when it’s completed.” He adds, “Because it’s not yet finished, we aren’t ready to discuss whether she wants or doesn’t want to appear in the film. After seeing the finished script, she will consider it.”

With both actor and director yet unsettled, the screenwriter is currently penning the script. The basic plot outline describes main character Hana, who’d beautified through massive plastic surgery in the first film, undergoing the “yo-yo effect” to regain weight in the sequel.

Hm, sounds an awful like the true life tales of actress-comedian Kim Mi Ryeo — who got slammed for “beautifying” via exercise and surgery (Botox and lipo), then for regaining weight — doesn’t it?

Via Newsen

SONG OF THE DAY

Kim Ah Joong – “Beautiful Girl” from the 200 Pound Beauty OST [ Download ]

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© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2008. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: 200 Pound Beauty, Kim Ah-joong, sequels

200-pound flop

javabeans — Fri, 21 Dec 2007 02:04:42 +0000

Although 200 Pound Beauty premiered to lots of success in Korea a year ago, it’s just recently flopped in its Japanese premiere (it opened on the 15th), ranking 12th for its opening weekend.

Previous premieres of Korean films such as The Host and The King and the Clown also fared poorly in Japan, so 200 Pound Beauty was released on fewer screens and brought in a mere $211,360 according to Boxofficemojo.com. The numbers are doubly disappointing since the film is actually based on a Japanese manga, and hopes were high for the film. (The article looks on the bright side; the other, higher-ranked films enjoyed wider release by double or triple the number of screens.)

Maybe the storyline of poor misunderstood plastic beauties didn’t resonate with Japanese audiences? Maybe they were lured in by the box-office leader I Am Legend instead? Or maybe in the whole year that 200 Pound Beauty’s been out and about, they’ve all already SEEN it?

Via Newsen

SONG OF THE DAY

Sugarbowl – “Tequila” [ zShare download ]

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