The first teaser for KBS’s upcoming Thorn Birds is out, and basically what I can tell from that is: tears, tears, and more tears. Seriously, that’s all there is. Crying, sobbing, weeping, the eye-sweats, call it what you like. All I know is: I’m pretty much out.

The teaser video’s narration tells us, “We’ll atone for that sin. I’m sorry…” I don’t know what she did, but I’m betting she cries about it. A lot.

Thorn Birds stars Han Hye-jin (Jejoongwon) and Kim Min-jung (Strike Love) and is touted as “the revival of well-made melodramas” whose teaser video takes “a teary concept to stir viewers’ emotions.” Yeah, we got that. But how ’bout a little less with the sad, and a little more with the story?

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Read the rest of Thorn Birds teaser and stills (288 words)

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Post tags: Han Hye-jin, Kim Min-jung, Thorn Birds

There’s a new drama in the works for KBS’s Wednesday-Thursday timeslot, Thorn Birds, which hasn’t been much on my radar because it seems like a muddly mess in the making.

But first, the details: It stars Han Hye-jin (back to TV a year after 2010′s Jejoongwon), Joo Sang-wook (who revitalized his career with Giant), Seo Do-young (who took an edgier turn with his dark cable drama Yacha), and Kim Min-jung (in her first drama since being forced to drop Hero due to injury).

I have nothing against those actors; it’s the creative team that has me on alert. This drama is described as the story of two women who make radically different choices in pursuing their ambitions. It also centers around “a beautiful and fierce love” between the heroine and the two men (Han, Joo, Seo).

Han Hye-jin plays a tough woman who faces off against a difficult fate, while Kim Min-jung’s villaness character harbors a birth secret that leads her on a path of revenge against the world. Joo Sang-wook plays the heir to a powerful chaebol, while Seo Do-young plays a romanticist and film director whose affection for the heroine is described as a “shadow love.” Oh great, more romantic stalking.

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Read the rest of KBS’s Thorn Birds begins rehearsals (177 words)

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Post tags: Han Hye-jin, Joo Sang-wook, Kim Min-jung, Seo Do-young, Thorn Birds

Pictured above is the newly released promotional poster for the 2010 Chungmuro International Film Festival (CHIFFS), which features screen stars Yoo Seung-ho (God of Study) and Kim Min-jung (Strike Love). The two actors are the promo representatives for the festival, now in its fourth year, which runs from September 2 through 10.

Operating under the keywords “Discovery, Restoration, Creation,” this year’s festival plans to screen approximately 220 films from 40 countries. The festival includes the international feature and short film competition “Chungmuro Opus,” which this year received 1,170 films from 66 countries.

Chungmuro is a street in Seoul that saw the birth of film and cinema in Korea, and the term has by now become synonymous with the film industry. (Think of Hollywood as another example of an industry becoming known by the place it was founded.) The festival will hold its official press conference on August 4.

Via OSEN

RELATED POSTS

• God of Study: Episodes 1-2
• Yoo Seung-ho’s God of Study
• Hero in danger of losing lead actress
• Yoo Seung-ho at Busan’s press conference
• Open set day at Strike Love

© javabeans for Dramabeans, 2010. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: film festivals, Kim Min-jung, Yoo Seung-ho

With only nine days left till its premiere, MBC’s Hero finds itself in a precarious position: It’s looking likely that lead actress Kim Min-jung will have to drop out due to injury.

According to a production representative on November 2, Kim Min-jung expressed her intention to drop out to producers on October 31, forcing the production team to convene over the weekend for a last-minute strategy session in order to figure out how to handle the situation.

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Read the rest of Hero in danger of losing lead actress (438 words)

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Post tags: Hero, Kim Min-jung

We’ve seen the cast of upcoming Wednesday-Thursday drama Hero posing separately (Kim Min-jung, Lee Junki, Eom Ki-joon), and now they pose together as three newspapermen and one police officer.

The new cast promo photos feature, from left to right, Eom Ki-joon (Job Well Done), Baek Yoon-shik (Jeon Woo Chi), Lee Junki (Iljimae), and Kim Min-jung (Strike Love). The one below also includes actress Shin Joo-ah (Hey Hey Hey 2).

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Read the rest of Cast promos for MBC drama Hero (101 words)

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Post tags: Baek Yoon-shik, Eom Ki-joon, Hero, Kim Min-jung, Lee Jun-ki, Shin Joo-ah

Actress Kim Min-jung (New Heart), who came onboard Hero after Han Ji-min dropped out, has a new look for the drama, one meant to draw out her professional side as a female cop. On the one hand, I think Kim is a talented actress who looks cute with the short style, but on the other, I don’t know why dramas think that an unflattering short haircut is the best way to make a woman look “serious.” It didn’t really work for Song Hye-gyo in The World They Live In, who adopted a similarly blunt bowl cut in the name of “professionalism.”

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Read the rest of A new look for Kim Min-jung in Hero (195 words)

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Post tags: Hero, Kim Min-jung

Hero, MBC’s upcoming drama and Lee Junki‘s next television role, has lost Han Ji-min as its leading lady and picked up Kim Min-jung (New Heart) in her place. It has also cast Ji Chang-wook, newly famous from his role as youngest brother Mi-pung in KBS’s Sons of Sol Pharmacy.

This’ll be a great opportunity for Ji Chang-wook to jump from one high-profile project to another, and change his image as well. In Sol Pharmacy, he’s a tender-hearted nice guy, but in Hero, he’ll play a “spiteful” and “opportunistic” reporter with a chip on his shoulder and a propensity for lying. (This probably sets him up as a natural rival to Lee Junki’s character, who works as a reporter at a third-rate newspaper. And then there’s also the “elite” reporter played by Eom Ki-joon…) Ji said, “In order to gain respect for my acting, I have to take on diverse characters and broaden my acting spectrum.”

Hero (the articles note that “Hero” is still a working title) will enter filming once it has completed casting its supporting actors. It will follow Heading to the Ground on MBC in November. Its cast has me curious (also listed on the roster is Bbaek Ga) more than the plot, but this could be an interesting series.

Via Sports Khan, OSEN

RELATED POSTS

• Another Sol Pharmacy son gains endorsement power
• Eom Ki-joon turns reporter in Hero
• Lee Junki and Han Ji-min together in Hero
• The Sons of Sol Pharmacy House / My Too Perfect Sons
• Strike Love (MBC)

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Post tags: Hero, Ji Chang-wook, Kim Min-jung, Lee Jun-ki

I haven’t written (yet?) about the latest episodes of MBC’s baseball drama Strike Love [2009 외인구단], but I’m still watching, and I’m still enjoying it. This couple — Yoon Tae-young and Kim Min-jung — is probably the biggest reason I’m sticking with it, because they are so sweet and adorable together, in addition to both being good actors.

The drama isn’t really new or incredibly original, but it’s kind of like really well-cooked comfort food. The romantic pairing is obvious from the start, but acted with chemistry and sweetness, while the athletic match-up is also a little predictable but still enjoyable to watch. The antagonist tends to be one-dimensional — but he’s the kind you love to hate, because our hero will have his day and when that happens, it will be so satisfying to watch.

The production opened up its Kyeonggi province set on May 22 while it filmed “training hell” sequences for the drama.

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Read the rest of Open set day at Strike Love (237 words)

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Post tags: Kim Min-jung, Strike Love, Yoon Tae-young

(I know, I used the same picture in the previous post about this drama, but this version of the poster looks cleaner and cooler.)

I watched MBC’s new weekend baseball drama, Strike Love [2009 외인구단], without any preconceived notions or expectations. I never read the original comic on which it is based, and I don’t much like sports (baseball being at the bottom of those I can endure watching when father/brother/friend figures insist upon it). But I had an inkling, based on the preview clip, that this drama might be watchable. And lo, it is. Quite.

I was sucked into Strike Love in the first 60 seconds. After the first episode, I sighed, “Aw, man,” because I was hoping it would be bad so I could clear off my plate a little. After the second episode, I figured this meant I’d have to rearrange my list of drama priorities.

SONG OF THE DAY

EZ Hyoung – “Floating World.” There’s a nice song that plays several times in Strike Love, and it reminds me of EZ Hyoung whenever it comes on. So here’s some EZ Hyoung. [ Download ]

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Read the rest of Strike Love (MBC) (2,989 words)

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Post tags: first episodes, Kim Min-jung, Park Sung-min, Song Ah-young, Strike Love, Yoon Tae-young

MBC’s upcoming baseball drama Strike Love [2009외인구단, for which I previously used the literal translation Alien Baseball Team], is another drama adapted from a popular manhwa, and has fans eager for its premiere next month.

The sports-themed series stars Yoon Tae-young (Legend) in the lead role of baseball player Kachi, while Kim Min-jung (New Heart) is cast as his love interest Omji (or Umji).

I wasn’t sure how I’d like this drama, but the new preview video clip makes it look pretty good (watch below).

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Read the rest of MBC winds up for baseball drama Strike Love (375 words)

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Post tags: Kim Min-jung, manhwa adaptations, Strike Love, Yoon Tae-young