kdrama and kpop

Hot sibling of actress Kim Ta Hae is back in the new drama 'Swallow The Sun' and he's never been looking better than before! The last drama that I watched starring Lee Wan was 'Heaven's Tree' which was quite a while ago.










He lost all his baby fat ^^.

With a slew of bankable summer blockbusters charging through the box office this season, it is about time a television series of epic proportions spiced things up on the small screen.

SBS' new Wednesday and Thursday night installment, "Swallow the Sun," promises to do just that.

The latest collaboration between "All In" duo director Yoo Chul-yong and scriptwriter Choi Wan-gyu, "Swallow the Sun" repeats blockbuster-making history, spinning a gargantuan tale of ambitious young adults with big plans and big dreams for Jeju Island.

The scenic island, Las Vegas and South Africa serve as the vast playground on which a star-studded cast that includes "New Heart" star Ji Sung, former girl group Fin.K.L hottie Sung Yu-ri and "Stairway to Heaven" actor Lee Wan play out this mega adventure.

A finely chiseled Ji Sung, who also starred in the hit series "All In" (SBS, 2003), sloughs off his "New Heart" charm for the rugged and rebellious skin of Kim Jung-woo.

Taking on the role of the illegitimate son of a gangster and a female diver, Ji Sung mastered scuba diving, boxing and taekwondo prior to extensive filming that took him from Korea to South Africa and Las Vegas. "I remember riding the truck all day off the beaten path, firing a gun, for the chase scene that unfolded in Africa," Ji Sung recounted unforgettable moments in a press release from SBS.

"For the underwater scene, which was the first one I filmed, I was in the water for eight hours," he recalled. "At one point my eyes got puffy. I swam with one hand and grabbed the gills of a sea bream with the other, struggling for life." "I think I will remember both scenes for a long time."

Behind the scenes, the tough and travel-heavy schedule took its toll on the drama's production crew. According to a press release from SBS, four crew members were diagnosed with the human swine flu virus after flying in from the United States in early July.

Prioritizing national health concerns over the drama, the press conference slated for Tuesday was cancelled and filming was temporarily halted. "All four are confirmed cases of the A (H1N1) virus," said an SBS representative over the phone.

When asked how they were faring, the representative stated that though they showed symptoms of high fever, they were not immobile and that one crew member was fully recovered. In regards to the health of the cast, the representative answered: "They are fine."

According to the press release, after wrapping up filming in Las Vegas the production crew returned to Korea on July 2. One crew member tested positive for swine flu and was placed in the Incheon National Quarantine Station. The following day the production crew joined the film crew in Jeju Island. After receiving tests at the Jeju Island public health center, three more crew members were diagnosed with the H1N1 virus on Monday.

According to the SBS representative, the crew member that was placed in the Incheon National Quarantine Station has made a complete recovery. "Filming may resume, at the soonest, on Thursday," stated the SBS representative.

The first episode was pushed back a day and was replaced by a special that aired yesterday. According to the press release, because plenty of scenes were filmed in South Africa and America, there are no setbacks to the broadcast of the drama for the time being.

Based on the original book authored by the production company's president Kang Chul-hwa of Newport Pictures, "Swallow the Sun" will air its first episode tonight on SBS at 9:55 p.m.

By Jean Oh (oh_jean@heraldm.com) via koreaherald.co.kr

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New drama with Ji Sung, Lee Wan & Sung Yuri? Only hot people! I'm not so updated with dramas these days and I'm sorry for neglecting KDramaQueen. But I'll try to update more often ^_^.

War is tough, a fact well known by a generation of Koreans caught up in the slaughter of the Korean War (1950-1953).

But despite the chaos of the weeks and months that followed the end of the war, the two teenage boys in the movie “Once Upon a Time in Seoul” learn never to quit.

Instead, Jong-doo (Lee Wan) and Tae-ho (Song Chang-ui) fight for survival during those difficult times. The film is loosely based on Kenzo Kitakata’s “Scars,” a Japanese novel depicting the dark side of Japan after World War II.

Rascal Entertainment, the company that made the film, thought the descriptions of impoverished Japan in the novel were similar to those that Korea experienced in 1953.


A post-Korean War scene in Bae Hyung-jun’s “Once Upon a Time in Seoul” with Song Chang-ui, left,
and Lee Wan. Provided by MK Pictures

The story of Once Upon a Time in Seoul, however, goes beyond the simple retelling of wartime disorder. “The film is an exploration of a man’s heart when life is pushed to its limits,” said the film’s director, Bae Hyung-jun, at the film’s production conference last Tuesday in Apgujeong, southern Seoul.

The movie questions life’s essential values and looks at how friendship and trust help see people through tough times.

Though Korea has transformed into a modern society, a far cry from the desolation of the 1950s, many people, especially the younger generation, face high levels of anxiety and depression.

For example, many teenagers today wander the streets searching for hope and vision, Bae said. In the case of Jong-doo and Tae-ho, brotherhood is what matters.

The two 18-year-olds meet at a postwar camp after losing their families and all their money in the Korean War. The two are not at all like each other in many ways - Jong-doo is aggressive and hot tempered, Tae-ho is rational and clever - but they team up and start to steal smuggled goods from American soldiers and plan their escape from the miserable camp.



With the money they make, they open a street stall and start selling the stolen goods. Other orphans in the neighborhood join in the business. But making the movie was problematic because the actors had to transform themselves into believable characters from that period of history.

Song had to lose 7 kilograms (15.4 pounds) and shave his head to look shabby enough for his part while Lee had to hide his muscles and look much weaker. “I was born and raised in the 1980s, so it was difficult for me to feel a connection with the postwar period,” Lee admitted. All he could do was immerse himself in the script.

The child actors who played random orphans living off the streets also faced a generation barrier. “Most child actors who came to the audition for the roles were too well fed,” Bae said. “It was difficult finding kids thin enough to look like skeletons who had survived a fierce war.”

According to the director, most child actors come from upper-middle class families and know nothing about poverty, destitution and malnutrition. “The kids in the film had to look desperate for food and nutrition, but it was the opposite,” he said.

The only solution left to express passionate hunger was to ask the child actors to cut down on the amount they ate before the shooting. Sometimes, even starving them wasn’t enough and many scenes had to be reshot over and over again.

“For those who know me, this film may come as a surprise,” Bae said. So far, the director’s short and long films have mostly been romantic comedies. Once Upon a Time in Seoul is Bae’s second feature after the comedy “Too Beautiful to Lie” in 2004.

This time he wanted to make a film about growing up, like Takeshi Kitano’s “Kids Return” (1996), a film that raises child bullying issues.

Once Upon a Time in Seoul opens next Thursday.

By Lee Eun-joo Staff Reporter [angie@joongang.co.kr], captures from empas.com
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/article/view.asp?aid=2896357


Didn't hear from Lee Wan lately after Heaven's Tree. He's back yay.

This will be the next drama that i want to watch while waiting for the Bad Love subs to come out.The description sounds pretty interesting!

Insoon is pretty Description from http://world.kbs.co.kr/english/tv/program/program_01.htm?pg_code=141

Love is not judging.

Today is often refer to as the time of narcissism. Thanks to communication technology development such as Internet and liberal social, political conditions, people began to speak out. In the streets, they continuously talk on their mobile phones. Online, they run their own show on their blogs and personal webpages. They refuse to be in the backstage but step up as stars of their own show. Ironically, people feel alone because nobody listens but everybody is talking his or her own story.

“My injury is greater.” “My demand is more urgent.” “I am the nicest and loneliest.” “I had the hardest life.” However, nobody knows because there is no person available for listening. Everybody feels dejected. As there are more and more ways to communicate, people become more isolated. It is the tragedy of the narcissistic 21st century.

They want someone to say you are important, to accept themselves “as is” without judging and to listen. They want unconditional love.

Each and everyone things “I can’t love someone unconditionally, but I want someone to love me that way!” Therefore, there is no such person.

People are taunted by others’ opinion. “I need to get good grades, go to a good school, have a good job, live in good neighborhood, earn more money, be more fashionable and beautiful, lose weight, look younger, grab attention, and meet someone with all the right conditions.” The list is endless. When does it stop?

The only possible solution to this problem is to become an unconditionally loving person first. I have to love myself first and tell myself that it is okay not to be perfect. It is okay to fail. It’s okay to be ugly, but actually I’m not ugly. I’m beautiful and I’m doing fine.

Of course, it is not as easy as it looks. However, a person who can truly oneself will be able to love others. True communication becomes possible between people who know how to love themselves.

“Pretty Insun” is about loving oneself unconditionally and communicating with others heart to heart.

In the story, people who endless thirst for love and recognition will realize that true love does not exist anywhere but inside oneself. They will learn that the greatest, incomparable beauty reside in inner self.

Who can throw a stone at her?

A girl was abandoned by her mother at birth and grew up under her grandmother. She served a few years in prison for killing her school mate accidentally. People see a scarlet letter on her. She is the sinner to them. She has the worst background one can have.

However, when you think about it? Who is sinless? And, who would not have bad backgrounds in the eyes of the better-off? What is sin? Who can throw a stone at her? How can we become truly happy?

Director : Pyo Min-su Writer : Jeong Yu-gyeong

Cast:

Kim Hyun Joo as Park In-soon

Kim Min Joon as Yoo Sang Woo

Seo Hyo Rim as Jung Ah (In-soon's sister)

Lee Wan as Geun Soo