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| "Hansan: Rising Dragon" director Kim Han-min / Courtesy of Lotte Entertainment |
By Kwak Yeon-soo
Director Kim Han-min, the brilliant mind behind the 2014 film "Roaring Currents," said he was adamant about making another heroic story of Admiral Yi Sun-sin (1545-98), who led a small fleet to improbable victory over a much larger Japanese fleet in the late 16th century.
His new film, "Hansan: Rising Dragon," centers on the Battle of Hansan Island in 1592, while the 2014 period film focused on the Battle of Myeongnyang in 1597.
Although "Roaring Currents" became the highest-grossing film in Korean cinema history with more than 17 million tickets sold, some criticized him for taking advantage of Korea's naval hero to evoke passion for patriotism. However, Kim revealed he had originally intended to shoot more than "Roaring Currents" in the first place to complete a trilogy.
"I get asked a lot questions like, 'Do you feel pressure to top Roaring Currents?' But I treat them as separate entities. Of course, I try to retain some of the essence of Admiral Yi, such as his fearless personality and leadership, but at the same time, I want to give audiences something different. That's why I cast three different actors to play the same role of Yi in the trilogy," he said during an interview with The Korea Times at a cafe in Seoul, Thursday.
Kim explained how filming "Hansan" differed from filming "Roaring Currents."
"Roaring Currents was like beating one's head against a wall because it was filmed aboard real ships at sea. On the other hand, [for 'Hansan'] we designed virtual production scenes and relied heavily on CGI. I tried to make an edgy, innovative film," he said.
Although "Hansan" is the second installment of the trilogy, it is set five years before the previous film. According to Kim, historical records showed that Yi was more of a scholar in his 40s and rarely shared his thoughts.
Yi was a military strategist who used clever naval tactics like the "hakikjin" (crane wing maneuver) and spy tactics to achieve his against-the-odds triumphs over Japan in naval battles during the 16th century.
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| Actor Park Hae-il plays the role of Admiral Yi Sun-sin in the film "Hansan: Rising Dragon." Courtesy of Lotte Entertainment |
On casting actor Park Hae-il in the role of Yi, Kim said, "Park looks soft on the outside, but he is strong on the inside. I thought that his gentle and calm personality matches well with Admiral Yi."
The film features the "geobukseon," a turtle-shaped armored battleship covered with iron spikes and fire-breathing dragon head at the front.
Not much is known about the battleship, including how it actually looked or operated, so the production team added their own ideas to the historical materials.
"Doing historical research was challenging because there are various theories about what real geobukseon looked like. So we built two types of geobukseon ― one with a two-story structure and another with three stories ― that would be used in the actual battlefield. However, I didn't want it be too different from the image of the ship we generally think of," he said.
Kim said he is eyeing to release "Noryang," the third and final installment of the trilogy, in late 2022 or early 2023. The third part is about the final battle of the seven-year war in 1598 when Admiral Yi was shot to death on the edge of victory.
"Hansan: Rising Dragon" will hit local theaters on July 27.
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