Yang Yoon-ho, director of the mystery thriller "Rainbow Eyes" (Gamyeon), seemed as confident about his filmmaking technique as ever. But he was not so sure about the film's commercial potential.
"When I saw the screenplay for the first time, I was deeply drawn to the great storyline, but at the same time I instantly knew that it's not going to be a box-office hit here", Yang told reporters at a press preview held in downtown Seoul on Monday.
But it may be too early for such pessimism. After all, Kim Kang-woo, a talented award-winning star, has taken the title role for "Rainbow Eyes", to be released here on Dec. 27.
Kim played a central character in "Le Grand Chef", which became the biggest hit in the second half of this year, and he also won the best actor award at the 25th Torino Film Festival, adding much-needed credentials to his fledgling acting career.
"Rainbow Eyes" revolves around a serial killer who defies logic, and police scrutiny. The first victim is a sports center manager who seems to have suffered stab wounds. The second victim is a swimming trainer at the sports center, which confuses the police. The second victim's unexpected death breaks apart the police's hitherto assumption that the trainer is a key suspect.
Finally, the third murder takes place, sending the police and detective Cho Kyeong-yoon (played by Kim Kang-woo) scrambling for clues. But the serial killer, whose name is Lee Yoon-seo, is nowhere to be found.
As the investigation unfolds, it turns out that all three of the victims belonged to the same barracks when they served in the military. Incidentally or not, 10 years ago, they beat up a soldier, whose name is none other than Lee Yoon-seo, and they were transferred to a different unit due to the incident.
All the signs point to Lee, but he has long disappeared after suffering from some schizophrenic symptoms, obviously initiated by the traumatic beating.
In addition to the mysterious suspect, detective Cho has more to deal with. Everyone around him shows a sort of uneasiness, adding to confusion and uncertainty. For instance, his girlfriend Cha Su-jin (Lee Soo-kyeong) suddenly reveals a deep anxiety. Lee Yoon-seo's older sister, who is receiving medical treatment due to the stress related to her brother, seems suspicious. Ominously, detective Cho goes feel some serious anxiety himself, conducting his own secret investigation.
Since plot twists in this type of mystery thriller are somewhat important, the movie promotion staff repeatedly asked the journalists not to reveal the key developments or climactic events. Such strong emphasis on preventing the spoilers, in a way, suggests the gravity of the final scene in terms of the film's overall storytelling power.
Aside from the 'mysterious' plot, Lee Soo-kyeong's sex scene, which turned out to be unexpectedly bold in consideration of her conservative television actor's image, attracted keen media attention at the press conference.
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