Park Jin-pyo (박진표)

Another stab at big-screen success

Source | 2009/09/17 | 0 comments | Permalink |

TV star Kim Myeong-min hopes to make waves in the film world.
Actor Kim Myeong-min is returning to the big screen. And this time he hopes to make a larger splash than his last effort, the 2008 crime film "Open City", which had an average showing at the box office.

Kim actually made a name for himself - and gained legions of fans - for his recent work as a coldhearted doctor in the TV series "The Great White Tower" and as an aggressive conductor in the program "Beethoven Virus".

Now, he is again looking to gain a foothold in the movie world, taking on an extremely challenging role as Jong-woo - a Lou Gehrig's patient - in the upcoming film "Closer to Heaven". The movie, which hits theaters Sept. 24, depicts a tragic love story between Kim's character, Jong-woo, and his wife, Ji-soo - played by actress Ha Ji-won, the heroine of the summer blockbuster "Haeundae". The director is none other than Park Jin-pyo. who was behind the 2005 hit movie "You Are My Sunshine", which starred act...| More

'Closer' Doesn't Get Close Enough

Source | 2009/09/17 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Director Park Jin-pyo had moviegoers reaching for the Kleenex in the romantic tearjerker "You Are My Sunshine", in which love prevails over AIDS, and the family drama "Voice of Murderer", in which a couple does not give up hope for their kidnapped child.

In his latest feature, "Closer to Heaven", he aims to mix heartbreaking melodrama with sympathy-provoking family bonds, buttressed by crowd-pleasing insurances ― charismatic screen personality Kim Myeong-min shedding 20 kilograms to portray a dying man and unfailing actress Ha Ji-won sticking by his side as his devoted, doting wife.

A handkerchief would seem handy for the inevitable tragic ending and compelling mortal theme ― the resilience of hope and stubborn determination, in the name of love, to face a cruel reality.

The story is set in a hospital wing where patients agonize over their inviable state of being, and is designed to wring poignancy. But something goes amiss despit...| More

Kim Myeong-min Struggles after Losing 20 kg

Source | 2009/08/27 | 0 comments | Permalink |

"I needed to focus more on portraying feelings in the latter part of the movie, but I was unable to concentrate on acting because I was exhausted".

Actor Kim Myeong-min, who plays a patient suffering from Lou Gehrig's disease in the movie "Closer to Heaven", has lost 20 kg for his role. At the movie production briefing on August 24, Kim said it was understood that he had to starve in order to play this role.

"People who have Lou Gehrig's disease have their senses and consciousness intact. Only their muscles keep dwindling. But since I'm not a patient, both my senses and consciousness became paralyzed when I lost weight", said Kim.

"Closer to Heaven" is about Jong-woo (Kim Myeong-min), who has Lou Gehrig's disease, and his devoted wife, Ji-soo (Ha Ji-won). It was directed by Park Jin-pyo, whose previous movie "You Are My Sunshine", drew 3 million viewers.

A clip from the movie that was screened at the briefing showed Kim's skinny body, with his ribs and backbone protruding,...| More

Kim Myeong-min Sheds 20 Kilos for Role

Source | 2009/08/25 | 0 comments | Permalink |

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

Constantly transforming, from a callous doctor to a feisty conductor, Kim Myeong-min is an actor with many faces, but he was unrecognizably thin in the movie trailer for "Closer to Heaven" (working title), revealed to the press Monday in Seoul.

The 36-year-old star shed 20 kilograms to play a terminally ill man in the film and still carried a considerably thin frame and deeply sunken cheeks ― a striking contrast from past appearances as a tough detective ("Open City") or valiant general (TV soap "Immortal Admiral Yi Sun-shin").

"I had to become more absorbed in the emotions and heighten the drama toward the end of the film. But I couldn't become fully immersed in my role due to exhaustion, and that was the most difficult part", he said.

But Kim said that starving was necessary for his role as a man suffering from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a motor neuron disease also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, and that it was nothing to bra...| More

PARK Jin-pyo casts KIM Myeong-min

Source | 2008/12/19 | 0 comments | Permalink |

KIM Myeong-min will star in PARK Jin-pyo's "Closer to Heaven" (Nae Sarang Nae Gyeote, English translation: "my love by my side") alongside earlier cast HA Ji-won. KIM will replace KWON Sang-woo who dropped out. KIM will play a Lou Gehrig's disease patient who remains upbeat.

With "Closer to Heaven", PARK returns to the romantic tearjerker genre. He previously directed the acclaimed "You Are My Sunshine". Filming should start in the beginning of 2009 for a release in next year's fall.

KIM starred this year in "Open City" as a police detective on the trail of the criminal gang lead by SON ye-jin's character.

Yi Ch'ang-ho (KOFIC)...| More