Now that popular Korean drama "Boys Over Flowers" has ended its run in Korea, will yet another light-hearted drama chock full of hot young men jump into KBS' Monday and Tuesday prime time slot? Guess again.
KBS' latest Monday and Tuesday night installment, "The Slingshot," is pure testosterone-driven action and stars my favourite actor Park Yong Ha. The drama started showing in Korea on 6 April 2009. I have been waiting for Park Yong Ha's new drama since watching him on "On Air" and he looks so cool and dashing in this 20 episodes drama "The Slingshot". Channeling dude flicks like "Ocean's Eleven" and American TV shows like "Prison Break," "The Slingshot" maps the struggles of a wronged hero who gets himself thrown in jail and realizes he has been duped. So what does he do?
He formulates the ultimate plan for vengeance, enlisting the help of a few prison buddies to form a team. This is a battle between geniuses who try to conquer this world of money. Kim Shin (Park Yong Ha), a son of rich family, was living as a playboy, but one day his father’s company becomes entangled in a conspiracy of TS Group in the process of merging and closed by bankruptcy. After the bankruptcy, Kim Shin’s father sinks into depression and ends up hanging himself. Due to this incident, Kim Shin sets new goals in his life. He decides to make Chae (the president of TS Group) to commit suicide because of money, and jumps into the stock market. He becomes a cool-headed M&A expert, and makes plans to break TS Group with Do Jae-myeong (Lee Philip) who has pried into TS Group like him.
While getting into TS Group for the revenge, he learns that the president Chae is just a bad guy. Behind all the evil acts, there was the president Chae’s son, Chae Do Woo (Kim Kang Woo). With the battle of wits between Kim Shin and Chae Do Woo, the story of their complicated relationships with Kim Shin’s ex-girlfriend, Seo Kyeong Ah (Park Si Yeon) and Chae Do Woo’s younger sister, Chae Eun Su (Han Yeo Woon) unfolds. The third work in a trilogy of epic series scripted by Song Ji Na, who focused on Korea in the 1940s and early 1950s with the hit drama "Eye of Dawn" (1991) and then made history with "Hourglass" (1997), "The Slingshot" addresses the current state of Korean society by exploring the true value of economic success. "Let's try our hand at a real story about money," said director Yoon Sung Sik at the press conference last week. "That's how it started."
Money serves as the impetus for hero Kim Shin's downfall. Once a pawn in villain Chae Do Woo's gamble for cold hard cash, Kim Shin decides to beat Chae at his own game. Will the action-packed thriller reel in high ratings that are on par with its predecessor: "Boys Over Flowers"? "Yes, 'Boys Over Flowers' puts the pressure on," said Hallyu star Park Yong Ha, who will play hero Kim Shin. The make or break factor in the success of "The Slingshot" may lie in its ability to infuse an otherwise grim tale with a bit of humor. The key to hit flicks of a similar vein, like Soderbergh's "Out of Sight" (1998), lies in their ability to focus on an incredibly charming criminal played by someone like George Clooney, put him in tight situation and add a liberal dose of black comedy.
When asked if he opted for old school noir cool or for a bit of slapstick, actor Park answered: "I was very anxious about that. My conclusion was to go for comedy." That decision may be the drama's saving grace. That and the inclusion of a strong female character, Seo Kyeong Ha played by actress Park Si-yeon; not to mention heavyweight Kim Kang Woo as villain Chae Do Woo. "I have met with screenwriter Song Ji Na," said actress Park Si Yeon, who will be playing Kim Shin's love interest. "She said, 'I would like your character to be an impressive woman, the likes of which no one has ever seen before.'" Seo Kyeong Ha lives a normal life during the day, and in the night she transforms into a woman who can request a money value to what she can give to a man.
"Le Grand Chef" actor Kim Kang Woo, who carried home the best actor award for his role in "The Railroad (Gyeongiseon)" at the 25th Torino Film Festival in 2007, will be adding a third dimension to "The Slingshot" as the well-bred and menacing Chae Do Woo. I can't wait for this drama to start showing in Singapore with English subtitles on cable TV KBS World Channel 173 after the airing of "Boys Over Flowers" or loaded at mysoju.com so that i can start watching it :> The latest news i found from KBS World Website (http://world.kbs.co.kr/tv/) is that the drama will premiere on KBS World in May 2009 and i'm eagerly looking forward to it!!!
(Source: http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/)
(Source: http://asianfanatics.net/forum/Action-thriller-to-follow-Boys-Over-Flowers--talk642929.html) (Source: http://co2r.wordpress.com/)
(Source: http://www.koreandrama.org/?p=772#more-772)
(Source: http://www.kbs.co.kr/drama/slingshot/tt.html)
(Source: http://www.hancinema.net/korean_drama_The_Slingshot.php)
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