Actor Hyun Bin explained the differences between Ahn Jung-geun, played by Jeong Sang-hwa in the film ‘Hero’, and the Ahn Jung-geun he plays in ‘Harbin’.

‘Harbin’, which opens on the 24th, is a film about the life-threatening journey of independence activist Ahn Jung-geun to Harbin in 1909 for an operation with several independence activists. It was directed by Woo Min-ho, who created ‘Inside Men’ and ‘The Man Standing Next’, and stars Hyun Bin, Park Jung-min, Jo Woo-jin, Yoo Jae-myung, Lee Dong-wook, and Jeon Yeo-bin.

At a press and distribution preview held at CGV Yongsan I-Park Mall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 18th, Hyun Bin said, “While preparing for the film ‘Harbin’, the word I felt the most was ‘thank you’ until the very end.” I felt grateful to those who gave us this daily life, and I was truly grateful to be able to work with Director Woo Min-ho, many staff members, and our comrades (actors).”

Hyun Bin confessed that when he first received the offer from Director Woo Min-ho, he declined the role, saying, “I thought it was a character with tremendous symbolic significance, so I didn’t think he was someone I could handle. However, I don’t know what side of me the director saw in me, but he kept making offers. When I thought about where else I could get the chance to play a character like this, I thought it was a great honor, so I expressed my gratitude for the director’s offer.”

He also compared himself to Jung Sung-hwa, who played Ahn Jung-geun in the musical film “Hero,” saying, “I think he’s a different character from the Ahn Jung-geun played by actor Jung Sung-hwa,” and “I think the Ahn Jung-geun portrayed in our film and the actor Jung Sung-hwa’s portrayal in the film “Hero” are different. “In our film, Ahn Jung-geun is a fighter for independence, but we wanted to show more of his human side, such as the pain and sadness that comes from interpersonal relationships, so we focused on those aspects in our acting,” he explained.


Reporter Seungmi Lee smlee@donga.com