April Snow

In-su and Seo-young, played by Bae Yong-jun (right) and Son Ye-jin respectively, collecting their respective spouses’ belongings at the police station in April Snow.

IT WAS pandemonium at COEX Megabox in Seoul. The cinema foyer was crowded with people that every so often I was being jostled from all sides. When I was not being manhandled, I was told by cinema officials that I should not be standing where I was.

Eventually there was little choice but to stand way behind where I could barely see what was happening because of the human barricade and sea of photographers.

In-su and Seo-young, played by Bae Yong-jun (right) and Son Ye-jin respectively, collecting their respective spouses’ belongings at the police station in April Snow.

I could only hazard a guess when a star arrived by the sudden outburst of euphoria. Among those who graced the April Snow gala premiere included artistes Ji-tae (Oldboy), Hwang Jeong-min (A Bittersweet Life), Kong Hyo-jin (A Bizarre Love Triangle) as well as renowned directors Kim Jee-won (A Tale of Two Sisters), Lee Jae-young (Untold Scandal), Kwak Jae-young (My Sassy Girl) and Im Pil-seong (So Nyeon Gi).

But this was nothing compared to the arrival of the night’s main star. When Bae Yong-jun emerged, everyone from ardent fans to eager media became unruly. Fans started screaming hysterically. A mini stampede broke out as everyone wanted to get a glimpse and take a picture of Bae. There was also a mother tottering on high heels dragging her young daughter in pursuit of her idol.

Then again, such is the craze for Bae, or more affectionately known as Yonsama, to his Japanese fans. Bae’s popularity hit stratospheric heights not only in his native South Korea but also throughout Asia since the airing of TV serial Winter Sonata three years ago. And now with the release of his second feature film, April Snow, one can expect more onslaught of Bae-mania.

April Snow is the story of In-su and Seo-young, played by Bae and Son Ye-jin, respectively. Fate brings them together when their spouses are involved in a terrible smash up. The accident leads them to an even more devastating discovery; their partners were having an affair.

The movie was shot mainly in Samcheok, Gangwon Province, located on the east coast of South Korea about six hours drive from Seoul. It is a quiet seaside city with a population of about 78,000.

According to director Hur Jin-ho, he wrote the script before scouting for a location. Imagine his surprise when he found exactly what he was looking for in Samcheok. To cap it all off, the city was recording the greatest snowfall of the century in March, which is ideal for the story’s backdrop.

“It made me think that maybe I have a destiny with Samcheok,” said Hur.

The Malaysian media recently had the good fortune of visiting Samcheok. As we entered the city, hanging conspicuously from buildings and film sites were April Snow banners. It was in line with the city officials’ plan to use the film to promote Samcheok as a tourist attraction.

Every film location we visited, the walls were covered with graffiti as Bae fans declared their love and support for their idol.

Our first stop was Eunhye Restaurant, where Bae was said to have had his meals during the three-month shoot there. We were treated to a delicious “Yonsama meal”, which included Bae’s favourite squid, fish and vegetable dishes. Taking our lunch in the same room where he had his, the walls were covered with fans’ well wishes.

He too left a message for them – kan mari ma si – Korean for “I’ll do my best in everything”.

Taking advantage of the Bae-craze, the restaurant is also selling Bae memorabilia such as talking mugs (pour water in them and hear Bae speak), calendars, clocks and posters.

We then strolled over to the modest Samheung Motel, where In-su and Seo-young stayed. In-su’s room has become a display room, where his bags, cigarettes and car registration plates are showcased in a glass cabinet.

Opposite Samheung Motel is the quaint The Bicycle Thief café where In-su and Seo-young hang out. Pictures of Bae lined the walls and several of the tables are covered with posters of Untold Scandal.

Located a stone’s throw away is Samcheok Hospital and the florist shop, where Seo-young bought In-su a pot of flower in the movie. Coincidentally (or maybe not), adjacent to the hospital is a café named Outing, the Korean title for April Snow.

We then made our way to Young Café, where Bae is said to have spent his time in-between shoots. The owners have put up a sign telling visitors the seat Bae sat on. While we were there, a DVD of Winter Sonata was playing. How different he looked then with his blond hair and white-frame spectacles.

A couple of doors away is the pharmacy where In-su and Seo-young happened to buy the same sleeping pills. It is interesting to note that the pharmacy is merely a set built specially for the movie.

Other places where the crew filmed included Café E-sak, Hall of Mysterious Cave (where In-su and Seo-young have their date), the bus station (the scene in which Seo-young prepares to leave Samcheok), police station and Palace Hotel, Bae’s home for the three months he was there and also the location for In-su and Seo-young’s romantic tryst. One spot that did not make it to the final cut but is featured in the publicity shots is Jukseoru Pavilion.

Source: The Star 22nd September 2005

片名：《外出》 April Snow

导演：许秦豪

主演：裴勇俊、孙艺珍

片长：105分钟

类型：爱情、剧情

等级：18岁以上观看

　　剧情：瑞英(孙艺珍饰)的丈夫不幸遭遇车祸成为植物人，车祸时有一女子跟丈夫同车，接下来她和那个女人的丈夫仁洙(裴勇俊饰)邂逅。留下来的两个人渐渐发现各自配偶早有婚外情，这两个天涯沦落人，同病相怜，因此陷入激情……

　　裴勇俊、孙艺珍和导演许秦豪，这三个名字中的任何一个都可以让熟悉韩片的影迷心跳加速。今天，由这三个人共同打造的《外出》在韩国正式上映(本周内，它将在日本、香港、台湾等10个亚洲国家和地区上映)。中秋节是韩国一年中的重要节日，有将近一周的黄金假期。随着《外出》的上映，韩国电影的中秋档期正式拉开战幕。而这部影片未映之前就红透了半个亚洲，在网络上的预售率也成为第一。最近裴勇俊为了该片到日本、台湾地区做宣传，掀起了一阵巨大的“亚洲首席师奶杀手”旋风。

　　作为裴勇俊从影10年后，今年惟一一部电影作品，《外出》除了主创阵容超强大外，也因为演绎不伦之恋备受争议。常以阳光、健康、纯情形象出现的裴勇俊、孙艺珍在片中扮演一对出轨男女，更有长达10分钟的激情戏，影片也被定位为18岁以上观看(即香港俗称的三级片)。但在影片试映之后，有媒体指出影片某些桥段类似裴勇俊成名作《冬季恋歌》，导演手法刻意强调“韩流”力量。进入娱乐圈刚好十年的裴勇俊，今年的惟一一部电影，虽然未映先红，但先后遭遇三级定位和媒体质疑，一向懂得善待媒体的他也忍不住当场与媒体展开“辩论”。

　　被指照搬《冬季恋歌》

　　裴少爷当众“发怒”

　　《外出》在正式上映前曾有一次试片会，观看了该片后有韩国媒体指出影片“过于强调‘韩流’效应”、“部分桥段类似《冬季恋歌》”。昨日，导演许秦豪和男主角裴勇俊在接受韩国媒体采访时，首次回应了这两大指责。导演许秦豪首先接招：“听到这样的问题我的心里很不舒服。作为导演，我首先考虑的不是所谓‘韩流’，也不是这部影片是否要输出国外。我所有的表达手法都是依据影片需要而来，对我来说这是很困难的事，耗费了所有的精力。我怎么可能还有余地来想，在不同的国家，人们喜欢怎样表达韩国电影这样的问题呢？当然，在影片上映后，我会得到来自不同国家的意见，但是我不会在影片拍摄的时候就想着怎么迎合！”

　　一向挂着温柔微笑的裴少爷(日本影迷对裴勇俊的爱称)也首次收起笑容，直接反问媒体：“你到底觉得什么地方和《冬季恋歌》像呢？我一点也不觉得。我在日本宣传的时候也没有一个人这样问过我。”

　　记者指出，影片中裴勇俊站在飘落雪花中的镜头和片中出现的一些似曾相识的小道具让他们想到了《冬季恋歌》。裴勇俊立刻“反攻”：“那是大家对我在《冬季恋歌》里的镜头印象太深了。如果要这样说的话，包括我现在的模样，都和《冬季恋歌》的时候差不多。”许秦豪导演接过话茬：“我们在选择场景的时候，只考虑了适合剧中角色和裴勇俊本身气质的东西，并没有刻意去模仿谁。”

　　不伦恋情遭定位“少儿不宜”

　　激情戏充满紧张感

　　《外出》讲述一对已婚男女的外遇故事，影片有长达10分钟的激情戏，被定位为18岁以上观看。虽然这已经是裴勇俊的第二部“三级片”(第一部是《丑闻》)，但还是在韩国和日本引起争议。片方透露，该片被定位在“三级”并非因为有过于暴露和激情的场面，而是因为影片的故事主题讲述婚外恋，属于“不伦”恋情，不适合青少年观看，因此才定位三级。他们强调各国情况不一，该片在日本就被定位为15岁以上观看。片方还透露，很多观看了该片的日本影迷就认为该片非常“纯洁”。据悉，片长达10分钟的激情戏由两场构成，第一场发生在两人初次动情时，互相慢慢扒掉对方衣服，伴随扣子被扯掉的声音，充满紧张感。第二场则发生在两人就要分别之际，离别的伤感和遗憾充斥在两人之间，贪恋着对方身体的两人再次展开床戏。

　　-　主角访谈

　　裴勇俊：我连鼻涕都哭出来了

　　记者：在影片正式上映之前，就出现了“类似《冬季恋歌》”这样的指责，会影响你的心情吗？

　　裴勇俊(以下简称“裴”)：其实不会的。我觉得两部影片是完全不同的，在表现人物痛苦的时候，也许会有一些相似的感觉，但那是影迷自己心中的，从导演和我的角度来说，我们使用的是完全不同的方法。而且有一点很有趣，《冬季恋歌》这部电影在日本比在韩国火，但是日本影迷和记者从来没有向我提出过这个问题，反而是国内的记者在提。这些不会影响我的心情，我仍然对新片的上映充满了期待和一些紧张感。

　　记者：在影片里面还有你独自哭泣的场面，表演当时吃力吗？

　　裴：那个场面可有故事讲了！那是我这个角色在片中最难的内心戏，他得知自己的妻子曾经有外遇之后，几乎被人生的沉重打倒了，非常绝望，所以要哭得很激烈。我为了放得开，特意把酒带到了片场，先把自己灌到半醉，然后再进入角色。结果简直哭到不知自己是在流鼻涕的程度，机位、形象都顾不上了，好像把自己性格中悲观的一面全都倒出来了。导演喊了“OK”之后我还止不住，一个人跑到角落去又哭了好久。之后却觉得很舒服，内心平静极了。

　　记者：这部电影刚好是你入行10年以后的作品，你认为能代表你这10年的成绩吗？

　　裴：10年前我做梦都没想过自己会有今天的成绩，10年前我接受记者采访还会手心出汗，腿发抖。我觉得这10年来我都在接受大家对我的作品的评价，跟随着作品的命运走。我其实是一个完美主义者，但是我追求过程的完美，而非结果。我相信这部电影会有它自己的命运，我已经完成了自己能做的。

　　记者：这部电影和你以前的电影、电视剧相比，给你什么样的收获？

　　裴：以前有很多电影和电视剧时间都很紧张，我常常是还没准备好就上场了。但这一次导演许秦豪给我的时间很充分，我有足够时间进入角色，这对我来说是一个很大的变化。

　　-　超强阵容

　　网上预售率韩国第一

　　讲述外遇故事的影片《外出》在韩国的电影票预售网上是今年预售率最高的一部影片，在两家预售电影票的网站预售率分别达到了40.27%、30.4%。除了裴勇俊的个人魅力之外，导演许秦豪和女主角孙艺珍也功不可没。曾经执导过《八月照相馆》和《春逝》的许秦豪是韩国最为优秀的爱情片导演之一，《外出》作为他的第三部作品备受关注。孙艺珍是近年来韩国人气飙升的女花旦，曾经主演过《向左爱，向右爱》、《假如爱有天意》等片，以清纯的外形和超强哭戏得到了很多影迷的青睐。此次在《外出》中首次扮演已婚女性，成为关注焦点。

Source: Sina 8 September 2005

The much-talked about movie “April Snow” (Director Heo Jin-ho) was made public for the first time to local and foreign media members on August 23. After the preview, in a press conference in KOEX in Samseong-dong, Bae Yong-joon confessed, “In-soo in the movie is myself.” The movie tells the story about a forbidden love. Married man and woman fall in love after knowing that their own spouses are having affairs. The following is a question and answer with Bae Yong-joon, the “Star in Asia.”

Question: You chose to star in this movie even before reading the scenario. What is the reason? And what did you learn through this movie?

Answer: I normally choose a film in which I can portray a character well, but this time I decided to select a film that could be a real challenge. The challenge was to cope with the director’s unique working style, who really likes impromptu acting. It was a totally new experience, and of course there were many difficult things but I learned a lot from the director, and I think it will help me with my next movies.

Question: What was it like working with director Heo Jin-ho?

Answer: “This movie was a challenge to the working style of director Heo. I wanted to experience the working style that I wanted, but I couldn’t. It is true that there were some parts that didn’t go well with me, but I learned a lot during making the movie. I am sure I can show a variety of changes of myself in other movies in the future.

Question: In this movie, In-su’s sadness was deeply expressed. How did you feel and how much did you understand his feelings?

Answer: I felt so deeply sad all the way while shooting the film. And I am glad that you felt the same way. Actually, I feel as if I had revealed my own experience in this film, so it is a little bit shameful. It was so difficult for me to express the character. I normally try hard to create the character right in films but this time I tried to become the character, so I can say In-su and myself are almost the same.

Question: Even before the official release of the movie, many people from many Asian countries have shown their interest in it. Did such high expectation have an influence on your acting?

A: Thanks to the high expectation and a lot of interest, we were able to finish the movie well. I really appreciate that, but it is true that I felt stressed a lot. I know that the movie will open simultaneously in many Asian countries and it has drawn great expectations. I hope that the film will help many Asian countries culturally interact more.

Question: In the film, you seem to have expressed many complicated emotions without speaking, using only gestures and your eyes. How difficult was it?

Answer: We had to act with limited speech. Sometimes, we were not given any guidelines or even lines. I think director Hur wanted to capture the spontaneous reactions and responses from us. So this was a challenge, and while shooting, I felt like I was trapped in a dark tunnel.

Question: There are some scenes where In-su and Seo-young drank. And I heard you actually drank alcohol in such drinking scenes. How did drinking help you act?

Answer: That was the first time to actually drink and act. Personally, I like such scenes because I think they look so natural. It added reality to the film.

Question: Japanese fans are eagerly waiting for the movie. I was excited a lot and, at the same time I was a little bit worried about the bedroom scene. I found the scene beautiful, to my relief. Please tell Japanese fans that “you don’t have to worry about the bedroom scene.”

Answer: Thank you for enjoying the movie and finding it beautiful. The director cared a lot about its beauty. I hope that the audience can experience special love through this movie. And feel relieved and enjoy the movie.

Asked about “the intense bedroom scene,” Sohn Ye-jin said, “Since the movie is about the love of married couples, physical love cannot be excluded. But it was difficult for me to bear the emotions while shooting the movie. Seo-young and In-soo must have had a lot of thoughts on their minds to become immersed in the moment. It took nine hours to make the scene. Fortunately, I feel satisfied with the scene, because the feeling of In-soo and Seo-young is good.”

Question: Static acting stood out. Isn’t it difficult to act like that?

Answer: Lines were moderated, because there were not many words in my lines. I wanted to say a lot of things but I was not allowed concrete lines and situations (laughter). However, I think that is the strong point and the distinctive feature of the director. I felt sometime as if I was trapped in a dark tunnel. I can say with confidence that there was no false acting. I tried to accept moments sincerely.

Question: Tell me about the atmosphere of shooting site. The movie is serious but, I wonder, if there were funny episodes.

Answer: The subject is so serious that the shooting atmosphere was also serious. The overall situation of the movie is dark, and I also felt that way. The director likes the vivid feeling of the shooting site. So he did not tell actors what to do. He tried to capture the unalloyed response of the other actor by directing only one actor. In the process, interesting responses came.

Question: Please make some closing remarks.

Answer: Frankly, I worried a lot about your questions. But I am glad I had a comfortable conversation. I hope you will have a special experience about special emotions of love.