Marine Boy (film)
Encyclopedia
Marine Boy is a 2009 South Korean film. The feature film debut of writer and director Yoon Jong-seok, it stars Kim Kang-woo, Cho Jae-hyun and Park Si-yeon in the lead roles. Marine Boy is the story of a former national swimmer who finds himself in debt, and out of desperation is employed as a mule
by a gangster boss, smuggling drugs by sea. Yoon regarded the film's title as a unique point, saying, "There is something beguiling about its duality, how these criminals are called something that romantically calls to mind the popular cartoon Marine Boy
or the star swimmer Park Tae-Hwan
".
, and to fund his trip he works as a swimming instructor by day while gambling at night. However, after losing a game of poker he finds himself heavily in debt and in trouble with the loan sharks. Kang, the head of a local drugs syndicate, offers to pay off Cheon-soo's debts; in return, Cheon-soo must work as a "marine boy", a mule
who smuggles drugs across the open waters.
Knowing the danger he faces, Cheon-soo tries to make a run for it, but he is arrested at the airport by police detective Kim Gae-ko. Kim is intent on capturing Kang, and faced with no other choice, Cheon-soo agrees to work as a spy on his behalf. His situation becomes further complicated when he falls for Yu-ri, a jazz singer under Kang's charge and the daughter of Kang's best friend. But Yu-ri suspects Kang of killing her father, and she and Cheon-soo plot to take the drug money for themselves.
", which inspired the type of characters he would later write into his script. During casting he was keen to avoid stereotypes, and for the role of Kang wanted someone who looked more like a businessman than a typical gangster boss, choosing Cho Jae-hyun for that reason. Lead actor Kim Kang-woo had to overcome his fear of water, and prepared for his role by undergoing three months of intensive training, which began with learning basic swimming strokes in a pool and progressed to more advanced skills such as scuba diving
. Kim went on to film dangerous water sequences without using a stunt double
, earning praise from his fellow cast members and the production crew. For her role as a jazz singer, Park Si-yeon received vocal training to improve her performance.
Filming commenced in Seoul on 17 May 2008 with scenes of Cheon-soo and Yu-ri's first meeting, and later moved to Cebu Island in the Philippines
. The film's production went through much trial and error due to the crew's lack of experience of filming at sea, and both crew members and actors suffered severe seasickness during filming. From the initial draft of the script in 2004 to the end of production, Marine Boy took more than four years to complete.
3,923,970. Marine Boy was not regarded as a "big hit"; this has been attributed to the release of two other Korean thrillers—The Scam and Handphone—during the same month, placing the three films in competition with each other. Distribution rights for the film in Turkey
were sold at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival
, and it was one of three Korean films to be screened at the 12th Spring Showcase of the Hawaii International Film Festival
.
was critical of Marine Boy for feeling "too Hollywood at times, with expensive cars crashing and featuring straight-to-bed romances", and noted that the film's middle section felt slow after a "fast paced and highly engrossing" beginning. However, Lee praised Cho Jae-hyun for portraying Kang "with ferocious naturalness and surprising tenderness", and credited supporting cast members Lee Won-jong and Oh Kwang-rok for giving the film substance.
Mule (smuggling)
A mule or courier is someone who smuggles something with him or her across a national border, including bringing in to and out of an international plane, especially a small amount, transported for a smuggling organization. The organizers employ mules to reduce the risk of getting caught...
by a gangster boss, smuggling drugs by sea. Yoon regarded the film's title as a unique point, saying, "There is something beguiling about its duality, how these criminals are called something that romantically calls to mind the popular cartoon Marine Boy
Marine Boy
Marine Boy was one of the first color anime cartoons to be shown in a dubbed form in the U.S., and later in Australia and the United Kingdom. It was originally produced in Japan as by Minoru Adachi and animation company Japan Tele-Cartoons. It was sold outside of Japan via K...
or the star swimmer Park Tae-Hwan
Park Tae-hwan
Park Tae-hwan is a South Korean swimmer. He is a member of the South Korean national swimming team, based in Taereung, Seoul. He won a gold medal in the 400 meter freestyle and a silver in the 200 meter freestyle events at the 2008 Summer Olympics...
".
Plot
Former national swimmer Cheon-soo dreams of travelling to PalauPalau
Palau , officially the Republic of Palau , is an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, east of the Philippines and south of Tokyo. In 1978, after three decades as being part of the United Nations trusteeship, Palau chose independence instead of becoming part of the Federated States of Micronesia, a...
, and to fund his trip he works as a swimming instructor by day while gambling at night. However, after losing a game of poker he finds himself heavily in debt and in trouble with the loan sharks. Kang, the head of a local drugs syndicate, offers to pay off Cheon-soo's debts; in return, Cheon-soo must work as a "marine boy", a mule
Mule (smuggling)
A mule or courier is someone who smuggles something with him or her across a national border, including bringing in to and out of an international plane, especially a small amount, transported for a smuggling organization. The organizers employ mules to reduce the risk of getting caught...
who smuggles drugs across the open waters.
Knowing the danger he faces, Cheon-soo tries to make a run for it, but he is arrested at the airport by police detective Kim Gae-ko. Kim is intent on capturing Kang, and faced with no other choice, Cheon-soo agrees to work as a spy on his behalf. His situation becomes further complicated when he falls for Yu-ri, a jazz singer under Kang's charge and the daughter of Kang's best friend. But Yu-ri suspects Kang of killing her father, and she and Cheon-soo plot to take the drug money for themselves.
Cast
- Kim Kang-woo ... Cheon-soo
- Cho Jae-hyun ... Company president Kang
- Park Si-yeon ... Yu-ri
- Lee Won-jong ... Detective Kim Gae-ko
- Eom Hyo-seob ... Section chief Jo
- Oh Dae-hwan ... Coach Lee
- Choi Soo-rin ... Jazz bar owner
- Yoo Ji-yeon ... House madame
- Park Byeong-eun ... Ji-ho
- Im Hyeong-gook ... Choi Do-wook
- Jo Jae-yoon ... Department head Im
- Kim Joon-bae ... Company president Hwang
- Oh Kwang-rok ... Doctor Park
- Choi Jeong-woo ... Gambling man
- Hakuryu ... Suzuki
Production
Marine Boy was the debut feature film by writer and director Yoon Jong-seok. Yoon said that he first began thinking about the story after watching a "very moving film noirFilm noir
Film noir is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Hollywood crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and sexual motivations. Hollywood's classic film noir period is generally regarded as extending from the early 1940s to the late 1950s...
", which inspired the type of characters he would later write into his script. During casting he was keen to avoid stereotypes, and for the role of Kang wanted someone who looked more like a businessman than a typical gangster boss, choosing Cho Jae-hyun for that reason. Lead actor Kim Kang-woo had to overcome his fear of water, and prepared for his role by undergoing three months of intensive training, which began with learning basic swimming strokes in a pool and progressed to more advanced skills such as scuba diving
Scuba diving
Scuba diving is a form of underwater diving in which a diver uses a scuba set to breathe underwater....
. Kim went on to film dangerous water sequences without using a stunt double
Stunt double
A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television , and for other sophisticated stunts...
, earning praise from his fellow cast members and the production crew. For her role as a jazz singer, Park Si-yeon received vocal training to improve her performance.
Filming commenced in Seoul on 17 May 2008 with scenes of Cheon-soo and Yu-ri's first meeting, and later moved to Cebu Island in the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. The film's production went through much trial and error due to the crew's lack of experience of filming at sea, and both crew members and actors suffered severe seasickness during filming. From the initial draft of the script in 2004 to the end of production, Marine Boy took more than four years to complete.
Release
Marine Boy was released in South Korea on 5 February 2009, and topped the domestic box office on its opening weekend with 415,360 admissions. As of 8 March the film had accumulated a total of 833,696 admissions, and as of 22 March had grossed a total of US$United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
3,923,970. Marine Boy was not regarded as a "big hit"; this has been attributed to the release of two other Korean thrillers—The Scam and Handphone—during the same month, placing the three films in competition with each other. Distribution rights for the film in Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
were sold at the 59th Berlin International Film Festival
59th Berlin International Film Festival
The 59th Berlin International Film Festival was held from 5 February to 15 February 2009. The opening film of this year's festival was Tom Tykwer’s The International, screened out of competition...
, and it was one of three Korean films to be screened at the 12th Spring Showcase of the Hawaii International Film Festival
Hawaii International Film Festival
The Hawaii International Film Festival is a film festival held in the U.S. state of Hawaii. It was started in 1981 by Jeannette Paulson Hereniko and has been held annually in the fall for two weeks...
.
Critical response
Lee Hyo-won of The Korea TimesThe Korea Times
The Korea Times is the oldest of three English-language newspapers published daily in South Korea, along with The Korea Herald and The JoongAng Daily. It is part of the same newspaper group as Hankook Ilbo, a major Korean language daily...
was critical of Marine Boy for feeling "too Hollywood at times, with expensive cars crashing and featuring straight-to-bed romances", and noted that the film's middle section felt slow after a "fast paced and highly engrossing" beginning. However, Lee praised Cho Jae-hyun for portraying Kang "with ferocious naturalness and surprising tenderness", and credited supporting cast members Lee Won-jong and Oh Kwang-rok for giving the film substance.