Actor Kim Hee-ra is expected to miraculously reclaim the halo of The Glory she lost through her first commercial film, Savior.
On the afternoon of the 22nd at CGV Yongsan I'Park Mall in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, a press screening and press conference for the film Savior (director Shin Joon, provided by Studio Plum, distributed by Mindmark, produced by Mayday Studio and Studio Plum, co-produced by I-Film Corporation and Grida Studio) were held. Attending were the film's lead actors Kim Byung-chul, Song Ji-hyo and Kim Hee-ra, and director Shin Joon, who discussed the film.
Savior is a mystery occult film in which miraculous events occur for Young-beom (played by Kim Byung-chul) and Seon-hee (played by Song Ji-hyo), who moved to the blessed land Obok-ri, and they learn that all of it is the price of someone else's misfortune. In it, Kim Hee-ra plays Chun-seo, who lived in Obok-ri, maximizing mystery and tension.
Chun-seo is a character who stands in opposition to Young-beom and Seon-hee in the film. But she cannot be called a villain. Savior deals with the equivalence between miracles and curses. Therefore, Chun-seo takes up arms to reclaim what Young-beom and Seon-hee took from her. The reasons for the confrontation are clearly depicted and gain persuasiveness, and in the process Kim Hee-ra cries out desperately rather than shrieking viciously.
This process resembles controversies surrounding personal incidents Kim Hee-ra actually experienced. In 2023, Kim Hee-ra, who received intense attention for her role as Lee Sa-ra in the Netflix series The Glory, lost all her halo in an instant due to a school violence controversy that surfaced the same year. However, suspicions followed that the lines between perpetrators and victims were unclear among the accusers, and as a result Kim Hee-ra's side met the accusers and resolved past misunderstandings.
Afterwards, Kim Hee-ra returned first to the stage with performances such as the original musical Frida, but it took about two years before she returned to the camera. Her first film is her first commercial film, Savior. At a press conference after the screening, Kim Hee-ra said, "There were parts that caused concern, but at that time I met the parties involved directly and through deep conversations we resolved the parts that were misunderstandings. After that, we supported each other's lives and still keep in touch."
Above all, she said, "I never absolutely avoided or felt wronged about the time I couldn't be active after that. I thought I would experience that too, so I filled that time with deep acting study and there wasn't a day I didn't think about acting. I became a little stronger and more reflective, and while I was waiting, I met a great work like a miracle, so when I played Chun-seo I felt much more desperate and earnest."
She added, "I hoped for miracles, but while being cursed I realized that some parts I thought were ordinary that I had been enjoying were miracles, and I came to approach each one with deep gratitude. So afterward I will engage in many activities more deeply, reflect inwardly more, and be able to use and move forward more."
Explaining why she chose Savior as her first commercial film, she said, "I originally liked the occult genre itself, and on top of that this is a mystery occult. As you will see, looking closely at each person there are no villains. Each seeks salvation for the urgent things needed to regain health, sight, or the ability to walk, and incidents and crises arise from that. That gives audiences a new sense of eeriness and fear. And I thought the role of Chun-seo would be a great challenge for me. There were many things I wanted to explore, so I really wanted to try it."
Director Shin Joon said, "From when I was writing and finishing the script I thought it would be good to work with Ms. Kim Hee-ra. Chun-seo could appear monotonous or like a typical device, but if actress Hee-ra played her I thought she could bring a different result and draw empathy, so I consider it an honor."
Support from senior actors was strong. Song Ji-hyo said, "When Hee-ra came, we had really gone through very cold times and it felt unfair that we couldn't share those cold times with her. I thought, 'You should go through it too,' so it felt reassuring to do it together. It felt like gaining another comrade. Hee-ra must have felt very awkward and strained. We had time to synchronize our rhythm, and when she came in the middle we understood her difficult feelings. We made many memories during filming. I think Hee-ra was so charming as Chun-seo that when she appeared I just thought it was Chun-seo. She fit perfectly. Her focus matched our rhythm across all atmospheres so well that I thought, 'This friend has incredible energy.' I personally like her a lot," she emphasized.
Kim Byung-chul also chimed in about his chemistry with Kim Hee-ra, saying, "I strongly felt that Chun-seo's presence was alive and moving before my eyes. It was so easy to act that I remember acting along with her. I think she was a character that had that much influence."
Responding to that trust, Kim Hee-ra said, "They trusted me so comfortably and supported me no matter what I did, and if they already saw me as Chun-seo with their eyes, among actors I could perform more even if I did nothing. I was very grateful. The two are so cheerful. Including the director, many of our staff are very cheerful people, so unlike the genre we kept laughing during filming." She wondered whether she could regain the glory of The Glory with Savior. Hopefully the reward for enduring times like an equivalence exchange of miracles and curses will return.
Savior opens on Nov. 5.
[Photo] OSEN reporter Park Joon-hyung.
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