[Korean Film News] "The Good, The Bad and The Weird" Starts Shooting Wednesday

Filming begins Wednesday of The Good, the Bad and the Weird [좋은 놈, 나쁜 놈, 이상한 놈], Kim Ji-woon's (A Bittersweet Life, 2005) "Korean-style Western" starring Lee Byeong-heon ("the good"), Jeong Woo-seong ("the bad") and Song Kang-ho ("the weird). Inspired by Segio Leone's 1966 spaghetti-Western "The Good, The Bad and The Ugly", Kim's film, set in 1930s Japanese occupied Manchuria, tells the story of three Joseon mounted bandits who get their hands on a treasure map, only to be pursued by the army of national independence, who believe that the outlaws have a map for a new railway to be built by the Japanese army. There will be much humor along the way -- in one scene, the character played by Song goes into an opium den in search of the map and, talking away in quite a jovial and relaxed fashion, he becomes light-headed because of the opium smoke, and gradually starts talking gibberish. Filming is to take place mostly in China (around six months), the rest being shot in Hollwood and Korea, with an expected release date sometime in 2008.

Director: Kim Ji-Woon [김지운]
Cast: Song Kang-Ho [송강호], Lee Byeong-Heon [이병헌], Jeong Woo-Seong [정우성]

[Source: Darcy Paquet (KOFIC), JoongAng Ilbo, Cine21]