A pawnbroker is found murdered in a remote town. Police suspect that he was murdered by an acquaintance, as even the most experienced investigator on the case could identify no signs of ... See full summary
Baekyahaeng: Hayan eodoom sokeul geolda (2009) Online
A pawnbroker is found murdered in a remote town. Police suspect that he was murdered by an acquaintance, as even the most experienced investigator on the case could identify no signs of resistance. Three people come under suspicion but all of them have perfect alibis and the investigation comes to a standstill. One year later, one of them is found dead and the original murder case becomes even more mysterious. Almost fifteen years pass and the lead inspector, now approaching retirement, reflects on the only case he could not solve in an otherwise successful career. Haunted by a sense of responsibility and guilt that he caused suffering by letting the murder case go unsolved, he decides to re-investigate. His persistent search brings attention to the long forgotten case and reveals a hidden relationship between the victim's son and the neighborhood woman's daughter. As their love grows, more crimes happen. As their sin grows, the inspector's chase comes closer to them.
Credited cast: | |||
Suk-kyu Han | - | Han, Dong-soo | |
Ye-jin Son | - | Yu Mi-ho | |
Soo Go | - | Kim Yo-han | |
Rest of cast listed alphabetically: | |||
Cheol-woo Han | - | Detective Ko | |
Kook-jin Han | - | Detective Oh | |
Ye-won Han | |||
Ji-hee Hong | |||
Eun-ji Im | |||
Kyeong-sook Jo | - | Yang Mi-sook | |
Da-Yeong Ju | - | Ji-ah | |
Jong-won Lee | - | Seung-jo | |
Min-Jung Lee | - | Shi-yeong | |
Sung-woong Park | - | Cha Seung-jo | |
Jin-won Seo | - | Detective Jang | |
So-yeong Son |
Ye-Jin Son and Soo Go did the nude scenes Themself without the use of a body double.
Director Shin-woo Park was inspired to write the script after being impressed with the novel Byakuyako. He sent the screenplay to author Keigo Higashino, who said it was "superb," and allowed it to be adapted into a film.
Shin-woo Park's feature directorial debut. He first drew attention after his short film About a Bad Boy won the jury award at the Mise-en-scène Short Film Festival.
Actress Ye-jin Son was Park's first and only choice for the role of Yoo Mi-ho after having attended high school with her in Daegu. He said, "She was very quiet back then. I've seen her onscreen and thought she was very talented because she pulled off characters that were so different from how she was like in real life." Though Son was extremely flattered and called the project "her destiny," she didn't find the role easy because she was unaccustomed to playing a character so dark and sinister, and "wanted to make her look like someone deserving sympathy." For Son, the most difficult scene to film was the one in which her character appears nude and comforts her fiance's daughter after she is sexually assaulted by Yo-han. Son expressed her concern that the scene might be misinterpreted by audiences as vulgar or gratuitous, stressing that the scene is painful and a glimpse into Mi-ho's state of mind.
The director then cast Suk-kyu Han as Han Dong-soo. The actor, then-44 years old, had initially turned down the role because he felt he was too young to play the 50-year-old detective. Han said, "I wished I would have been 10 years older, so I refused the part. But the director wrote me a handwritten letter explaining why he had to use me for the part... When I met him I was convinced by his sincerity, and I thought perhaps I wasn't challenging myself enough as an actor."
This was actor Soo Go's first onscreen role after his two-year mandatory military service. Go said he decided to play Kim Yo-han because he was "completely absorbed by the intriguing storyline."
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