Lawless Lawyer wrap-up interviews: What other cast and crew members say about Lee Joon-gi.
1. Director Kim Jin-min
Article translation:
‘Lawless Lawyer’ PD: Working with Lee Joon-gi for the second time… It was different from “Time between Dog and Wolf”
(source:
https://entertain.naver.com/read?oid=213&aid=0001046695)
The legacy that “Lawless Lawyer” left behind was the meaning of ‘justice.’ Committed performances from the actors particularly shone through. Director Kim Jin-min expressed his satisfaction with the cast.
tvN’s weekend drama “Lawless Lawyer” ended with a successful finale on July 1. In his latest interview with TV Report, Kim Jin-min, director of “Lawless Lawyer,” expressed his gratitude to the actors.
‘Evil-busting’ legal/action drama “Lawless Lawyer” tells the story of a ‘lawless’ lawyer who, after initially using his fists instead of the law, grows into a true ‘fighting’ lawyer by taking on absolute power. The drama was filled with great performances from Lee Joon-gi, Choi Min-soo, Lee Hye-young, etc.
Reviews praised the casting choices made by the director and director Kim stressed, “In my directing career, this cast was the most perfect acting combination and at the same time, a dream come true for me”.
To begin with, “Lawless Lawyer” marked the second collaboration between director Kim and Lee Joon-gi 11 years after “Time between Dog and Wolf (“TBDW”)” in 2007. Playing lawyer Bong Sang-pil in “Lawless Lawyer”, Lee Joon-gi turned in a committed performance.
Director Kim revealed, “Lee Joon-gi was the first male leading actor I had ever worked with. I think he did a great job [then]. In fact, Lee Joon-gi is even more wonderful now than he was before. So I think, this time around, he had an even heavier burden to carry. It’s tricky to compare his past and present works. This time, he had a lot more to do and a lot more to show. I am just grateful that viewers loved it [his performance].
Director Kim hinted at his enormous love for Lee Joon-gi. “Lee Joon-gi hasn’t changed a bit; he’s always been diligent and healthy. His attitude to [understanding of] acting became much deeper, though. I am not sure if his thirst for acting has been quenched.” He then added“, I wonder, though, if ‘Lawless Lawyer’ became another turning point that will help Lee Joon-gi move on to the next chapter of his career. Lee Joon-gi is living his life as an actor. At this juncture, I only hope the work he did with me was helpful for him. There is nothing else I want for him”.
2. Actor Choi Min-soo
Article translation:
Choi Min-soo: “Ahn Oh-ju teeters on the thin line between life and death. If he loses, he dies”
(source:
http://entertain.naver.com/read?oid=001&aid=0010195628)
The city of Ki-seong, which provided a setting for tvN’s “Lawless Lawyer” that ended amid much fanfare, is evocative of deeply corrupt Gotham City.
In the heart of the city are Cha Moon-sook, a judge who represents absolute evil, and Ahn Oh-ju, mayor of Kiseong and another evil at Cha’s beck and call.
Choi Min-soo (56) seemed as if he’d been born to play Ahn Oh-ju, with his M-shaped hairline that looked like the devil’s horns and a thick accent that might have probably been used by old-school gangsters.
Q. Your chemistry with Lee Hye-young created tension in the drama. The unusual pairing between you and Lee Joon-gi in, for instance, the action scenes was also impressive.
Choi Min-soo – Ahn Oh-ju served as a sort of catalyst, or guide, who led to the showdown between Cha Moon-sook and Bong Sang-pil (Lee Joon-gi). That’s why there had to be an emotional continuity, and I could not possibly waste a single second in the scenes I performed. My biggest regret was that there were lots of scenes that had to be edited out because of the censorship. I thought the emotion [emotional continuity] was more important than the action scenes, and I put stress on this very point when communicating with Joon-gi. (Right then, Choi Min-soo got a call from Lee Joon-gi. Choi answered, “Sang-pil ah”.) Joon-gi is such a true and loyal guy. He’s my favorite type of person. I think that the action scenes [Joon-gi and I did together] showed a great combination of Ahn Oh-ju, who’s rough even when he fights, and Bong Sang-pil, who has eye-catching fighting skills.
Q. You switch between comedy, action, and playing an evil. Which is the most fun part of the job to you?
CMS – Each and every single one of them is fun. Like I said before, what I find to be most thrilling [about this job] is when my character takes root inside of me as if they became cells in my body. You should not cheat when acting. That’s why you need motivation. When playing Ahn Oh-ju, too, I studied the lines of my co-stars even more carefully than I did my own lines. That’s how you create a context [in which you perform] and my lines just come naturally to me. This time around, too, I always filmed my scenes in full shot, almost without any rehearsal.
3. Actor Cha Jung-won
Article translation:
Cha Jung-won in “Lawless Lawyer”: ‘Choi Min-soo and Lee Joon-gi are best friends on set’
(source:
http://v.entertain.media.daum.net/v/20180705135204073)
Actor Cha Jung-won mentioned an exceptional chemistry between Lee Joon-gi and Choi Min-soo, her co-stars in “Lawless Lawyer.”
In her interview with TV Daily on July 5, following the wrap of tvN’s weekend drama “Lawless Lawyer,” she talked about Lee Joon-gi and Choi Min-soo.
“Lawless Lawyer” tells the story of a ‘lawless’ lawyer who, after initially using his fists instead of the law, grows into a true ‘fighting’ lawyer by taking on absolute power. The drama was filled with great performances from Lee Joon-gi, Choi Min-soo, Lee Hye-young, etc. In it, Cha Jung-won played Kang Yeon-hee, daughter of Nam Soon-ja (Yeom Hye-ran), a confidant of Cha Moon-sook (Lee Hye-young) and a competent prosecutor in Ki-seong.
While talking about the cordial atmosphere on set, she particularly singled out the chemistry between Lee Joon-gi and Choi Min-soo. In the drama, Lee Joon-gi, playing Bong Sang-pil, gangster-turned-lawyer and master of the law and martial arts, drew viewers’ attention with his visually stunning action scenes. Choi Min-soo showed off a powerful performance as ambitious man Ahn Oh-ju, who rises from small-time crook to CEO.
Cha Jung-won recalled, “Their chemistry was fantastic. When Choi Min-soo walked onto the set while speaking his lines out loud, Lee Joon-gi would call him first by the name of his character ‘Ahn Oh-ju’. Then, when finding out it was Lee Joon-gi who called him, Choi Min-soo would respond, ‘Bong Sangpiri,’ and they would hug or shake hands. Lee Joon-gi, who’s friendly and affable, and Choi Min-soo, who’s very energetic, had a great chemistry”.
However, in the drama, Bong Sang-pil and Ahn Oh-ju are sworn enemies. Cha Jung-won explained, “They were enemies only in the drama; in real life, they were best friends on set. They made the atmosphere on set much more light-hearted”.
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