"Actor's Watch" focuses on watches worn by actors in movies, television, etc.
In this 87th installment, we will be introducing " Watches that appeared in Korean movies ."
*Source: https://thecorvidreview.com/
Handsome Korean stars such as Park Seo-joon from " Itaewon Class " (2020) are currently very popular among young people. In this edition of "Actor's Watch," I would like to introduce some of the handsome men who appear in my favorite Korean movies, along with the watches they wear.
It may be a little hot, but we hope you will enjoy reading it as the long autumn nights gradually cool down.
Bad Guys
NAMELESS GANGSTER: RULES OF TIME (2012)
*Source: https://www.koreanfilm.or.kr/
Ik-hyun ( Choi Min-sik ) uses his position as a customs official to make money through bribes and the sale of smuggled goods. One day, his fraud is discovered and he is in danger of being fired. He embezzles drugs he finds while inspecting imported goods and approaches a young underworld boss, Hyun-bae ( Ha Jung-woo ), to sell them. When Ik-hyun finds out that Hyun-bae is a distant relative, he uses his natural cunning, people-management skills, and connections to get close to Hyun and rise up in the underworld.
*Source: https://m.blog.naver.com/
" Bad Guys " (2012) depicts a former government official who is trying to establish himself in the underworld. Choi Min-sik, who played the revenge-seeking protagonist in the Korean noir masterpiece " Oldboy " (2004), has gained 10kg and plays the greasy, old-man-like gangster Ik-hyun.
In this film, he is wearing a Rolex Day-Date . It is likely the " Ref.18038 " with its flat sapphire crystal and thick, semi-circular case. This is Korea in the late 1980s and early 1990s, shortly after democratization. The solid gold Rolex, which ordinary people would not have been able to own at the time, shows Ik-hyun's status and presence in the underworld.
Taxi Driver: A Promise Across the Sea
A TAXI DRIVER (2017)
*Source: https://offscreen.com/
May 1980. Man-seop ( Song Kang-ho ), a humble Seoul taxi driver, is lured by the generous tip of 100,000 won and takes German journalist Peter ( Thomas Kretschmann ) to Gwangju, the city in the midst of the Korean democratization movement.
As the group enters Gwangju, they encounter a clash between citizens and students calling for democratization and the military trying to suppress them. Peter films soldiers shooting at citizens and tries to take the film back to a news agency to report the incident to the world, but the South Korean military plots to confiscate it. At first, Man-seop is only interested in the large tip and intends to return to Seoul by himself after receiving the money. However, after witnessing citizens and students being killed by soldiers, he decides to risk his life to send Peter and the film back to Seoul.
*Source: https://www.thethings.com/
The 1980 Gwangju Uprising was a turning point in the Korean democratization movement, and German correspondent Hinzpeter and taxi driver Kim Sa-bok accompanied him in filming the incident. " Taxi Driver " (2017) is a masterpiece political drama based on a true story that depicts the courageous decisions and actions of the two men.
The taxi driver who changed the history of Korea is played by Song Kang-ho, a Korean national actor who is also very popular in Japan, having starred in blockbuster films such as " Memories of Murder " (2003) and " Parasite " (2019). The watch he wears in this film is thought to be a watch (model/number unknown) from the now defunct Swiss watch brand "DUX" . The combination of a narrow bezel and dolphin hands is very similar to the Seiko Road Marvel , a luxury product at the time, and it was probably a watch that was "like a Seiko, but cheaper than a Seiko". It makes sense to imagine that he wore it to show off, even though he was not financially well off.
Crime City
THE OUTLAWS (2017)
*Source: https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/
Three members of the Chinese mafia "Black Dragon" appear in Seoul to collect money they owe. They kill the boss of a local organization that refuses to repay the money, take over the organization, and begin to expand their influence from their base in Chinatown. They aim to dominate the Korean underworld, and start a conflict with Seoul's largest violent organization.
Meanwhile, Detective Ma Seok-t ( Ma Dong-seok ), who has jurisdiction over Chinatown, plans to take advantage of the conflict between the Chinese mafia and local organizations and round up the Black Dragons. The city of Seoul becomes a battlefield where the Chinese mafia, local organizations, and police are all in one place.
*Source: https://www.youtube.com/
Based on the real-life "Heuksappa Incident" that occurred in 2004, the suspense action movie " The Outlaws " (2017) depicts a three-way conflict between a local organization, a foreign organization, and the police. The macho actor Ma Dong-seok, known in Korea as "Ma-Bly", plays a strong and fearless, yet kind-hearted and slightly absent-minded, strong-arm detective.
The watch he wears in this film is a Rolex Datejust (model number unknown) . Don't miss it, as it can be seen for just a moment in the scene where he catches a fleeing gangster and knocks him unconscious with a single palm strike. Speaking of which, in the Japanese film " The Blood of Wolves " (2018), which also depicts a conflict between gangsters and detectives, Yakusho Koji, who plays the role of a detective, also wears a Datejust. It is interesting to wonder whether the fact that "a detective in charge of gangsters wears a Datejust" is a fictional design or a realistic choice.
Extra edition
*Source: https://www.harpersbazaar.co.kr/
Now that we have the three most "hot actors" in Korea, Choi Min-sik, Song Kang-ho, and Ma Dong-seok, let's take a breather. Let's have a Korean actress, Bae Doona, who is known for her roles in Bong Joon-ho's " Barking Dogs Never Bite " (2000), Nobuhiro Yamashita's " Linda Linda Linda " (2005), and Hirokazu Koreeda's " Air Doll " (2009), make an appearance.
Now, did you know that in Korea there is a wristwatch called the "Bae Doona Watch"?
*Source: https://huskdoll.tistory.com/
In this photo, Bae Doona is seen with a woman who appears to be Aki Maeda , who co-starred with her in the drama Linda Linda. She was wearing a Citizen Ana-DigiTemp (Ref. 8988-S073057 ) , which is why this watch came to be known as the "Bae Doona Watch."
This classic "ana-digi" watch combines an analog watch and a digital watch, which first appeared in the 1980s and continues to be released today with the same retro feel as the original. It is also a popular model in collaboration with "BEAMS" and "Star Wars".
summary
What did you think?
Korean movies are taking the entertainment world by storm, with " Parasite " (2019) winning the Academy Award for Best Picture. I personally believe that the reason for this success is the unforgettable, " strong " looks of the great actors, including Song Kang-ho, who also starred in "Parasite."
*Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/
If Korean movies continue to be hits around the world, we will likely see more tie-ups between Korean movies and watch brands. We may see fresh combinations on the big screen, such as Song Kang-ho and Omega , or Ma Dong-seok and Tag Heuer .
What kind of watch would suit their bold features? I feel like I have one more thing to enjoy when watching Korean movies.
see you!