Battlefield Heroes (film)
Battlefield Heroes | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Korean name | |
Hangul | 평양성 |
Hanja | |
Revised Romanization | Pyeongyangseong |
McCune–Reischauer | P‘yŏngyangsŏng |
Directed by | Lee Joon-ik[1] |
Written by | Oh Seung-hyeon Jo Cheol-hyeon[1] |
Produced by | Oh Seung-hyeon Jo Cheol-hyeon Lee Jeong-se[1] |
Starring | Jung Jin-young Lee Moon-sik Ryu Seung-ryong Yoon Je-moon |
Cinematography | Chung Chung-hoon[1] |
Edited by | Kim Sang-bum Kim Jae-bum[1] |
Music by | Kim Jun-seok[1] |
Production companies | Achim Pictures Tiger Pictures[1] |
Distributed by | Lotte Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 118 minutes[1] |
Country | South Korea[1] |
Language | Korean[2] |
Box office | US$11.7 million[3] |
Battlefield Heroes (
Plot
In Korea, AD 668. Kim Beob-min (Hwang Jung-min) is the king of the small southern Korean state of Shilla and makes a deal with China's Tang dynasty officials to have a combined strike against the larger northern Korean state of Goguryeo. The conditions of the agreement involve Shilla being given back the Korean state of Baekje. The combined troops march to Pyongyang Castle, where Goguryeo's Yeon Gaesomun (Lee Won-jong) dies and hands over command of the army to his second son Yeon Nam-geon (Ryu Seung-ryong). This action upsets his first son, Yeon Namsaeng (Yoon Je-moon) who is not as war-hungry as Nam-geon.
The Goguryeo soldiers defending the castle succeed in fighting off the Allied Army's first assault by catapulting honey and bees onto the Shilla soldiers. Meanwhile, the Shilla grand general
Cast
- Jung Jin-young
- Lee Moon-sik as Geoshigi
- Ryu Seung-ryong
- Yoon Je-moon
- Lee Kwang-soo
- Lee Won-jong
- Sunwoo Sun
- Kang Ha-neul
Production
Battlefield Heroes is a sequel to Once Upon a Time in a Battlefield set eight years after the first film.[1] The film was inspired by the political situation in Korea in 1995.[4] Lee Joon-ik stated he wanted that both Once Upon a Time in a Battlefield and Battlefield Heroes show how influenced Korea was by the countries around it (specifically China, Japan and the United States) which caused a lot of internal conflicts within Korea.[4]
Release
Battlefield Heroes was released in South Korea on January 27, 2011.[1] The box office returns in Korea were not strong which led to Lee Joon-ik announcing his retirement from directing shortly after.[5] Lee announced his retirement through his Twitter account, stating "I’m quitting directing because the audience [for Battlefield Heroes] was just 1.7 million, far fewer than the 2.5 million we had expected."[2] He returned two years later with Hope, casting top actor Sol Kyung-gu in one of the lead roles.[6]
The film was shown at film festivals, including the
Reception
The
[4] Vélez, Diva (July 17, 2011). "NYAFF 2011: The Diva Review Exclusive Interview with BATTLEFIELD HEROES Director Lee Joon-ik". The Diva Review. Retrieved July 12, 2022.[permanent dead link]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Elley, Derek (March 13, 2011). "Battlefield Heroes (평양성)". Film Business Asia. Archived from the original on 2011-03-18. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
- ^ a b c d "Battlefield Heroes (Korea, 2011)". New York Asian Film Festival. Archived from the original on August 11, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
- ^ "Battlefield Heroes (2011)". www.koreanfilm.or.kr.
- ^ a b c Vélez, Diva (July 17, 2011). "NYAFF 2011: The Diva Review Exclusive Interview with BATTLEFIELD HEROES Director Lee Joon-ik". The Diva Review. Retrieved July 12, 2022.
- Twitch Film. Archived from the originalon August 13, 2011. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
- ^ Lee, Claire (23 January 2013). "Lee Jun-ik returns after two-year hiatus". The Korea Herald. Retrieved May 20, 2015.
- ^ Fantasia Festival. Archived from the originalon December 30, 2016. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
- ^ Thomas, Kevin (March 14, 2011). "Movie review: 'Battlefield Heroes'". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved July 27, 2011.
External links
- Official website (in Korean)
- Battlefield Heroes at IMDb
- Battlefield Heroes at HanCinema