Netflix ‘Kill Boksoon’ Cast Talks About The Intense Action Scenes And The Inspiration Behind The Name Of The Action Thriller Movie

One of South Korea’s top actresses is back with a new action film that combines brutal fight sequences with parental angst, in which she must deal with her moody adolescent daughter.

Over three decades, Jeon Do-yeon has worked with a veritable who’s who of Korean directors and won the top acting prize at Cannes. She has portrayed everything from an HIV-positive prostitute to a Korean housewife falsely accused of drug smuggling. Still, her personal experience as a mother proved invaluable for her most recent role and first action lead a role in which she plays the mother of a young boy.

The film gained attention after being invited to the 73rd annual Berlin Film Festival for the berlinale specialy. Director Byun shared when he initially heard the news. He recalls being invited to the Cannes International Film Festival with The Merciless.

During the press conference for Kill Boksoon held in Seoul earlier this month, Director Byun stated, “I did not see it coming at all, and I thought this film wasn’t the type of film that’d be invited to Berlin because our film is rather a genre show. I was deeply honoured and delighted that we were invited to Berlin.” However, the screening took place in a 1,800-seat theatre, and I was moved to see the audience identify with the story.

Since Kill Boksoon was critically acclaimed globally, the cast revealed how they felt. Sul Kyung-gu shared that he is sad since he wasn’t there but he felt exhilarated since the movie screened before its official launch on Netflix. He said. “it’s a great opportunity to gauge the reactions of the global audience prior to its launch. I was so sad I couldn’t be there”. 

Jeon Do-yeon admitted she was curious whether Kill Boksoon will be the type of movie Berlin would love. She said, “When I watched the screening, I was so moved. I can’t believe that I was there at the time, in that theater. It was so surreal.”

When Jeon Do Yeon asked which is the most challenging for her since this is the most action-packed movie in your career. “The most challenging was that I really wanted to effortlessly carry out the action sequences, but my body just wouldn’t live up to my hopes. I wanted to do well so badly that I really pushed myself and tried to overcome my limits. While I really pushed myself I still think I could have done better in some of the action scenes.“ she stated.

The movie Kill Boksoon have many slow motion shots and camera rotations in the film. When the press members, questioned Director Byun “Are there some films that you homaged or drew inspiration from?”

Director Byun shared that his a big fan of Scorsese films and always watch them. A lot of people tell to him that there’s a little bit of Tarantino in my films too. “I am a big fan of Kyung-gu and Do-yeon and Korean films in the early 2000s. I try to take after those films. For action scenes, I try to follow the style of director Lee Myung-se, but his style is just so immaculate I can’t be half as good. “he stated.

The director also revealed that when it came to the names, he actually couldn’t decide on it, so he came up with the daughter’s name Jae-young and said, “I actually don’t care much about names, so I would just use names of people who are around me at the time I am writing the script. When I was talking with Do-yeon about the script, Do-yeon’s aunt called her and on her phone it said Auntie Boksoon. So I said I wanted to use that name and Do-yeon said over her dead body, so I felt rebellious and kept the name.” And this is the reason behind the name of boksoon. 

Since Si-A shared that he drew inspiration from her sister. The characterisic of her sister she used to create Jae-young is on how speaks really bluntly. “She has that tone so I wanted to use that tone. The way she speaks to mom and dad and the way she texts her friends are just so different. So I wanted to make sure that there’s that discrepancy between the way Jae-young speaks to her mom and the way she speaks to her friends. “ she said.

When Do yeon asked by the press members how was the action sequence with Jung-min special appearance in the film.  Jeon Do-yeon reavealed that she was so grateful for the action scene with Jung-min. “While the role of Oda Shinichiro is a special appearance, there was so much to prepare for – the action sequence and everything. But he said yes in a heartbeat so I actually said no, you can tell me after you read the scenario.  He said that he will take the role with or without seeing the script, and he worked so hard.”

For the action scene, Do-yeon shared that she’s been practicing for quite some time so she taught if she might help him out and show to him how things are done. She explained, “He came an hour earlier to the set and then I got to the set, and it turned out it was actually Jung-min who showed me how things are done.”

She was also so surprised on how good he was with his action moves. “I am the type that needs some time to memorize and digest the choreography but Jung-min just looked at how it’s supposed to flow and got it right on his first try. I was going to wait for him and help him out but that was not needed at all. In fact, he helped me out. He’d say I don’t think you need to do this or that because that might be dangerous. That was my first action scene in the movie and because he helped me out so much I felt a little embarrassed. ” she said.

The action thriller and Netflix original, which premieres on March 31 on the streaming service, follows the story of a female assassin named Boksoon, who is also a single mother of a teenage daughter (played by the accomplished Korean actress Jeon Do-Yeon). This film is filled with stylishly choreographed action sequences and dystopian environments.