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Summary
Spoiler Warning : This article contains spoilers for Netflix ’s Squid Game .
With an amusement career in movies and TV sweep three decades , South Korean actorLee Byung - hunhas delivered some of the best performances catered to audience both on the heavy and small screen . Notable for his wizardly secure look and frequent quislingism with South Korean director , Kim Jee - woon , Lee has evolve an telling body of work that has made him one of South Korea ’s most search after talents since his debut in 1991’sAsphalt My Hometown . In addition to his telling and modeling career , Lee has establish himself as one of the premier and consistent doer of his propagation .
With the sheer bit ofKorean movies and television show to stream on Netflix , Lee ’s work has extended across external logical argument with his work inSquid GameandThe Magnificent Sevenperforming well with American audiences . Moreover , Lee ’s range , as demonstrated in his quality carrying out in K - dramas , action at law blockbusters , Korean Westerns , and historical epics , makes him one of the industry ’s most various thespian . With the upcoming Netflix movies , The Matchand the American - produced film , I think in a Thing Called Love , Lee is n’t slacken his body of work ethic down anytime before long .
With outstanding Korean movies such as Decision To Leave and Broker come out this yr , it ’s time to look at the best Korean directors of all time .
10All In (2003)
Lee stars as Kim In-ha in the early 2000s drama about gambling and love.
part base on the true chronicle of professional poker instrumentalist Jimmy Cha , All Insees Lee as a gambling casino gambler named Kim In - ha , and , despite his shady dealing with the condemnable Scheol , demonstrates his soft side with the sexual love of his sprightliness , Min Su - yeon ( played by Song Hye - kyo).All Instands as a strong entry in Lee ’s filmography because K - drama highlights the complex nature of love life when money and other vices are involved . poise an undeniably charming demeanor with the ruthlessness appropriate for a gangster movie , All Inremains an early example of Lee ’s range .
First Episode
Season 1 , Episode 2 , Episode # 1.2
Last Episode
Season 1 , Episode 24 , Episode # 1.24
Number of Episodes
23
9The Good the Bad the Weird (2008)
Lee takes on the Lee Van Cleef role of the Bad in his second collaboration with Kim Jee-woon.
Directed by Kim Jee - woon , The Good the Bad the Weirdis a seditious Korean Western that pays homage to the Sergio Leone classic , The Good , the Bad and the Ugly , and it feature the second collaborationism between Lee and Kim . With brilliant performances from its key cast , The Good the Bad the Weirdis one of thebest foreign Westernsbecause of its blend of dandy Western tropes with enough political subtext to obligate its audience to reevaluate its feelings about Eastern Asian affairs . Additionally , the movie hold plenty of clowning and action to equilibrize its heavy motif .
8Squid Game (2021)
Lee stars as Front Man / Hwang In-ho in Netflix’s Squid Game.
With the winner ofSquid Game ’s first time of year , Squid Gameseason 2is sure to convey the momentum of the South Korean thriller . Loosely based on the Korean secret plan Squid and series creator Hwang Dong - hyuk ’s own financial issues in his younker , Squid Gamecenters around 456 game dissenter endure financial hardships participating in a series of mortal nipper ’s games with the hope of securing the game ’s ₩ 45.6 billion ( 45.6 billion win ) game prize . In addition to exploring ethics and morality , the acclaimed Netflix serial also uses its Front Man character to analyse class disparity and capitalist economy in South Korea .
Highly level-headed and the winner of the 2015 Squid Games , Lee ’s Front Man / Hwang In - ho is the leader of the Masked Men , a group of enigmatical person assure the nominal game , andFont Man’sSquid Gametwistadds another layer to the already impenetrable thriller . As view in the first season , Front Man is the comrade of investigator Hwang Jun - ho , and the revealing indicate that former or even current jurisprudence enforcement agents are also prominent entity in the creation and mental process of Squid Game . With Lee ’s haunting performance , his future amour can reveal even more twists .
time of year 1 , Episode 1 , " Mugunghwa kkoch - i pideon nal "
Custom image by Stephanie Maulding
time of year 1 , Episode 9 , " Unsu joeun nal "
6
7A Bittersweet Life (2005)
Lee plays the hitman, Sun woo, in his first collaboration with Kim Jee-woon.
The neo - noir legal action dramaA Bittersweet Lifemarks the first collaboration between Lee and Kim , and it sees Lee as Kim Sun - woo , a hardened and richly - ranking hatchet man for one of South Korea ’s most life-threatening crime Divine , wrestling with the ethics of his most recent problem . Featuring arresting visuals , well - choreograph shootouts , a sweeping and emotional account , and solid performances from its leads , A Bittersweet Lifeultimately explore themes of love and aloneness with the utilisation of its hardened killer friend and the unfaithful love interest , Moon Hee - soo , played by Shin Min - ah .
6Beautiful Days (2001)
Lee stars as Lee Min-chul in the first installment of director Lee Jang-soo’sHeaventrilogy.
Beautiful Dayssees Lee as an wishful instrumentalist name Lee Min - chul , who returns to South Korea after consider abroad in America prior to the event of the potassium - drama . The gentle cinematography and music , melodrama , and overlap storylines that seeBeautiful Days ' character interacting with each other in unexpected wayshave all contribute toBeautiful day ’s popularity 20 + age after its debut . what is more , the show ’s high ratings , strong acting performances , and subversive writing that sees some of its friend responsible for flagitious crimes helped ascertain two sequel series in theHeaventrilogy .
Season 1 , Episode 1 , Episode # 1.1
24
Korean celluloid is one of the most distinguished in Asia nowadays , offering prominent film director and find peachy international realization .
5Masquerade (2012)
Lee plays the dual roles of King Gwanghae / Beggar Ha-sun in the 2012 period piece.
Masqueradesees Lee as a beggar constitute Ha - sun experiencing a life - change result during the Joseon Dynasty ashe ’s selected to masquerade as the nation ’s ruler , King Gwanghae , due to his weird likeness to the crowned head . Whereas he lead off the motion-picture show as a commoner who thinks ill of the nation ’s affluent , he bit by bit loses himself and his sensation of morals , as he get down to think he really is King Gwanghae . Delivering two stellar performances as the mendicant and the king , Masquerade ’s topic of identity , power , and stratum disparity are astutely examined through Lee ’s work .
4Our Blues (2022)
Lee stars as the truck merchant, Lee Dong-seok, in the critically acclaimed K-drama.
famous for its unique story structure that narrate the interweaving history of its ensemble cast , as they each see the senior high and lows of life on Jeju Island at various points in their lives . Our Blueshas relish praise from critics for its verisimilitude both in its penning , and from the performances of its cast . get around up into ten persona , each part ofOur Bluesexamines someone who is at the early stages of life , the eye , and near the end in what is one of the most bitter yet enduring slice - of - life K - dramas .
time of year 1 , Episode 1 , " Han - su and Eun - hui 1 "
Season 1 , Episode 20 , " okay - dong and Dong - seok 3 "
20
3Joint Security Area (2000)
Lee’s breakout role was as Sergeant Lee Soo-hyeok in the 2000 mystery thriller.
Based on the Park Sang - yeon novel , DMZ , Joint Security Areacenters around a orphic cleanup of two North Korean guards at the North - South Korean border , that necessitates the neutral affaire of Swedish and Swiss forces to help oneself solve the mystery . Joint Security Areasees Lee as Sergeant Lee Soo - hyeok , a South Korean soldier who was wound during the shot , confront interrogation after attempting to take flight back to South Korea . With strong performances from Lee , Song Kang - ho , and Lee Young - ae , the thriller feature the first collaboration between Lee and Song .
Moreover , during its 2000 entry in South Korean cinemas , Joint Security Areawas the highest - gross South Korean film , and the operation of Lee garner numerous praise from critics , which in effect solidified him as one of the res publica ’s top thespian . Joint Security Area ’s themes of conjuration and murder as they relate to North and South Korean politics are crucially examined through the lens of a whodunit thriller that deliberately compels consultation to question everything and everyone . accrue eighteen Award wins and nominations , include a Golden Berlin Bear nomination , Joint Security Arearemains a staple in Lee ’s filmography .
2Mr. Sunshine (2018)
Lee stars as Eugene Choi in the historical romance melodrama.
Mr. Sunshinesees Lee as Eugene Choi , a slave put up during the Joseon period , get away to the United States around the time of the 1871 Shinmiyangyo incident and joins the Marin Corps . Upon returning to Korea during one of its most historical turning points , Eugene falls in sexual love with a noblewoman named Go Ae - shin , and the two easy build up a relationship of forbidden lovemaking . Mr. Sunshineexcels at flux the aesthesia of the modern years with the strict feeling of the tarradiddle ’s setting , while also exploring issues revolving around class disparity and political fermentation .
1I Saw The Devil (2010)
Lee delivers a critically-acclaimed performance in his third collaboration with Kim Jee-woon.
I Saw the Devilmarks the third collaboration between Lee and director Kim , and supported by its moody atmosphere and gripping account , recite an engaging tale of retaliation . Featuring Choi Min - sik ( Oldboy),I Saw the Devilsees Lee as a secret agent acting outside the bounds of the police to bring Choi ’s serial killer to judge after a string of fell murders . Most famed inI Saw the Devil , is its power to turn in its violence and depravity with a tenacity that wee-wee it an efficacious thriller and one of the best movies inLee Byung - hun ’s body of study .
