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Baek Shows 'Art of Acting'

By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter

In the domestic movie world, a pretty face seems to take priority over acting experience. As good-looking young actors tend to dominate big screens, it is hard to find older, domestic actors who are equal in status to Al Pacino or Robert De Niro abroad.

An exception to this rule is veteran actor Baek Yoon-sik, who is proving that age is nothing but a number. At 59, the actor is starring in many films and playing interesting and unique characters.

"As the local film industry has been upgraded, actors like myself are needed,'' Baek said during an interview with news daily Hankook Ilbo, sister company of The Korea Times. "I think actors with experience will be soon be more respected here like in the West.''

Being over 50 usually means here "being kicked out'' from everywhere, and it is especially true for actors around their 40s and 50s. Though headliners when young, they find that they are only offered supporting roles on small and big screens, usually as a father or mother to the main character.

For Baek, however, the case has been the exact opposite. In fact, the actor did not find stardom until well into his 50s.

Baek debuted as a television drama actor after being discovered in an annual talent search by KBS in 1970. Though he appeared in various supporting roles, it wasn't until he starred in the 2003 sci-fi black comedy "Save the Green Planet'' that he had a chance to shine.

The film was a commercial failure but received critical acclaim. Baek especially was lauded for his portrayal of a ruthless businessman suspected of being an alien. The public attention this brought led to other interesting roles.

Baek played a professional swindler in the 2003 hit thriller "The Big Swindle'' and chief of the Korea Central Intelligence Agency who shot and killed President Park Jung-hee in 1979 in the 2005 controversial black comedy "The President's Last Bang.''

"When I pick movies, I don't think of just their potential for commercial success, which is, of course, an inevitable element, but I think they should be a work of art,'' Baek told Yonhap News Agency.

In "Art of Fighting,'' which opened Dec. 5, Baek plays Oh Pan-su, a master of martial arts who trains a high school student how to fight as he is bullied at school by classmates. Oh is a mysterious person who shares the wisdom he gained from his various bittersweet experiences with his pupil.

"This film will teach you how to find your ego and live a positive life, rather than just how to fight,'' Baek said.

Baek's recent characters all share a sense of bizarreness, but he says he believes that being an actor means showing different sides of humanity and being creative.

"An actor can give different tastes to every movie. It's like, if you drink a tea today, then you want to drink honey tea tomorrow and the next day, coffee or coke. So, acting is a creative job that makes you think hard infinitely,'' Baek said.

Baek, however, seems to have a rather humble ambition in his career.

"I hope I'll star in good movies. And I hope I can keep my eyes that can find good movies,'' Baek said.

Baek will soon shoot his next film "Tacha", a story about gamblers, which co-stars Cho Seung-woo.

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