Jun Ji-hyun is the proverbial Korean superstar; her filmography is an inventory of celebrated exploits in an arena that continues to evolve. She has proven most effective at creating breakthroughs, renewing herself, becoming a powerhouse, and winning distinctions for her many roles.
Throughout, Jun, 42 at the time of writing, has embodied a particular brand of magnetism while sharing screen space next to other heavyweight actors.
The following films, within her different accomplishments, exemplify her knack for challenging what she has done before and pursuing growth while seizing all chances to pick up something new.
White Valentine (1999) – Yang Yun-ho
White Valentine is Jun’s breakout film, the tryst of a teenage Kim Jeong-min (Jun), who rediscovers her childhood pen-friend Park Hyun-jun (Park Shin-yang) through a messenger-pigeon-sent letter addressed to his deceased girlfriend.
It turns out that one day, while seeing Hyun-jun tend to a hurt pigeon and then give an apple to a child in the neighborhood, Jeong-min falls for him. The apple resembles the one sketched on the envelopes of her mystery letter friend.
Il Mare (2000) – Lee Hyun-seung
Il Mare (Italian for “the sea”), a picturesque seaside home, provides the backdrop for the time-travel romance whereby the protagonists stay connected, albeit two years detached in the present, through a miracle mailbox.
In the epilogue, as Eun Joo (Jun) prepares to mail a Christmas card, we are directed right back to the initial phase of the story. Someone shows up with a memo she wrote asking Sung Hyun (Lee Jung-jae) to skip a meeting for a reason. He understood her intent and remained in place, culminating in their long-awaited reunion.
My Sassy Girl (2001) – Kwak Jae-young
The film revolutionized the rom-com genre in Korean cinema while also propelling Jun to fame. The main tension herein is between Gyeon-woo (Cha Tae-hyun) and the girl (Jun). She once hung alarmingly on the brink of a railway platform until Gyeon-woo spotted her in a state of stupor and saved her. Nonetheless, she keeps ridiculing and patronizing him, frequently getting him into trouble. Even so, Gyeon-woo finds himself attracted to her.
Windstruck (2004) – Kwak Jae-young
A celebration of eternal love—the story is at once pleasant and profound—and like a whiff of wind, it draws you in its flow.
The leads of the endearing romance are police officer Yeo Kyung-jin (Jun) and physics teacher Go Myung-woo (Jang Hyuk), who dies suddenly but lives on with Kyung-jin forever.
Daisy (2006) – Andrew Lau
A far-removed urban action romance adventure, Daisy is intriguing yet heartbreakingly poignant. Jeong-woo (Lee Sung-jae), an Interpol agent seeking a killer; street painter Hye-young (Jun); and Park Yi (Jung Woo-sung), a hitman with his eyes on Hye-young, fall in love in Amsterdam. While the men quietly make subtle moves toward her, she pines to meet the one—who has built a bridge across the waters after she fell in—and who delivers flowers at her door.
The Uninvited (2009) – Lee Soo-yeon
The Uninvited, or A Table for Four, is a psychological horror film about two young girls who die on a subway train and are encountered by Kang Jung-won (Park Shin-yang), an interior designer. They reappear in his apartment, this time seated at his brand-new dining table.
In therapy, since her friend Moon Jung-sook (Kim Yeo-jin) killed her kids, Jung Yeon (Jun) meets Jung-won, who is renovating her psychiatrist’s office. He takes her to his apartment, where she also sees apparitions of the dead children.
Subsequently, Jung-won uses Yeon’s medical records and persuades her to help him uncover what lies beneath.
Blood: The Last Vampire (2009) – Chris Nahon
The live-action remake of Blood, based on the same-named Japanese anime film, shows Jun’s potential as an action heroine.
In 1970s Tokyo, Jun’s Saya is a 400-year-old half-human, half-vampire member of a clandestine group that has been actively eliminating vampires for years. Saya aims for and embarks on a bloody battle to slay Onigen, the deadliest and most formidable vampire who killed her father.
The Thieves (2012) – Choi Dong-hoon
A ride of thrills, crime, and comedy with a dash of romance unfolds in The Thieves.
Yenicall (Jun) and his three accomplices, Popie (Lee Jung-jae), Zampano (Kim Soo-hyun), and Chewingum (Kim Hae-sook), steal a priceless item. When a detective starts investigating, they become worried about the safety in their country and decide to join a heist planned by the master thief, Macau Park (Kim Yoon-seok).
Assassination (2015) – Choi Dong-hoon
Assassination plays out in the 1930s Japanese colonization of Korea, where the opposition plots to murder a Japanese commander. But the strategy is jeopardized by a traitor inside their ranks, and the adversaries are on the lookout for them.
Jun’s Ok-yun, a rebellious resistance member, creates an enduring impression bursting with ideals of patriotism and stands out as a heroic role model in the portrayal of events.
Kingdom: Ashin of the North (2021) – Kim Sung Hoon
The film’s main attraction stems from the secrecy surrounding Ashin (Jun), the enigmatic heir to the village of the Northern Seongjeoyain tribe. The suspense multiplies when Ashin snacks off into the hills to look for the mystical plant that can bring the dead back to life. What ensues sets off an unprecedented chain of calamities that consumes the Kingdom of Joseon.
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