'Spy', 'Covertness' offer different takes on espionage

"Spy"centers on down-to-earth protagonist Kim, who is more concerned with surging food and housing prices than operations, while"In Berlin"features cold-minded professional secret agents. Provided by CJ E&M and Lotte Entertainment

Spy movies hold special appeal for Koreans, who still regularly hear news reports about secret agents from North Korea. More than 60 years after the peninsula was divided, however, some Korean espionage films are no longer featuring conventional spy heroes with suave personas. Rather, there are characters like the North Korean agent in"Spy"who is more concerned with soaring food and housing prices than his next secret mission.

DirectorWoo Min-hohad an epiphany when the cost of skyrocketing rent hit him hard after he finished his debut feature, "Man of Vendetta"(2010).

"It occurred to me that secret agents also are not free from real-life issues", Woo said during a press pre-screening event Tuesday for"Spy", which opened in theaters yesterday.

The main leads don't dress in tailored Italian suits or carry the latest high-tech weaponry. They lead mundane lives in the rat race of South Korea because the contentious relationship with North Korea just isn't, well, as contentious as it was in the 1960s and '70s.

A North Korean secret agent known only as Kim (Kim Myeong-min) is happily married and living with his loving wife and two adorable children. He appears to be a typical Korean family man who sacrifices everything for his kids.

And Kim's comrades look like anything but professional secret agents. Kang (Yeom Jeong-ah) has become a complete Korean ajumma, which not only means a middle-aged woman but also connotes a pushy old lady. Working as a real estate agent, Kang uses her harpy voice to browbeat sellers into lowering their asking price and becomes extremely sensitive if there is even a moment's delay in receiving her 100,000 won ($89.13) commission.

A veteran spy called Adviser Yoon (Byeon Hee-bong) spends most of his time with the go players in Tapgol Park, central Seoul, while Agent Woo (Jeong Kyeo-woon) protests against a free trade agreement after moving back to the countryside to raise cows.

All the characters appear to be out of place in the espionage film genre, but that is precisely what Woo intended.

"I want to deliver a message that the agents are all human beings. They are someone's father and mother, and live with similar concerns that we have", the director said.

The story of"Spy"unfolds when Kim receives an assassination assignment after a 10-year hiatus.

DirectorWoo Min-hoand the cast of"Spy":Yoo Hae-jin,Kim Myeong-min,Yeom Jeong-ah,Byeon Hee-bongandJeong Kyeo-woon. They will play unconventional spies who are mostly preoccupied with mundane issues. Provided by Newsis

"Spy"is not alone in taking a fresh approach. "Covertness", byJang Cheol-soo, goes one step further to feature a more eccentric spy hero.

In an adaptation of the popular Webtoon series by writer Hun, Won Ryu-hwan (Kim Soo-hyeon-I), an undercover North Korean spy, disguises himself as a rural idiot. He may be fluent in five languages with an uncanny ability to read people, but he is the laughingstock of the village.

His bosses in North Korea dispatch him as part of a group of agents who pose as aspiring idol singers, and they embark on a somewhat absurd project to debut as an idol boy band "Flower Boy Idol Trio", adding comedic chops to the film.

The tone of these movies is in sharp contrast with previous spy movies, such asKang Je-gyu's "Shiri"(1999),Kim Hyeon-jeong's "Double Agent"(2003),"Secret Reunion"(2010) byJang Hoonand, most recently,"Poongsan"(2011) directed byJuhn Jai-hong. Those films mostly explore tensions between South and North through the experiences of secret agents and their identity crises.

The emerging trend of common-man secret agents, however, doesn't necessarily mean that spy movies steer completely clear of dark and serious sentiment.

DirectorRyoo Seung-wan's upcoming flick"In Berlin"focuses on the usual secretive professionals who chase after each another. Being shot in Berlin and Latvia, the big-budget film traces the chase among three secret agents for South and North Korea.

Ha Jeong-wootakes the role of a NorthernDouble Agentbased in Berlin. He is betrayed and cut loose in the midst of a financial espionage intrigue. He and his wife (Jeon Ji-hyeon) try to flee the country for fear of being purged, while North and South Korean operativesRyoo Seung-beomandHan Seok-Kyugo after him.

Featuring the Brandenburg Gate, American Embassy and Holocaust Memorial, the director said he seeks to portray "the solitude and complicated mixture of feelings" of secret agents in grim and somewhat exotic locations.

"In Berlin"is scheduled to hit theaters in the first half of next year along with another spy movie, "The Graduate" byPark Hong-soo.

By Park Eun-jee [[email protected]]