Kim Hee-ae, this is enough politics... 3 consecutive appearances in political films

Actress Kim Hee-ae is perfect for the role of a confident woman. However, it is disappointing to see the public with a similar determined character three times in a row. In 'Queen Maker', 'Deadman', and even 'Storm', which will be released next month, he all played characters entangled in politics.

The Netflix series 'Storm' depicts the confrontation between the Prime Minister (played by Sol Kyung-gu), who has decided to assassinate the President in order to turn the world upside down, and the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs, who tries to stop him and seize power. A fierce political battle unfolds between the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs.

In the play, Kim Hee-ae plays the role of Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs who seeks to gain greater power. In the trailer released on the 30th, only one line, "The strong overcomes the right. That's how politics is," added to the sense of immersion. The short cut and elegant voice are impressive.

He also appeared as a politically-related character in the movie 'Deadman', which was released in February this year. 'Deadman' is a work that tells the story of Lee Man-jae (played by Cho Jin-woong), who has sold his name, and jumps into the world of a pantsuit company where he has no one to trust. Kim Hee-ae plays the role of Mrs. Shim, the best consultant in politics who boasts innate resourcefulness.

The same thing happened with Netflix's 'Queen Maker' last year. She played the role of Hwang Do-hee, an 'image maker' who was in control of the strategic planning office of a large corporation and, for revenge, tried to make a female human rights lawyer (played by Moon So-ri) the mayor of Seoul.

Of course, Kim Hee-ae's styling in the story and the work is different. While showing off her chic charm, she wore colorful outfits and wore smokey makeup. However, all three works are based on politics. In particular, 'Deadman' and 'Queen Maker' were identical in that they acted as helpers of politicians. In response, Kim Hee-ae said, "The job of political consultant is the same, but the narrative is different. In Queen Maker, he worked as a troubleshooter for a large company, fell into the abyss, and swore revenge. He transformed into a political consultant by making Oh Kyung-sook the mayor of Seoul, and Shim Yeo-ja of 'Deadman'. “I felt that he was already a seasoned political expert and the results were completely different,” he said.

Although I said, "It's a completely different texture," the viewer can't help but feel that it's a similar texture since the subject matter and role are not that different. This role does not always work. 'Queen Maker' boasted high topicality, ranking first in weekly viewing time in the non-English language TV category on Netflix. 'Deadman', which was released in succession, was a box office failure, attracting only 230,000 cumulative viewers even though it was released for the Lunar New Year holiday.

Kim Hee-ae is a veteran actress who has always taken on unique challenges such as 'Secret Love Affair', 'The World of the Married', 'To Yoon-hee', and 'Her Story'. Although she is a woman in her 50s and a mother, her image as a cool career woman and elegant woman is stronger than that of a mother. This is because they showed a variety of works and diverse performances. This is why Kim Hee-ae's decision to choose political dramas for the third time in a row feels even more regrettable.

Kim Seo-yoon, Ten Asia Reporter seogugu@tenasia.co.kr