[Limelight] The Body Pushed to the Extreme, the Gaze Created by Its Authenticity

Movie 'Deliver Us from Evil' Ray role Lee Jung-jae
Strict diet to maintain sharp emotions
"Meaning infused not only in costumes and makeup but even in simple movements"
Interested in directing since 2012, preparing directorial debut with 'Hunt'

Actor Lee Jung-jae

A funeral hall in Japan. A man walks steadily into the entrance. His appearance is unusual. A white coat, slicked-back hair, tinted glasses... He does not mourn in front of the corpse. He just glances around and leaves.

This is Ray (Lee Jung-jae), the ruthless killer from the movie Deliver Us from Evil. He begins to brutally kill those involved in the death of his blood-related brother. There is no trace of anger or sorrow on his face. Under the pretext of revenge, he simply spreads blood everywhere. His eyes gleam like a predator searching for prey.

The sharp ferocity is clearly shown in the scene where he subdues a Thai crime syndicate. Even in the darkness, with swift and precise knife skills, he kills five gangsters in an instant. His disheveled hair and bloodied face reflect a bluish tint in the sunlight, revealing his animalistic wildness. His piercing gaze foreshadows another bloodbath.

Lee Jung-jae put great effort not only into acting but also into costume and makeup to capture Ray’s wild nature. He believed Ray’s appearance was his story. Ray has less screen time than the protagonist In-nam (Hwang Jung-min). His lines are also few.

However, he is not a simple character who appears only as an absolute evil. Deliver Us from Evil deals with In-nam’s journey to prepare for a new life after leaving his killer life behind. Ray is In-nam’s past and shadow seeking salvation. He can also be seen as In-nam’s still latent identity.

Lee Jung-jae said, “I wanted people to understand what kind of person Ray is just by his first appearance. I tried to put meaning into not only the costume and makeup but also simple movements. I believed that small differences could fill in the lack of explanation about the character.”

- From the first funeral scene, Ray is portrayed as a cold-blooded man...

▲ There are almost no scenes revealing Ray’s backstory. The same goes for scenes showing emotions. I wanted to provide clues so the audience could imagine. So from the first scene, I stamped the impression of a ruthless man. Instead of mourning his brother’s death, he checks the corpse with an indifferent expression. What matters to him is not revenge but the hunt.

- That atmosphere continues with his gaze in the scene where he subdues the Thai crime syndicate. The moment he pushes up the shutter and faces the sunlight was especially impressive.

▲ That was a calculated performance. I didn’t move my body, only my pupils moved from outside the camera to inside. I wanted to convey the feeling of a still hungry predator. I also wanted to add dynamic power to a static shot. If you look closely, his pupils are dilated. I wanted to show how excited Ray was.

- How did you prepare?

▲ I went on a diet eating only vegetables. You have to be hungry to sharpen your nerves. That’s how you get a fierce look in your eyes. You can’t express that with improvised acting on set. Even in brief scenes, a chilling feeling must be conveyed. I worked hard to maintain a sensitive state throughout the filming period.

- Looking at the confrontation between Ray and In-nam, the focus seems to be more on the latter...

▲ I don’t regret that. In the movie, In-nam’s longing for salvation and paternal love are the most important. Ray’s role is to evoke anxiety and urgency. If he had more depth, it might have disrupted the overall flow.

- You seem to have mastered overcoming unbalanced lighting. You left a strong impression appearing in the middle of films like Face Reader (2013) and Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds (2017).

▲ That’s too kind. I just tried to do well regardless of the role’s weight. Honestly, there is pressure. Even brief roles have meaning. But if you leave too strong an impression, it can disrupt the overall flow. How harmoniously you blend in is the most important.

- In that sense, you seem to have good chemistry with Hwang Jung-min.

▲ I think so. In New World (2012), Jung-min hyung uniquely colored the role of Jung-cheong. This time, he was responsible for the overall rhythm of the film. Even though the roles changed, we showed good chemistry because we prioritized the film’s direction. We had many conversations about what kind of acting would be most helpful. In that process, the question “Wouldn’t this be better?” never came up once. That’s rare.

- The fight scene performed together in a narrow corridor in this movie seems likely to be talked about for a long time.

▲ We filmed it at a motel in Thailand. The corridor was narrow with no escape routes, so the fight was captured intensely. Maybe because of the cramped space, strong emotions surfaced during acting. I think Jung-min hyung felt the same. We really became In-nam and Ray (laughs).

- I heard you are preparing to debut as a director with the movie Hunt. When did you become interested in directing?

▲ It was when filming The Thieves (2012). Senior actor Simon Yam, who played Chen, was preparing to direct Dark Tales: Miriya (2013). Jung Guk-sang, who played Johnny, was directing After the Rain (2012). They said they wrote scripts whenever they had time. Seeing their multifaceted efforts gave me great inspiration. They felt like filmmakers beyond actors. I envied their freedom to work without boundaries. Since then, I wrote scripts whenever I had free time. For Hunt, I bought the original rights and adapted it.

- It must be a difficult path...

▲ Maybe because production hasn’t materialized yet, I only think it will be fun. It will probably be different once I hold the megaphone. People around me worry. They say my meticulous personality will make it very hard. Even if that’s true, I don’t want to be scared beforehand. My heart is still youthful.