Rain Ready In “THE PRINCE”
Korean pop star Rain is back in
fighting form after serving in the army for his country. Back to work and in
full action mode, Rain stars alongside Hollywood’s Bruce Willis and Jason
Patric in “The Prince” where he plays loyal henchman to Willis’ character who
is about to settle scores with Patric playing the title role.
“The Prince” pits two long time
enemies – a retired assassin Paul Brennan (Patric) and Omar (Willis), the
city’s most powerful man who faceoff once again after twenty years. Paul Brennan (Patric), a retired New Orleans
crime boss, has lived a quiet life off the grid, running an auto repair garage
in remote Mississippi when his teenage daughter goes missing, Paul is forced to
return to the city and face his former enemies.
The plot follows the re-awaking of a
feud between a retired assassin and the man whose wife he killed years earlier.
This man, played by Bruce Willis, exacts revenge by kidnapping the former hit
man's daughter. Now the two are chasing each other through the streets of
Mobile, although the trailer indicates it's set in Mississippi. Standing dangerously between the two is Mark
(Rain), loyal henchman to Omar. Omar
instructs his henchmen to bring Paul to him, but Mark (Rain), measures his
words carefully before counseling, Let him do whatever it is he came here for
and crawl back to whatever rock he’s been hiding under. “Mark is cool headed
and charismatic,” says South Korean actor and singer Rain, who plays Omar’s
quick-on-the-draw, right hand man.
For Rain, whose real name is Jung Ji-hoon, “The Prince”
is his first action film as he comes back to making movies after his military
service. Rain, known as a superstar
musician in Asia, crossed over into acting with his debut in the hit South
Korean television series “Sang-Doo” (Let’s Go to School). He solidified his
position as an actor with his lead role in the Korean mini-series “Full House,”
and became recognized throughout Asia as not only as a singer, but an actor as
well. The drama was aired throughout most of Asia, including Japan and China,
with an average program rating of over 50 percent. This was the start of Rain
Fever that seemed to cross borders throughout the east and Southeast Asia.
During his latest Korean television
mini-series, “A Love To Kill,” Rain’s headstrong approach to trials and
challenges made him more versatile as an actor. One of the most acclaimed
filmmakers in Korea, Chan Wook Park, known internationally for his VENGEANCE
Triology (Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance, Oldboy, Sympathy for Lady Vengeance),
chose Rain to star in “I’m A Cyborg, But That’s Ok.” It was a great honor and
opportunity for Rain to finally break into films, and he was featured alongside
stars Ji-Hoon Jung and Soo Jeong Im. The film won the Alfred Bauer Award for
Particular Innovation in Filmmaking, one of the eight main awards at the 57th
Berlin International Film Festival, and Rain received the Best New Actor Award
for his role in the film at the 43rd Baek Sang Arts Award in Korea in 2007.
For his Hollywood debut, Rain was
cast as a rookie racer in the Andy and Lana Wachowski’s action adventure film
“Speed Racer,” based on the classic
series created by anime pioneer Tatsuo Yoshida. This movie boasted the kind of revolutionary
visual effects and cutting-edge storytelling that have become the benchmarks of
the Wachowskis’ films, and gave Rain his first chance to leave his mark in the
American entertainment industry. Impressed by Jung’s work ethic and his huge
talent, the Wachowskis’ chose Rain for the lead in their next movie, “Ninja
Assassin.” In the 2009 release, Rain plays Raizo, one of the deadliest
assassins in the world.
“The Prince” will open in theatres
nationwide on September 10 from Axinite Digicinema.
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