Ji Chang-wook Plays a Crook in ‘Revolver’

Ji Chang-wook plays a crook, Andy, in Revolver, co-starring Jeon Do-yeon and Lim Ji-yeon, a crime-action revenge film scheduled for release on August 7.

Ji paints Andy with a deft mix of nuanced glances, deliberate gestures, and an intensity of inner complexity, building the character’s grayness. As Andy teases seasoned villainy in the movie trailer, he suggests he’s coming to stir up trouble. 

Directed by Oh Seung-uk, Revolver follows Ha Soo-young (Jeon), an ex-cop jailed for dubious charges who goes on a quest upon her release.

It dawns on the woman that the promised recompense for her incarceration has not materialized, so she resolves to retrieve it. In the process, Soo-young learns of Andy as the mastermind driving things and begins her dogged mission to get even with him.

Andy’s broken promises and lies, in essence, ignite the fire in the film, and Ji plays the dark side with much style and presence—a reckless charm you cannot deny. How he fully embraces Andy’s villainy—its hidden currents of ambition, deception, and a warped sense of reality—is typical of Ji Chang-wook’s acting genius, solidifying the character’s crucial role in molding the story.

At a recent press conference for Revolver, Ji said he wants to be called “Mad Dog,” Andy’s nickname in the film. Because of his limited ability relative to his possessions, the guy is imperfect and prone to mistakes, he added, summarizing Andy as a “troublemaker.” He further revealed that, primarily because of director Oh Seung-uk and co-actor Jeon Do-yeon, he took on the project. Besides, it was suggested by the CEO of its production company, Sanai Pictures, while filming for the drama The Worst of Evil. Playing Andy, he expressed, was fun and not unfamiliar to him, but those who watched him perform on set said it was a new version of him. 

The Korean heartthrob makes periodic appearances in the trailer, showcasing Andy’s shenanigans with vivid expressions. He is treacherous and cryptic—in his ways with Soo-young—to avoid paying her the money he promised in exchange for her imprisonment to cover his crimes. Ji Chang-wook deftly presents him the way he is: twisted, vicious, and sardonic, and strikes a balance between, I believe, the character’s external scheming and his inner conflict, emphasizing the complexity of who or how he is.

You know, in my estimation, when a flawed, dynamic man like Andy is rendered by a lionized actor like Ji Chang-wook, it does go past screen time and sort of makes you consider the performing component of wickedness alongside the appealing artistic skill that brings him to life. And honestly speaking, I can’t wait for the actor to break bad and unleash chaos on screen.