All_In_(TV_series)

<i>All In</i> (TV series)

All In (TV series)

South Korean television series

All In (Korean: 올인; RR: Orin; MR: Orin) is a 2003 South Korean television drama series that aired on SBS from 15 January to 3 April 2003, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 (KST) for 24 episodes.[1] Inspired by the life of professional poker player Jimmy Cha, it starred Lee Byung-hun and Song Hye-kyo in a story about one's man's rise through the fiercely competitive world of casino gambling as he clashes with his rivals over money, success, and love.[2]

Quick Facts All In, Hangul ...

The drama was a ratings success in South Korea, with its final episode reaching a peak viewership rating of 47.7%, which is the 42nd highest-rated Korean drama episode of all time.[3] It also won several awards, notably the Grand Prize ("Daesang") for Lee Byung-hun at the 2003 SBS Drama Awards.

Synopsis

Orphaned then taken in by his gambler uncle, Kim In-ha (Jin Goo) often hangs out with his friends in the basement of a movie theater. He unexpectedly befriends Choi Jung-won, a model student and the rich son of the theater owner. In-ha and Jung-won both fall for Min Su-yeon (Han Ji-min), the daughter of the projectionist at the theater.

When Su-yeon's father was killed by loan sharks, In-ha and Jung-won hatch a plan to avenge Su-yeon by setting fire to a gangster's hideout. But the fire spreads, accidentally killing the gang leader. In-ha is sentenced to seven years, while thanks to his family connections, Jung-won avoids jail time. As In-ha serves his sentence, Jung-won goes to the United States to study and Su-yeon decides to become a nun.

Seven years pass, and by pure chance, the three all end up working at the same casino. In-ha (Lee Byung-hun) and Su-yeon (Song Hye-kyo) fall in love, but are later separated when In-ha is forced to illegally immigrate to the U.S. He finds a job as a mafia hitman, and by a stroke of luck, again meets Su-yeon, and the two plan to get married. However, on their supposed wedding day, In-ha suffers a near-fatal gunshot wound and becomes comatose for 8 months. Unaware that In-ha is alive, the grieving Su-yeon returns to Korea.

In-ha eventually recovers, but Jung-won (Ji Sung) intervenes, saying that he is unworthy to love Su-yeon. In-ha decides to turn his life of misery around and becomes a professional gambler. He meets a business partner and, betting everything he has, returns to Korea to win back Su-yeon's love.

Cast

Main

Supporting

  • Lee Deok-hwa as Choi Do-hwan, Jung-won's father
  • Sunwoo Eun-sook as Yoon Hye-sun, Jung-won's mother
  • Im Hyun-sik as Kim Chi-soo, In-ha's uncle
  • Park Won-sook as Jang Hyun-ja
  • Jo Kyung-hwan as Chairman Seo Seung-don, Jin-hee's father
  • Kim Tae-yeon as Jenny
  • Huh Joon-ho as Yoo Jong-gu, In-ha's friend from prison
  • Choi Jung-won as Yoo Jung-ae, Hyun-ja's daughter
  • Choi Joon-yong as Park Tae-joon, In-ha's hometown friend who became a detective
  • Yoon Gi-won as Woo Yong-tae, In-ha's hometown friend who became a waiter
  • Baek Seung-hyeon as Yang Shi-bong, In-ha's hometown friend who is crippled
  • Jung Yoo-seok as Im Dae-soo ("Shorty")
  • Jung Ho-bin as Jung Joon-il
  • Park Jung-woo as Jjagoo
  • Im Dae-ho as Chun Sang-gu
  • Yoon Seo-hyun as Man-soo
  • Hong Yeo-jin as bar hostess
  • Cho Yeon-woo as yakuza
  • Kim Byung-se as Michael Jang
  • Yuko Fueki as Rie Ochida
  • Kim Hee-jung as office clerk
  • Park Sang-myun as Im Dae-chi, gang boss
  • Kim Ha-kyun as Director Son
  • Choi Ran as Manager Jang Mi-ran
  • Park Joon-hee as Jo Jung-min
  • Gi Ju-bong as Bae Sang-doo

Production

Development and casting

All In was adapted from the novel of the same name by Noh Seung-il, inspired by the life of poker player Jimmy Cha. The title All In comes from a term in poker that refers to betting one's entire stake. Though the plot was adapted from the novel, the characters were wholly original to the drama.[2]

In 2000, SBS drama production team director Lee Jong-su first approached Jimmy Cha, on whom the original novel was based, to adapt the novel for a TV series, but Cha rejected the offer due to Korea's negative attitude towards gambling. Lee later approached Cha again twice, requesting to make a series about Cha's mother. Cha turned the offer down both times, but the project was already at the casting stage. A meeting was held, and screenwriter Choi Wan-gyu suggested changing the concept to focus more on Jimmy Cha's life as a whole.[4]

Lee Byung-hun had already been cast as the main role,[4] but his female counterpart had not been decided on; actors considered for the role included Lee Young-ae, Song Yoon-ah, Kim Hee-sun, and Shin Eun-kyung. The producers then suggested Song Hye-kyo to Jimmy Cha, and Cha gave SBS the OK to cast her.[5] Additionally, Joo Sang-wook was supposed to play the young version of Lee Byung-hun's character, but he was replaced by Jin Goo last minute.[6]

Filming

Filming began on 9 September 2002[7] and took place in several locations. An outdoor set was built in Jeju Island, for which the island provided 200 million Korean won.[8] Most scenes filmed in Jeju were shot on the Seopjikoji coast, located in the city Seogwipo.[9] From 28 November to 31 December 2002, location filming took place in the United States, with the casino scenes being filmed in Las Vegas.[7][10] The kiss scene between Song Hye-kyo and Lee Byung-hun was filmed over two days, moving from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.[11] Production costs reached 250 million won per episode to a total budget of over 5 billion won, at that time the highest for a Korean miniseries.[12]

During the drama's filming, SBS promised they would stop broadcasting smoking scenes in their TV dramas. All In, which started production before the announcement, had scenes where characters smoked – as many of the scenes as possible were removed in editing, and during the scenes that couldn't be cut, subtitles were displayed during broadcast asking for understanding.[7]

Changes in writing

Initially, Ji Sung's character Jung-won was planned to die in the story, but as the show's scale increased, its plot became uncertain. Actors approached screenwriter Choi Wan-gyu mid-production to explain why their character had to die. Choi said to Maeil Business Newspaper, "All of [the actors] are very good at analyzing the drama, and their advice is very helpful. That's why I'm more worried about how to end it."[13] In the end, Choi decided that none of the main characters would die, stating that death was unnecessary for an emotional story.[14]

Additionally, Song Hye-kyo's character Su-yeon was meant to marry Jung-won, thinking Lee Byung-hun's character In-ha had died. Viewers expressed dissatisfaction with the storyline online,[15] and it was later dropped to create tension within the narrative.[16]

Awards

2003 39th Baeksang Arts Awards
  • Grand Prize (Daesang) for TV – All In
  • Best Actor for TV – Lee Byung-hun
2003 SBS Drama Awards

Regional broadcast

In April 2003, SBS signed a contract with the Taiwanese cable channel GTV to broadcast All In in Taiwan. Although the export price was not disclosed, it was said to be the highest for a Korean drama until then. At the time, the record export price had stood at over 400 million won for the Japanese export of Winter Sonata.[17]

In Japan, it first aired on the cable channel KNTV from 8 March to 25 May 2003.[18][19] Japanese satellite channel NHK BS2 broadcast All In under the title All In: Fated Love (オールイン 運命の愛, Ōruin unmei no ai) once a week from 1 April 2004,[20][21] and re-airings followed once a week on terrestrial TV starting 16 April 2005.[22][23] According to a poll conducted by TV Asahi variety show SMAP Station in May 2007, All In ranked as the seventh most popular Korean drama in Japan.[24] It was also broadcast in countries like Macedonia and Turkey on the channel Arirang TV, gaining enough popularity in Macedonia to be rebroadcast.[25][26]

See also

References

  1. [1]
    "All In". KoreanWiz. Archived from the original on 16 March 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  2. [2]
    Heo, Yoo-shin (7 January 2003). '올인'은 어떤 작품?. Kyunghyang Shinmun (in Korean). Archived from the original on 25 March 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2015 – via Naver News.
  3. [3]
    "Top 50 highest-rated TV dramas of all time". Electric Ground. 8 December 2010. Archived from the original on 17 February 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  4. [4]
    ['올인' 인생 차민수⑮] 드라마 '올인' 출연진과의 인연···이병헌·허준호·한정국·김주명. THE AsiaN. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    "차민수씨 "포커 이기려면 하지마라"". Sports Hankook (in Korean). 8 October 2003. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    Hwang, In-hye. "주상욱 "'올인' 이병헌 아역, 원래 내 자리…바뀐 이유 몰라"". TV Report (in Korean). Retrieved 20 November 2023 – via Naver News.
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    [스타인터뷰]SBS '올인' 도박사역 이병헌 '꾼의' 눈빛. The Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). 6 January 2003. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    "[방송] 드라마 제작비 100억 … '대작' 경쟁". The Chosun Ilbo (in Korean). 23 October 2002. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    Sohn, JiAe. "K-drama masterpieces (4): 'All In'". Korea.net. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    STV드라마스페셜 '올인'제작비 50억 투입. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). 29 May 2002. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    이병헌 송혜교 키스신. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). 3 January 2003. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    SBS드라마 '올인' 촬영현장 "50억 투자… 부담 크지만 잘 만들어야죠". Seoul Shinmun (in Korean). 8 January 2003. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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    올인-제가 죽을래요! 주인공들 간청. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). 16 February 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  14. [14]
    올인-모두 산다! 결말은 해피엔딩. Maeil Business Newspaper (in Korean). 24 March 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
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    "When viewers put on producers' hats". Korea Joongang Daily. 26 February 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
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    "올인" 처음과 달라진 점. Ilgan Sports (in Korean). 27 March 2003. Retrieved 10 January 2024.
  17. [17]
    [방송]SBS ‘올인’ 대만에 드라마 최고가 수출. Dong-a Ilbo (in Korean). 8 April 2003. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  18. [18]
    韓流No.1 チャンネル-KNTV (in Japanese). Archived from the original on 14 July 2014. Retrieved 11 July 2014.
  19. [19]
    『美しき日々』主演 イ・ビョンホン スクリーンからブラウン管へ [Starring in "Beautiful Days", Lee Byung Hun — from the big screen to the small screen, acting in his own style]. Kinema Junpo (in Japanese). No. 1388. September 2003. p. 128. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  20. [20]
    "드라마 '올인'내년 日 NHK 방송". Kangwon Domin Ilbo (in Korean). 23 December 2004. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  21. [21]
    "배용준 팬미팅 무료 티켓 6만명 신청". Ilgan Sports (in Korean). 4 April 2004. Retrieved 16 February 2024 – via Daum News.
  22. [22]
    "독도 파문"에도 한류 드라마 인기는 여전. Yonhap News Agency (in Korean). 20 March 2005. Retrieved 16 February 2024 – via Daum News.
  23. [23]
    "지성 만나자" 일본팬 300여 명 한국행. Ilgan Sports (in Korean). 10 May 2005. Retrieved 16 February 2024 – via Daum News.
  24. [24]
    "Winter Sonata, The Most Popular Korean Drama in Japan". Hancinema. 2 July 2007. Archived from the original on 19 December 2013. Retrieved 18 August 2013.
  25. [25]
    드라마 ‘올인’, 마케도니아서 인기. The Hankyoreh (in Korean). 26 July 2005. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  26. [26]
    드라마 ‘올인’, 18일부터 터키 전역 방송. The Hankyoreh (in Korean). 9 April 2005. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
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