In your career you have never tackled the same genre and themes more than once. You have directed westerns, comedies, action, horror. I Saw the Devil is, however, a very violent thriller. Why this choice to always explore new genres?

I agree with those who say that I always looked for new genres. After each film I would decide which genre I would make next and then create a plot or narrative that would best fit that particular genre. However, when I look back, I have to say that what drives me is curiosity and a thirst for knowledge, before the genre. These aspects influence more than the genre itself. When I decide on the new project, my decision reflects the feelings felt by the previous film. For example, my first feature film, The Quiet Family, was created by combining two genres, comedy and horror. As you can imagine, this film was more of a situational drama than a traditional drama with a plot. Therefore, this film prompted me to pursue a more plot-focused genre, and that was how Foul King was born. After making Foul King, I wanted to make a female-driven film, and that’s why I made the short film Memories and then Two Sisters. A Bittersweet Life was born out of the thought, “What if I made a male version of Two Sisters?” I tried to combine the delicate touch of Two Sisters with male elements. The Good, the Mad, the Bad was also created because I wanted to make an opposite genre to A Bittersweet Life. I would say that A Bittersweet Life portrays the inner mind of the protagonist, while The Good, the Mad, the Bad is extroverted and experiments with a unique genre on a large scale.

The Good, the Mad, the Bad was an overly ambitious project with a fascinating style, but I wanted to make a dense and compact film, and that was the starting point for I Saw the Devil. To sum up, I tend to make a new project that is the opposite of the previous one, and that comes from a strong thirst for knowledge and curiosity. Curiosity makes me think of certain images, and I try to think of the genre that best fits those images. I would say that my films always remove the curiosity and thirst for knowledge generated by the previous film.

In this sense, I anticipate that my next film will be brighter and kinder.

Park Hoon Jung wrote the original screenplay, but you adapted it. It was the first film you didn’t write yourself. How did the project come about? What did you change in the original screenplay?

Choi Min-sik called me while I was in the United States. He told me that he could present me with a shocking script and asked if I could direct it. At that time I was preparing a project in the United States, so I was reluctant to say yes to him. But I asked him to let me read it. And he was right, it was indeed shocking, as he said.

The level of violence described was quite extreme and the script was very powerful. Then my new project in the United States had been postponed. What interested me most about this script was the way it dealt with revenge, which was different from other films I had seen. I think that made the film very interesting. However, it needed some “cinematic” changes. So I adapted it a bit, but few things were changed. I changed the season, from summer to winter. And I made the opening sequence more lyrical, with a dark atmosphere. A sister-in-law, a female character in the house, and Kyung-chul’s family are all characters created later. I also changed the climax and ending sequences. I thought it would make more sense to portray a man who was supposed to be a devil to punish evil in an early sequence. And his sad and desperate revenge can be more distinct with the new ending sequence.

The characterization is well done and studied to the smallest detail. Soo-hyun’s character is driven by anger at failing to protect his girlfriend and a desire for revenge against the killer. Kyung-chul, on the other hand, kills just for fun, without feeling any remorse. How difficult was it to create and then bring these two characters to the screen?

Soohyun is an agent of Korea’s National Intelligence Service and is mainly involved in protecting important people. However, he failed to save his beloved fiancée and this caused him a huge sense of regret. At first he tried to keep calm. Then he decided to take revenge, inflicting more and more pain at every step. Just like Hamlet waiting for the climax of revenge. In this sense, controlling the acting, especially balancing expressions, was an arduous task to maintain the tone of cold madness. Directing Choi Min-sik’s character was very difficult, as he had to be hyperactive and excited at all times to play his role.

The film focuses on the emotions and actions of two men. Therefore, the choice of the two main protagonists was very important. Were Choi Min-Sik and Lee Byung-hun chosen through casting or did you already have them in mind as the leads?

I was involved in this project by an actor, which does not happen often. Choi Min-sik, in fact, first read the script and asked me to direct it. As Choi did with me, I met Lee Byunghun by chance and asked him to act in the film. He was impressed by the story and eventually decided to work with us just after reading the script. Perhaps Lee envisioned a film that pursued a satisfying revenge, since he made a decision in such a short time. I actually still wonder if we interpreted the script differently [laughs].

Anyway, I was really interested in developing this film to see how extreme the character would be in the film. With high expectations of the two actors, I wanted to see the clash between the warmer character, Choi, and the colder character, Lee, on screen.

The film is not a simple revenge story, but is more like a “catch and release” type of revenge, with disastrous consequences for all the characters involved. Rather than killing for revenge, Soo-hyun prefers to torture the killer.

The plot is undoubtedly entertaining. That is why I became interested in this project. However, the acting was also very powerful. When it was released in Korea, the promotional slogan was “the clash of hot and cold madness.” In addition, cinematographer Lee Mo-gae’s somber watercolor-like images, music, and the unique structure of the scenes and set design are often mentioned in reviews. Of course, there are some elements that do not satisfy me.

Does the “devil” in the title refer to Kyung-chul’s character and his perverse and violent life, or does it also refer to Soo-hyun’s character who became a murderer?

The title has several meanings. First, the audience may think of Kyung-chul’s character. Then it may also think of Soo-hyun, seeing that he repeats revenge. In the end, the audience may realize that they want Soo-hyun to carry out real revenge and thus that evil exists in their hearts.

Lee Byung-hun did a great job because his role was not so easy, but Choi Min-Sik is really extraordinary. He completely entered into the character. He was able to bring out the dark, evil, violent behavior that was hidden deep inside. What do you think of him and his acting?

First of all, I consider Lee Byung-hun an actor like a misty rain, while Choi Min-sik an actor like a driving rain. Like a misty rain, looking at Lee, you don’t realize that you are completely soaking wet. On the other hand, looking at Choi, you feel like he is controlling you and getting you wet without giving you time to think. When Choi looks toward the camera, I would say that the shot itself creates a scenario. He becomes an actor telling a life-long story with the wrinkles on his face. In the past he reminded me of Gary Oldman, now he reminds me of Jeff Bridges.

What was the atmosphere like on set during filming? Was the schedule very tight?

The shooting days were neither too long nor too short. Actually, compared to my last project, the shooting days were shorter. Choi Min-sik was always good at making the atmosphere pleasant and fun. Perhaps it was his way of escaping the extremely evil character he played.

The film contains a lot of blood and make-up special effects done in a very realistic and effective way. Did you pay much attention to these details to make things more realistic and cruel and avoid a grotesque, overly fake result?

It is necessary to be very delicate and detailed when describing scenes with blood because this film belongs to the gore thriller genre. Therefore, I asked for a lot of details and as a result it became very difficult to achieve satisfactory results. Usually directors get used to the scene, no matter how cruel it is, because it was created by them. However, even though I looked at the scenes numerous times during filming and editing, there are still some points that I would rather not look at and close my eyes. I guess this means that I am satisfied with the result and the quality of the scenes.

How was the sequence in the cab shot? It is very realistic, violent and terrifying.

We separated the canopy and the top of the cab doors and put the actors inside. I arranged the filming in the studio. I placed a sheet of acrylic on top so that the actors’ movements would be limited at that height. The landscapes outside the window, which we had previously shot outdoors, were all CGI. While the camera was shooting in and out, we also rotated the entire cab.

Because this scene involved a lot of blood, it was difficult to shoot it the way I wanted. Also, we had not prepared a lot of clothes and it took longer to bring everything back to its original state. This scene is powerful because everything was perfectly set as I had planned. But it was not easy.

Was it difficult to shoot the scene toward the end of the film when Soo-hyun again kidnaps Kyung-chul, who is on his way to the police in a car? A truly adrenaline-filled and action-packed sequence.

First of all, it was difficult to control traffic and pedestrians during filming. It was also difficult to direct Soo-hyun’s emotions to the limit. Mainly because I needed the audience to feel extreme excitement. During editing, I used a different shot than what should have been included, almost by accident. The car almost ran over Choi Min-sik because it suddenly swerved and passed the point where it was supposed to stop. It was quite dangerous, but still it made the excitement of the scene best.

What was your reaction to the Korea Media Rating Board forcing you to re-edit the film for its theatrical release, objecting to its violent content? What are the main differences between the two versions (the censored one and the director’s cut)?

It has been rated “NR” twice in Korea. There are no theaters in Korea for unrated films. So it was like it was banned from being shown everywhere. So I had to edit the cruelest scenes to get approval. I don’t think the theme of the film was harmed by editing the scenes, but I once said during a press interview that I felt like eating sushi without wasabi.

However, with the director’s cut the audience can savor wasabi instead. The sense of rhythm and control of the degree of description could be revived. On the other hand, I think the international version is less dramatic and emotional because I replaced some of the music. Also, it is edited more tightly. Although the international version is less emotional, I assume it is more rhythmic in terms of editing.

You said the film was so hard for you psychologically that it pushed you to the extreme. In what way?

The character in this film went through a bad experience and so did the audience. So I too, as the person who created it, went through a situation that was not a happy one. It was the first time I took antidepressants for two months. I deserved it because I was the one who had brought everyone into the worst situation in the film. Now I feel better and I think I will be cured for the next film. Now I am coming out of the deep darkness and I can keep my composure.