Issue No. 1289 of the Korean film and entertainment magazine Cine21 (씨네21) features Director Kim Chang Joo in an interview regarding his upcoming movie “Restricted Call” (발신제한), starring Jo Woo Jin, Ji Chang Wook and Lee Jae In, which is scheduled for release in 2021.

Director Kim Chang Joo

Formerly known as “Punishment”, we wrote about its announcement back in January 2020, but Director Kim provides more information in his recent interview.

Head of a bank center in Busan is Seong-kyu (Jo Woo Jin) drives his daughter Hye-in (Lee Jae In) to her college entrance exam.  A phone call comes in on Hye-in’s phone with a restriction on the number display (also known by the slang ‘black call’).  She takes the call, and a voice tells her, “There’s a bomb under your seat right now.”  And as soon as you stop and get out of the car, you’re told it’s going to explode.

Jo Woo Jin as Sung-kyu

In the middle of downtown Busan, the frightened run of Seong-kyu’s family begins. “Restricted Call” is a urban chase thriller about a family in an unpredictable situation due to a mysterious phone call.  Director Kim Chang Joo says, “It’s the subject of a bomb.”  He was attracted by the speed of a running car, so Director Kim chose “Restricted Call” as his directorial debut.

Lee Jae In as Hye-in

The daughter Hye-in, who is about to take her entrance exam, is played by actress Lee Jae In. “In the case of actor Jo Woo Jin, his acting in “Inside Men” ( 내부자들 ) was very impressive. Director Kim:  “I thought he was the right person for Seong-gyu, who showed as cool-headed yet with strong paternal love for Hye-in while being cool.”

Ji Chang Wook as Jin-woo

Actor Ji Chang Wook plays Jin-woo, a caller whose identity is ambiguous.  Director Kim continues:  “I think Ji Chang Wook has mostly appeared in romance dramas.  In this film, he plays a role in heightening the fear of the drama’s chilliness. You will be able to see the reverse side of his unexpected charm.”

As Seong-kyu and his daughter Hye-in were in the car together, the relationship between the two also became an important part of the plot.  Even in the short close-up scenes, Seong-kyu showed strong eyes and expressions.”

Most of the filming took place in Busan.  “The biggest reason why we set Busan as the background is because of Haeundae. The scenery of the huge ‘building forest’ (skyscrapers) and the sea was beautiful, and it was also good to see the beautiful nature contrasted with the limited situation of the characters.  Filming began in early February 2020 and lasted until May 2020, and in the aftermath of Corona-19, Haeundae City was empty.  Nevertheless, we shot it with safety first.”

“As the car chasing scenes are so important, we took a vivid picture of the scenes running through the bustle of Haeundae using special equipment such as drones.  Actor Jo Woo Jin drove and acted at the same time.  It definitely doubles the sense of immersion.”  And because the incident takes place in a car’s confined space, they filmed the characters’ momentary facial expressions.

Kim Chang Joo, former managing editor of movies “The Terror Live” (더 테러라이브) and “A Hard Day” (끝까지 간다), has his first lead directing job in “Restricted Call.”  He is also in charge of producing and editing.  “I think there has been such an example.  It’s hard to cut off the hard-working gods, but when you speak, you’re the director.  When editing, it’s a proof of work with a clear separation of the editor’s ego” (laughing).

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Translated from Korean to English by cherkell; there may be slight inaccuracies.  PLEASE DO NOT REPRINT, REPURPOSE, SCREENCAP OR OTHERWISE COPY OUR CONTENT WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION.

Credit:  Cine21 Magazine, Issue No. 1289