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- Interview
- Actress KIM Kkob-bi in THE LIAR
- by HA Jung-min / Nov 23, 2015
- “I played my own ‘Ah-young’ within”
The Liar is about a woman who can't do without lying. Despite the fact that she can't afford an expensive apartment or extravagant items, she checks high-end penthouses on sale and test-drives pricey foreign cars. She puts her daily life on the line, parading around as the daughter of a wealthy family to her colleagues. What persuades the audience to accept and observe this frustratingly unlikeable woman is the superb performance given by actress KIM Kkob-bi. Her arduous efforts to mesh her own self into Ah-young’s character transform this incomprehensive woman into someone that can be found anywhere.
The Liar, highlighted by KIM Kkob-bi’s exquisite acting, earned the Daemyung Culture Wave Award at the 19th Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) and an invite to the AFI Fest 2015.
Ah-young is a woman who lies habitually.
When I first read the script, she seemed so peculiar, like a woman you may find in a popular investigative journalism TV program. However, her lies are not so large-scaled. She continues lying about her personal trifles in order to hide her reality. There’re many things Ah-young wants to do and have for her own that can't be achieved. Her mother has left the family, her older sister is an alcoholic and her younger brother is no better than a bum. It has become Ah-young’s responsibility to be the breadwinner of the family. Yet Ah-young does not want to give up her personal desires. This subsequently leads to a series of lies and she finds solace there. This may explain the arrogant airs she puts on as she waltzes through the shop floors, you know, like the satisfaction you feel when sales clerks pay attention to you as you look through high-end items.Gradually Ah-young’s lies pile up one after the other. It’s a difficult character to be accepted by the audience without the right details. How did you manage to play Ah-young?I don’t know if it’s my innate curiosity or my occupational hazard as an actress, but I’m quite interested in psychological changes in people. I tend to analyze the cause of people's decisions as I hear news or stories from people around me. And by doing this, even if I can’t empathize with them, at least I can understand them. That’s how I tried to grasp Ah-young’s character. In some way, Ah-young is just an ordinary woman that can be easily seen around us. In fact, everyone has a light sense of vanity like Ah-young in them. I also have this Ah-young-like desire inside me, and I tried to become her by bringing out the most of it. Whenever I come to understand a character, there comes out a corresponding manner of speech and behavior of that character. To play Ah-young, I really put my heart into bringing out that Ah-young within.
If you can pick a scene that most convincingly exposes the complicated psychology of Ah-young, what would it be?
There is a scene where Ah-young hears her alcoholic sister leaving the house and goes after her, while applying lotion to her face after she washes it. The lotion she uses is from a sample packet that has been used a number of times and squeezed out to almost the very last drop. If you take a good look at the packet, you can see it’s from a high-end cosmetic brand you can only get from department stores. The scene’s short, but clearly reveals Ah-young’s desire to use a high-end cosmetic brand, even though it is just a sample product. And it is not just because it's costly, but because she believes it heightens her value.
Ah-young says “I’ll never lie again” at the police station after she’s exposed as a liar. Do you think she really meant it?
There are times when even you don’t understand yourself, right? Even though she vows never to lie again after being caught as a liar, I think Ah-young might have had a sense of uncertainty deep down. Perhaps she may have detected the uncertainty herself. Emotions are never clear cut anyway, don’t you think?
There are a various understandings regarding Ah-young’s last scene. What went through your mind when you were playing the last part of her?
Director KIM Dong-myung and I concluded that Ah-young’s lies in this world may have ended, but that she’ll eventually go on to start a new series of lies in another world. So far, she may have told small and petty lies that just drew condemnations from people around her, but from now on she’ll probably lie on a criminal scale that would land her in an investigative journalism TV program. She may even disguise her own identity because people don’t easily change.
As an actress it must be fun to be playing such a stereoscopic character.
Ah-young is the type of character that any actress would wish for. It is not easy to play diverse psychological states and situations, but I actually enjoyed it. I had fun playing her although I had no time for a break as Ah-young was in almost every scene in the film. And I felt a sense of achievement as I singlehandedly carried the film from the beginning to the end.
Regardless of genre, you always show realistic performances. Whenever we get to see the characters played by KIM Kkob-bi, it’s like they’re someone in reality.
I guess it’s because I try to bring out what’s in me when I play a character. I occasionally get asked if this doesn’t stress me out, but in fact I get more satisfaction out of it. I feel a kind of catharsis by releasing words and actions through my characters that are definitely inside me, but often get restrained just for the sake of being polite or not losing face. When I lash out in anger or cry for a scene, I get this feeling of liberation. And I’m not the type to suffer from aftereffects as I can easily step away from the character I played when the shoot’s all over.
It has been 10 years since you made your debut with Jealousy Is My Middle Name (2003). You have been acting non-stop since then and have more than 40 films in your filmography. Is there a reason why you choose to be on so many films?
I have no special reason for that. It just happened that way. I’m not the type to be too particular about the films I choose. When a casting offer comes my way and I like the story and character, I usually opt to work on the film. It is natural for an actor to act. And as an individual, I need to earn a living. Top stars can choose to work on a film once every few years, but that is not my case.
What’s your driving force to continue acting non-stop?Sometimes I can tell that my acting skills are improving. And this realization is extremely fulfilling. It is fun to see and feel my performance getting better. I am still an actress in the making, but because of this, I can go on enjoying my work as an actress.
You have worked on a number of experimental genre films and co-productions.
I have often worked on international projects through friendships I have made at international film festivals, and I hope to continue working on many projects like this because it expands my realm of acting and gives me an opportunity for new experiences. Of course there are difficulties—the primary one is the language barrier. It would be even better if I get to perform in a foreign language, which I could practice. But acting in Korean in a foreign film is often more difficult. As the lines are usually written by a non-Korean director, they often fail to reflect Korean sensibilities and culture. Then I’ll have to go through the lines and revise them in a way that Koreans would actual speak, which is a sensitively grueling process.
Are there any projects that inspire you to take the challenge?
Like The Liar, I like films examining the inner psychology of a character from diverse vantage points. But these kinds of stories and characters are not just limited to serious films. A well-made comedy not only presents humor but also bites insight on the nature of human beings. I’d love to work on a comedy film like that. YOON Seong-ho’s TV drama, Read My Lips, is a comedy, genre-wise, but each character is immersed in realistic details. But I'd still do even if I don't get those opportunities. I’d still be satisfied if only I could continue acting like I am now. I couldn’t ask for more. If only I can make a living just by acting, I’d like to continue working on film projects for as long as I can. So far I have worked on many good films. I don’t have anything scheduled for now, and for the time being, I’d like to take a break and recharge.
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