Political thriller 'Devil's Deal' explores themes of power, corruption and betrayal in 1990s

• Published date: 28 February 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

In the political thriller, "The Devil's Deal," filmmaker Lee Won-tae explores the themes of power, corruption and betrayal as he traces an aspiring politician's rise to power. The film stars Cho Jin-woong in the title role of Hae-woong, Lee Sung-min as power broker Sun-tae and Kim Moo-yul as gang boss Pil-do.

Set in Busan in 1992, the film follows the story of a morally conflicted, opportunistic politician who embarks on a tumultuous journey as he attempts to regain his political footing following a general election fallout.

A civilian democratic government with direct election of the president was inaugurated in 1992, marking the beginning of a new chapter in Korea's political history after three decades of military rule.

Both the general election of the National Assembly and the presidential election took place the same year.

Cho said he was most intrigued by the contradictions of Hae-woong, who he described as "a complex character who would sell his soul to the devil in exchange for power."

"Hae-woong is a political outsider and an average guy in his 40s who tries to manage the difficult obstacles life puts in his way," he said at a recent press conference for the film. In writing the story, director Lee said he could only imagine Cho for the lead role.

Shadows and color contrast are used extensively by the director to illustrate how Hae-woong becomes evil over time. "What we tried to do was have things go darker as Hae-woong's mind gets darker. As he is being pushed into a corner, he goes darker in his colors," Lee explained. "We used shadows to express the dark night of the soul, or how tainted one can become."

A scene from the film, 'The Devil's...