‘Secret Garden’ stars discuss secret to show’s popularity

Posted on : 2010-12-11 13:17 KST Modified on : 2010-12-11 13:17 KST
The show involves a traditional Cinderella story but employs a unique body switching between characters
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By Nam Ji-en

Ju-won, Gil Ra-im, Oscar. Lately, it is impossible to have a conversation if one does not know these three names. Viewership for the SBS weekend miniseries “Secret Garden” is just over 20 percent, but the enthusiasm of viewers has been a sight to behold. Initially, the topic was the training outfit worn by Hyun Bin, who plays the character of Ju-won. Then lines from the show, such as “lonely and alienated neighbor”" started going up in real time on Twitter. Even though the Cinderella story of a department store president in love with a poor stuntwoman and the fantasy of a man and woman switching bodies are obvious, the viewers are aware of this and succumb nonetheless. During an interview with journalists in Yeoju on Dec. 8, the Hankyoreh met with Hyun and Ha Ji-won and heard about the secret to the show’s popularity.

Hyun: I think “Secret Garden” is popular because you can enjoy spending an hour in a light and comfortable way.

Ha: The script is fun. And another part of its appeal is that it makes you feel excitement. I really got a sense of how popular the show is when even my friends were calling me “Ra-im.”

Hyun: The part about changing bodies could come off as goofy, but when I saw the outline I didn’t have to stop and think at all. It is a kind of performance I haven’t been able to do to date, and I thought I could show something a bit different, so I actually really liked it.

Ha: Me, too. At first, I was curious about the situation where they are switching bodies because I like fantasy. But even after they have switched bodies, it is not a joke, it is for real, so I thought I needed to give a sincere performance without exaggeration, even if other people think it is fantasy or fiction. But when I actually did it, it wasn’t easy at all. I was so stressed out that I dreamed a few times about turning into a man. (laughs)

Hyun: Exactly. It was a lot harder than I thought it would be. The acting and expressions that I thought were my best in Parts 6 through 8 turned out have a lot of miscalculations when I looked at them later. I had a lot of scenes with Oscar when I changed into Ra-im, and when Ra-im actually meets Oscar she does a lot of girly things. So I tried to play up the “femininity” because I worried that if I acted out Ra-im’s qualities, it would turn into another “man.” I think that was a mistake.

Ha: For me, all of the scenes where Ju-won has transformed were difficult, but the situation itself was funny, with other people not knowing that we had switched. Especially when we were filming the scene where I’m sleeping in the same bed as A-yeong (Yu In-na), it was so funny having to be shocked and bewildered when I see A-yeong’s body because I'm also a man.

Hyun: I remember when I kissed Oscar. There's no way I could forget. (laughs) I saw Ha Ji-won raising one side of her mouth when she was playing Ju-won. I was doing that unconsciously when I was doing Ju-won’s facial expression when he’s angry. I saw she had caught that, and I thought, “Wow, you must have been secretly watching me a lot.” (laughs)

Ha: Ha ha. I observed a lot of Ju-won’s way of speaking and mannerisms, but it was still hard. So I focused on Hyun Bin when I watched the broadcast, and I practiced everything - his expressions, the look in his eyes, his way of speaking, the way he crosses his arms. It was also funny seeing the way he tapped his feet when he was playing Ra-im, or when he was capturing the look in my eyes. It was really a lot like me, and I was thinking, “Those are my actions, that’s my way of speaking.”

Hyun: But in Part 9, we went back to our own bodies, and that turned out to be another problem. We had gotten used to the other person’s way of speaking and acting, and I would have Ra-im’s way of speaking when it was clearly Ju-won’s line. (laughs)

Ha: My friends told me they were really swooning when Oscar met Ra-im after all that time and not only remembered the look in her eyes but even her name, saying, “You are Gil Ra-im, aren’t you?” Personally, I really like the line where Ju-won is doing sit-ups and says, “Since when is Gil Ra-im so pretty?” (laughs)

Hyun: I heard there were a lot of men doing sit-ups at the gym. (laughs) I was really surprising at some of the unexpected expressions used in the dialogue explaining Ra-im’s house to Oscar: “It seems like something you would see on National Geographic. There are flies buzzing around and poor children.” Ju-won’s house on the show is also surprising. It is nice shooting in such a big, stylish house, but there is an echo because the ceiling’s so high, so you have to wait a beat before hitting your line. That was tough. (laughs)

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]