Zhang Ziyi, star of "Memoirs of a Geisha" and the Oscar-winning "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," visited Korea on Thursday to promote "Sophie`s Revenge" along with Korean co-star So Ji-sub.

Clad in a silky pink one-piece dress and with her dark hair pulled back, Zhang looked every bit the ravishing beauty the world got to know in her debut as the butt-kicking warrior in Ang Lee`s "Crouching Tiger."

"I don`t want to be the type of woman that`s rough-around-the-edges anymore," she said during the press conference at the Shilla Hotel in Seoul.

Her subsequent portrayals of tough-as-nails characters have left her with the label, the one she has been trying to shake, of a one-dimensional actress.

"Sophie`s about 60-70 percent of my real self. I`m always bright, bubbly and full of charm, as she is in this film. I hope I can show off those qualities as naturally as I can on the screen," she said.



In the film she plays the eponymous lead, a popular Chinese comic book artist and writer who vows revenge after being dumped the day before her marriage to surgeon-boyfriend Jeff (So Ji-sub). The film is also her first foray behind the scenes, as she is credited as one of its producers.

The 30-year-old Zhang co-stars with So Ji-sub, one of Korea`s most popular silver and small-screen heartthrobs. "He has a lot of fans in China because of his popular Korean dramas. When he made a promotional visit to Beijing, there were a lot of fans that turned out to see him," she said. "I admired his commitment because he invested so much time and effort into learning the Chinese language and mastering the cadences specifically for this film.

"I, of course, having experienced the same difficulties acting in English and Japanese in my previous films understand what he had to go through and place him in the highest regard as an actor."

Zhang was complimentary of more than just So`s professionalism, though.

"He`s also very attractive, of course, and has a killer body and I would love to work with him on another project in the future if chance permits," she joked.

The actor, most famous for the KBS television drama "I`m Sorry, I Love You," replied with his own words of glowing affirmation.

"She`s known mostly for strong characters but in person she looked adorable and was always so friendly with everyone. She`s a consummate professional who really gets into her roles as fervently as she would in a more serious film.

"The word going around was that (Ziyi) sought me out to take part in the film but I didn`t get that confirmation from her," he joked.

So`s involvement mirrors Zhang`s motivation to take on a different type of character, as the brooding 31-year old is known mostly for prince-of-darkness-type characters in both television and film.

"This is my second foreign film after taking part in the Japanese production `Kitaro,` so I thought this would be my chance to shed some of the gruff image I`ve been mostly known for," he said.

"And because my co-stars in the film are hugely popular in China and Taiwan, I wanted to be a part of it as that would give me more exposure - though my role in the film doesn`t take up much screen time."

Asked who he would choose between Zhang Ziyi and Fan Bingbing - the film`s other Chinese starlet - So stayed diplomatic, simply stated each of the leading women`s appealing characteristics.

"I quite like the character of Sophie in the film, but if I were to make a choice in the real world, I couldn`t say. Ziyi is humble and very cute and she`s a lot like Sophie. She even said this was the first time she played a character that was most in common with her real self.

"As for Bingbing, she was very charismatic and very quick on her feet when it came to immersing herself and getting into character during the shoot."

Known as a thoroughly available bachelor, So also tackled various inquiries about his love life.

"Marriage is an important thing, isn`t it? You`re being bound to one woman who you will have to live with forever and the question of `is this the right one?` is something everyone has thought of. Of course, I wouldn`t know since I`ve never been in a serious enough relationship, but I could never do the thing my character does in the film of just leaving his bride-to-be hanging at the altar the night before the big day," he said.

"Even if I had someone who I really liked, I`d probably just go around in circles since I wouldn`t know how to express my feelings, as I`m pretty reticent when it comes to opening up to women."

(kws@heraldm.com)



By Song Woong-ki