Shin Hyun-joon pays tearful tribute to late co-star Kim Soo-mi

Shin Hyun-joon fights back tears standing next to a life-size cutout of his longtime co-star, the late Kim Soo-mi, at a press event for
Shin Hyun-joon fights back tears standing next to a life-size cutout of his longtime co-star, the late Kim Soo-mi, at a press event for "Thunderstruck Cop" at Seoul's CGV Yongsan, Monday. (Yonhap)

At Monday's press event for "Thunderstruck Cop" at CGV Yongsan in Seoul, emotional tributes to the late actor Kim Soo-mi overshadowed the typical prerelease discussions.

"Mom always hoped this would open during Lunar New Year," said Shin Hyun-joon, who consistently referred to Kim as "mom" throughout the conference ― a testament to their bond forged through multiple on-screen mother-son pairings.

Kim, who passed away in October at 75, rose to prominence in the 1980s in the TV series "Country Diaries," before becoming a beloved character actor known for her sharp-tongued matriarch roles. She had remained a fixture in Korean entertainment ever since, equally known for her caustic one-liners as her legendary cooking skills.

"Between takes, she'd feed the entire crew," Shin recalled about the late actress. "We had all these plans to go on TV shows together." The team decided to preserve all her scenes, though plans for sequels featuring her character gaining superpowers will remain unrealized.

The afternoon also revealed the decadeslong bond between director Kim Young-joon and Shin. "I was just a film student at Hanyang University when I caught him sneaking into my film classes," the director reminisced. Shin responded with a laugh: "They never figured out I wasn't actually enrolled there." That encounter marked the beginning of their collaboration across multiple projects, from the 2005 period epic "Shadowless Sword" to the more modest 2008 family drama "His Last Gift."

Nostalgia is the main currency of "Thunderstruck Cop," and it spends it without restraint. The film itself trades heavily ― almost brazenly ― in a pastiche of early to mid-2000s Korean cinema, when lowbrow comedy-action hybrids were all the rage. It follows a rural cop gaining supernatural abilities after a lightning strike, blending crude slapsticks and moralistic crime thriller elements with family drama ― to mixed results at best.

The film lifts liberally from across the mother-son duo's screen collaborations of the era: The crass comedy of the "Marrying the Mafia" franchise (albeit toned down for more anodyne, family-friendly vibes), the dedicated mother-hapless son dynamic of their 2006 hit "Barefoot Ki-bong." There are even whiffs of the "Public Enemy" series' crime noir through Jung Joon-ho's villain cameo. The pastiche extends even to the marketing, with the poster showing Kim piggybacking on Shin directly mimicking "Barefoot Ki-bong."

At least within the tired genre conventions of a bygone era, the cast delivers capably. Kim's final performance anchors the laughs, her distinctive delivery of crass one-liners providing levity even in weaker moments. Shin matches her energy with a self-aware turn that fully embraces the film's absurd premise, balancing goofiness with occasional moments of seriousness.

"This was exactly what Mom wanted," Shin said, struggling with emotion. "A film that just gives families a warm laugh together."

"Thunderstruck Cop" opens nationwide Jan. 24.