The Edgy Side of Han Hyo Joo for High Cut Magazine

It’s pretty funny to see these stunning new edgy High Cut magazine pictures from Han Hyo Joo at the same time I’m falling in love with Jang Ok Jung, Live in Love. Han Hyo Joo’s most famous performance to-date has to be her starring role in the K-drama Dong Yi. I confess to checking out pretty early (at episode 20 but for a 60 episoder that was on the early side) because it was so by-the-books boring for me. I confess to not seeing early 80s and 90s sageuks from famed director Lee Byung Hoon, but his Seodongyeo was my first and probably one of my favorite sageuks despite seeing its limitations. Since then I haven’t liked his increasingly dull safe style and the recent Horse Doctor is the best sleep aid ever. So Dong Yi was a miss for me, and I was quite surprised to see Han Hyo Joo lauded for her performance since I thought she was pretty bad. I guess playing the historically well-regarded kind Dong Yi makes for a rootable heroine, though I’m quite excited to see a different conceptualization of Dong Yi as less bland saintly angel and more ambitious and self-serving court lady in JOJ. Han Hyo Joo might’ve challenged her acting more to play this version of Dong Yi, and judging from her bad girl-esque pics here she could totally pull it off and add some sizzle to her usual vanilla image. As much as I’m really growing fond of Kim Tae Hee as this new and awesome version of Jang Ok Jung, I also wouldn’t have minded if Han Hyo Joo was the lead. Though that would be like mashing alternate drama universes together and somewhere a black hole might form. I’m not sure she’s going to do dramas anytime soon though. She has been exclusively doing movies for the last 3 years and up next is her police thriller Surveillance with my Jung Woo Sung playing the bad guy.


Comments

The Edgy Side of Han Hyo Joo for High Cut Magazine — 16 Comments

    • Yeah I agree. She’s not a great actress and I think her fundamentals are not quite there yet. But she has good screen presence. And she’s likable.

  1. Yes Han Hyo Joo’s performance wasn’t the best in Dong Yi but still this drama had my heart. 🙂

    Love the photoshoot… looks amazing! Wish she would star in a new drama soon.

  2. Oh, i love this photo shoot! Thanks.
    Well, i think that Han Hyo Joo is a very talented actress, can do youthful to mature roles, cute to sexy. True that her performance in DY is not her best, but I think that it’s quite unfair that she gets written off continuously as a not-so-good actress just because of that.To me she has been stellar in most of her projects, especially the past three years in movies, for which she has been pretty much praised,too, by critics, particularly in SKorea. I guess she needs to return to dramaland to prove her worth.^^

    • Some people who said that she is not good of an actress, some of them have watched her movies as well. Not of all us are judging her based on her Dong Yi performance alone.
      To each of their own.

  3. I’ve only seen her in shining inheritance and that movie with jaejoong
    she’s really pretty but her acting wasn’t really that outstanding..though she may have improved since then

  4. I liked her as Dong Yi especially when she matched wits with the lady Jang. I loved how they battled each other. And I don’t think the show ever portrayed lady Jang as evil. She made some stupid decisions and ger hunger for power was her ultimate downfall. I loved Dong Yi’s relationship with Ji Jin He’s Sukjong, he was so funny!

    I find it funny how Dong Yi was a slave in the show and now JOJ in the new show is also from a low background.

  5. OMG. I totally think I passed this photo shoot a few months ago while I was dog walking. I didn’t recognize her at the time, since I haven’t seen any of her dramas. knew I should’ve stopped and gotten some autographs anyway! This really is a stunning shoot.

  6. Me too I am growing fond of KTH. I watched episodes 3 and 4 again I love how YAI is flirty with her and how she respond to that with a restrain and quiet behaviour. One can see girl is smitten but she still has other priorities and she doesn’t forget people around her 🙂

  7. Yes, she’s not that good in Dong Yi but that drama is so good until the last epsiode that I rewatch it from time to time.

  8. I loved dong yi but I agree that her performance was pretty weak there. She definitely has that likeable personality so it’s easy to see past the acting flaws. (Yes I have seen her recent movies). I simply adored dong yi and jjh’s sukjong. He was uncanny funny with dong yi.

    Edgy is definitely how I’d describe this shoot. She’s very pretty.

  9. I actually like Han Hyo Joo even with her limited acting skills lol. Have you seen her on Running Man? She’s so feisty. Man, I like her being edgy and rough than the candy type lol.
    & I just saw her movie Love 911 aka Bandage with Goo Soo the other day and I think she got better? There were some eh scenes but I like the coupling there so it worked out~ though the ending was so cheesy… LOL.

  10. this would definitely be a late reply, but I’ll take my chance that may be somebody will be able to read this. I studied the life of Dong Yi for a bit, well Consort Choi, with your suggestion that she could have played a more ambitious side of the character, that she played so safely of the character like an angel or saint or whatnot by virtue if you would read about Consort Choi, could probably say that was the best presentation of the character. The Consort was known to be a woman of virtue, kindness and righteousness on the general perspective. Poems of the King Sokjung her partner, and her son Prince yeoning, to be King Jeong.. I forgot the name. You can see the description of her character. So for your suggestion to portray the Consort on a different manner, would entirely defeat the purpose of the drama to somewhat portray the life of a woman who gave birth and nurtured one of the best Kings in Korean History. thank you for reading.

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