Filming Locations

200 Pounds Beauty adds humor and romance to the best-selling comic by Japan’s Yumiko Suzuki. It was released in theaters in December 2006, and attracted 6.62 million moviegoers across the nation in just three months, which led to a major success with wide appeal. Television star Kim Ah-jung made her big-screen debut with this film. It made Kim Ah-jung a queen of the screen and enabled Ju Jin-mo, who wasn’t yet popular, to grab people’s attention.

A special make-up team was recruited from Hollywood to create the main character’s body, which weighs almost 100 kilograms, and Kim Ah-jung had to go through four hours of make-up before every shoot. The acting of Kim Ah-jung as well as the supporting actors, who all had unique personalities, complemented each other extremely well. The spirited and unique storyline of the movie earned great popularity among young moviegoers. In addition, “Maria,” a song sung by Kim Ah-jung herself in her role as a singer, was popular in television music programs. Around 300 million won was spent to create a concert scene that looked like a real concert. This scene was the climax of the movie and made it that much more exciting.

★ Movie Information

- Release date: December 14, 2006
- Genre: Drama
- Running time: 120 minutes
- Director: Kim Yong-hwa
- Cast: Kim Ah-jung, Ju Jin-mo, Seong Dong-il, Kim Hyeon-suk
- Homepage: english.kmculture.com (Korean)

★ Synopsis

Hanna has the voice of an angel but because of her overly obese body, 169 centimeters tall and weighing 95 kilograms, she has to remain behind the scenes. Hanna, who hides behind the stage and sings, secretly falls in love with Han Sang-jun, who is Ami’s record producer. Ami, who is jealous of Hanna’s musical talent, delivered the same dress she owns to Hanna and they show up at Han Sang-jun’s birthday party in the same dress. Hanna is wounded by the incident and goes to a plastic surgeon. Intensive but flawless surgery results in Hanna being reborn as Jenny, a gorgeous woman with a perfect body. She is beautiful, pure, innocent, and has a great voice that makes her a big star. She and Han Sang-jun begin to build a relationship. However, beautiful Hanna’s secrets slowly reveal.

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★ Character Background

Hanna, played by Kim Ah-jung
Hanna, who has a huge body—169 centimeters tall and 95 kilograms—provides the voice for the beautiful pop star, Ami, who lip syncs. She works hard for a living. She even has a part-time job at night in phone dating, for which she uses her pretty voice. She is secretly in love with Han Sang-jun, who is Ami’s record producer, but she dare not express her feelings. She excitedly goes to Han Sang-jun’s birthday party, but she is horribly humiliated and disappears. Hanna becomes a woman with a beautiful body, weighing only 48 kilograms, through plastic surgery and debuts as Jenny. Despite her beauty, she retains her pure and sweet character. She helps others in difficult situations and sometimes gets hurt herself out of concern for others.

Han Sang-jun, played by Ju Jin-mo
He is a good-looking and very talented record producer. He is highly skilled at identifying potentially successful singers and making them into stars, as well as having artistic sense. He is a perfectionist when it comes to his work so that he sometimes comes across as cold-hearted. He thinks highly of Hanna’s singing, but has no feelings for Hanna. He is good to people he needs, but does not express any real emotion to those around him.

★ Filming Locations

Olympic Gymnasium
The Olympic Gymnasium is where Jenny succeeds as a singer and holds her own concert. This is also where many famous Korean singers hold their concerts. Around 300 million won was spent on over 1,000 extras in order to make it look like a real concert. This realistic concert gives moviegoers another interesting thing to see. The concert looks especially authentic with the help of real-life backing musicians and concert managers, who are in demand these days. Not only the great dancing skills and actual singing of Kim Ah-jung are seen, but this scene is also the climax of the movie. The Olympic Gymnasium has three floors and is a facility that can accommodate roughly 15,000 people. It is located inside Olympic Park and can only be visited during special performances. However, Olympic Park is a good place to take a walk, enjoy inline skating, and biking, as well as to experience the beautiful natural setting.

Myeong-dong
Immediately after Hanna’s plastic surgery the first thing she does is head to Myeong-dong to buy items she dreamed of wearing before when she was overweight. Hanna used to just glance at a wide-brimmed hat and a dress in the shop window but she finally wears the beautiful clothes and triumphantly walks the streets of Myeong-dong. This scene is reminiscent of a musical. The scene where many men can’t keep their eyes off the beautiful Hanna was filmed in Myeong-dong, a fashion Mecca in Korea. Myeong-dong’s downtown location makes it ideal for a place to shop, eat and stroll. The brand of the clothes Hanna buys in the movie is Jessi New York.

Samgyeopsal (thin slices of pork) restaurant – Ganghwa Tongtong Meat Restaurant
The scene where Hanna drinks and eats samgyeopsal with her friend is a restaurant near Hongik University, where there are many meat restaurants. Her friend talks frankly about what types of women are popular among men, and about how men do not like Hanna. This scene featured a hilarious conversation between Hanna and her friend as they drink together and talk about outward appearances. It was filmed at a samgyeopsal restaurant located on a street lined with samgyeopsal restaurants near Hongik University that many young people frequently visit. It is a restaurant famous for mouth-watering samgyeopsal, which has movie posters on its walls. Nearby are a coffee shop where the television drama Coffee Prince No. 1 was filmed, and the entertainment district near Hongik University.

A club located in front of Hongik University, CLUB EXT
CLUB EXT, located in a famous entertainment building near Hongik University, is where the scene in which Hanna transforms into Jenny and launches her first album was filmed. The club is famous as a venue where famous domestic artists giving concerts, and where performances and showcases are given by foreign musicians. It is an actual performance space that is used as a site for live public performances that are aired by domestic broadcasting. You can usually go there to enjoy exciting shows by hip-hop musicians and lively concerts by underground groups. There is a “Fresh Live” concert every Saturday, which is a regular show run by underground, hip-hop musicians and popular musicians. The cover charge is just 10,000 won between 6 and 9 p.m. on Saturdays. The building where CLUB EXT is located has a book café that serves cakes on the first floor, an Italian restaurant on the second floor, and a wine bar on the third floor where you can enjoy 150 different types of wine.

Gyeonggi English Village, Paju Camp
Although the movie itself did not feature any scenes filmed at the Paju Camp of Gyeonggi English Village, the preview was filmed at the camp, where many commercials, television dramas, and movies are filmed. This is where they filmed the musical-like preview, where Kim Ah-jung walks down the street and catches the eyes of all the men. When she is finally alone, she takes a deep breath and her big belly, which was concealed, suddenly pops out. This comical scene was very memorable. This camp, which is a well-known place for experiencing English, has a continuous flow of tourists passing through thanks to its exotic atmosphere. Tongil Dongsan and Heiri are located nearby, which makes the camp a good place for a one-day tour in connection with these two attractions.