South Korean television series
All In
(
Korean
:
올인
;
RR
:
Orin
;
MR
:
Orin
) is a 2003
South Korean television drama series
that aired on
SBS TV
from 15 January to 3 April 2003, on Wednesdays and Thursdays at 21:55 (
KST
) for 24 episodes.
[1]
Inspired by the life of professional
poker
player
Jimmy Cha
, it starred
Lee Byung-hun
and
Song Hye-kyo
in a story about one's man's rise through the fiercely competitive world of
casino
gambling as he clashes with his rivals over money, success, and love.
[2]
The drama was a ratings success in South Korea, with its final episode reaching a peak viewership rating of 47.7%, the 10th highest rated episode of any Korean series aired between 2000 and 2008. It also won several awards, notably the Grand Prize ("Daesang") for Lee Byung-hun at the 2003
SBS Drama Awards
.
Synopsis
[
edit
]
Orphaned then taken in by his gambler uncle, Kim In-ha (
Jin Goo
) often hangs out with his friends in the basement of a movie theater. He unexpectedly befriends Choi Jung-won, a model student and the rich son of the theater owner. In-ha and Jung-won both fall for Min Su-yeon (
Han Ji-min
), the daughter of the projectionist at the theater.
When Su-yeon's father was killed by loan sharks, In-ha and Jung-won hatch a plan to avenge Su-yeon by setting fire to a gangster's hideout. But the fire spreads, accidentally killing the gang leader. In-ha is sentenced to seven years, while thanks to his family connections, Jung-won avoids jail time. As In-ha serves his sentence, Jung-won goes to the United States to study and Su-yeon decides to become a nun.
Seven years pass, and by pure chance, the three all end up working at the same casino. In-ha (
Lee Byung-hun
) and Su-yeon (
Song Hye-kyo
) fall in love, but are later separated when In-ha is forced to illegally immigrate to the U.S. He finds a job as a mafia hitman, and by a stroke of luck, again meets Su-yeon, and the two plan to get married. However, on their supposed wedding day, In-ha suffers a near-fatal gunshot wound and becomes comatose for 8 months. Unaware that In-ha is alive, the grieving Su-yeon returns to Korea.
In-ha eventually recovers, but Jung-won (
Ji Sung
) intervenes, saying that he is unworthy to love Su-yeon. In-ha decides to turn his life of misery around and becomes a professional gambler. He meets a business partner and, betting everything he has, returns to Korea to win back Su-yeon's love.
Cast
[
edit
]
Main
[
edit
]
Supporting
[
edit
]
- Lee Deok-hwa
as Choi Do-hwan, Jung-won's father
- Sunwoo Eun-sook
as Yoon Hye-sun, Jung-won's mother
- Im Hyun-sik
as Kim Chi-soo, In-ha's uncle
- Park Won-sook
as Jang Hyun-ja
- Jo Kyung-hwan as Chairman Seo Seung-don, Jin-hee's father
- Kim Tae-yeon
as Jenny
- Huh Joon-ho
as Yoo Jong-gu, In-ha's friend from prison
- Choi Jung-won
as Yoo Jung-ae, Hyun-ja's daughter
- Choi Joon-yong as Park Tae-joon, In-ha's hometown friend who became a detective
- Yoon Gi-won as Woo Yong-tae, In-ha's hometown friend who became a waiter
- Baek Seung-hyeon
as Yang Shi-bong, In-ha's hometown friend who is crippled
- Jung Yoo-seok as Im Dae-soo ("Shorty")
- Jung Ho-bin as Jung Joon-il
- Park Jung-woo as Jjagoo
- Im Dae-ho as Chun Sang-gu
- Yoon Seo-hyun as Man-soo
- Hong Yeo-jin
as bar hostess
- Cho Yeon-woo
as yakuza
- Kim Byung-se
as Michael Jang
- Yuko Fueki
as Rie Ochida
- Kim Hee-jung
as office clerk
- Park Sang-myun
as Im Dae-chi, gang boss
- Kim Ha-kyun as Director Son
- Choi Ran
as Manager Jang Mi-ran
- Park Joon-hee as Jo Jung-min
- Gi Ju-bong
as Bae Sang-doo
Production
[
edit
]
Development and casting
[
edit
]
All In
was adapted from the novel of the same name by Noh Seung-il, inspired by the life of poker player
Jimmy Cha
. The title
All In
comes from
a term in poker
that refers to betting one's entire stake. Though the plot was adapted from the novel, the characters were wholly original to the drama.
[2]
In 2000, SBS drama production team director Lee Jong-su first approached Jimmy Cha, on whom the original novel was based, to adapt the novel for a TV series, but Cha rejected the offer due to Korea's negative attitude towards gambling. Lee later approached Cha again twice, requesting to make a series about Cha's mother. Cha turned the offer down both times, but the project was already at the casting stage. A meeting was held, and screenwriter
Choi Wan-gyu
suggested changing the concept to focus more on Jimmy Cha's life as a whole.
[3]
Lee Byung-hun had already been cast as the main role,
[3]
but his female counterpart had not been decided on; actors considered for the role included
Lee Young-ae
,
Song Yoon-ah
,
Kim Hee-sun
, and
Shin Eun-kyung
. The producers then suggested Song Hye-kyo to Jimmy Cha, and Cha gave SBS the OK to cast her.
[4]
Additionally,
Joo Sang-wook
was supposed to play the young version of Lee Byung-hun's character, but he was replaced by
Jin Goo
last minute.
[5]
Filming
[
edit
]
Filming began on 9 September 2002
[6]
and took place in several locations. An outdoor set was built in
Jeju Island
, for which the island provided 200 million Korean won.
[7]
Most scenes filmed in Jeju were shot on the Seopjikoji coast, located in the city
Seogwipo
.
[8]
From 28 November to 31 December 2002, location filming took place in the United States, with the casino scenes being filmed in Las Vegas.
[6]
[9]
The kiss scene between Song Hye-kyo and Lee Byung-hun was filmed over two days, moving from Los Angeles to Las Vegas.
[10]
Production costs reached 250 million won per episode to a total budget of over 5 billion won, at that time the highest for a Korean miniseries.
[11]
During the drama's filming, SBS promised they would stop broadcasting smoking scenes in their TV dramas.
All In
, which started production before the announcement, had scenes where characters smoked ? as many of the scenes as possible were removed in editing, and during the scenes that couldn't be cut, subtitles were displayed during broadcast asking for understanding.
[6]
Changes in writing
[
edit
]
Initially, Ji Sung's character Jung-won was planned to die in the story, but as the show's scale increased, its plot became uncertain. Actors approached screenwriter Choi Wan-gyu mid-production to explain why their character had to die. Choi said to
Maeil Business Newspaper
, "All of [the actors] are very good at analyzing the drama, and their advice is very helpful. That's why I'm more worried about how to end it."
[12]
In the end, Choi decided that none of the main characters would die, stating that death was unnecessary for an emotional story.
[13]
Additionally, Song Hye-kyo's character Su-yeon was meant to marry Jung-won, thinking Lee Byung-hun's character In-ha had died. Viewers expressed dissatisfaction with the storyline online,
[14]
and it was later dropped to create tension within the narrative.
[15]
Reception
[
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]
Critical response
[
edit
]
Though
All In
was a ratings and marketing success, it was also subject to criticisms that it glorified gambling.
[16]
Journalist Jeon Yeo-ok wrote that while the drama was "worth seeing," its provocative subject matter and excessive violence was not fit for public TV.
[17]
This concern was echoed by a writer for the South Korean newspaper
Kukmin Ilbo
, who criticized the series as showing a romanticized portrayal of gambling and asserted that it had "everything that shouldn't be seen on TV."
[18]
Viewership
[
edit
]
All In
achieved a 21.7% rating in its first week of broadcast,
[19]
and by its 3rd episode, ratings exceeded to over 30%.
[20]
By its final episode, it had held the top spot in weekly TV ratings for 7 weeks.
[21]
With an average rating of 39.6%, it was the highest rated Korean program in March 2003,
[22]
and was the second highest rated Korean TV program in 2003.
[23]
Its top rating of 47.7% gave it the 10th highest peak of any series aired between 2000 and 2008,
[24]
and it was the 4th highest rated SBS drama as of 2012.
[25]
All In
also set records for
video-on-demand
, breaking
Successful Story of a Bright Girl
's
record of 700,000 downloads with over 1.1 million VOD views.
[16]
Accolades
[
edit
]
All In
won the best drama award at the 30th Korea Broadcasting Awards,
[26]
and was one of the Best Picture winners at the 16th
Grimae Awards
.
[27]
At the 2003
SBS Drama Awards
, Lee Byung-hun won the Grand Prize for his performance in the series. Song Hye-kyo, Ji Sung, and Heo Joon-ho won the Best Actress, Best Actor in a Drama Special, and Best Supporting award respectively, and Lee Byung-hun and Song Hye-kyo also received the Top 10 Stars award at the ceremony.
[28]
Regional broadcast
[
edit
]
In April 2003, SBS signed a contract with the Taiwanese cable channel GTV to broadcast
All In
in Taiwan. Although the export price was not disclosed, it was said to be the highest for a Korean drama until then. At the time, the record export price had stood at over 400 million won for the Japanese export of
Winter Sonata
.
[29]
In Japan, it first aired on the cable channel KNTV from 8 March to 25 May 2003.
[30]
[31]
Japanese satellite channel NHK BS2 broadcast
All In
under the title
All In: Unmei no Ai
(
オ?ルイン 運命の愛
)
once a week from 1 April 2004,
[32]
[33]
and re-airings followed once a week on
terrestrial TV
starting 16 April 2005.
[34]
[35]
According to a poll conducted by
TV Asahi
variety show
SMAP Station
in May 2007,
All In
ranked as the seventh most popular Korean drama in Japan.
[36]
It was also broadcast in countries like Macedonia and Turkey on the channel
Arirang TV
, gaining enough popularity in Macedonia to be rebroadcast.
[37]
[38]
See also
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
"All In"
.
KoreanWiz
. Archived from
the original
on 16 March 2013
. Retrieved
18 August
2013
.
- ^
a
b
Heo, Yoo-shin (7 January 2003).
'올인'은 어떤 作品?
[What kind of series is 'All In'?].
Kyunghyang Shinmun
(in Korean).
Archived
from the original on 25 March 2022
. Retrieved
12 May
2015
– via Naver News.
- ^
a
b
['올인' 人生 차민수⑮] 드라마 '올인' 出演陣과의 因緣···이병헌·허준호·한정국·김주명
[['All In' Life Cha Min-su⑮] Relationship with the cast of the drama 'All In'...Lee Byung-hun, Heo Jun-ho, Han Jeong-guk, Kim Joo-myeong].
THE AsiaN
. 26 September 2017
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
"차민수氏 "포커 이기려면 하지마라"
"
[Cha Min-su "If you want to win poker, don't do it"].
Sports Hankook
(in Korean). 8 October 2003
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
Hwang, In-hye.
주상욱 "'올인' 이병헌 兒役, 元來 내 자리…바뀐 理由 몰라"
[Joo Sang-wook "Young Lee Byung-hun in 'All In' was originally my role... don't know why it was changed"].
TV Report
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
– via Naver News.
- ^
a
b
c
[스타인터뷰]SBS '올인' 賭博師驛 이병헌 '꾼의' 눈빛
[[Star Interview] Lee Byung-hun, who plays a gambler in SBS 'All In'?the eyes of a 'player'].
The Dong-a Ilbo
(in Korean). 6 January 2003
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
"[放送] 드라마 製作費 100億 … '代作' 競爭"
[10 billion won production fees for a drama... 'blockbuster' competition].
The Chosun Ilbo
(in Korean). 23 October 2002
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
Sohn, JiAe.
"K-drama masterpieces (4): 'All In'
"
.
Korea.net
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
STV드라마스페셜 '올인'製作費 50億 投入
[5 billion won invested into SBS drama special 'All In'].
Maeil Business Newspaper
(in Korean). 29 May 2002
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
이병헌 송혜교 키스신
[Lee Byung-hun and Song Hye-kyo's kiss scene].
Maeil Business Newspaper
(in Korean). 3 January 2003
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
SBS드라마 '올인' 撮影現場 "50億 投資… 負擔 크지만 잘 만들어야죠"
[SBS drama 'All In' filming site "5 billion investment... a lot of pressure, but we have to make it well"].
Seoul Shinmun
(in Korean). 8 January 2003
. Retrieved
20 November
2023
.
- ^
올인-제가 죽을래요! 主人公들 懇請
[All In?I'll die! The main characters' pleas].
Maeil Business Newspaper
(in Korean). 16 February 2003
. Retrieved
10 January
2024
.
또 崔 作家는 "다들 어찌나 드라마 分析力이 뛰어난지 그들의 助言이 큰 도움이 된다. 그래서 結末을 어떻게 할지가 더욱 苦悶이다"라고 덧붙였다.
- ^
올인-모두 산다! 結末은 해피엔딩
[All In?they all live! A happy ending].
Maeil Business Newspaper
(in Korean). 24 March 2003
. Retrieved
10 January
2024
.
- ^
"When viewers put on producers' hats"
.
Korea Joongang Daily
. 26 February 2003
. Retrieved
10 January
2024
.
- ^
"올인" 처음과 달라진 點
["All In", points that changed from the start].
Ilgan Sports
(in Korean). 27 March 2003
. Retrieved
10 January
2024
.
- ^
a
b
‘讚辭’ ‘非難’…올인 來달 終映…SBS, 3日子 24部로
[‘Praise’, ‘Criticism’… All In ends next month… SBS airs episode 24 on the 3rd].
Kukmin Ilbo
(in Korean). 28 March 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
.
- ^
Jeon, Yeo-ok (3 February 2003).
[전여옥의 TV읽기] 視聽率에 목숨 건 SBS ‘올 人’
[[Jeon Yeo-ok's TV Reading] SBS 'All In' risks its life for ratings].
The Chosun Ilbo
(in Korean)
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
.
- ^
온國民 賭博烈風속으로…드라마 ‘올인’ 카지노·暴力場面 等 賭博世界 美化
[Bringing the whole country into a gambling craze... 'All In' glorifies the world of gambling with casinos and violent scenes] (in Korean).
Kukmin Ilbo
. 6 February 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
「人魚아가씨」,「野人時代」1位 다툼
[
Miss Mermaid
and
Rustic Period
fight for the top] (in Korean).
Yonhap News Agency
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
‘올인’ 3週만에 3位 安着
['All In' at third place after three weeks].
Seoul Shinmun
(in Korean). 5 February 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
.
- ^
SBS「올인」視聽率 49.1%로 終映
[SBS
All In
ends with 49.1% viewer ratings] (in Korean).
Yonhap News Agency
. 7 April 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
月刊 視聽率 順位
[Monthly viewer ratings ranked] (in Korean). Electronic Times. 18 April 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
2003年 視聽者가 가장 많이 본 프로,'대장금'
[The most watched program in 2003 is
Dae Jang Geum
].
Newsis
(in Korean). 2 December 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
'許浚', 歷代 드라마中 回別 視聽率 1位..64.8%
['Heo Joon', the No. 1 drama of all time in terms of viewership per episode...64.8%].
Star News
(in Korean). 24 April 2008
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
.
- ^
SBS 드라마 歷代最高 視聽率 ‘모래時計’ 64.5% 1位
[
Sandglass
is the most viewed SBS drama of all time with 64.5%].
Newsen
(in Korean). 24 November 2012
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
.
- ^
韓國放送大賞 作品賞.個人賞 發表
[Korea Broadcasting Awards reveals work and individual awards] (in Korean).
Yonhap News Agency
. 9 August 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
MBC '茶母'(茶母).'2003 그리메上' 大賞 受賞
[MBC's
Damo
wins the grand prize at the 2003 Grimae Awards] (in Korean). 9 December 2003
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
.
- ^
이병헌, SBS '演技大賞 受賞'
[Lee Byung-hun wins SBS acting award] (in Korean). Newsis. 1 January 2004
. Retrieved
27 May
2024
– via
Naver
.
- ^
[放送]SBS ‘올인’ 臺灣에 드라마 最高價 輸出
[[Broadcast] SBS 'All In' exported to Taiwan at the highest price for a drama].
Dong-a Ilbo
(in Korean). 8 April 2003
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
.
- ^
韓流No.1 チャンネル-KNTV
[Korean Wave No.1 Channel-KNTV] (in Japanese). Archived from
the original
on 14 July 2014
. Retrieved
11 July
2014
.
- ^
『美しき日?』主演 イ?ビョンホン スクリ?ンからブラウン管へ
[Starring in "Beautiful Days", Lee Byung Hun ? from the big screen to the small screen, acting in his own style].
Kinema Junpo
(in Japanese). No. 1388. September 2003. p. 128
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
.
- ^
드라마 '올인'來年 日 NHK 放送
[Drama 'All In' to air on NHK next year].
Kangwon Domin Ilbo
(in Korean). 23 December 2004
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
.
- ^
裵勇浚 팬미팅 無料 티켓 6萬名 申請
[60,000 people apply for free tickets to Bae Yong-joon’s fan meeting].
Ilgan Sports
(in Korean). 4 April 2004
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
– via Daum News.
- ^
"獨島 波紋"에도 한류 드라마 人氣는 如前
[Korean dramas remain popular even after "Dokdo scandal"].
Yonhap News Agency
(in Korean). 20 March 2005
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
– via Daum News.
- ^
"知性 만나자" 日本팬 300餘 名 韓國行
["Let's meet Ji Sung", over 300 Japanese fans visit Korea].
Ilgan Sports
(in Korean). 10 May 2005
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
– via Daum News.
- ^
"
Winter Sonata
, The Most Popular Korean Drama in Japan"
.
Hancinema
. 2 July 2007.
Archived
from the original on 19 December 2013
. Retrieved
18 August
2013
.
- ^
드라마 ‘올인’, 마케도니아서 人氣
[Drama 'All In' gains popularity in Macedonia].
The Hankyoreh
(in Korean). 26 July 2005
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
.
- ^
드라마 ‘올인’, 18日부터 터키 全域 放送
[Drama 'All In' to be broadcast throughout Turkey from the 18th].
The Hankyoreh
(in Korean). 9 April 2005
. Retrieved
16 February
2024
.
External links
[
edit
]
|
---|
1970s
| |
---|
1980s
|
- Kim Min-ja (
A Lonely Affair
) (1980)
- Ulhwa
(1981)
- A Life-sized Buddha
(1982)
- Winds of Change
(1983)
- The Five Indian Kingdoms
(1984)
- Korea's Butterflies
(1985)
- Shin Bong-seung (
500 Years of Joseon Dynasty
) (1986)
- The Boil
(1987)
- Love and Ambition
(1988)
- Kim Hye-ja
(
Winter Mist
and
Sand Castle
) (1989)
|
---|
1990s
|
- Peace, the Arduous Way to Go
and
Tree Blooming with Love
(1990)
- The Second Republic
(1991)
- Eyes of Dawn
(1992)
- Go Doo-shim
(
My Husband's Woman
) and
Kim Hee-ae
(
Sons and Daughters
) (1993)
- Park Chul (
My Mother's Sea
) (1994)
- Sandglass
(1995)
- Korea's Reptiles
(1996)
- The Most Beautiful Goodbye
(1997)
- Lee Jang-soo (
Offspring
) (1998)
- Jang Soo-bong (
When Time Flows
) (1999)
|
---|
2000s
| |
---|
2010s
| |
---|
2020s
| |
---|
*
awarded to theatrical play or film
|