''Pacemaker'' () is a 2012 South Korean sports drama film. This was director Kim Dal-joong's feature film debut; he had previously directed

stage musical Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movement ...

s. ''Pacemaker'' received three nominations at the

49th Grand Bell Awards The 49th Grand Bell Awards (), also known as Daejong Film Awards, are determined and presented annually by The Motion Pictures Association of Korea for excellence in film in South Korea. The Grand Bell Awards were first presented in 1962 and have ...

(Best Actor, Best New Director, and Best New Actress).

Plot

Joo Man-ho, a boy from an impoverished family, has a talent for

long-distance running Long-distance running, or endurance running, is a form of continuous running over distances of at least . Physiologically, it is largely aerobic in nature and requires stamina as well as mental strength. Within endurance running comes two d ...

but always finishes second place in a race — on purpose, in order to win the box of

instant noodle Instant noodles, or instant ramen, is a type of food consisting of noodles sold in a precooked and dried block with flavoring powder and/or seasoning oil. The dried noodle block was originally created by flash frying cooked noodles, and this is ...

s given to runners-up. He grows up to become a national

marathon The marathon is a long-distance foot race with a distance of , usually run as a road race, but the distance can be covered on trail routes. The marathon can be completed by running or with a run/walk strategy. There are also wheelchair div ...

er, but because of an injury, he never becomes a premier athlete and instead hold himself back as he did in his childhood. He is relegated to the role of "

pacemaker An artificial cardiac pacemaker (or artificial pacemaker, so as not to be confused with the natural cardiac pacemaker) or pacemaker is a medical device that generates electrical impulses delivered by electrodes to the chambers of the heart eith ...

" – someone who runs alongside the star athletes for three-quarters of the marathon (30 of 42.195 kilometers), making sure they stay on winning pace, but then letting them finish the race alone. Later in life, a cold-hearted marathon coach

scout Scout may refer to: Youth movement *Scout (Scouting), a child, usually 10–18 years of age, participating in the worldwide Scouting movement **Scouts (The Scout Association), section for 10-14 year olds in the United Kingdom **Scouts BSA, sectio ...

s Joo to run again, this time pacing for Korea's star marathoner at the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

. This creates an opportunity for Joo to complete his lifetime goal of actually running a full Olympic marathon, but he must first summon the courage and drive to fulfill his dream and run for himself and no one else.

Cast

Kim Myung-min Kim Myung-min (, born October 8, 1972) is a South Korean actor. He is best known for his leading roles in the television series '' Immortal Admiral Yi Sun-shin'' (2004), '' White Tower'' (2007), ''Beethoven Virus'' (2008), ''Six Flying Dragons'' ...

as Joo Man-ho *

Ahn Sung-ki Ahn Sung-ki (born January 1, 1952) is a South Korean actor. One of the country's most respected actors, he has appeared in more than 130 films during his career of over 60 years. Career A native of Seoul, Ahn was the son of a veteran filmmaker ...

as Coach Park Seong-il *

Go Ara Go Ara (; born February 11, 1990) is a South Korean actress and model. She is best known for starring in the television series ''Sharp'' (2003), ''Heading to the Ground'' (2009), ''Reply 1994'' (2013), ''You're All Surrounded'' (2014), '' Hwara ...

as Yoo Ji-won *

Choi Tae-joon Choi Tae-joon (, born July 7, 1991) is a South Korean actor, model and TV host. He first gained recognition for his villainous supporting role in the disaster-mystery drama ''Missing 9'' (2017). He has since taken on lead roles in melodrama ''E ...

as Min Yoon-ki *

Jo Hee-bong Jo Hee-bong (born August 23, 1971) is a South Korean actor. Hee-bong began his acting career in 1997 as part of the theatre troupe Bipa (비파). He later became known as a supporting actor onscreen, in films such as '' Blind'' (2011) and ''Inc ...

as Jong-soo *Choi Jae-woong as Joo Seong-ho ** Jung Joon-won as Young Seong-ho *Lee Yul as Kyeong-soon *Abu Dod as Bongjo *Park Seong-taek as Pole vault coach *Yoon Min as Woo-jin *Gye Seong-yong as Coach Lee *Choi Na-rae as Jong-soo's wife *

Lee El Lee El (born Kim Ji-hyun on June 26, 1982) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her supporting roles in the film ''Inside Men'' (2015), the television series ''It's Okay, That's Love'', '' Guardian: The Lonely and Great God'' (2016� ...

as Choi Min-kyeong *Lee Yoo-ha as Seong-ho's wife *Jo Young-jin as Track and Field federation director *Kwak Jin-seok as Uyuki *Im Jong-yoon as Nike director *Han Seong-sik as Coach Han, London Olympics marathon commentator

References

External links

* * * * * 2012 films South Korean sports drama films 2010s sports drama films 2012 drama films 2010s South Korean films 2010s Korean-language films {{SouthKorea-film-stub