Who is this?

[J.J. Hayden]

I've had some trouble with this one. I just can't confirm if this is Korean super kicker Won Jin in an early role. I've known about this for a long time and have two versions of it,one is Korean and I believe to be the full version at 1h29m, though I can't be sure. It's 1983's The Undertaker In Sohwa Province but has several other versions and diferent titles: Zombie Rivals / Zombie Vs. Ninja / Super Ninja Master / Gravedigger and now I've just seen Shaolin Rambo The Super Master and got a much better look than my versions which are blurry and very dark making identification near impossible.

This movie is listed in Won Jin's filmography on HKMDB but it provides no info as to who he plays in it. Secondly there is KMDB which also gives no info, Won Jin was asked about this being his first film as stated by KMDB, but he said this was inaccurate, naming another film, but was this because he was in another film first or that he wasn't in this movie. I say this as alot of the KMDB Won Jin info is mixed in with several other actor's such as Ham Won-Jin. So I'm not sure I can trust either one.

I believe that if he is in this film he must play this zombie in gold, this actor seems the only possible candidate but I've never been confident enough to confirm. The first issue (in addition to and not helped by my poor quality versions) is the make-up, the white face paint, moushtash and unusual hairstyle hide his features and make it hard for me to be sure. His nose, and eyebrows seem simlilar but it's just not enough for me. The second issue which usually is a great help for ID, is the movement, since he's a zombie he moves in a strange blocky way, so I can't ID the way he moves or any of his usual techniques.

I'd like to see what other people think on this matter or even better if anyone can provide deffinitive proof this is Won Jin, I'd be very happy.

Cheers

[J.J. Hayden]

I have figured out what the issue was an can state that this zombie is not Won Jin. As I thought, the martial arts actor, Won Jin (real name Kim Won-jin), does not appear in this film.

[J.J. Hayden]

Here's a good pic for comparrison. Won Jin playing a similar role in a later film.

 

[ShawAngela]

When I look at the two pictures, I can't see any similarity between the two men, except maybe the nose.

It seems to me that in the first picture, the actor's lips are thicker, than in the second picture and the eyebrows and the mouth don't have the same shape, but this may be due to the make-up...

As I'm not an expert on Won Jin as you are, I can be totally mistaken on this...

[J.J. Hayden]

18 minutes ago, ShawAngela said:

When I look at the two pictures, I can't see any similarity between the two men, except maybe the nose.

It seems to me that in the first picture, the actor's lips are thicker, than in the second picture and the eyebrows and the mouth don't have the same shape, but this may be due to the make-up...

As I'm not an expert on Won Jin as you are, I can be totally mistaken on this...

I totally agree on the lips, that's one of the red flags for me, it could just be where the make-up ends giving a minstrel kinda look, but I can't be sure. I also can confirm the eybrows and corners of mouth in second pic are make-up.

Thanks for the input, you've given me the iea to add a control image i.e. no make-up for comparrison.

Cheers

[J.J. Hayden]

Here's a pic without make-up for further comparrison.

 

[J.J. Hayden]

Here's the actual fight scene in question. But seeing the footage when cutting this clip I'm still not convinced, but it's here for all to see. There's also the possibility he plays one of the ninja's but you don't get a good enough look of them either. Unless I get convinced, I'm not putting this movie in Won Jin's filmography.

 

[J.J. Hayden]

These close ups might help as well, Won Jin in heavy make-up, Won Jin with a fake tash and eyebrows.

 

[ShawAngela]

I put the two "moustache pictures" side by side on a document, or one above the other to be more precise, and for me, it's not the same actor.

Even the eyes doesn't look alike, in my opinion...

Won Jin ?.odt

[morpheus]

This is indeed Kim Won Jin.  The credits to The Undertaker in Sohwa Province (1983) is there.

Edited March 15, 2021 by morpheus

[J.J. Hayden]

On 3/15/2021 at 8:41 PM, morpheus said:

This is indeed Kim Won Jin.  The credits to The Undertaker in Sohwa Province (1983) is there.

Cheers but this isn't proof. This database isn't completly reliable, the info is provided by fans (including myself) and can be off.