In a November 30 interview for his upcoming movie “Two Men,” SHINee’s Minho opened up about the harsh criticisms that his acting had received in the past.

When promoting as an actor, Minho has always received mostly criticisms, but after the movie premiere of “Two Men,” in which he makes his first silver screen lead role debut, praise is finally pouring his way.

“Instead of training, I did a lot of thinking on my own,” said the idol-actor. “I like movies and plays, so I thought a lot about them. I dug deep into why the seniors do so well, things like that. As I brooded more over the subject, I would revise it again. That’s why I have a lot of thoughts on how to do [acting] well. I also thought a lot about what makes the difference [between myself and my seniors]. While asking myself questions, I came to some sort of answer, although it is not 100 percent, and I also came to understand where the problem lies. I thought to myself, ‘These are the things I should supplement myself with,’ and I adjusted accordingly.”

Reflecting on his past, he said, “Even from my point of view, I more than deserved those criticisms. I struggled a lot in my first lead role in ‘To The Beautiful You,’ but looking back, it is because of that past that I have confidence now, so I definitely don’t consider it a taint on my history. If I wasn’t at that age, I wouldn’t have expressed that character well either. I think the clumsiness [of my acting] worked well [for that character], but there was a lot left to be desired. If I knew myself better and understood acting better, I might have done better… I feel regretful that I ruined the drama.”

But Minho stressed that it was because of experiences like this that he got to discover more about himself.

“Back then, I just stubbornly thought that I just have to do well. At a young age, I was in a leading role and I needed to lead the drama by paying attention to the people and situation around me, but I wasn’t able to. A lead isn’t someone who just acts well on his own, but leads the entire drama. I should have paid more attention to the other things, but I focused too much on myself, and it resulted in me just awkwardly standing out. But I learned a lot from that, and it was ‘medicine’ for me. To be honest, being criticized so much was a huge lesson for me.”

“Two Men” is a crime action film about two men (pun unintended) whose lives have hit rock bottom, and are desperately fighting to protect the girl they love. Minho plays the leader of a gang of teenagers who have run away from home and are making a living by selling stolen goods.

Aren’t you proud of how far Minho has come?

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