Choi Woo-shik showcases fighting spirit in 'Policeman's Lineage' Actor Choi Woo-shik in a scene from the film “The Policeman's Lineage” / Courtesy of Acemaker MovieworksBy Kwak Yeon-sooActor Choi Woo-shik will showcase his fighting spirit in “The Policeman's Lineage,” which will be the first Korean film coming to theaters in 2022. Taking a step away from the loveable, clumsy characters he has regularly portrayed, Choi has transformed himself into the role of a headstrong police officer who is a trained judoist for his latest role.In “The Policeman's Lineage,” Choi plays a police officer with strict ethical beliefs. The main protagonist Min-jae, is secretly tasked with investigating another cop named Kang-yoon (Cho Jin-woong), who is unrivaled in his number of arrests, but is illicitly receiving huge payoffs from an unknown source.The film has plenty of twists and suspense as it follows Min-jae's changing state of mind. He is faced with a dilemma in which he must choose between the adviser who instructs him to spy and the boss whom he keeps an eye on. He has to choose whether to do the right things for the wrong Dec 30, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo
Lee Je-hoon and Koo Kyo-hwan to co-star in action movie Actors Lee Je-hoon, left, and Koo Kyo-hwan confirmed their lead roles in the upcoming action film, “Escape.” Courtesy of Company ON and Namoo ActorsBy Lee Gyu-leeActors Lee Je-hoon and Koo Kyo-hwan will be co-starring in the new action film, “Escape.” The film's distributor, Megabox Plus M, announced Tuesday that the actors have confirmed their lead roles in the upcoming movie.Directed by Lee Jong-pil, whose previous work includes, “Samjin Company English Class” (2020) and “The Sound of a Flower” (2015), the film follows a heated chase between a North Korean soldier and an officer of the Ministry of State Security.Lee Je-hoon will play the soldier, Lim Gyu-nam, who tries to escape the country to defect to South Korea, dreaming of a new life. Koo will play the officer, Lee Hyun-sang, who attempts to stop Lim. The film will begin shooting in the first half of next year, the distributor says. Lee Je-hoon debuted in the short film, “They Live By Night,” in 2007 and has been taking on various roles in films and TV series, includiDec 29, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
'The Pirates' sequel with all-star cast promises more adventure From left, actors Kang Ha-neul, Han Hyo-joo and Lee Kwang-soo pose during an online press conference for the film, “The Pirates: Goblin Flag,” Wednesday. Courtesy of Lotte EntertainmentBy Kwak Yeon-sooThe cast of comedy action film “The Pirates: Goblin Flag,” a sequel to the hit 2014 action film, “The Pirates,” promises another adrenaline-pumping storyline full of adventure.The upcoming film revolves around a group of pirates and bandits who go on a journey to discover the long-lost treasure of the royal family of the 918-1392 Goryeo Kingdom. Actor Kang Ha-Neul plays the role of Moo-chi, the head of the bandits who joins the band of seafarers, led by the pirate chief, Hae-rang (Han Hyo-joo). Lee Kwang-soo, Chae Soo-bin and EXO's Sehun appear as the pirate crew. Although action is the main genre, the period film also veers toward comedy, which gives it a lighter and more approachable edge. “It's true that this film is a follow-up to the 2014 hit movie, but it is actually very different. It's set in a different era and the characters are new. BDec 29, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo
'Spider-Man: No Way Home' sets record with ticket sales A scene from the film "Spider-Man: No Way Home” / Courtesy of Sony PicturesBy Lee Gyu-leeThe superhero film “Spider-Man: No Way Home” has surpassed 4 million ticket sales in Korea, Saturday, setting a record as the fastest film to reach the mark since the pandemic began. Marvel's latest film saw about 600,000 ticket sales on the day, adding its total to over 4.38 million tickets for a total 44.2 billion won ($37.2 million). The number exceeds the 3.61 million ticket sales of the domestic blockbuster, "Escape from Mogadishu," making the Marvel movie the new most-watched film of this year. The action blockbuster film debuted on Dec. 15 with about 635,100 ticket sales, the highest opening score seen during the pandemic. It has been dominating the local box offices since, for 11-consecutive days. The previous opening-day record during the pandemic era was the latest Fast & Furious sequel “F9,” which opened with about 400,300 tickets this May. Directed by Jon Watts, who directed the previous installments, "Spider-Man: Homecoming" (2017) and "Spider-Man: FDec 26, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
'Spider-Man' becomes No. 1 hit movie of the year in Korea A poster for the Hollywood superhero film "Spider-Man: No Way Home" is seen at a movie theater in Seoul in this Dec. 21 photo. Yonhap "Spider-Man: No Way Home," the latest film in the Spider-Man series, has become the No. 1 hit movie of the year in South Korea after surpassing the attendance record of local thriller "Escape from Mogadishu.”According to Sony Pictures, distributor of the Hollywood superhero film, "Spider-Man: No Way Home" attracted 4.17 million people as of 7 a.m. Saturday, beating the 3.61 million attendance for "Escape from Mogadishu" to become this year's most-watched film here. The blockbuster surpassed the 4 million-mark just 11 days after its premiere, the fastest pace during the pandemic, outpacing that of "Deliver Us From Evil," which topped 4 million attendance in 18 days last year. Since its release Dec. 15, Marvel Studios' latest Spider-Man movie has been breaking pandemic-era records in South Korea, including the best opening-day score of Dec 25, 2021
Hwang Jung-min, Jung Woo-sung to reunite in political drama film 'Spring of Seoul' From left, actors Hwang Jung-min, Jun Woo-sung and Park Hae-joon / Courtesy of SEM Company, Artist Company and PLEO ent.By Kwak Yeon-sooActors Hwang Jung-min and Jung Woo-sung will reunite with director Kim Sung-soo for the political thriller film, “Spring of Seoul” (working title), six years after the three collaborated on the 2016 film, “Asura: The City of Madness.”Based on a real-life story, “Spring of Seoul” follows an event that occurred during a short period of political freedom set at the end of the 1970s.Kim is known for his darkly cynical crime thrillers, such as “Beat” (1997), “City of The Rising Sun” (1999) and “The Flu” (2013). His next film will be produced by Hive Media Corp., the production company behind “Inside Men” (2015), “The Man Standing Next” (2019) and “Deliver Us From Evil” (2020).“Spring of Seoul” refers to the period that began on Oct. 26, 1979, when former President Park Chung-hee was assassinated by his close aide, and lasted until May 17Dec 25, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo
Korean film distributors report poor results in 2021 amid pandemic A scene from "Escape from Mogadishu" / Courtesy of Lotte EntertainmentSouth Korean film distribution companies went through hard times this year as the local cinema industry has been still suffering from a sharp drop in attendance amid the COVID-19 pandemic.A combined 18 films, including "A Year-End Medley" slated for Wednesday next week, has been distributed in 2021 by six major film distributors, including CJ ENM and Lotte Cultureworks.The yearly number is nearly unchanged from some 20 homegrown movies shown in theaters last year but fell sharply from about 35 film in 2019.Lotte Cultureworks, an entertainment unit of retail giant Lotte Group, presented three films in 2021 and received the best attendance results thanks to the box office hit "Escape from Mogadishu.""Mogadishu," about a life-and-death escape by South and North Korean diplomats during the Somali civil war in the 1990s, is the most-watched film in 2021 with a total audience of 3.61 million.The coming-of-age film "Miracle" attracted 690,000 people and the drama film "I" was seen by 37,000 moviegoers.Disaster-comedy filmDec 24, 2021
Film releases postponed as COVID-19 cases reach record high Poster for films “Kingmaker,” left, and “Emergency Declaration” / Courtesy of Megabox Plus M and ShowBoxBy Lee Gyu-leeA number of film distributors are postponing the openings of their films, after the government reinstated bolstered social-distancing rules to curb a surge in coronavirus infections. The country saw the number of infections reach a record 7,850 cases, Wednesday.The premiers of local films “Kingmaker,” starring Lee Sun-kyun and Seol Kyung-gu, and “Emergency Declaration,” starring Song Kang-ho and Lee Byung-hun, have been pushed back after being scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.Megabox Plus M, the distributor of the political drama “Kingmaker,” announced Friday that it has changed the film's release, originally scheduled for Dec. 29, to January. It also canceled the lead actors' promotional events and interviews. “We had planned the release based on the eased social distancing rules, but as the government implemented stricter regulations, it was inevitable to postpone this,” it said in a Dec 18, 2021By Lee Gyu-lee
'Spider-Man' surpasses 1 million admissions at fastest pace of 2021 A scene from the film, “Spider-Man: No Way Home” / Courtesy of Sony PicturesBy Kwak Yeon-soo“Spider-Man: No Way Home” has surpassed a cumulative 1 million admissions on the second day of its release, the fastest pace among films released this year, data showed Friday.The film, released on Wednesday, attracted about 635,000 viewers. Admissions on Thursday brought the combined total to 1.02 million viewers, according to data from the Korean Film Council. However, the government's toughened measure to prevent the spread of COVID-19 is likely to have a negative impact on the box office. Starting Saturday, movie theaters can operate until 10 p.m.Film-related organizations, including Producers Guild of Korea, Directors Guild of Korea, The Association of Korean Buyers & Distributors of Foreign Films in Korea, Screenwriters Guild of Korea and Korea Theater Association, released a joint statement on Thursday, asking the government to make an exception considering the difficult situation of the film industry.“The operating limits for theaters hinder new films Dec 17, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo
Director on exploring origins of Kingsman, father-son relationship in 'The King's Man' Actor Ralph Fiennes, top left, and director Matthew Vaughn speak during an online press conference for the film, “The King's Man.” Courtesy of Walt Disney Company KoreaBy Kwak Yeon-sooDirector Matthew Vaughn said he felt destined to explore the beginnings of the secret Kingsman agency in “The King's Man,” a prequel in his spy comedy franchise. “Eggsy was told by Harry that Kingsman was founded in 1919, so I had no choice,” he told reporters. “When I started reading more and more about World War I, I thought there were a lot of lessons that the public could learn from looking back at its history ― whether it's about choosing your leaders wisely or the fact that little things can turn into big problems very quickly.”In the new film, Ralph Fiennes portrays the Duke of Oxford, the founder of the secret Kingsman intelligence agency that defends Greta Britain and the world from existential threats. He also struggles to keep his son, Conrad (Harris Dickinson) safe in the midst of tragedy.Of the father and son relationship portrayed in the filmDec 17, 2021By Kwak Yeon-soo
