Films featuring female leads dominate box office

Scenes from the films "The Day I Died: Unclosed Case," top, "Samjin Company English Class" and "More than Family" / Courtesy of Warner Bros. Korea, Lotte Entertainment and Little Big Pictures

By Park Han-sol

Films featuring female leads continue to dominate the local box office as the two films released last week ― "The Day I Died: Unclosed Case" and "More than Family" ― joined the top chart along with "Samjin Company English Class," which is still going strong since its release in October.

Park Jung-bae's "Collectors," starring Lee Je-hoon and Shin Hae-sun, is still in top as the most watched film for two weeks since its release Nov. 4. The crime comedy has garnered more than a million ticket sales as of Tuesday, accumulating nearly 9.8 billion won ($9 million), according to data released by Korea Box-office Information System (KOBIS). The film centers on a group of thieves who are also talented excavators. They team up to uncover ancient treasures of Joseon Dynasty buried underground in a royal tomb in central Seoul.

"The Day I Died: Unclosed Case" is chasing "Collectors." Since its release on Nov. 12, it pushed another female-led film "Samjin Company" to the third spot at the chart and regained its position. The mystery thriller, featuring veteran actors Kim Hye-soo and Lee Jung-eun best known for her supporting role in Oscar-winning "Parasite," has garnered more than 150,000 ticket sales and grossed nearly 1.4 billion won ($1 million) as of Tuesday.

In Park Ji-wan's directorial debut, Kim plays a detective searching for a teenage girl who has mysteriously disappeared with the help of Lee, a witness suffering from aphasia. During their search, the characters find themselves in an introspective journey that allows them to truly communicate and understand each other.

"Samjin Company English Class," one of the highest-grossing films for October, is still going strong at the third place at the box office. The comedy film has garnered approximately 1.5 million in ticket sales so far, accumulating 13 billion won ($12 million).

Directed by Lee Jong-pil, the mystery comedy is set in the patriarchal society in 1995. The three young female employees, who originally joined the TOEIC class offered by the company to fight for promotion, end up working together to uncover the firm's corruptive activities.

Another female-led motion picture "More than Family" came into the box office Nov. 12, scoring the fourth place as of Tuesday. The film has garnered attention with its leading role played by K-pop idol and a former f(x) member Jung Soo-jung (aka Krystal) and its plot promoting diversity in family structure in a relatively conservative Korean society.

The comedy drama has gained nearly 20,000 ticket sales, earning 176 million won ($160,000). It stars another "Parasite" actor Jang Hye-jin, who plays Jung's mother. Its director Choi Ha-na stated that through a pregnant college student interacting with her birth father, stepfather and her high-schooler soon-to-be-husband, she wanted to break down the stigma against those with diverse family structures which could include divorcees, single parents and unmarried pregnant women.

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