Second consecutive record-breaking year expected for Korean cinema

Posted on : 2013-10-07 16:35 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
100 million viewer mark broken earlier than last year, on the strength of several blockbusters

By Hong Seock-jae, staff reporter

With the number of tickets sold for Korean movies exceeding 100 million for the second consecutive year, it is almost certain that the Korean box office will set a new attendance record by the end of this year.

According to the Korean Film Council’s movie ticket computer network as of Oct. 6, the total number of people who watched Korean movies surpassed 100 million on Oct. 4.

Considering the Korean population is around 50 million people, this means that Koreans have each seen an average of two movies this year.

Even more significant is the fact that the 100 million mark was surpassed 47 days earlier than in 2012.

In 2012, the 100 millionth ticket was sold on Nov. 20, eventually setting a new overall box office record of 114,613,190.

Behind this year’s strong box office showings were the twin blockbusters of “Miracle in Cell No. 7” and “Snowpiercer,” which sold 12.81 million and 9.33 million tickets, respectively.

A total of eight films sold more than 5 million tickets. This is in stark contrast with last year, when the only films that sold 5 million tickets were “The Thieves” and “Masquerade.”

The other big hits this year were “The Face Reader” (8.42 million), “The Berlin File” (7.16 million), “Secretly, Greatly” (6.95 million), “Hide and Seek” (5.6 million), “The Terror Live” (5.58 million), and “Cold Eyes” (5.5 million).

The golden age of Korean cinema is characterized by the emergence of various genres and the remarkable progress made by rookie directors.

Works in various genres, including melodramas, thrillers, remakes of comic books, and socially conscious films, enjoyed equal measures of success, while young directors like Kim Byeong-u (“The Terror Live”), Heo Jeong (“Hide and Seek”) and Kim Byeong-seo (co-director of “Cold Eyes”) hit home runs with their first feature films.

 

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