2013.02.22 ~ 2013.02.24

HanCinema's Korean Box Office Review 

(2013.02.22 ~ 2013.02.24)

After dominating proceedings for the past month, Lee Hwan-hyeong's "Miracle in Cell No.7" has given way toPark Hoon-jeong-I's"The New World". Park was credited for the scripts of "The Unjust" and "I Saw the Devil", but"The New World"marks only his second film in the director's seat. The film starsLee Jeong-jae,Choi Min-sikandHwang Jeong-minin an action thriller that probes the spaces between Korea's National Police Agency and organised crime."The New World"opened on Thursday and walk away from the weekend with more than 1 million admissions in its pocket.

This past week saw Lee's heartfelt prison drama push past the 10 millions admissions mark, becoming the eighth Korean film to do so since "Silmido" in 2003. Last year both"The Thieves"and"Masquerade"managed the same feat and Lee's comedy drama joins that short list of some of contemporary Korea's biggest money-makers. Despite briefly dislodging Lee's film during the first weekend of February, "The Berlin File" has managed to keep Lee honest in an intriguingly and highly competitive market. "The Berlin File" added 303,727 (12%) over the weekend and is now sitting on a heap of almost 7 million ticket stubs. Next, "An Ethics Lesson" is a new film from first time directorPark Myeong-rangand starsLee Je-hoon, Jo Jin-wong,Kim Tae-hoon,Kwak Do-wonandMoon So-ri. The newcomer earned the attention of 104,494 (4.28%) as we unravel the mysterious murder of a beautiful woman at a university.

At number five is the Indian stereoscopic 3D animation film "Dehli Safari", a film that has been receiving mixed reviews despite winning in the Best Feature Film award at Indian's own FICCI FRAMES award ceremony last year. "Dehli Safari" managed 90,837 admissions in its opening weekend in Korea. Falling just one place from last position wasLee Won-seokdebut film "How to Use Guys with Secret Tips" (Previously known as "Man Manual" on Hancinema). This weekend's admissions haul moves the film onto 454,704 admissions in two weeks. "YAK: The Giant King" was the other foreign animation to make the cut, this time from Thailand as director Prapas Cholsaranont brings to life the fabled national epic "Ramakien", which itself is derived from the Hindu "Ramayana". "YAK: The Giant King" came close to sneaking past Lee's debut in the list, but ultimately came just short with 52,646 (1.8%).

Last weekend's number three "A Good Day to Die Hard" tumbled to the wrong end of the list, settling at eight with just 40,442 admissions. "A Good Day to Die Hard" was accompanied at the bottom by "The Last Stand"; a heavy-handed action flick starring the iconic Arnold Schwarzenegger. "The Last Stand" is a U.S and U.K production but was directing credit goes to one of Korea's top directorsKim Ji-woon. "The Last Stand" hasn't blown anyone away just yet though, as its first weekend out in Korea sold just 34,220 tickets. Lastly, "Marco Macaco", another foreign animation this time from Denmark, rounded out this weekend's top films. "Marco Macaco" entered the charts last week at number six but only captured 22,656 admissions this time around.

Korean Box Office - Admissions for the Weekend 2013.02.22 - 2013.02.24 (www.kobis.or.kr)