Showing posts with label the thieves. Show all posts
Showing posts with label the thieves. Show all posts

Friday, April 26, 2013

UDINE 2013: The Thieves (도둑들, 2012)


Part of MKC's coverage of the 15th Udine Far East Film Festival.

The most anticipated Korean film of the year, with its dazzling cast and international locations, opened late last month and has since become the biggest domestic box office behemoth in years. The Thieves, Choi Dong-hoon’s fourth feature, following The Big Swindle (2004), Tazza: The High Rollers (2006), and Woochi: The Taoist Wizard (2009), is his most ambitious yet. It is a vibrant and complex heist movie with one of the most high profile casts ever assembled for a local production.

Thursday, January 31, 2013

KCN: Jiseul Triumphs while CinDi Bites the Dust (01/24-01/30, 2013)

It's been a little over a month since the weekly Korean Cinema News has appeared on MKC. Apologies for not getting back to it sooner. Work has become a little trickier and I'm still trying to strike the right balance between my personal and work projects.

I've decided to shake things up a little with KCN and try something new. Researching news and then putting them together in an article that is little more than glorified formatting is not the most exciting way to deliver the news (for you as well as myself I imagine). What I will try to do is to sum up what has happened on a weekly basis, give a few of my opinions as well as a couple of links to particularly good articles if there are any. Let's see how it goes, feedback is welcome!

KOREAN CINEMA NEWS

This past week came with both good and bad news for the industry. As you may already be aware, O Muel's Jeju Massacre film Jiseul, which premiered at last October's Busan International Film Festival, has been awarded the Grand Jury Prize in the World Dramatic Competition of the Sundance Film Festival. It's the first time that a Korean film has won an award in Park City and the news concludes a particularly successful week for Korean filmmakers at the event following the positive reception of Park Chan-wook's US debut Stoker.

Friday, November 23, 2012

WKR: New Indie Releases Take Center Stage (11/17-11/23, 2012)

Juvenile Offender and National Security were both released and reviewed this week while Rain's R2B: Return to Base and The Thieves get a few writeups in this week's Weekly Korean Reviews update.

UPCOMING FILMS


(Modern Korean Cinema, November 20, 2012)

Friday, November 9, 2012

WKR: LKFF, More BIFF and In Another Country's US Bow (11/03-11/09, 2012)

Reviews are still trickling in from Busan along with a wealth content from the currently underway London Korean Film Festival. Also of note is the release of In Another Country in the US

UPCOMING FILMS


(Film Business Asia, November 7, 2012)

(Variety, November 5, 2012)

(Film Business Asia, November 8, 2012)

(Variety, November 3, 2012)

Friday, October 26, 2012

WKR: More From Busan and Doomsday Book Plays Toronto After Dark (10/20-10/26, 2012)

A few more reviews trickle in from Busan while Doomsday Book plays at Toronto's After Dark Festival.

UPCOMING FILMS


(Variety, October 20, 2012)

(Film Business Asia, October 26, 2012)

(The Hollywood Reporter, October 25, 2012)

Friday, October 19, 2012

WKR: Busan Winds Up (10/13-10/19, 2012)

Few more pieces come in from Busan as the festival wraps up, not to mention some reviews of brand new films on the Korean marquees.

UPCOMING FILMS


(Variety, October 14, 2012)

National Security

(Word From the ROK, October 13, 2012)

Friday, October 12, 2012

Monday, September 24, 2012

KBO: Masquerade Still King (09/21-09/23, 2012)

Masquerade Still King


Title Release Date Market Share Weekend Total Screens
1 Masquerade 9/13/12 60.50% 1,192,689 3,227,946 922
2 Spy 9/20/12 16.80% 341,696 415,422 576
3 Resident Evil 5 (us) 9/13/12 5.70% 101,271 501,391 331
4 Ted (us) 9/20/12 3.90% 81,313 100,920 301
5 Pieta 9/6/12 3.50% 69,518 505,744 292
6 Wolf Children (jp) 9/13/12 2.90% 61,269 169,760 220
7 The Bourne Legacy (us) 9/6/12 2.10% 39,773 998,212 262
8 Traffickers 8/29/12 1.90% 36,518 1,618,528 192
9 The Thieves 7/25/12 0.40% 6,969 12,944,840 86
10 London Boulevard (uk) 9/20/12 0.30% 6,735 11,617 131

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

KCN: New Park Chan-wook Project, Pieta Oscar Bid, BIFF Sched. & Thieves Triumphs in HK (09/13-09/19, 2012)

Lots of news this week as Park Chan-wook takes on yet another new film, BIFF announces its schedule, Pieta gets its chance for Oscar glory and The Thieves begins its world conquest.

KOREAN CINEMA NEWS

Park Chan-wook Signs Onto Another New Project with Gangster Pic Corsica '72
Only a few weeks after signing on to the western The Brigands of Rattleborge, Park Chan-wook has taken on an additional Hollywood gig. This new project is one that has been knocking around for a while after appearing on Hollywood's Black List (a yearly industry poll of tinseltown's best unproduced screenplays) in 2009. Previously Oliver Hirschbiegel (Downfall, 2006) and Luca Guadanigno (I Am Love, 2009) had been attached to the script by the scribes Neal Purvis and Robert Wade who have been involved in all the recent Bond films.

Corsica '72, as the title would suggest, takes place on the small mediterranean island and follows two best friends who grow up to find themselves on opposite sides of the law and in love with the same woman.

It seems that this project will go ahead of Rattleborge as that one will require more time for casting due to its violent nature. It's great to see Park so busy these days but personally I was hoping he would head back home to helm another feature in Korea rather than do three on the trot stateside. But who am I to complain when I now have three films to look forward to from one of the world's best filmmakers? (Modern Korean Cinema, September 18/Twitch, September 18, 2012)

Sunday, September 16, 2012

KBO: Masquerade Is King, Pieta Enjoys Golden Lion Bump (09/14-09/16, 2012)

Masquerade Is King, Pieta Enjoys Golden Lion Bump 


Title Release Date Market Share Weekend Total Screens
1 Masquerade 9/13/12 53.30% 1,097,619 1,278,064 809
2 Resident Evil 5 (us) 9/13/12 14.30% 245,915 304,150 368
3 Pieta 9/6/12 7.20% 148,163 353,379 325
4 The Bourne Legacy (us) 9/6/12 6.50% 135,767 913,877 345
5 Traffickers 8/29/12 4.60% 92,289 1,534,579 305
6 Wolf Children (jp) 9/13/12 3.40% 77,796 85,933 225
7 The Expendables 2 (us) 9/6/12 2.50% 53,444 416,236 253
8 Neighbors 8/22/12 2.00% 40,285 2,416,188 222
9 The Thieves 7/25/12 1.50% 32,033 12,923,537 194
10 Insidious (us) 9/13/12 1.30% 27,488 35,030 178

Sunday, September 9, 2012

KBO: Hollywood Titles End Late Summer Local Streak (09/07-09/09, 2012)

Hollywood Titles End Late Summer Local Streak


Title Release Date Market Share Weekend Total Screens
1 The Bourne Legacy (us) 9/6/12 29.30% 522,713 619,128 588
2 Traffickers 8/29/12 17.60% 302,258 1,315,355 385
3 The Expendables 2 (us) 9/6/12 13.30% 240,675 278,494 394
4 Neighbors 8/22/12 12.00% 206,259 2,298,476 346
5 The Grand Heist 8/8/12 7.70% 144,076 4,833,965 312
6 The Thieves 7/25/12 7.20% 129,060 12,836,869 323
7 Pieta 8/6/12 3.30% 58,061 68,090 171
8 Step Up 4 (us) 8/15/12 2.50% 45,369 931,745 149
9 Abrahama Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (us) 8/30/12 1.90% 31,749 333,276 230
10 Sammy's Adventures 2 (ge) 8/1/12 0.80% 14,750 1,454,392 107

Monday, September 3, 2012

KBO: Traffickers and Local Releases Dominate Chart (08/31-09/02, 2012)

Traffickers and Local Releases Dominate Chart


Title Release Date Market Share Weekend Total Screens
1 Traffickers 8/29/12 26.40% 533,243 749,694 497
2 Neighbors 8/22/12 21.20% 425,597 1,914,969 494
3 The Grand Heist 8/8/12 13.20% 289,126 4,595,784 361
4 The Thieves 7/25/12 12.70% 265,435 12,591,574 365
5 Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (us) 8/30/12 10.00% 188,955 237,799 337
6 Step Up 4 (us) 8/15/12 4.40% 94,188 849,187 194
7 R2B: Return to Base 8/1/12 2.30% 51,498 1,172,907 141
8 577 Project 8/8/12 2.30% 48,395 62,534 191
9 Total Recall (us) 8/15/12 1.60% 34,037 1,206,506 153
10 Sammy's Adventures 2 (ge) 8/23/12 1.30% 29,268 1,438,477 88

Sunday, August 26, 2012

KBO: Neighbors Tops Korea-Heavy Chart (08/24-08/26, 2012)

Neighbors Tops Korea-Heavy Chart


Title Release Date Market Share Weekend Total Screens
1 Neighbors 8/22/12 31.10% 780,556 1,094,081 600
2 The Grand Heist 8/8/12 20.10% 537,099 4,106,828 515
3 The Thieves 7/25/12 19.80% 513,409 12,094,680 544
4 R2B: Return to Base 8/15/12 6.80% 182,718 1,059,543 331
5 Total Recall (us) 8/15/12 6.60% 172,453 1,111,574 321
6 Step Up 4 (us) 8/15/12 6.50% 164,872 672,959 269
7 Sammy's Adventures 2 (be) 8/1/12 2.60% 71,952 1,401,327 244
8 Animals United (ge) 8/8/12 1.10% 33,674 275,373 115
9 The Dark Knight Rises (us) 7/19/12 1.30% 29,475 6,359,420 81
10 Red Lights (us) 8/23/12 1.10% 29,341 38,204 197

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

KCN: The Thieves Cracks 10 Million and JIFF Gets a New Director (08/16-08/22, 2012)

The Thieves made history this week by becoming only the 6th Korean film to cross the 10 million admissions mark and is now bearing down on the all-time record. In other news, some important castings and appointments, not to mention some festival news, posters and box office.


KOREAN CINEMA NEWS


Samuel L. Jackson Steps Aboard Spike Lee's Oldboy
Veteran actor Samuel L. Jackson is the latest star to join the remake of Park Chan-wook's classic Oldboy (2003), which is being helmed by Spike Lee with Josh Brolin in the lead. Bruce Horsnby has also recently joined the cast. (Modern Korean Cinema, August 22, 2012)

The Thieves to Screen in Hong Kong from September
The summer blockbuster The Thieves will begin screening across Asia from next month. On Sept. 6, the movie will premiere in Hong Kong and Indonesia before opening in Singapore on the 13th, and Malaysia and Thailand in October and November. (Joong Ang Daily, August 22, 2012)

Monday, August 20, 2012

The Thieves (도둑들, Dodookdeul) 2012


The most anticipated Korean film of the year, with its dazzling cast and international locations, opened late last month and has since become the biggest domestic box office behemoth in years. The Thieves, Choi Dong-hoon’s fourth feature, following The Big Swindle (2004), Tazza: The High Rollers (2006), and Woochi: The Taoist Wizard (2009), is his most ambitious yet. It is a vibrant and complex heist movie with one of the most high profile casts ever assembled for a local production.

Popeye and his crew leave Korea to get in on some action in Macao. He brings Pepsi, who has just been paroled, along for the ride. The mastermind behind the big scheme is Macao Park, Popeye’s former partner and Pepsi’s old lover. The plan is to steal the Tear of the Sun, a valuable diamond in transit in one of the city’s casinos. With Popeye’s crew, a Hong Kong team, Park and a few more vested interests, can the plan go off without a hitch?

KBO: The Thieves Takes 4th Victory Lap (08/17-08/19, 2012)

The Thieves Takes 4th Victory Lap


TitleRelease DateMarket ShareWeekendTotalScreens
1The Thieves7/25/1226.80%835,29911,127,705621
2The Grand Heist8/8/1225.80%823,7963,178,770582
3Total Recall (us)8/15/1214.10%432,185782,718448
4R2B: Return to Base8/14/1212.60%394,774726,844540
5Step Up 4 (us)8/15/126.80%201,256371,553281
6Sammy's Adventures 2 (be)8/1/124.60%146,0021,290,233296
7I Am a King8/8/122.50%82,214723,960222
8The Dark Knight Rises (us)7/19/122.50%72,0946,293,588182
9Ice Age 4 (us)7/25/121.70%57,5161,591,314167
10Animals United (gr)8/8/121.30%43,965225,967131

Friday, August 17, 2012

Thursday, August 16, 2012

August 2012 Korean Releases

This monthly features previews the coming month's attractions in Korean cinema. All of these monthly posts are available in an archive on the Upcoming Releases page.


August 2

Plump Revolution

August 8

I Am a King
Tears in the Antarctic
The Grand Heist

August 15

R2B: Return to Base

August 23

90 Minutes
Myselves
Neighbors

August 30

577 Project
The Traffickers
The Ugly Duckling
Wedding Scandal
Young Gun in the Time