'Eternals' retains No. 1 spot on S. Korea box office for 2nd week

Marvel's latest superhero film "Eternals" has topped the South Korean box office for the second consecutive week, data showed Monday. "Eternals" attracted a combined 501,000 people from Friday to Sunday, accounting for 55.9 percent of the period's total ticket sales at local theaters, according to the data from the Korean Film Council. The film topped the 2 million mark in attendance Friday, 10 days after its release on Nov. 3, bringing its total to 2.46 million as of Sunda

Nov. 15, 2021

Oh Na-ra talks about portraying a secret love affair in rom-com ‘Perhaps Love’

“Perhaps Love,” a new movie directed by Cho Eun-ji and starring Oh Na-ra, offers a different take on relationships than most South Korean films. Oh’s character, Mi-ae, secretly dates Soon-mo (played by Kim Hee-won), a close friend of her ex-husband, Hyun (played by Ryoo Seung-ryo). Soon-mo, a publisher, works with Hyun, a writer struggling to overcome writer’s block. Oh explained during an interview with a group of reporters via Google Meet that she hadn’t exper

Nov. 12, 2021

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Eternals (US) Opened Nov. 3 Action Directed by Chloe Zhao Ten superheroes, known as Eternals, have been on Earth for 7,000 years protecting humans from the threat of Deviants, a bestial and savage race that swallow humans, without revealing their identity. In 1500, the heroes killed the last of the Deviants. However, in present day, the Deviants have returned, and the Eternals have to work together to protect mankind. Ron’s Gone Wrong (US) Opened Oct. 27 Animation Directed by Jean-Phili

Nov. 12, 2021

‘Squid Game’ to return with more games and adventures in season 2

Netflix hit series “Squid Game” will return with a second season. “Discussion about a second season is indeed in progress, but nothing has been confirmed yet,” a Netflix official told The Korea Herald on Wednesday morning. Earlier, Hwang Dong-hyuk, the director and writer “Squid Game,” had said that there would be a second season of the dystopian drama during a special screening and Q&A with reporters in Los Angeles on Tuesday. The creator told the rep

Nov. 10, 2021

'Squid Game' director confirms plan for season 2

Netflix's runaway hit "Squid Game" will be back for a second season, its writer-director Hwang Dong-hyuk has said in a media interview. "There's been so much pressure, so much demand and so much love for a second season, so I almost feel like you leave us no choice, but I will say there will indeed be a second season," Hwang said in an interview with the Associated Press at an event in Los Angeles on Tuesday (US time). The South Korean director had previously hinted at the

Nov. 10, 2021

Rom-com ‘Perhaps Love’ features relatable stories about relationship

From the relationship between divorced parents to a gay student who falls in love with a heterosexual teacher, the new rom-com film “Perhaps Love” directed by Cho Eun-ji depicts diverse human connections with a sense of humor. In making this film, actor-turned-director Cho said she focused on making it relatable to the general public. “Instead of focusing on different characters’ relationships and their unique personalities, I tried to focus on how audiences can relate

Nov. 8, 2021

Woo Do-hwan, Lee Sang-yi and Kim Sae-ron to star in Netflix’s ‘Bloodhounds’

Global streaming service Netflix has announced a star-studded lineup for its new original series “Bloodhounds.” Actors Woo Do-hwan, Lee Sang-yi and Kim Sae-ron will star in the action-noir series, according to Netflix. Veteran actors Park Sung-woong and Huh Joon-ho have also confirmed they will join the cast of “Bloodhounds.” “Bloodhounds,” an adaptation of a webtoon of the same title by Jung Chan, centers on three young people who become unintentionally i

Nov. 8, 2021

Marvel's 'Eternals' dominates S. Korean box office in first weekend

Marvel's "Eternals" easily topped the South Korean box office over the weekend, pushing director Denis Villeneuve's sci-fi epic "Dune" to a distant second, data showed Monday. "Eternals" drew an attendance of 1.138 million from Friday to Sunday, accounting for 82.4 percent of the period's total ticket sales at local theaters, according to the data from the Korean Film Council. The film had topped the 1 million mark in attendance, four days after its release Wednes

Nov. 8, 2021

[From the Scene] Movie theater gets back to normal with vaccine pass

If it were not for all the people wearing masks, it would be fair to say that multiplex theater CGV Yongsan in central Seoul was back to normal on Saturday night -- just as it used to be before COVID-19, especially in vaccine-pass auditoriums. Changes were evident at the snack bar, which had very few customers a week earlier. The theater smelled of popcorn, people were standing in front of the kiosks to buy food, and staff were shouting customer numbers at the pick-up counter. These changes we

Nov. 7, 2021

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Ron’s Gone Wrong (US) Opened Oct. 27 Animation Directed by Jean-Philippe Vine and Sarah Smith In the future, the AI robot model B-bot is every child’s friend. Middle schooler Barney Pudowski’s deepest wish is to get a B-bot since he is the only student in the school who doesn’t own one. One day he finally gets a robot named Ron. But there seems to be something wrong with Ron, who can’t connect to the network. 　 Dune (US) Opened Oct. 20 Science fiction Directed b

Nov. 5, 2021

[Newsmaker] Marvel's 'Eternals' tops S. Korean box office on its first day

Marvel Studios' latest blockbuster "Eternals" has topped the South Korean box office on its opening day, data showed Thursday. The film posted 296,000 attendees on Wednesday, accounting for 88.9 percent of the day's total ticket sales, according to the data from the Korean Film Council. It marked the second-highest first-day record this year to date, following 400,000 visitors set by "F9," the latest chapter in the "Fast and Furious" series, in May. The new film

Nov. 4, 2021

Films created during pandemic the mainstay of 47th SIFF

The 47th Seoul Independent Film Festival will be screening films mostly created since the beginning of COVID-19 last year. “The largest number of films ever were submitted this year. A total of 1,550 films were submitted,” said SIFF director Kim Dong-hyun during a press conference Wednesday. “We had the largest number of submitters last year so I thought the number would decrease this year. Especially since last year was not an easy time to make films,” Kim said. &ldq

Nov. 3, 2021

‘Tomb of the River’ director says he was inspired by PyeongChang Winter Olympics

The director of the upcoming Korean action film “Tomb of the River” Yoon Young-bin said he got the idea for the film’s script from the 2018 PyeongChang Winter Olympics. The movie’s Korean title, “Gangneung,” is the name of a city in Gangwon Province, on South Korea’s east coast. The city is also adjacent to PyeongChang. “After Korea was liberated, Gangneung never received any development assistance,” Yoon said during a brief press confere

Nov. 1, 2021

‘Neighbours’ wins Best Picture at Gangneung International Film Festival

“Neighbours,” a film by Kurdish Swiss director Mano Khalil, won the Best Picture Award at the Gangneung International Film Festival, which ended Sunday. During the 10-day festival, which kicked off Oct. 22 with Albert Birney’s “Strawberry Mansion,” 116 films from 42 countries were screened at five theaters in Gangneung, Gangwon Province, on South Korea’s east coast.   The winners of the International Narrative Competition Awards, created last year, wer

Nov. 1, 2021

Kim Seon-ho to make film debut as planned with ‘Sad Tropics’

Actor Kim Seon-ho will remain on the cast of the upcoming film “Sad Tropics (working title),” the movie’s production company NEW said on Monday. Since the actor stepped down from the films “2 O’Clock Date” and “Dog Days” in the aftermath of a controversy surrounding his ex-girlfriend, “Sad Tropics” is the first project to keep its offer of a lead character to Kim. According to NEW, the production staff held a long discussion in makin

Nov. 1, 2021

'Eternals' hits No. 1 in presale tickets ahead of local premier

The upcoming superhero film "Eternals" is expected to smash the pandemic-hit South Korean box office, with its presale tickets outpacing those of its Marvel predecessor "Black Widow," data showed Monday. Marvel Studios' latest film to be released Wednesday had recorded 200,000 presold tickets as of 2:30 p.m., two days before its local release, according to the data by the Korean Film Council. The movie accounted for 78.8 percent of all tickets reserved at that time, overwhe

Nov. 1, 2021

Local movie theaters ready for ‘living with COVID’

As the South Korean government raised hopes for a gradual return to normal with their “living with COVID-19” scheme, cinemas will see many of the pandemic restrictions lifted starting Monday. From Monday, multiplex operator CGV will be offering incentives for those who have been fully vaccinated in special “vaccine-pass theaters.” “Moviegoers who have been fully vaccinated for 14 days can eat and drink in the theaters, which was strictly prohibited after the outb

Oct. 31, 2021

[Box Office] Movies in theaters this week

Dune (US) Opened Oct. 20 Science fiction Directed by Denis Villeneuve In the year 10191, Paul Atreides (Timothy Chalamet) is born into a great destiny beyond his understanding. In his dream, he meets a strange woman from the dangerous desert planet Arrakis. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over Arrakis’ exclusive supply of precious resources that could unlock humanity’s great potential, Paul and his family receive an order to head to the planet.  Venom: Let There Be C

Oct. 29, 2021

[Herald Interview] Ahn Bo-hyun says global popularity of ‘My Name’ took him by surprise

The international fervor for the Netflix series “My Name” took actor Ahn Bo-hyun by surprise. “After the success of ‘Squid Game,’ I can definitely feel the change in the air and growing interest in Korean contents, “ Ahn said in an online interview with a group of reporters on Monday. ”I was surprised to hear that our series ranked third place on the global Netflix chart. Though global fans are cheering me and other actors on social media, witnessing th

Oct. 26, 2021

S. Korean movie industry mogul Lee dies

Lee Tae-won, a renowned South Korean movie producer, died Sunday after his health waned following an accidental fall last year, according to his aides. He was 83. Lee died in the afternoon at Yonsei University's Severance Hospital in Seoul, where he has been under treatment following the accident in May last year. His memorial altar is expected to be set up at the same hospital. Lee first started his career as a movie producer with a film, entitled "A long affection," in 1959. But hi

Oct. 24, 2021