The Korea Herald

소아쌤

Box Office: Runner Runner, The Face Reader, The Spy

By Korea Herald

Published : Sept. 27, 2013 - 20:30

    • Link copied

Runner Runner

Opened Sept. 26

Crime. Drama. Thriller. Directed by Brad Furman. 

Richie Furst (Justin Timberlake) is a student at Princeton University who pays his tuition by online gambling. When he gets cheated out of his money, he learns the site is being run from a remote island and decides to confront the site’s owner. He meets the cunning online gambling tycoon Ivan Block (Ben Affleck), and instead of getting his money back, Richie is lured into becoming Ivan’s protege with the promise of good money. When demands from Ivan become increasingly dangerous and risky, Richie is approached by FBI agent Zbysko (Anthony Mackie) and together they hatch a plan to bring Ivan down. 


The Face Reader

Opened Sept. 11

Drama. Directed by Han Jae-rim.

Nae-gyeong (Song Kang-ho) is the son of a disgraced noble family living in the Joseon era with a talent for physiognomy. With one glance of a person’s face, he is able to assess their personality, mental state, and habits. He is approached by officials in the royal court to use his skills to help solve a murder case. Nae-gyeong’s talents become recognized by the royal court and he is asked to not only solve crimes but also assist the king in identifying traitors. Nae-gyeong finds himself in the middle of a power struggle between Prince Suyang (Lee Jung-jae) and Kim Jong-seo (Baek Yoon-sik). 


The Spy

Opened Sept. 5

Comedy. Action. Directed by Lee Seung-joon.

Chul-soo (Sol Kyung-gu) is one of the best intelligence agents in Korea and is able to complete any given mission, however difficult. But like any other married man, he has one weakness: his wife. One day, a mysterious explosion occurs in Seoul and Chul-soo flies to Thailand on a mission to rescue a person who allegedly holds clues to solving the incident. While on his mission, Chul-soo is surprised to see his wife Young-hee (Moon So-ri) with a mysterious handsome man, Ryan (Daniel Henney). Will Chul-soo be able to complete his dangerous mission and also save his wife at the same time?


Elysium

Opened Aug. 29

Sci-fi. Action. Drama. Directed by Neill Blomkamp.

In the year 2154, people are divided into the wealthy and the poor, the former living in a floating luxurious space station, Elysium, and the latter living on an overpopulated, disease-stricken Earth. Max Da Costa (Matt Damon), an ex-convict living on Earth, is desperate to get to Elysium, and reluctantly takes on a dangerous mission against Elysium’s Secretary Delacourt (Jodie Foster). If he can complete the mission, he will be able to save not only his own life, but also the lives of all people on Earth.


Now You See Me

Opened Aug. 22

Crime. Mystery. Thriller. Directed by Louis Leterrier.

Four magicians are invited to an obscure address for a meeting filled with secrets. One year later they return as the famous Four Horsemen illusionists and pull off a variety of daring heists against corrupt business leaders during their big performances. In the middle of their shows, the stolen goods are distributed among the audience. FBI officer Dylan Rhodes (Mark Ruffalo) and Alma Dray (Melanie Laurent) of Interpol are put on the case alongside professional illusion exposer Thaddeus Bradley (Morgan Freeman), but the case proves to be a mesh of dark secrets and hidden agendas with the illusionists seeming to always be one step ahead of the law.