March/April 2007
Korean Domestic Box Office: March 2nd- 3rd 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissions | 3-Day Gross (won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| Miracle on 1st Street ( S Korea) CJ Entertainment | 3 | 223,298 | 1,389,634,000 | 1,467,005 | 236 | 13,470,468 |
| Music and Lyrics (US) Warner Bros | NEW | 180,243 | 1,170,732,100 | 1,235,915 | 144 | 2,061,835 |
| The Pursuit of Happiness (US) Sony Pictures Releasing Int | NEW | 153,079 | 963,565,800 | 1,017,215 | 146 | 1,179,733 |
| Highway Star (S Korea) Studio 2.0 | 3 | 131,180 | 796,424,400 | 840,767 | 211 | 8,072,150 |
| Dreamgirls (US) CJ Ent | 2 | 111,083 | 720,530,000 | 760,647 | 114 | 3,369,391 |
| Skeletons In The Closet) (S Korea) Cinema Service | NEW | 107,724 | 647,727,000 | 683,791 | 161 | 1,073,878 |
| Hannibal Rising (Czech, Fr, US, UK) Prime Ent | NEW | 88,025 | 554,597,200 | 585,476 | 167 | 970,225 |
| A Day for An Affair (S Korea) Cinema Service | 4 | 36,612 | 234,830,500 | 247,905 | 157 | 10,921,561 |
| Babel (Mex, US) MK Pictures | 2 | 30,975 | 201,830,500 | 213,068 | 107 | 1,282,002 |
| Bridge to Terabilthia (US) Lotte Ent | 3 | 30,878 | 176,236,000 | 186,048 | 106 | 2,546,038 |
Miracle on 1st Street (1번가의 기적) remains at No.1 for the third consecuative week, which is very encouraging. Almost $13.5 million to date, which is by no means a small figure.
Music and Lyrics opened on No.2, which is not too bad - especially so because the reviews have hardly been fantastic. But Hugh Grant and his pompous act is always going to attract people, even the Korean public. The Pursuit of Happyness, which opened on a similar number of screens, fell short of the romantic comedy, but it hasn't exactly flopped either.
Highway Star (복면 달호)is slipping and the fact that it is still being shown on 211 screens with 131,180 admissions, is not the news Studio 2.0 will want to hear. But that said, $8 million to date will reassure those anxious minds. Cinema Service will be even more disappointed with Skeletons In The Closet, which opened with barely 107,724 admissions on its opening week on 161 screens.
Skeletons In The Closet directed by JUNG Yoon-cheol (정윤철 )
Dreamgirls on the other hand is doing remarkably well on 114 screens with a box office total of just over 3.3 million to date.
Hannibal Rising performed mediocre at best - just over 88,000 admissions on 167 screens. Oh dear.
Babel is still fighting on as does Bridge to Terabilthia. Meanwhile A Day For An Affair falls down to 8th place, but almost 11 million is hardly a poor performance; quite the contrary
Korean Domestic Box Office: March 9th- 11th 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissions | 3-Day Gross (Won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| The Illusionist (US) Lotte Ent | NEW | 218,967 | 1,351,289,600 | 1,428,727 | 215 | 1,589,678 |
| Music & Lyrics (US) Warner Bros | 2 | 190,201 | 1,222,832,500 | 1,292,908 | 136 | 3,963,917 |
| Miracle on 1st Street (S Korea) CJ Ent | 4 | 165,821 | 1,019,067,700 | 1,077,466 | 220 | 15,126,656 |
| The Pursuit of Happyness (US) Sony Pictures Int | 2 | 132,464 | 769,600,600 | 813,703 | 136 | 2,996,717 |
| Highway Star (S Korea) Studio 2.0 | 4 | 93,607 | 557,093,500 | 589,018 | 190 | 9,075,449 |
| Smoking Aces (US) UPI | NEW | 84,767 | 541,108,500 | 572,018 | 131 | 653,258 |
| Dreamgirls (US) CJ Ent | 3 | 80,741 | 522,026,000 | 551,941 | 107 | 4,231,607 |
| Skeletons In The Closet (S Korea) Cinema Service | 2 | 65,692 | 395,034,500 | 417,672 | 160 | 1,746,314 |
| Hannibal Rising (Czech, Fr, US, UK) Prime Entertainment | 2 | 45,194 | 287,555,100 | 304,034 | 164 | 1,511,138 |
| Bridge to Terabilthia (US) Lotte Entertainment | 4 | 25,570 | 138,347,000 | 146,275 | 91 | 2,720,220 |
The Illusionist opens at No.1 whereas Music & Lryics stays at no.2, but 10,000 more people went to it last weekend on 8 less screens (assuming that people didn't go to see it twice).
Miracle on 1st Street (1번가의 기적) slips to 3rd, but $15 million is mighty impressive. Perhaps it can break $20 million, or is this a little ambitious?
Miracle on 1st Street (1번가의 기적)
directed by Yoo Seong-hyeob (유성협)
The Pursuit of Happyness drops slightly in revenue, but this is on 10 less screens, so there is much to be content within the Sony Pictures Int camp.
Highway Star (복면 달호) is fighting on with 93,607 admissions, but on 190 screens, this is not a peformance, the investors behind the film will be counting on.
Smoking Aces opened on a satisfactory 6th place whereas Dreamgirls is still firmly placed in the top 10 with just under 81,000 admissions.
Meanwhile Skeletons In The Closet is struggeling at $1.7 million on 160 screens. Cinema Service really have a lot of faith in this film. Not to different to Prime Entertainment who still have Hannibal Rising on 164 screens with just over 45,000 admissions. Mind you, on fewer screens these films would inevitably see exit from the top ten and thus, no more free publicity.
Korean Domestic Box Office: March 16th- 18th 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissions | 3-Day Gross (won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| 300 (US) Warner Bros | NEW | 748,203 | 4,774,649,100 | 5,040,490 | 380 | 6,660,992 |
| Music and Lyrics (US) Warner Bros | 3 | 136,013 | 844,431,500 | 891,447 | 139 | 5,392,590 |
| Big Bang (S Korea) ShowBox | NEW | 133,018 | 820,781,700 | 866,481 | 224 | 1,189,499 |
| The llusionist (US) Lotte Ent | 2 | 121,247 | 735,659,300 | 776,619 | 219 | 2,849,911 |
| Miracle on 1st Street (S Korea) CJ Ent | 5 | 65,729 | 397,249,100 | 419,367 | 190 | 15,855,707 |
| The Painted Veil (US) Prime Ent | NEW | 56,589 | 349,599,500 | 369,064 | 113 | 494,559 |
| The Pursuit of Happyness (US) Sony Pictures Releasing Int | 3 | 50,737 | 314,094,400 | 331,582 | 135 | 3,542,945 |
| Dreamgirls (US) CJ Ent | 4 | 24,876 | 159,905,500 | 168,809 | 69 | 4,556,530 |
| Saint Ralph (Can) MK Pictures | NEW | 23,099 | 134,374,800 | 141,856 | 132 | 174,710 |
| Highway Star (S Korea) Studio 2.0 | 5 | 22,063 | 126,343,000 | 133,377 | 117 | 9,336,782 |
Over the last two weeks or so, there has been a real insurgence of Hollywood films, but no-one expected the phenominal opening of 300, or at least I didn't, which scored almost 750,000 admissions on 380 screens. I could be wrong here, but I think this could be a record for a Hollywood film, which opened on 380 screens in South Korea. Other films like The Da Vinci Code and Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest did better, but on fewer screens.
But this film has performed very well indeed all over the world, but why Korea has heavily attributed to this success, I am not sure. Perhaps the cartoonish aspect to the film that Korean's and Japanese are so interested in has drove the crowds. What is for sure though, is that Korean films are beginning to take a back seat at the moment, which like last year, could be a challenging time for Korean films. Some may remember the Tsunami of Hollywood blockbusters, which swept the box office last year, which began with the Mission Impossible 3. Korean filmmakers and actors/actresses soon became very anxious and argued that screen quota, which was dropped last year to 109 days from 146 days to be kept. To be honest, I loathe the fact that Hollywood apply pressure so that the Koreans were forced to cave in, but I also think that Korean films are able to stand without a quota, which was emphaised by a far bigger and more powerful wave of domestic hits, which kind of began with Hanbando, but really lept forward with the most successful Korean film to date, The Host. That said, this year probably has more potential money making films than any other including the likes of the Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's end, Shrek 3 and not least, The Simpsons. So in short, there is much to be a little anxious about, but forgive me for being an optimist here, but Korean films will always come out on top in their domestic market and even further afield.
Anyway returning to the box office itself, Music & Lyrics has gathered almost $5.4 million, which is not bad after 3 weeks on release. Meanwhile, Big Bang took in 133,018 admissions on 244 screens, which suggests that ShowBox were hoping for more, but I think they underestimated the likes of 300.
Big Bang (쏜다) directed by PARK Jung-woo (박정우)
The Illusionist has unsurprisingly slipped to 4th and Miracle on 1st Street, is comfortably clinging on to 5th place, which is helped by the fact that it is been shown on 190 screens.
The Painted Veil has done OK, generating almost $0.5 on 113 screens. The Pursuit of Happyness has now generated $3.5 millions, which is not half bad, but Dreamgirls, which I am still confused about - why not screen it on more screens? - has done very well.
Saint Ralph, a Canadian Film has literally flopped, whilst Highway Star hasn't flopped in the same regard, but it is a disappointment nevertheless.
Korean Domestic Box Office: March 23rd- 25th 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissions | 3-Day Gross (Won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| 300 (US) Warner Bros | 2 | 536,324 | 3,444,070,800 | 3,674,067 | 350 | 12,683,883 |
| Perfume: The Story of A Murderer (Fr, Ger, Sp) Lotte Ent) | NEW | 265,883 | 1,587,673,900 | 1,639,699 | 227 | 1,939,377 |
| The Number 23 (US) Microvision) | NEW | 176,246 | 1,070,108,000 | 1,141,570 | 168 | 1,300,661 |
| The Break-up (US) UPI | NEW | 98,056 | 610,292,500 | 651,048 | 152 | 738,186 |
| Soo (S Korea) Cinema Service | NEW | 96,722 | 607,519,600 | 647,770 | 204 | 818,854 |
| Music and Lyrics (US) Warner Bros | 4 | 83,294 | 518,855,500 | 553,505 | 139 | 6,378,886 |
| Big Bang (S Korea) ShowBox | 2 | 59,153 | 347,670,900 | 370,889 | 207 | 1,892,854 |
| The Illusionist (US) Lotte Ent | 3 | 48,244 | 275,816,300 | 294,235 | 156 | 3,460,671 |
| Mug Travel (S Korea) RG Animation Studios | NEW | 46,987 | 218,275,000 | 232,852 | 65 | 243,952 |
| Miracle on 1st Street (S Korea) CJ Ent | 6 | 21,460 | 132,948,700 | 132,226 | 100 | 16,298,840 |
300 is still way ahead compared to any other film. Perfume: The Story of a Murderer opened well on 265,883 screens especially seeing it is neither a Hollywood or Korean film.
Soo (수), which has opened on 204 screens will be another disappoinment for the Korean film industry at the moment, which is experiencing a lot of competition to say the least (see below for more details). Under 100,000 admissions is a little worrying for a domestic opener, but it should pick up soon, no doubt.
Soo (수) directed by CHOI Yang-il (최양일)
Big Bang (쏜다), which was last week's opener, but again, has failed to ignite and after two weeks in the box office, it is likely to exit very soon on a poor return.
Mug Travel, which has done very well on 65 screens, attracting almost 47,000 admissions -perhaps release this film needs to be shown on more screens. Meanwhile Compettion has forced Miracle on 1st Street (1번가의 기적) to hit 10th place or is it the fact that it is now been withdrawn from 90 screens?
As for hollywood films, other than 300 of course, Music & Lyrics after 4 weeks is at 6th place, which is not bad at all. As for openers, The Number 23 and The Break-up have had very different results, with the latter being the worse of. Finally, the distributors beind The Illusionist, Lotte Entertainment, should be content with a return of $3.4 million.
Korean Domestic Box Office: March 30th- April 1st 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissions | 3-Day Gross (Won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| Small Town Rivals (S Korea) CJ Ent | NEW | 440,516 | 2,808,946,000 | 2,986,334 | 301 | 3,433,253 |
| 300 (U.S) Warner Bros | 3 | 317,538 | 2,039,197,000 | 2,167,975 | 294 | 16,150,657 |
| Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (Fr, Ger, Sp) Lotte Ent | 2 | 217,358 | 1,306,240,500 | 1,388,731 | 220 | 4,054,639 |
| The Number 23 (U.S) Microvison | 2 | 98,782 | 593,041,000 | 630,492 | 168 | 2,329,119 |
| Beautiful Sunday (S Korea) Showbox/Mediaplex | NEW | 89,431 | 589,767,000 | 627,011 | 201 | 719,008 |
| Black Book (Bel, Ger, Neth, UK) Prime Ent | NEW | 69,689 | 433,024,500 | 460,371 | 122 | 518,166 |
| The Break-up (US) UPI | 2 | 46,193 | 293,568,500 | 312,108 | 148 | 1,305,667 |
| Music and Lyrics (US) Warner Bros | 5 | 43,406 | 269,929,000 | 286,975 | 127 | 6,855,950 |
| Soo (S Korea) Cinema Service | 2 | 25,456 | 155,340,500 | 165,150 | 188 | 1,207,646 |
| Mug Travel (S Korea) RG Animation Studio | 2 | 25,378 | 114,994,500 | 122,257 | 50 | 401,266 |
Well, Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) opens at No.1 leaving 300 to second place. 440,516 is not bad at all, nore is 317,538 for 300, which to say the least has performed remarkably well.
Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) directed and written by Jang Gyoo-seong (장규성)
Likewise, Perfume:The Story of a Murderer is still taking serious money after its second week in the top 10. Number 23 on the other hand, whilst sitting at 4th place, has drawn almost 100,000 fewer admissions since last week on the same number of screens.
Beautiful Sunday (뷰티풀 선데이) opens disappointedly on little under 90,000 admissions, but on 201 screens. Soo (수) has dropped considerably and it is fair to say, it has flopped. Mug Travel( 빼꼼의 머그잔 여행), which is on 50 screens, falls just behind Soo (수), which is on almost 4 times as many screens. I think this says a lot about the demand for animation at the moment.
The two Hollywood romances; Break-up and Music and Lyrics have had very different performances. The first being somewhat of a bomb, whereas the latter, Music and Lyrics, after 5 weeks, is still fighting on.
Korean Domestic Box Office: April 6th- April 8th 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissons | 3-Day Gross (Won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| The Show Must Go On (S Korea) Lotte Ent | NEW | 336,529 | 2,200,831,000 | 2,358,752 | 391 | 2,810,967 |
| Small Town Rivals (S Korea) CJ Ent | 2 | 231,495 | 1,480,408,000 | 1,586,633 | 281 | 6,099,738 |
| 300 (US) | 4 | 159,304 | 1,028,037,500 | 1,101,803 | 235 | 18,205,331 |
| Perfume: The Story Of a Murderer (Fr, Ger, Neth, UK) | 3 | 126,938 | 765,350,500 | 820,267 | 208 | 5,406,287 |
| Because I Said So (US) Studio 2.0 | NEW | 95,067 | 586,736,500 | 628,837 | 143 | 753,281 |
| Black Book (Bel, Ger, Neth, UK) | 2 | 33,168 | 208,496,500 | 223,457 | 111 | 956,785 |
| Sky Fighters (Fr) | NEW | 28,185 | 171,880,000 | 184,213 | 94 | 215,339 |
| The Numner 23 (US) Microvision | 3 | 27,127 | 159,744,500 | 171,207 | 115 | 2,712,806 |
| Beautiful Sunday (S Korea) Showbox/Mediaplex | 2 | 22,352 | 145,526,000 | 266,968 | 166 | 1,126,869 |
| Music & Lyrics (US) Warner Bros | 6 | 11,709 | 67,203,000 | 72,025 | 46 | 7,129,965 |
Another Korean No.1 this week; The Show Must Go (우아한 세계) starring the one and only Song Kang-ho (송강호) from The Host and many other films,, but it falls behind last weeks opener, Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) , which indecently is still doing well on its second week.
The Show Must Go (우아한 세계) direccted and written by Han Jae-rim (한재림)
It is not surprising seeing 300 still attracting the crowds. To date $18 million, is no small sum at all. Neither is $5.4 million after 3 weeks for Perfume: The Story Of A Murderer, which doesn't have the Hollywood belt to push it along.
Unfortunately, there is only one other Korean film in the top 10, which is Beautiful Sunday (뷰티풀 선데이), which is looking to be another flop - something not to different to Soo (수), Big Bang (쏜다) or The Number 23, which are (the latter and Beautiful Sunday) being screened on a large number of screens.
Although Korean films are dominating the opening two places, foriegn films are in dominance for the remainding 8 places, 3 of which are not Hollywood films. With the failures of Soo (수) and Beautiful Sunday (뷰티풀 선데이), perhaps audiences are looking for something different, but with any film industry, you will get rubbish, so I think it is just a case where Korean films are taking a step back - The calm before the storm. They are going to need to pull out the stops when this summer of Hollywood films hit the screens.
Korean Domestic Box Office: April 13th - 15th 2007 (92 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissons | 3-Day Gross (won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| Paradise Murdered (극락도 살인사건) (S Korea) MK Pictures | NEW | 513,536 | 3,267,866,000 | 3,518,564 | 355 | 4,066,125 |
| The Show Must Go On (우아한 세계) (S Korea) Lotte Ent | 2 | 170,007 | 1,108,854,500 | 1,193,921 | 317 | 4,958,921 |
| Ghost Rider (US) SPRI | NEW | 162,829 | 1,068,423,000 | 1,150,388 | 250 | 1,367,269 |
| Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) (S Korea) CJ Ent | 3 | 122,121 | 774,705,000 | 834,137 | 222 | 7,516,229 |
| 300 (US) Warner Bros | 5 | 87,130 | 559,687,000 | 602,624 | 218 | 19,361,263 |
| Perfume (Ger-Fr-Sp) Lotte Ent | 4 | 52,224 | 325,641,500 | 350,623 | 173 | 6,078,879 |
| Beyond The Years (천년학) (S Korea) Prime Entertainment | NEW | 51,917 | 317,639,500 | 342,008 | 186 | 433,648 |
| Because I Said So (US) Studio 2.0 | 2 | 35,753 | 227,997,000 | 245,488 | 135 | 1,263,731 |
| Black Book (Bel-Ger-Neth-Uk) Prime Ent | 3 | 12,880 | 84,219,500 | 90,680 | 32 | 1,167,971 |
| Mug Travel (빼꼼의 머그잔 여행) (S. Korea) RG Animation Studios | 4 | 11,038 | 46,790,000 | 50,380 | 33 | 548,048 |
As you can see, I have put the Korean titles in Korean. Unfortunately, due to a lack of time, I can't go back, but as of this week, all Korean films in the chart wiil include their Korean title, since the English titles keep changing and it is something I have always wanted to do.
Well, this weekend would have been closely moitored by the legend, Im Kwon-taek for his 100th film, Beyond the Years (천년학), but as far as I can see, it hasn't blossomed, which is a real shame. 186 screens isn't a huge number of screens, but seeing that his films usually attract a very specific audience and thus not very commerical, Prime Entertainment have pulled out all the stops, so it can reach as many people as possible. I am not quite sure what has gone wrong. He did say in a recent interview that it does appeal to younger people because of the romance in the film, so one does expect a little more.
It follows to step-siblings, Dong-Ho & Song-wha. Dong-ho falls in love with Song-wha, whereas Song-wha falls in love with her talent of Pansori, which is a form a traditional form of narrative song. Dong-ho, polishes his drumming skills to match her singing. I wouldn't say it is hugely commercial, but he certainly made it more than commercial than usual. Perhaps it will fair better next week - I do hope so, but it is important to note that, like I said earlier, his films are not commerical, so where as this may be deemed a failure commerically, it might be a masterpiece.
Beyond the Years (천년학) directed by Im Kwon-taek (임권택)
As for the other films, Paridise Murdered (aka Paradise 1986) (극 락도 살인사건), scored just over 500,000 admissions, which is not bad at all. It seems a cross between an episode of Miss Marple or Murder She Wrote and Battle Royale when someone is found dead on an island with very few inhabitants. Meanwhile The Show Must Go On (우아한 세계), which has been reviewed on Darcy's site is on the verge of hitting $5 million.
Paridise Murdered (aka Paradise 1986) (극 락도 살인사건) directed and written by Kim Han-min (김한민). Does this picture resemble a film, that was made just under a year ago?
Hollywood film, Ghost Rider opened with a disappointing weekend of just over 160,000 for Spri, but will please people like me who are keen to see the domestic box office topple the Hollywood giants.
Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) is still performing well, even though it has fallen to 4th place, but after 3 weeks, just over $7.5milliion - CJ will be more than content.
300, well, it is expected to reach $20 million, which is probably has already - by far the most successful non-Korean film so far this year and it will take some beating, but it will probably be overtaken in the summer by one of the hollywood blockbusters to hit the global box office.
Perfume has done remarkably well for a non-Korean or non-American film, which might explain why Lotte Entertainment have wisely held it screening on 173 screens.
Because I said So hasn't really penetrated the Korean film market, but I am not sure there was ever a real intention, since it was screened and continues to be screened on relatively few screens for a Hollywood film.
Black Book, which didn't do very well last week on 111 screens has performed slightly better on 32 screens. Mug travel (빼꼼의 머그잔 여행) has re-entered the top 10, but according to some box office charts last weekend, it was in 10th place last week, so it may have not exited the chat after all. To be honest, I still don't know which chart is correct - Leonard Klady from Screen International wrote an interesting article regarding the inconsistencies in Box office charts across the globe in the current issue (1593) - so, despite some confusion, I have decided to stick to the one from the Korean Film Council , which would in theory should be the most reliable.
Korean Domestic Box Office: April 20th - 22nd 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissons | 3-day (won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| Paradise Murdered (S Kor) (극락도 살인사건) MK Pictures | 2 | 338,491 | 2,162,011,000 | 2,331,135 | 304 | 7,861,914 |
| My Tutor Friend 2 (동갑내기 과외하기 레슨 II) (S Kor) CJ Ent | NEW | 185,054 | 1,193,773,000 | 1,272,601 | 233 | 1,468,603 |
| The Reaping (US) Warner Bros | NEW | 159,145 | 1,018,887,000 | 1,098,592 | 137 | 1,253,133 |
| Meet Mr Daddy (눈부신 날에) (S Kor) Cinema Service | NEW | 114,846 | 737,515,500 | 791,973 | 229 | 967,220 |
| The Show Must Go On (우아한 세계) (S Kor) Lotte Ent | 3 | 68,191 | 439,107,500 | 473,457 | 190 | 5,939,473 |
| Ghost Rider (U.S) Sony Pictures | 2 | 62,641 | 400,097,000 | 431,395 | 218 | 2,177,265 |
| Meet The Robinsons (U.S) Sony Pictures | NEW | 49,172 | 314,795,000 | 339,420 | 105 | 373,948 |
| Sunshine (U.K-U.S) 20th Fox | NEW | 43,225 | 301,539,500 | 325,128 | 117 | 383,406 |
| The Good Shepherd (U.S) UPI | NEW | 38,456 | 246,602,000 | 265,893 | 84 | 304,456 |
| Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) (S. Kor) CJ Ent | 4 | 32,192 | 199,301,000 | 214,891 | 126 | 8,008,275 |
Paradise Murdered aka Paradise 1986 (극락도 살인사건) directed and written by Kim Han-min (김한민) based on a true story remains at No.1 for the second consecutive week. I have also just noticed it is to have a screening at Cannes next week, so I seriously recommend anyone who is lucky to be in Cannes, to go along. Approaching 350,000 admissions for a second week weekend is not bad at all.
Paridise Murdered (aka Paradise 1986) (극 락도 살인사건) directed and written by Kim Han-min (김한민)
My Tutor Friend 2 (동갑내기 과외하기 레슨 II) opens reasonably well on 180,000 admissions, but for a sequel, one might of been hoping for a little more.
As for other Korean releases: Meet Mr Daddy (눈 부신 날에), which is also known as Shiny Day - please, please can you have one name!! Almost every Korean film I come across has more than one English name. Anyway, it has failed to get out of its blocks, despite the family appeal.
Meanwhile The Show Must Go On (우아한 세계) has slowed down considerably on its 3rd week on release. There is just over 100,000 difference in admissions from last week, though it as been taken from almost 130 screens, which probably doesn't help things. Ironically Small Town Rivals (이장과 군수) has done the same - it has seen a 90,000 drop in admissions, and likewise, it has been taken from over 100 screens.
As for Hollywood films, The Reaping is performing relatively well, especially on 137 screens. Ghost Rider on the other hand is not, as is Sunshine from British director Danny Boyle, which has struggled to hit 45,000 admissions, despite being screened on 117 screens. The Good Shepherd hasn't exactly performed wonderfully, but at the same time, on merely 84 screens, it has fallen at its feet either.
Korean Domestic Box Office: April 27th -29th 2007 (93 % of screens reporting)
| Name of Film | Week | Number of Admissions | 3-Day (won) | 3-Day Gross ($) | Number of Screens | Total Gross ($) |
| Paradise Murdered (S Kor) (극락도 살인사건) MK Pictures | 3 | 260,084 | 1,663,989,000 | 1,790,872 | 270 | 10,644,939 |
| Shooter (US) CJ Ent | NEW | 153,890 | 1,039,033,000 | 1,118,262 | 155 | 1,386,720 |
| The Reaping (US) Warner Bros | 2 | 143,035 | 914,332,500 | 984,053 | 133 | 2,787,962 |
| My Tutor Friend 2 (동갑내기 과외하기 레슨 II) (S Kor) CJ Ent | 2 | 132,176 | 842,649,000 | 906,903 | 223 | 2,849,306 |
| Bunt (날아라 허동구) (S Kor) Showbox/mediaplex | NEW | 131,390 | 829,245,500 | 892,478 | 228 | 1,122,063 |
| TMNT (HK-US) Lotte Ent | NEW | 66,854 | 409,963,500 | 441,224 | 207 | 486,239 |
| Meet Mr Daddy (눈부신 날에) (S Kor) Cinema Service | 2 | 60,120 | 381,126,500 | 410,188 | 211 | 1,697,221 |
| The Show Must Go On (우아한 세계) (S Kor) Lotte Ent | 4 | 29,836 | 193,228,500 | 207,963 | 99 | 6,331,871 |
| Meet The Robinsons | 2 | 22,801 | 157,193,500 | 169,180 | 93 | 586,925 |
| The Good Shepherd (US) UPI | 2 | 19,328 | 128,074,000 | 137,840 | 80 | 540,293 |
Paradise Murdered (극락도 살인사건) still remains at No.1 - Koreans do like films based on true stories! Still being shown on 270 screens suggest that a substanial audience decline is a little way off yet.
Shooter is not doing too badly, though it falls behind The Reapings opening last weekend on fewer screens. It has only dropped just over 15,000 admissions since last week on 4 fewer screens.
My Tutor Friend 2 (동갑내기 과외하기 레슨 II) is slipping - I wouldn't be surprised if it disasppeared before long.
My Tutor Friend 2 (동갑내기 과외하기 레슨 II) directed by Ji Kil-woong (지길웅)
Bunt - please forgive me foe being blunt, but what kind of name is that?! It is apparently a baseball term, but us Brits are somewhat abscent minded when it comes to things like that. Unforunately, it is not doing as well as Showbox and Mediapliex would have liked. An opening on 228 screens would expect far more than just over 130,000 admissions. The same will apply to TMNT, which has, for all intents and puropses, flopped.
Meet Mr Daddy (눈부신 날에) is also another on its way out, as is The Show Must Go On (우아한 세계), which started very well and then at some point - probably once people had written about it on their blogs - has become a big disappointment, escpecially seeing that one of Korea's great leading actors stars in it - Song Kang-ho.