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The London Korean Film Festival (Lkff) wrapped its 19th edition on Wednesday with a screening of E.oni’s bold coming-of-age drama Love in the Big City, which stars Kim Go-eun (Exhuma) and Noh Sang-hyun (Pachinko).

Run by the Korean Cultural Centre UK (Kccuk), this year’s festival drew over 3,300 attendees and also marked a historic collaboration with the British Film Institute (BFI), with several screenings taking place at the BFI’s Southbank Theatre.

The Kccuk will also host a special preview and UK premiere of Squid Game Season 2 on December 16 at the BFI’s theater, ahead of the series’ worldwide premiere on December 26 on Netflix.

The BFI is also running a series until December 31 in collaboration with the Kccuk and Korean Film Archives called “Echoes in Time,” featuring 30 Korean films produced during the Golden Age of the 1960s and the New Korean Cinema era.

Eunji Lee, Kcc’s head of...

Sony’s Venom: The Last Dance, starring Tom Hardy, grossed $2.2m, roughly a third of all ticket sales from Friday to Sunday, at the South Korean box office on its second weekend on release, November 1-3, according to Kobis.

The third instalment in the franchise now has a total gross of $6.6m as of November 4. This is less than its predecessor Venom: Let There Be Carnage, which opened during the pandemic but took $8.8m over its first two weekends.

After debuting in first place on Wednesday (October 30), Cj Enm’s local comedy title Amazon Bullseye fell to second over the weekend with $1.4m.

Venom: The Last Dance topped the Korean box office on its first weekend, capturing more than 60% of ticket sales.

The third instalment in the Sony franchise took $4.2m from Friday to Sunday (October 25-27) for a cume of $5.7m since opening on October 23, according to Kobis, the Korean Film Council’s box office tracking system.

It may struggle to match the $15.2 taken by predecessor Venom: Let There Be Carnage in 2021 let alone the $24.6m taken by 2018’s Venom.

In second place was mystery drama A Normal Family, which took $730,000 on its second weekend – half of the $1.45m claimed on its opening weekend,...

People navigating love life and life in general is hardly a new subject in cinema and other art forms. Even the setting in which a straight woman lives with a gay man in the same apartment is not that new. However, Park Sang-young‘s novel “Love in the Big City” is not merely a Korean riff on, let’s say, Will and Grace TV series. On the contrary, it aims for something more earnest, realistic and aware of the wider societal context.

Love in the Big City is screening at Hawai’i International Film Festival

The best-selling novel is actually getting two releases this fall. While the TV series adaptation will hit the small screens later this month, the big screen one, penned by Kim Na-deul and helmed by E.oni, formerly known as Lee Eon-hee (of 2016 “Missing” fame), has already premiered at Toronto and screened at Hawaii International Film Festival.

Korean-made crime-comedy-thriller “I, The Executioner,” a sequel to 2015 hit ‘Veteran,” continued its spree at the top of the South Korea weekend box office. It earned $1.68 million in its fourth full weekend session, ahead of top-ranked new release “Joker: Folie a Deux.”

“I, The Executioner” saw its market share slip to 29%, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic). The latest weekend increment gives the film a $49.97 million running total since releasing on Sept. 13. That makes it the fourth highest grossing film of the year in the country, behind “Exhuma,” “The Roundup: Punishment” and “Inside Out 2,” which is still some distance ahead on $64 million.

“Joker: Folie a Deux” opened with $1.17 million between Friday and Sunday and achieved a 21% market share, according to Kobis. Over its full five-day opening run, which included Thursday’s National Foundation Day public holiday, it accumulated $3.60 million.

Released the same day (Oct.

The 19th edition of the London Korean Film Festival (Lkff), organised by the Korean Cultural Centre UK (Kccuk) and supported by the Korean Film Council, is proud to unveil its 2024 programme. The London Korean Film Festival will take place at BFI Southbank, Ciné Lumière, and Institute of Contemporary Arts (Ica) from 1 November to 13 November. It will feature two strands; Cinema Now and Women’s Voices, as well as a programme from the BFI Echoes in Time: Korean Films of the Golden Age and New Cinema.

Opening Gala Film: Park Beom-su‘s Victory

Closing Gala Film: E.oni‘s Love In The Big City

Special Screening: Choi Dong-hoon‘s Alienoid: Return To The Future

Victory by Park Beom-su will open the festival on the 6 November at BFI Southbank with the director in attendance. In 1999, two rebellious teenagers start a cheerleading squad for their provincial high school, bringing confidence and solidarity to themselves,...

Sometimes a film comes along and blindsides when you least expect it. The sublime surprise Love in the Big City is just such a film, enriching the landscape of Korean cinema in a year that has quietly seen low-key films return to the fore while their big-budget brethren have failed to capture the imagination of the public. That is not to say that Love in the Big City wasn't a title worth looking forward to. It stars the supremely talented Kim Go-eun, currently on a major hot streak, alongside rising Pachinko star Noh Sang-hyun (aka Steve Noh), is directed by E.oni, whose 2003 debut ...ing remains one of the most affecting Korean screen romances, and had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival....

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

Killer Collectibles highlights five of the most exciting new horror products announced each and every week, from toys and apparel to artwork, records, and much more.

Here are the coolest horror collectibles unveiled this week!

Sewer Slashers Figures from Toy Snobs

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles become iconic horror villains with Toy Snobs’ Sewer Slashers mashup figures. They’re $50 each or $190 for the set of four.

The line includes Raph Voorhees (with machete), Leatherface Leo (with chainsaw), Mikey Meyers (with knife), and Donny Krueger (with claw glove).

Each 5.5″ toy is packaged on a retro-inspired cardback. Pre-orders are open through October 4 and are expected to ship in Spring 2025.

Howling II: Your Sister Is a Werewolf 4K Uhd from Vinegar Syndrome

Howling II: Your Sister Is a Werewolf transforms on 4K Ultra HD + Blu-ray on October 29 via Vinegar Syndrome. The 1985 werewolf sequel has been newly restored in 4K from the 35mm original camera negative with Dolby Vision Hdr.

South Korea’s Plus M Entertainment has sold romantic drama Love In The Big City to a raft of key territories across Asia and Latin America ahead of its world premiere at Toronto.

The feature has been acquired for Japan (Kddi), Taiwan (Moviecloud), Mongolia (The Filmbridge), Vietnam (Cj Hk Entertainment), Singapore and Indonesia (Purple Plan), Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos (Sahamongkol), and Hong Kong and Macau (Neofilms) as well as Latin America (Great Movies/A2 Films) and worldwide inflight (Anuvu).

Love In The Big City will play in the Special Presentations strand of Toronto, which runs from September 5-15 and...

South Korea’s Plus M Entertainment has sold romantic drama Love In The Big City to a raft of key territories across Asia and Latin America ahead of its world premiere at Toronto.

The feature has been acquired for Japan (Kddi), Taiwan (Moviecloud), Mongolia (The Filmbridge), Vietnam (Cj Enm Hk), Singapore and Indonesia (Purple Plan), Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos (Sahamongkol), and Hong Kong and Macau (Neofilms) as well as Latin America (Great Movies/A2 Films) and worldwide inflight (Anuvu).

Love In The Big City will play in the Special Presentations strand of Toronto, which runs from September 5-15 and...

One of the most acclaimed horror movies of the year, A24’s I Saw the TV Glow heads home this week, and it’s joined by three other horror movies as well as an anthology TV series.

Here’s all the new horror released June 10 – June 16, 2024!

For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.

First up, Gravitas Ventures released G.S. Foxwood’s horror film Wild Eyed and Wicked on VOD outlets this past Tuesday, June 11. The film blends elements of horror, familial drama, and fantasy to “create a unique, emotionally powerful, and terrifying experience.”

Molly Kunz (Widows, The Irrational), Michael X. Sommers (Sense8), Stefanie Estes (Soft & Quiet), and Colleen Camp (Clue) star in the indie horror film Wild Eyed and Wicked.

Wild Eyed and Wicked follows Lily Pierce (Kunz) in her attempt to strike back at the medieval creature that’s haunted her family for generations.

South Korean comedy drama Victory is to world premiere as the opening film of this year’s New York Asian Film Festival (Nyaff) where lead actress Lee Hye-ri will be honoured with the Screen International Rising Star Asia Award.

The performer, better known as Hyeri, will attend the festival to receive the honour on July 12 ahead of the premiere of Victory at New York’s Lincoln Center.

Hye-ri will introduce the film alongside director Park Beom-soo and co-star Park Se-wan. All three will also attend a post-screening Q&a.

The Rising Star Asia Award recognises emerging talent from Asian cinema...

This week’s horror releases bring a killer shark onto Netflix and the feature debut of Ishana Night Shyamalan into theaters, and that’s only the beginning of the tidal wave of new horror.

Here’s all the new horror releasing June 3, 2024 – June 9, 2024!

For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.

The breakout Korean blockbuster Exhuma was released in theaters here in the United States back in March, and Well Go USA Entertainment brought it home to VOD this Tuesday.

Exhuma is directed by Jang Jae-Hyun (Svaha: The Sixth Finger) and stars popular Korean actors Choi Min-Sik (Oldboy, I Saw the Devil), Kim Go-Eun (Hero, Little Women), Yoo Hai-Jin (A Taxi Driver), and Lee Do-Hyun (Prison Playbook, Sweet Home).

In the film, “When a renowned shaman (Kim Go-Eun) and her protégé (Lee Do-hyun) are hired by a wealthy, enigmatic family, they begin investigating the cause of...

There is no place better for a horror fan than the ever-growing film library of Shudder. It was already one of the most niche streaming services in the market, it is also perfect for giving the fans what they want by giving them new and exciting horror films every month. So, if you love Shudder and are wondering what are best movies coming to the Scream Queen of streaming services in June 2024, here are our best picks for you.

A Lonely Place to Die (June 3)

A Lonely Place to Die is a British action thriller film directed by Julian Gilbey from a screenplay co-written by Julian and Will Gilbey. The 2011 film follows the story of five hikers as they hear cries of pain in the wilderness and to their horror it’s a little girl buried in the ground. When they decide to get her to safety they are chased by the kidnappers.

AMC Networks’ Shudder has announced the titles that will be available on the streaming service next month. The Shudder June 2024 slate includes horror, thriller, and supernatural titles.

The June highlights include the films Exhuma and The Devil’s Bath, as well as the series Dracula and The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs. Numerous repertory titles will also be available throughout the month.

Shudder’s expanding library of films, TV series, and original content is available on most streaming devices in the US, Canada, the UK, Ireland, Australia, and New Zealand.

Shudder June 2024 Highlights

The Shudder premiere schedule for next month.

Exhuma (Shudder Exclusive Film)

Streaming on Shudder June 14 (Available in the US and CA)

When a renowned shaman (Kim Go-Eun) and her protégé (Lee Do-hyun) are hired by a wealthy, enigmatic family, they begin investigating the cause of a disturbing supernatural illness that affects only the first-born children of each generation.

Disney+ series Moving and historical action film 12:12: The Day took home the top prizes at the 60th Baeksang Arts Awards, one of Korea’s most prestigious entertainment award ceremonies.

After receiving the most number of nominations (seven) in the television category, Moving took home the Grand Prize, with writer Kangfull receiving the Best Screenplay award and actor Lee Jungha winning Best New Actor.

The sci-fi series stars the likes of Rye Seung-ryong, Han Hyo-joo and Zo In-sung. Based on a webtoon of the same name, it follows a trio of teenage high school students who discover they have superpowers. It has always won a glut of prizes at the 2023 Asia Contents Awards & Global Ott Awards.

Made with a budget of around $18M, 12:12: The Day swept up the Grand Prize and Best Film awards, with Hwang Jung-min scoring a Best Actor win. Set in 1979 just after the...

Korean supernatural drama Exhuma is continuing to prove a box office smash in its home market and is now replicating that success in territories across Asia.

The film led the South Korea box office for a sixth consecutive weekend from March 29-31, taking $3.07m from 418,000 admissions, according to Kobis, the Korean Film Council’s box office tracking system.

As of today (April 2), the cumulative box office in the territory is $78.5m from just over 11 million admissions. It easily positions Exhuma as the biggest film of the year to date in South Korea, three times ahead of Wonka in second place with $25.1m from 3.5 million admissions.

Korean horror film Exhuma has become the highest-grossing Korean film ever in Vietnam, its distributor Showbox Co said.

Exhuma has recorded more than 2.23 million moviegoers in Vietnam as of March 31, surpassing the previous mark of 2.15 million held by comedy film 6/45 (2022), which starred Go Kyung-pyo and Lee Yi-kyung.

Directed by Jang Jae-hyun, Exhuma stars Choi Min-sik, Kim Go-eun, Yoo Hae-jin and Lee Do-hyun. Exhuma recorded US$660,000 at the box office just on its first day of release in Vietnam, on March 15, which also set a new record for the highest opening gross, for a Korean film. On the film’s first weekend in the country, sales reached $3.02 million.

Exhuma has also become the most successful Korean film in Indonesia, notching 2.3 million admissions, which is a record for a Korean film in the country.

As of April 1, Exhuma has brought in more than 11 million admissions at the Korean box office and...

Horror, long a staple and favoured genre for Asian filmmakers, has seen dwindling returns in Korea of late. Sure, there's a number of works in the genre that come out each year, but none have made quite the positive impact on the audience, critics or the box office since “The Wailing” all the way back in 2016. Director Jang Jae-hyun seems to have made it his mission to keep horror alive and kicking, debuting with “The Priests”, a well-made tale that explored Christian exorcisms, before following it up with “Svaha: The Sixth Finger”, which explored new religions and cults in the guise of horror. While both those features saw mixed reactions from the audience, Jang continues to produce scary stories with “Exhuma”, his latest work which debuted at the Berlin Film Festival before a wide release. Received with much enthusiasm from the audience, the release quickly became the highest grossing Korean film of 2024 so far.

2024 is (or at least was) off to a somewhat slow start at the box office. Ticket sales are pacing around 9% behind compared to this same point in 2023, but there are reasons to be optimistic. Not only do we have movies like "Dune: Part Two" and the upcoming "Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire" to help bring movie theaters some much-needed business, but a buzzy, original, Korean horror-thriller has sneakily become one of the biggest hits of the year thus far.

The movie in question is "Exhuma." Directed by Jang Jae-Hyun, it has been on an absolute tear in South Korea, topping the charts five weekends in a row. Movies like "Dune: Part Two" have been unable to take the top spot away from it. "Exhuma" has, as of this writing, made more than $73 million in the country and is one of the biggest hits there in the pandemic era. It...

South Korean supernatural thriller Exhuma has passed the 10 million admissions mark at the local box office, cementing its blockbuster status in the country.

The film led the South Korea box office for a fifth consecutive weekend, grossing $4.56m from 618,000 tickets from March 22-24, according to Kobis, the Korean Film Council’s box office tracking system.

It takes Exhuma’s total box office to date to $73.4m from 10.2 million admissions, comfortably positioning it as the most successful title in South Korea this year to date, ahead of Wonka in second place on $25.1m from 3.5 million admissions.

However, it still has some...

Horror returns to the big screen in a big way this weekend, with four brand new horror movies now playing only in theaters. And another two are now available to watch right at home.

Here’s all the new horror releasing March 22, 2024!

For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.

The hotly anticipated horror movie Late Night With the Devil has been earning rave reviews from critics and Stephen King alike, and it’s now playing exclusively in theaters.

Want to watch at home? The film is next coming to Shudder on April 19, 2024.

David Dastmalchian (Dune, The Suicide Squad) stars as the host of a late-night talk show that descends into a nightmare in the Ghostwatch and Wnuf Halloween Special-inspired film.

David Dastmalchian stars as Jack Delroy, the charismatic host of “Night Owls,” and the film traces the ill-fated taping of a live Halloween special in 1977 plagued by a demonic presence.

Four weeks after its initial release, South Korean horror film “Exhuma” is still burning through the country’s box office. “Pamyo,” as it’s known in Korea (which directly translates to “exhumation for relocation or cremation”), has resonated in a major way with audiences who have shown up in droves to see the story of a shaman named Hwa-rim (Kim Go-eun) and the wandering spirits she takes on with Bong-gil (Lee Do-hyun), her protégé. This week: it expands in the United States.

Just one week into its release, “Exhuma” became the highest-grossing Korean film of 2024 so far, knocking the Timothée Chalamet-starring “Wonka” off the top spot following its delayed release there. Chalamet’s other big film of the moment, “Dune: Part Two,” placed second in Korea for three successive weekends in the wake of “Exhuma” too.

That means that, nearly a month in, “Exhuma” has made $67.8 million with sales of 9.3 million tickets,...

South Korea’s current box office champion multiple weeks in a row, Exhuma, offers an unexpected and entertaining take on folk horror. While dense in lore and spiritual worldbuilding, the latest horror offering from writer/director Jae-hyun Jang (Svaha: The Sixth Finger, The Priests) balances its grim, sometimes bloody folkloric terror with levity and heart. Anchored by four “ghostbusters” of sorts, with charismatic actors behind them, the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.

Exhuma hits the ground running with an introduction to Shaman Hwa-rim (Kim Go-eun) and her close protégé Bong-gil, arriving on a flight to Los Angeles. They have been summoned by the ultra-rich Park Ji-yong (Kim Jae-cheol) for a well-paying gig helping him rid his infant son of a supernatural curse. Hwa-rim traces the curse back to South Korea, where they enlist colleague and geomancer Sang-deok and mortician Young-geun...

The Overlook Film Fest 2024 edition, taking place April 4 – April 7 in New Orleans, Louisiana, just announced even more additions to their already packed lineup, including the Nicolas Cage-starring creature feature Arcadian.

“With the full scope of this year’s lineup, we’re thrilled to be able to recognize all of the many forms horror can take,” said Lisa Carbonari, festival director of The Overlook Film Festival. “We’re diving headfirst into the dark and twisted, through the films, immersive presentations, interactive exhibits, themed parties and even sensory experiences. We can’t wait to get together with our fellow horror-lovers and celebrate all of the different ways we enjoy being scared.”

The new additions to the lineup bring the festival total to 52 films (28 features and 24 shorts) from 11 countries, as well as four live presentations, six immersive experiences and six special events.

While you can read up on the previously announced lineup here,...

Exhuma (Korean title: Pa-myo) has taken $67.8 million at the Korean box office, having notched more than 9.3 million admissions.

The film stars Choi Min-sik, Kim Go-eun, Yoo Hae-jin and Lee Do-hyun and is directed by Jang Jae-hyun. Exhuma follows two shamans, a feng shui expert and an undertaker as they seek to help a Korean-American family haunted by a generational curse.

Box office data from Kofic shows the movie has taken 24 days for Exhuma to cross reach the nine million admissions mark, which is three days faster than last year’s most-viewed Korean feature, 12.12: The Day, a historical film set during the country’s military coup in 1979.

Exhuma has also topped the box office and admissions charts every week since its release, sitting above Dune: Part Two for the last three weeks.

Produced by Showbox Entertainment, Exhuma first premiered in the Forum section of the Berlin International Film Festival on...

Indies in moderate-wide release claimed the nos. 6, 8 and 9 spots at the domestic box office led by Love Lies Bleeding. Kristin Steward toplines the Berlin-premiering film by Rose Glass that expanded nationwide, grossing $2.5 million for the weekend on 1,362 screens (up from five theaters opening week). The steamy crime thriller from A24 also stars Katy O’Brian with an ensemble featuring Ed Harris, Anna Baryshnikov Dave Franco and Jenna Malone. It’s 88% Certified Fresh with audiences on Rotten Tomatoes (92% critics score).

Stewart plays a reclusive gym manager who falls hard for an ambitious bodybuilder headed through town to Vegas in pursuit of her dream as the pair is pulled into the web of Lou’s criminal family. Weekend breakdown: Friday, $1.1 million; Saturday, $790k; Sunday; $592k.

One Life by James Hawes pulled in a $1.7+ million debut 983 screens. The Bleecker Street film, starring Anthony Hopkins as a British stockbroker who helped rescued hundreds of Jewish children from Czechoslovakia,...

South Korea’s Showbox has sold runaway box office hit Exhuma to a raft of key territories, including the US, UK and across Asia.

The supernatural thriller has been snapped up for North America (Well Go USA), the UK, Australia and New Zealand (K-Movie Entertainment UK), German-speaking Europe and Benelux (Splendid), Japan (Kadokawa Kplus), Latin America (Cine Canibal), Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, Brunei, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Philippines (Purple Plan), Indian subcontinent (Impact Films), Taiwan (MovieCloud), Cis and the Baltics (Prime Time Media), Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Vietnam (Mocking Bird) and Mongolia (Filmbridge).

It marks the first film in five years from Jang Jae-hyan,...

In the smash hit Exhuma, four people dig a hole. Things don't turn out well - digging up corpses can do that - so they keep digging themselves in deeper. Unsurprisingly, things go from bad to worse. A rich Korean family in LA fly in a pair of young shamans (Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun) to solve their supernatural woes but when the pair connect the bizarre events to the family's buried ancestor back in Korea, they return and team up with a grizzled geomancer (Choi Min-sik) and a wily undertaker (Yu Hae-jin) to dig up and burn the corpse and bring the supernatural happenings to an end. While many have likened it to The Wailing, another Korean thriller featuring shamans and a mysterious Japanese...

[Read the whole post on screenanarchy.com...]...

"You're hiding something from us." Well Go USA has revealed an official US trailer for Exhuma, a Korean horror thriller from filmmaker Jang Jae-Hyun (Svaha: The Sixth Finger). This just premiered at the 2024 Berlin Film Festival in February, timed with its Korean release in February as well. The film is set to open in the US in March in select theaters, if anyone is curious to find out what happens when you mess with the wrong grave. Exhuma follows the exhumation of an ominous grave, which unleashes dreadful consequences buried underneath. After tracing a mysterious ailment to a remote gravesite, a team of supernatural experts soon discover that trying to move a grave is really not a good idea. "Jang Jae-hyun's third feature film is a horror mystery thriller full of humour and verve, addressing issues of class, history, tradition, religion and superstition." Starring Choi Min-Sik as the geomancer, Kim Go-Eun,...

The breakout Korean blockbuster Exhuma is getting a release here in the United States, Bloody Disgusting has learned. We’ve also been provided with the film’s official US release trailer.

From leading international and indie film distributor Well Go USA Entertainment, Exhuma opens in Los Angeles March 15 and expands across U.S. theaters March 22.

The film—which surpassed 6 million admissions during its first 11 days in Korean theaters—is distributed by Showbox in its home territory.

Exhuma is directed by Jang Jae-Hyun (Svaha: The Sixth Finger) and stars popular Korean actors Choi Min-Sik, Kim Go-Eun, Yoo Hai-Jin (A Taxi Driver), and Lee Do-Hyun.

In the film, “When a renowned shaman (Kim Go-Eun) and her protégé (Lee Do-hyun) are hired by a wealthy, enigmatic family, they begin investigating the cause of a disturbing supernatural illness that affects only the first-born children of each generation. With the help of a knowledgeable mortician...

“Exhuma,” a locally produced occult drama-thriller, expanded its domination of the South Korea box office on its second week of release. That left the newly-released “Dune 2” several sand dunes behind in second place.

“Exhuma,” about two shaman, a feng shui master and a mortician who attempt to undo the mysterious events happening to a U.S.-based Korean family, earned $17.2 million between Friday and Sunday, representing a 69% share of the overall box office market.

Unusually, its second weekend performance was also 19% higher than its opening score of $14.5 million a week earlier. That gave “Exhuma” a $43.5 million total since its debut in theaters on Feb. 22, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic).

Its 11-day total makes “Exhuma” the top-grossing Korean film of the year, overtaking “Wonka” on $23.8 million. In terms of admissions, which Korea uses to prepare film ranking charts, “Exhuma” sold...

Worldwide box office March 1-3 Rank Film (distributor) 3-day (world) Cume (world) 3-day (int’l) Cume (int’l) Territories 1. Dune: Part Two (Warner Bros) $178.5m $178.5m $97m $97m 72 2. Exhuma (Showbox)

$17.2m $43.6m $17.2m $43.6m 1 3. Bob Marley: One Love (Paramount) $16.2m $146.1m $8.8m $63.3m 57 4. Article 20 (various) $14.4m $319.4m $14.3m $318.9m 4 5. The Pig, The Snake And The Pigeon (various)

$13.3m $17.6m $13.3m $17.6m 1 6. Pegasus 2 (various)

$12.8m $459.4m $12.7m $457.6m 4 7. Madame Web (Sony)

$8.2m $91m $5m $50.6m 66 8. Boonie Bears: Time Twist (various) $7.9m $268.1m $7.9m $268.1m 1 9. Demon Slayer: Kimetsu No Yaiba - To The Hashira Training (various) $7.7m $56.9m...

Occult drama-thriller “Exhuma,” dominated the South Korea box office in its opening weekend with a scarily good debut approaching $17 million.

The film, about two shaman, a feng shui master and a mortician who attempt to undo the mysterious events happening to a U.S.-based Korean family, grabbed $14.5 million between Friday and Sunday, representing a 77% share of the overall box office market. Including the earnings since its Wednesday debut, the film earned $16.8 million in its full opening session, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic).

That total should, when weekend estimated are confirmed, give “Exhuma” the status as the second highest grossing film so far in 2024 in Korea, behind only “Wonka,” and the claim to be the biggest Korean production, after overtaking “Citizen of a Kind.”

“Exhuma,” which stars the veteran Choi Min-sik and rising star Kim Go-eun, is directed by Jang Jae-hyun,...

A wealthy family in Los Angeles experiences a series of bizarre supernatural events. The family contacts famous young shamans Hwa-Rim (Kim Go-Eun) and Bong-Gil (Lee Do-Hyun). After investigating, Hwa-Rim realizes that these events are related to the family's ancestor. Hwa-Rim asks Feng Shui export Sang-Deok (Choi Min-Sik) and undertaker Young-Geun (Yu Hae-Jin) for help. They find the family's ancestor's grave in a remote South Korean village and dig up the grave.

A feature-length fully-animated version of smash hit Korean series “Yumi’s Cells” will launch next month at the European Film Market in Berlin. International rights to the property were picked up by Barunson E&a, part of the Korean Barunson conglomerate that also produced Oscar-winning live-action film “Parasite.”

“Yumi’s Cells: The Movie” is a 3D feature animation based on the popular Naver webtoon series of the same title that debuted in 2015. Production of the film is by Locus Animation (formerly Sidus Animation), which was previously responsible for “Red Shoes and Seven Dwarfs” and Studio N, a subsidiary of Naver Webtoon. The film is currently in post-production and will be delivered later this year.

Locus’s latest work, “Exorcism Chronicles: The Beginning” is also debuting at the EFM.

“Yumi’s Cells” revolves around an office worker Yumi and the myriad of cells inside her brain – such as Rational Cell, Emotional Cell, Anxiety Cell,...

It appears My Demon is more traditional than one could ever imagine. The penultimate episode of the show is even more teary and dramatic than we could’ve imagined. With only one episode left, we are left with the question, “Will Do-Hee and Gu-Won ever get their happy ending?” Episode 15 will also have old K-drama fans overexcited because a particular scene plays out almost identically to one from Gong Yoo and Kim Go-Eun’s Goblin. Episode 14 of My Demon was rather pleasant after it was assumed that No Suk-Min was dead. However, at the end of the episode, when Gu-Won has the full picture of his relationship with Do-Hee, he decides to leave her, so she doesn’t have to suffer any longer. Now, Do-Hee needs to cope with the absence of the love of her life, when earlier all she wished for was to be alone. Let’s quickly...

The K-drama world has been taken by the storm that is Netflix’s My Demon. The show is the perfect blend of old-school fantasy tropes and modern K-drama trends, making it exactly right for both old fans and new ones. Many called 2023 the year of K-drama redemption thanks to shows like My Demon, which are loved by all. I suppose it is true in some ways because many who had stopped watching Korean dramas started watching them again because of a sense of nostalgia and fun that the new shows brought with them. Netflix has in many ways hijacked the industry, and for the most part, they have a specific type of K-dramas that work on the platform; however, in 2023, we’ve seen them bring in more and more shows in the Netflix original category that venture into the typical K-drama atmosphere. My Demon is reminiscent of the old fantasy...

Choi Min-sik, the veteran Korean actor who previously starred in “Oldboy” and Korea’s all-time box office record breaker “Roaring Currents,” heads the cast of upcoming mystery-thriller film “Exhuma.” The title, which will debut in Korean theaters in February, also released its first-look images and an atmospheric trailer.

Choi appears as an exorcist who unleashes unexpected supernatural forces.

According to a synopsis supplied by Showbox, “A wealthy family living in Los Angeles calls on a pair of young shaman, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun, to save their newborn child after they are visited by a series of paranormal events. [The shaman duo] senses that the dark shadow of an ancestor has latched on the family, a so-called ‘Grave’s Calling’. In order to exhume the grave and relieve the ancestor, they seek help from a leading geomancer, portrayed by Choi, and a mortician (portrayed by Yoo Hai-jin). To their dismay, the...

First looks at both upcoming films revealed.

South Korea’s Plus M Entertainment is set to launch sales on romantic drama Love In The Big City and revenge thriller Revolver at Busan’s Asian Contents & Film Market.

A first look at both titles can be seen above.

Revolver reunites Cannes best actress winner Jeon Do-yeon with director Oh Seung-uk for the first time since The Shameless, which played in Un Certain Regard at Cannes in 2015. Jeon is also known for roles in Lee Chang-dong’s Secret Sunshine, for which she won the best actress award at Cannes in 2007, and more recently Netflix feature Kill Boksoon,...

The film is directed by Kim Seong-hun of Netflix series ‘Kingdom’.

South Korea’s Showbox has pre-sold action drama Ransomed to a raft of territories led by North America (Well Go USA) and Japan (The Klockworx).

The film has also sold to Hong Kong and Macau (Edko Films), Taiwan (MovieCloud), the Philippines (Viva Networks), Thailand, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar (Neramitnung Film), Vietnam (Lumix Media) and inflight (Kairos Distribution).

Directed by Kim Seong-hun of Netflix original series Kingdom and starring Ha Jung-woo of Narco-Saints and Ju Ji-hoon of Kingdom, Ransomed is inspired by a true event that took place in 1986.

It...

The Baeksang Arts Awards are one of the most coveted award shows for Korean on-screen entertainment. The nominees are in for the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards, with some of 2022’s most talked-about K-dramas battling to win. The competition is fierce as The Glory’s Song Hye-kyo is up against Extraordinary Attorney Woo actor Park Eun-bin.

Son Suk-ku and Kim Ji-won were nominated at the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards for best K-drama actor and actress

Soompi published the complete list of nominees, series, and K-dramas for the 59th Baeksang Arts Awards. One category fans are excited about is the Best Actor and Best Actress categories. My Liberation Notes were among the most nominated K-dramas, with both leading actors Son Suk-ku and Kim Ji-won nominated in their respective categories.

Son is up against Crash Course in Romance star Jung Kyung-ho for Best Actor. The romantic comedy K-drama recently aired on Netflix earlier this year.

One of the leading actors of his generation, Korea’s Choi Min-sik is tackling his first TV role in some 25 years, with Disney+ crime drama series “Big Bet.” Choi says the gamble was a challenge, but ultimately worth the risk.

While he has notched up iconic cinema roles in “Oldboy” “Shiri,” “I Saw the Devil,” Luc Besson’s “Lucy” and all-time Korean box office record holder “Roaring Currents,” Choi’s last significant TV role was in dark comedy “The Moon of Seoul” (aka “Seoul ui Dal”) in the 20th century’s pre-streaming era.

Choi says that the changes in the TV industry are palpable and mostly for the better.

“Dramas are now produced entirely in advance of broadcast. Before, we would have what we call ‘on-the-spot’ scripts. They would be literally written on the day of filming, which left very little time to memorize the lines,” Choi told Variety.

The...

What is a “makjang” K-drama? The TV series genre is best described as having exaggerated plots that “take things too far.” Fans will see dramatic characterizations, scandalous affairs, and intense murderous drama, often revolving around the filthy-rich elite who can get away with it all. Netflix’s revenge K-drama The Glory can be categorized as one, but there are plenty more to enjoy.

Lead characters in ‘The World of the Married’ makjang K-drama | via Netflix ‘The World of the Married’ has a woman’s perfect life crash into pieces

The 2020 K-drama is a remake and based on the BBC series Doctor Foster. The World of the Married takes fans through a whirlwind of drama, deceit, affairs, and the downfalls of marriage in a high-class society. Ji Seon-u (Kim Hee-ae) has everything anyone could ever want. She is a well-known doctor and associate director of a large hospital. Her seemingly perfect...

"Long live Korea!" Cj Entertainment has revealed two official trailers for a Korean historical biopic movie called Hero, not to be confused with Zhang Yimou's iconic martial arts epic also called Hero (from 2002). This one is about a different hero, a Korean independence fighter from the early 1900s pushing back against the Japanese occupation – An Jung-geun, an independence activist who assassinated Itō Hirobumi, the first Prime Minister of Japan and Resident-General of Korea in 1909. It's based on a musical from the stage, and has been adapted for the screen also as a musical. Starring Chung Sung Hwa as An Jung-geun, with Kim Go Eun, Na Moon Hee, Cho Chae Yun, Bae Jung Nam, Jo Woo Jin, Park Jin Joo, and Lee Hyun Woo. Early reviews say the movie "delves deeper into different facets of Ahn compared to the stage version, portraying him not only as a heroic independence activist...

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Given South Korea’s booming content industry, there is no shortage of eager collaborators from Asia and beyond. One regional partner that has seen a standout year in production tie-ups is Singapore.

In addition to He Shuming’s debut feature, Ajoomma, becoming the first-ever Singapore-Korea co-production (it was selected as Singapore’s entry for the Oscars), on the television front Singapore served as a prominent filming location for Seoul-based tvN’s Little Women (a modern version of the Louisa May Alcott novel that was picked up by Netflix), with local production house Ochre Pictures tapped to provide creative production support. The upcoming Asia TV Forum & Market (Atf) in Singapore has long recognized the influence of Korean content in the region. This year it will spotlight six pavilions and two content panels focused on Korea’s content business and production strategies, featuring two execs...

Cj Enm, which includes Korea’s largest film producer and distributor, is using the Asian Contents & Film Market this week to launch a handful of new titles while basking in its recent box office and festival successes.

“The Boys” gets its premiere as a special screening withing the Busan International Film Festival’s expanded Korean Cinema Today section. This crime drama delves into the lives of three teenage boys, falsely accused and jailed for a brutal robbery-murder case. Fifteen years later, they seek a retrial in a bid to prove their innocence.

The veteran cast line-up includes Seol Kyung Gu (“Kingmaker”), Yu Jun Sang (“Along With The Gods: Two Worlds”), Jin Kyung (“Beasts Clawing At Straws”), Heo Sung Tae and Yeom Hye Ran (“Special Delivery”). “The Boys” was directed by Chung Ji Young, whose notable works include “National Security” and “Black Money.”

History has proven freedom comes at a price.

The leaves are withering, the air is turning crisp, and film festival season is well underway — which means even more foreign-language movies to receive raves on the fall awards circuit before getting promptly buried on a streamer. But don't let that happen to "Athena," a staggering French drama that is in danger of falling into the Netflix abyss, crowded out by your "Gray Men" or "Kissing Booth's." Or check out one of last year's forgotten festival darlings in Céline Sciamma's "Petite Maman." And because spooky season is now here, we have a horror anime classic making their streaming debuts, alongside a cyberpunk anime classic. Plus, "Little Women," but make it crime?

Let's fire up those subtitles and get streaming.

Athena – Netflix

Country: France

Genre: Action drama

Director: Romain Gavras

Cast: Dali Benssalah, Sami Slimane, Anthony Bajon, Ouassini Embarek, Alexis Manenti.

"Athena" is a Molotov cocktail of a movie: incendiary,...

With a steady catalog of media new and old, there is quite literally always something to watch on Netflix. The streamer is constantly producing, curating, and promoting a unique plethora of films and shows for our viewing pleasure. Whatever your tastes, you're guaranteed to find something bingeworthy on the platform. Netflix has even become a host for quality non-English television, especially after the smash success of shows like "Squid Game" and "All of Us Are Dead." But until series achieve ludicrous virality, like the aptly-named "Extraordinary Attorney Woo," it's difficult to keep up with the many, many K-dramas that Netflix churn out.

Fortunately, that might not be the case for another recent drama, the female-led mystery thriller "Little Women." Despite a quiet release on Netflix in early September, the series is already gaining a generous amount of buzz. With its impressive cast and crew and tantalizing storyline, "Little Women" could...

With so many streaming services to choose from, finding a new show or film to discover is rarely an issue. Especially not on Netflix, the streamer that essentially started it all, and continues to churn out quality originals to add to their already-stacked catalog. Each month on Netflix introduces titles both new and old, but not every title's got a permanent home on the platform. There's also the small issue of Netflix's promotion strategy: With so many movies and shows coming and going with each passing month, there's always the chance that something truly great is going to slip through the cracks. "Blonde" is finally getting its long-awaited (and scandalously-rated) release on the streamer, but the Ana de Armas starrer is far from the only exciting development on Netflix.

Whether you're on the hunt for a soapy thriller, a star-crossed romance, or some adult animation, there's plenty to go around this month.