Score another one for Jang Jin. The prolific filmmaker has another hit with the No. 1 opening of GOING BY THE BOOK. Actually, Jang only wrote the initial screenplay for the film, which was directed by Ra Hee-chan. But since Ra got his start as Jang’s Assistant Director and has pretty much said he considers this to be a Jang film, let’s give Jang the credit.
I was a little surprised that SHADOWS IN THE PALACE opened only in the No. 2 spot. I guess I should not have been, but I was. SHADOWS was the debut by Kim Mi-jeong, who also was an AD on some high-profile films.
RESIDENT EVIL 3 opened in third. No way was I going to spend money to see that film in the theaters, but I suspect once it hits cable TV, I will be watching it endlessly (probably whenever I discover it during some late night flicking).
LOVE EXPOSURE opened in fourth. Is it my imagination, or has there been a minor flood of uninspired movies about relationships, sex, love and cheating over the past few months?
| This Week | Title…………………………………….. | Release Date | Screens Nationwide | Weekend Attendance | Total Attendance |
| 1. | Going by the Book (Bareuge Salja – Korean) | 10.18 | 438 | 458,834 | 538,352 |
| 2. | Shadows in the Palace (Gungneo – Korean) | 10.18 | 427 | 416,551 | 511,308 |
| 3. | Resident Evil 3 | 10.18 | 281 | 183,376 | 217,021 |
| 4. | Love Exposure (Eokkae Neomeo-ui Yeonin – Korean) | 10.18 | 236 | 107,882 | 138,332 |
| 5. | Happiness (Haengbok – Korean) | 10.03 | 288 | 72,477 | 1,126,482 |
| 6. | Rush Hour 3 | 10.03 | 245 | 59,709 | 735,390 |
| 7. | Copying Beethoven | 10.11 | 174 | 50,601 | 189,149 |
| 8. | Becoming Jane | 10.11 | 223 | 36,570 | 184,148 |
| 9. | Nanny Diaries | 10.03 | 143 | 28,193 | 467,462 |
| 10. | Brave One | 10.11 | 159 | 22,363 | 147,801 |
(Source: KOBIS – Figures represent 94% of nationwide box office)
Up next week — Lee Myung-se’s M.
Kind of a weird year this year. Chuseok came and went with barely a ripple, but some much more interesting films seem to be coming out now. Kind of playing havoc with people’s forecasts.
I’ve been reading your blog for a few months now and am now just responding to this posting due to time constraints at my end. With regard to to your comments “I was a little surprised that SHADOWS IN THE PALACE opened only in the No. 2 spot. I guess I should not have been, but I was. SHADOWS was the debut by Kim Mi-jeong, who also was an AD on some high-profile films.” After reading numerous positive reviews from various sources this surprised me as well. Any ideas when CJ Entertainment might consider putting this out on dvd?
My aunt took me to many performances of The Kim Sisters at the Polynesian Village located in the Edgewater Beach Hotel in Chicago, IL. This was in the late 50’s or early ’60’s. I will never forget their wonderful talents of singing, playing different instruments and comedic humor while sipping my virgin Shirley Temples! I will always have fond memories of them.
June