The year 2020 started off strong for Korean cinema with "Parasite" making history by winning four Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Screenplay, Best Director and the International Feature Film category.
Shortly after the historic moment, however, the Korean movie industry experienced a drastic pandemic-driven decline, with theaters around the country closing indefinitely and studios moving most of their big releases to 2021.
Leading multiplex operators raised ticket prices as part of their attempts to survive the pandemic. Highly anticipated big budget films like "Seobok," "Mogadishu" and "Hero" have pushed back their releases to next year. "Space Sweepers," starring Song Joong-ki and Kim Tae-ri, is taking the safe route by premiering on Netflix in 2021.
But a slew of good local films still made it onto screens during this exhausting year. Below are the 10 Korean films that caught the eyes of both domestic and international audiences.
| A scene from "The Man Standing Next" / Courtesy of Showbox |
1. The Man Standing Next
A political thriller chronicling the 40-day power struggle among former President Park Chung-hee's top aides before one of them assassinated him in 1979 has been selected as a national contender for the 93rd Academy Awards in the International Feature Film category.
Directed by Woo Min-ho, "The Man Standing Next" unfolds a hidden story of political maneuvering by the Korean Central Intelligence Agency (KCIA) in the 1970s, a time of military dictatorship under Park.
Park is one of the most controversial figures in Korean's modern history, suppressing the country's supposed democracy while generating phenomenal economic development.
Actor Lee Byung-hun, who plays the role of the KCIA chief who assassinated the president, won best actor awards at this year's Asian Film Awards, Baeksang Arts Awards, Buil Film Awards, Chunsa Film Arts Awards and Korean Association of Film Critics' Awards.
2. Lucky Chan-sil
"Lucky Chan-sil" is director Kim Cho-hee's dedication to "anyone pursuing a dream." The indie film tells the story of a 40-year-old female film producer, who suddenly loses her job and faces the biggest crisis of her life. The film was highly recognized by critics and audiences for its meticulous and realistic depiction of Korea's patriarchal and competitive society from the perspective of a single, unemployed woman in her 40s.
This film won several awards at local film festivals last year, including three honors at the 24th Busan International Film Festival. It also won the audience award at the 45th Seoul Independent Film Festival. It received recognition overseas too, being invited to this year's Far East Film Festival in Italy and Osaka Asian Film Festival in Japan. Buoyed by critical acclaim, the film, which originally hit theaters in March, was re-released on Nov. 26. It's also going to hit theaters in Japan in January 2021.
Actor Kang Mal-geum, who plays her first lead role as Chan-sil, won best new actress awards at this year's Baeksang Arts Awards, Buil Awards and Korean Association of Film Critics' Awards.
| A scene from the film "Time to Hunt" / Courtesy of Netflix |
3. Time to Hunt
"Time to Hunt" became the first Korean commercial film to skip theaters and go directly to Netflix. The film, originally slated to hit theaters at the end of February, waited two months and faced a legal dispute with its overseas sales company before landing on the U.S. streaming giant.
Set in a dystopian near future where the whole country is suffering from poverty following a financial crisis, "Time to Hunt" follows four young men who map out a plan to escape the hopeless city. But they are chased by a relentless killer amid their struggle for survival.
It was invited to the 70th Berlin International Film Festival's special gala section, which highlights creative film formats on current topics.
4. #Alive
Zombie thriller "#Alive" became the most streamed film on Netflix in many countries around the world, the first Korean title to achieve the feat.
Just two days after premiering on Netflix on Sept. 8, "#Alive" topped the global chart of Top Movies on Netflix, according to streaming analytics company FlixPatrol. The film ranked No.1 in 35 countries, including the U.S., France, Spain, Sweden, Russia and Australia.
"#Alive," starring Yoo Ah-in and Park Shin-hye, is a story about two survivors trapped in an apartment complex during a zombie apocalypse. Viewers are able to empathize with the characters' predicament, as they too are have experienced varying degrees of lockdown amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
| A scene from the film "Peninsula" / Courtesy of NEW |
5. Peninsula
Director Yeon Sang-ho's "Peninsula," a sequel to his zombie blockbuster "Train to Busan," takes the zombie apocalypse to another level. The zombies are much faster and fiercer compared to the original version, according to the director. While the uninfected characters from "Train to Busan" escape from the zombies, the sequel shows how the survivors fight back and some even take advantage of the situation.
Starring Gang Dong-won and Lee Jung-hyun, "Peninsula" tells a tale of survivors on the zombie-packed peninsula four years after the events in "Train to Busan." It follows protagonist Jung-seok, who goes back to the zombie-infested peninsula on a mission. The film was selected for the official lineup of this year's Cannes Film Festival, and was sold to 185 countries, including Japan, Taiwan, France and Italy.
6. Deliver Us From Evil
This was the first film released since March to sell more than 4 million movie tickets in Korea when it came out in August, temporarily reviving the Korean cinema scene struck by the pandemic.
"Deliver Us From Evil" tells the story of hitman In-nam (Hwang Jung-min), who plans to retire after carrying out one last hit. However, he gets embroiled in unexpected incidents as ruthless villain Ray (Lee Jung-jae) chases after him. In a year without travel, the audience may enjoy the exotic locales as the film was predominantly shot in Thailand and Japan.
Lee was named best actor in the film category at the 2020 Asia Artist Awards for his role as Ray in the hardboiled action film.
| A scene from the film "Moving On" / Courtesy of Onu Film |
7. Moving On
Director Yoon Dan-bi's "Moving On" is like flipping through an old diary. It reminds the audience of their childhood memories and enables them to empathize with characters in the film. The plot is rather straight and simple. It's about a brother and a sister staying at their grandfather's house over the summer vacation with their father, joined by their aunt. The complex family relationship is shown through the eyes of Ok-ju, the sister.
"Moving On," which was honored with four awards at the 24th Busan International Film Festival, nabbed the Bright Future award at this year's International Film Festival Rotterdam. It also won the Uncaged Award for Best Feature Film at the New York Asian Film Festival, New Talent Award at Hong Kong Asian Awards Festival, Osler Best Feature Film Award at the 24th Toronto Reel Asian International Film Festival, Best Film Award at Torino Film Fest, Special Jury Prize at 35th Mardel Plata International Film Festival and Best Film Award at Nantes Three Continents Film Festival.
8. Steel Rain 2: Summit
If the hit TV series "Crash Landing On You" is a star-crossed romance between a South Korean heiress and a North Korean army officer, director Yang Woo-suk's "Steel Rain 2: Summit" is about an unlikely bromance between a South Korean president and a North Korean general despite geopolitical challenges.
Although it's a sequel to 2017's "Steel Rain," the plot is completely different. If the first film was a fantasy envisioning the hermit kingdom's collapse through a coup and the outbreak of military conflict between the two Koreas, the follow-up shows an optimistic approach to the situation on the Korean Peninsula, depicting a rare tripartite summit on North Korean soil to officially end the 1950-53 Korean War and clinch a peace treaty.
| A scene from the film 'Voice of Silence' / Courtesy of Acemaker Movieworks |
9. Voice of Silence
Director Hong Eui-jeong's feature debut "Voice of Silence" is not a typical crime thriller that blends ferocious, bloody action and dark investigations. Rather, the film employs dark humor and mise en scene aplenty in following the story of two peculiar characters.
The story develops as two men, who normally get paid for cleaning up crime scenes, become responsible for taking care of a girl who has been kidnapped by a member of a criminal organization but then dies suddenly. Through the film, Hong raises moral and ethical questions like what determines an action as good or bad/evil. This film was shortlisted as one of five nominees for best film at Blue Dragon Awards. Actor Yoo Ah-in, who plays the role of Tae-in, gives a splendid performance although he has zero lines in the film.
10. The Woman Who Ran
"The Woman Who Ran" is the latest film by arthouse director Hong Sang-soo, whose works boast extraordinary depth and ambiguity. Hong won the Silver Bear for Best Director at the 70th Berlin International Film Festival for this film, winning acclaim for his "Mobius-strip approach to time and memory."
The film revolves around Gam-hee (Kim Min-hee), who meets three friends over three days while her husband is away on a business trip. As she travels alone for the first time in the five years since her marriage, she explores new ways of seeing the world. The director's naturalistic approach and appreciation of small moments, like statically framed long takes on characters and the abrupt zoom of mountains and neighborhoods, shows a natural progression of ideas.