Mid-Budget Film Gives Hope to Local Cinema

Woohoo! My first front page story in quite a while :)

The South Korean film industry had already been staggering for over two years and was hit especially hard by the global economic crisis. But the 2009 season begins hopefully, as ``Scandal Makers,’’ a mid-budget film, continues to top the box office for a whopping seventh week and signals positive market trends.

As of Wednesday, the family comedy has attracted over 6.59 million viewers since its release Dec. 3, according to Lotte Entertainment. It is expected to sell more tickets over the Seollal (Lunar New Year) holiday, and perhaps break the 6.62 million record for domestic comedies set by ``200-Pound Beauty’’ in 2006.

The feat, in terms of numbers, may not seem big when compared to homegrown blockbusters that brought in over 10 million viewers. But ``Scandal Makers’’ points to something significant: first, it is a smaller franchise starring familiar faces rather than superstars, being thus an unexpected hit with a snowballing effect like the 2005 dark horse ``King and the Clown.’’ Second, it signals market trends that are expected to endure.

``Scandal Makers’’ is about a star DJ (played by funnyman Cha Tae-hyun) that must face unforeseen consequences of his adolescent philandering when he discovers that he already has a daughter and a grandson at the age of 30. This past weekend (Jan. 17-18), the low-key film reclaimed the top box office spot in three weeks, beating the big budget epic ``A Frozen Flower’’ starring superstars Zo In-sung and Joo Jin-mo. >>More