The Host opens on a record 620 screens
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Just prior to its theatrical release, Bong Joon-ho's "The Host" is already setting records.
The film is scheduled to open on an all-time high of 620 screens, which easily surpasses the previous widest release of 540 screens for "Typhoon" in late 2005. According to the film's distributor Showbox, theaters nationwide had actually requested 700 prints, but it was decided that the film would better be served by not overextending its release.
At the same time, "The Host" is reaching new heights in terms of advance ticket sales. As of the morning before the film's July 27 release, it had captured a 95.48% share of advance ticket sales, which surpasses the previous record for a Korean film of 91.1% for Taegukgi in 2004. The level is virtually equal to that of the all-time high for imported films of 95.5% for The Matrix: Reloaded.
The Host tells the story of an ordinary family who battles a mutant creature that emerges out of the Han River. A mix of genre elements and social critique, the film won accolades at its international premiere in the Director's Fortnight section of the 2006 Cannes Film Festival.
Director Bong Joon-ho (Memories of Murder) is considered one of Korean cinema's brightest stars, and earlier this year KOFIC released a special book devoted to the director.
Darcy Paquet (KOFIC)
The film is scheduled to open on an all-time high of 620 screens, which easily surpasses the previous widest release of 540 screens for "Typhoon" in late 2005. According to the film's distributor Showbox, theaters nationwide had actually requested 700 prints, but it was decided that the film would better be served by not overextending its release.
At the same time, "The Host" is reaching new heights in terms of advance ticket sales. As of the morning before the film's July 27 release, it had captured a 95.48% share of advance ticket sales, which surpasses the previous record for a Korean film of 91.1% for Taegukgi in 2004. The level is virtually equal to that of the all-time high for imported films of 95.5% for The Matrix: Reloaded.
The Host tells the story of an ordinary family who battles a mutant creature that emerges out of the Han River. A mix of genre elements and social critique, the film won accolades at its international premiere in the Director's Fortnight section of the 2006 Cannes Film Festival.
Director Bong Joon-ho (Memories of Murder) is considered one of Korean cinema's brightest stars, and earlier this year KOFIC released a special book devoted to the director.
Darcy Paquet (KOFIC)
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