Korea Box Office: Lee Byung-hun’s ‘Concrete Utopia’ Wins Weekend

Lee Byung-hun-starring disaster movie “Concrete Utopia” topped the South Korean box office over the latest weekend, replacing female led crime caper “Smugglers.”

Directed by Um Tae-hwa, “Concrete Utopia” is set in a Seoul that has been largely destroyed by a massive earthquake. One building stands tall among the wreckage and becomes a refuge for those already inside, but the inhabitants must fend of the unwanted attentions of outsiders.

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It opened on Wednesday, earning $8.40 million between Friday and Sunday and fully $11.3 million over its full opening five days, according to data from Kobis, the tracking service operated by the Korean Film Council (Kofic). The data showed it has an impressive 53% market share.

“Smugglers” continued to perform strongly. While it slipped from first to second place in its third week, over the weekend it added $3.19 million. That lifted its 19-day cumulative total to $31.5 million. Local media report that it has passed its break-even point with more than four million admissions.

Pixar animation, “Elemental” pulled in another $1.4 million over the weekend. The film, which has cultural connections with Korea, has now built a cumulative total of $49.0 million, the second highest gross of any film this year and the highest non-Korean title.

“Ransomed,” the previous week’s highest newcomer, slipped to fourth place over the latest frame. It earned $923,000 for a 12-day cumulative of $7.10 million.

Still enjoying an extended run, “Mission: Impossible Dead Reckoning Part 1” earned $453,000 over the weekend, for accumulative of $29.9 million.

“The Moon,” a sci-fi action adventure which opened just one week earlier, slipped to $369,000 of a cumulative of $3.67 million.

Japanese animation “Detective Conan the Movie: Black Iron Submarine” earned $194,000 over the weekend, advancing its total to $5.24 million.

New release animation title, “Octonauts Above and Beyond Season 2” earned $158,000 for a five-day total of $261,000.

“Barbie” may have earned over $1.1 billion worldwide, But the Korean contribution remains minimal. Over the latest weekend, it earned $146,000 for a cumulative of $4.19 million after nearly four weeks.

Korean title, “Running Man: Revengers” earned $120,000 over the weekend proper and $159,000 over its five-day opening.

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