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‘Veteran,’ ‘Assassination’ top S. Korean box office as hits of the year

August 18, 2015
(Veteran/Yonhap)

(Veteran/Yonhap)

By Tae Hong

The two giants of South Korean cinema so far this year have emerged — “Veteran,” which passed 7 million viewers Tuesday, and “Assassination,” which stands at 10.79 million as of Monday, according to Yonhap.

“Veteran,” which was released Aug. 5, passed the 5 million ticket sales mark on its 10th day, the fastest of any domestic film this year alongside “Assassination.”

Directed by Ryu Seung-wan, it stars silver screen giant Hwang Jung-min and heartthrob actor Yoo Ah-in as detective and powerful millionaire in a cat-and-mouse game.

“Assassination,” which premiered July 22, is the highest-grossing Korean film of the year.

Led by a heavyweight cast including Ha Jung-woo, Jeon Ji-hyun and Lee Jung-jae, and directed by Choi Dong-hoon, the film details an assassinatiion plot by a band of independence fighters during Japanese occupation in Korea.

Meanwhile, the box office has not been kind to “Memories of the Sword,” a period flick boasting big-name actors Lee Byung-hun and Jeon Do-yeon — according to Korean Film Council Tuesday, the film has only attracted about 350,000 moviegoers since its release last week, and is lingering at No. 6 nationwide.