Jang Jae-hyun's Occult Film Achieves Milestone Amidst Competition

Courtesy of SHOWBOX

▲ Courtesy of SHOWBOX

The occult-themed film "Exhuma" achieved a significant milestone by surpassing 10 million admissions in South Korea, marking the first film to do so in the country in 2024. The film reached this threshold on Sunday morning, 32 days after its release on February 22.

Since its premiere, "Exhuma" has consistently topped the local box office, prevailing over highly anticipated competitors such as the second installment of "Dune" and acclaimed dramas "Past Lives" and "Poor Things."

Directed and written by Jang Jae-hyun, "Exhuma" is his third film following "The Priests" (2015) and "Svaha: The Sixth Finger" (2019). Starring Choi Min-sik and Kim Go-eun, the film revolves around two shamans, a feng shui expert, and a mortician investigating mysterious occurrences within a wealthy American family, which leads them to exhuming the ancestor's grave in a remote Korean village.

The success of "Exhuma" is further attributed to its subtle critique of Japanese imperialist rule from 1910 to 1945, coinciding with the March 1 Independence Movement Day.

The film made its debut at the 74th Berlin International Film Festival on February 16, included in the Forum section dedicated to experimental films, a distinction previously received by notable Korean films such as "Snowpiercer" (2013) and "Late Autumn" (2010) directed by Bong Joon-ho and Kim Tae-yong, respectively.

Sayart

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