Ode To My Father





Profile

Movie: Ode To My Father (English title) / Gukje Market (literal title) / International Market
Revised romanization: Gukjeshijang
Hangul: 국제시장
Director: Yoon Je-Kyun
Writer: Park Soo-Jin
Producer: Yoon Je-Kyun, Lee Chang-Hyun, Lee Sang-Jik, Kim Yang-Yeon
Cinematographer: Choi Young-Hwan
Release Date: December 17, 2014
Runtime: 126 min.
Genre: Drama / Family / Period / Tearjerker
Distributor: CJ Entertainment
Language: Korean
Country: South Korea

Plot

Depicts the lives of people who go through the difficult times after the Korean War to the present day. Young-Ja (Kim Yunjin) is Deok-Soo's (Hwang Jung-Min) first love. They eventually get married. Dal-Goo (Oh Dal-Su) is Deok-Soo's lifelong friend.

Cast
Hwang Jung-Min
Kim Yunjin
Oh Dal-Su
Jung Jin-Young
Jang Yeong-Nam
Ra Mi-Ran
Hong Suk-Youn
Kim Seul-Gi
Lee Hyun
Uhm Ji-Sung
Jang Dae-Woong

Additional Cast Members:
Kim Min-Jae
Tae In-Ho
Hwang Sun-Hwa
Lee Ye-Eun
Go Yoon
Choi Jae-Sup
Jung Young-Ki
Maeng Se-Chang
Kim Sun-Young
Uhm Bo-Yong
Shin Rin-Ah
Jung Yunho - Nam Jin (cameo)Park Young-Soo 
 

Trivia

[*]Filming began August 14, 2103 in the Czech Republic. Filming then moves to South Korea on August 27, 2013, with a traditional gosa ceremony taking place to bring about good fortune and actual shooting beginning in September, 2013.[*]Filming finished December 25, 2013 in Thailand. Total production cost 14 billion won ($13.1 million USD). Literal title "Gukje Market" refers to the international market ("Gukje Shijang") located in Busan, South Korea.Drew a record 751,253 people on Thursday (25th December 2014) alone, the largest-ever number of viewers for a single film on New Year’s Day."Ode To My Father" surpassed 10 million ticket sales in South Korea on January 13, 2014. The movie became the 11th South Korean film to surpass 10 million tickets sales.
Director Yoon Je-Kyun also became the first person to direct two films that surpassed 10 million ticket sales in South Korea. His first film to surpass the 10 million mark is "Haeundae."Ode surpassed the 13 million viewer mark at the local box office, just 53 days after its release. With the milestone, the film “Ode to My Father” with 13,023,664 viewers moved into second place on the Korean box office record list for domestic movies by beating “Host”, which attracted a total of 13,019,740 viewers.

Trailer 

Ode To My Father (국제시장) Main Trailer w/ English Subs [HD]

Ode to My Father (국제시장) Teaser Trailer with Eng Subs [HD]

OST

Ode To My Father OST - Kwak Jineon, Kim Feel - 굳세어라 금순아 MV

Family film hits ‘My Love’ from top



Domestic movie “Ode to My Father,” a heart-wrenching story set during the 1950-53 Korean War, opened with an audience of 1.1 million over the weekend, snatching first place at the local box office.

Within five days of its release, the CJ Entertainment film with an 18 billion won budget (about $16 million) had garnered 1.5 million moviegoers, earning 9 billion won.

This time around, director Youn Je-kyun, who won nationwide acclaim with his disaster film “Haeundae” in 2009, joined forces with guaranteed ticket-sellers Hwang Jung-min and Kim Yoon-jin.

Youn took a more ambitious bid with “Ode,” depicting the survival of Korea’s refugees in extreme poverty during the Korean War.

In the movie, Hwang plays the naive and good-natured boy Deok-soo, who becomes the head of his family at a young age when his father dies in the war.

In second place was Peter Jackson’s ambitious finale to his Hobbit trilogy, “The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies.” The film debuted with an audience of 1.3 million, making 8.4 billion won domestically.

“My Love, Don’t Cross That River,” which achieved a milestone in the local indie film industry after its unexpected surge, was spotted in third place, dropping down two notches from last week’s first. Showing on 704 screens nationwide, the film picked up 766,413 cinemagoers this weekend, which brought its four-week total audience to 2.4 million.

The production cost of the documentary directed by Jin Mo-young was 120 million won, but it has made 18.7 billion won so far. The film is about an elderly couple who has been living together in the countryside for 76 years. Critics say it has pulled at the heartstrings of many viewers in their 20s because of its message about the true essence of love.

Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar” managed to stay in fourth place, selling 9.9 million tickets.

Younger viewers flocked to theaters this weekend, as shown by the audience figures for the popular animation feature “Pororo, The Snow Fairy Village Adventure,” which was in fifth place with 53,846 viewers.

BY JIN EUN-SOO [jes@joongang.co.kr]

Korean Box Office for the Weekend 2015.01.09 ~ 2015.01.11


The number one movie this week is "Ode to My Father" (국제시장)

Korean Box Office - Admissions for the Weekend 2015.01.09 - 2015.01.11 (www.kobis.or.kr)

#	Films	Release date	Week-end	Total
1	"Ode to My Father" (국제시장)	2014/12/17	1 136 394	9 688 642
2	"Taken 3"		364 423	1 770 087
3	"The Penguins of Madagascar"		301 565	1 371 417
4	"Unbroken"		147 785	202 645
5	"Paddington"		142 507	194 900
6	"My Love, Don't Cross That River" (님아, 그 강을 건너지 마오)	2014/11/27	137 535	4 644 249
7	"The Con Artists" (기술자들)	2014/12/24	122 735	2 506 524
8	"Casa Amor, Exclusive for Ladies" (워킹걸)	2015/01/08	74 637	108 431
9	"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies"		44 932	2 816 649
10	"Predestination"		42 874	64 839
Korean movies only
	"A Perfect Way to Steal a Dog" (개를 훔치는 완벽한 방법)	2014/12/31	23 395	211 614
	"The Royal Tailor" (상의원)	2014/12/24	5 480	787 273
	"Pororo, The Snow Fairy Village Adventure" (뽀로로 극장판 눈요정 마을 대모험)	2014/12/11	2 464	253 315
	"Today's Love" (오늘의 연애)	2015/01/14	1 956	5 685
	"Chronicle of a Blood Merchant" (허삼관 매혈기)	2015/01/15	1 860	2 074
	"The Tenor Lirico Spinto" (더 테너 리리코 스핀토)	2014/12/31	1 080	47 201
	"Snow is on the Sea" (설해)	2015/01/08	998	3 343
	"QUO VADIS" (쿼바디스)	2014/12/10	744	18 252
	"The Barefooted Young (맨발의 청춘, 1964) - Re-release"		443	6 480
	"Torment in the Paradise" (미라클 여행기)	2015/01/15	432	1 055

                      Source : www.hancinema.net (Hancinema)

Korean director JK Youn pays tribute to his father with his film, “Ode to My Father.”



Filmmaker Uses Korean History as Backdrop for Personal Tale

On a blisteringly cold winter day in 1950, a boy parts ways with his father, who makes a fateful decision to turn back to search for his missing daughter during a frantic evacuation from a North Korea port city. Before they separate, the boy makes a lifelong promise to his father that he will keep his family safe.

The scene is from “Ode to My Father,” a generational epic that follows the son, Youn Duk-soo, through the tumultuous history of modern Korea, which rose from rags to riches in the span of 60 years.

The protagonist’s life encompasses many of the country’s important events – the evacuation of 14,000 refugees by U.S. cargo ship SS Meredith Victory from Hungnam Port during the Korean War, the mass migration of coal miners and nurses to Germany and the participation in the Vietnam War. Duk-soo’s Forrest Gump-like encounters with the country’s influential figures including Hyundai Group founder Chung Ju-yung add humor to the film.

In an interview with Korea Real Time, director JK Youn (Youn Je-kyun) said the film was produced, as the title suggests, to pay tribute to his father, who passed away when Mr. Youn was in university. The idea for the film came to him in 2004, when he had his first son, he said.



“Only when I became a father could I start understanding how heavy a burden my father had carried on his shoulder,” the 45-year-old director said.

The film, which opened locally on Dec. 17, has been a hit with audiences and is likely to pass the 10 million admissions level this week. As of Sunday, it had attracted 9.68 million admissions, drawing moviegoers with its touching story line and big-scale spectacle.

“Ode to My Father” has become a subject of ideological debates over what some critics have argued is excessive patriotism, citing the film’s perceived forcing of younger Koreans to feel grateful for the sacrifice made by older generations during the country’s rapid economic development.

The debate intensified when President Park Geun-hye late last month emphasized the importance of patriotism, citing a scene from the movie where Duk-soo and his wife stop arguing and place their hands across their chests as the national anthem is being aired, a mandatory practice introduced in the 1970s by then military president Park Chung-hee, Park Geun-hye’s father, which was aimed at boosting Koreans’ spirits.

Mr. Youn said he was surprised by the controversy over the film.



“The theme of this film is harmony and communication, not to incite social division,” he said, “I hoped young people better understand their parents and grandparents by watching how hard their lives were.”

Near the end of the film, present-day Duk-soo talks to himself, holding his father’s photo to his chest and sobbing.

“Father, I kept the promise well. I think I have lived life well enough. But you know what? It has been really tough.”

The line, the director said, sums up the essence of the film. “I made this movie to say this to my father. To say that I have tried my best to live well and that I really miss him.”

The movie was released in 40 cinemas in the U.S. this month and will be screened in the Panorama section of the Berlin Film Festival in February.

(WSJ Asia)

Postwar film 'Ode to My Father' featuring Yunho surpasses 9 million views

On January 10, CJ Entertainment shared that over 9 million people watched the film 'Ode to My Father' ever since its release on December 17, 2014.

Gaining more and more views at a remarkable speed, 'Ode to My Father' has been maintaining its box office number one spot for almost a month. At this rate, 'Ode to My Father' may gain over 10 million views by next week.

If 'Ode to My Father' surpasses the 10 million view mark, it will be the Director Yoon Je Kyun's second time achieving the milestone since his 2009 movie 'Haeundae,' which achieved around 11.5 million views.

'Ode to My Father' follows the story of those who suffered from the aftermath of the Korean War. It features TVXQ member Yunho who makes a cameo appearance.

(allkpop)

[interview] "Ode To My Father" director Yoon Je-gyoon

Director Yoon Je-kyoon, who succeeded in gathering 10 million viewers with "Haeundae" in 2009, is back. This time it's "Ode to My Father". Being the most controversial movie of the year, "Ode to My Father" has recorded 4.2 million audiences up to date.

It's all thanks to Yoon Je-kyoon for increasing the value of the movie. There aren't many directors whose name brings about curiosity to the public. However, they remember Yoon Je-kyoon. It could've been pressure for him to come back with a movie for the first time in 5 years.

"I've watched the movie a million times while making it and I wanted it to look true. I hoped the public will feel it too. There's bitterness in the movie. I wish they'd look at the truth and honesty in the movie and not be biased about it. I wish they'd wonder how our parents lived and loved".

"Ode to My Father" is made up of 4 of the major social events that passed us in the 1950s and 1980s. Political and financial cases have been left out and the movie deals with the social matters such as the Korean War, the German dispatch, the Vietnam War and visits of separated families in North and South Korea. It wasn't easy fitting in years of history into a 2 hour film. That was tough indeed Yoon Je-kyoon says.

"Collecting information about those 4 events took me the most time. I started after "Haeundae" but the final drafts were only ready in 2012. It took me 3 years. It was tough as there is history and culture in the historical events but I had to stay focused because I had to squeeze it into 2 hours of film. Many say there isn't any political criticism in my movie because there's no politics involved but I wanted to remove anything politically social. I wanted people to watch the movie from a father's point of view.

It wasn't easy unfolding this era under such limited conditions. We asked if there was one periodical event he wanted to use in particular and he said the 'Middle East Construction Boom'.

"I really thought about it a lot. I had to choose and focus. There are a lot of parts to spare but I wanted to put in the Middle East Constructions the most. There were many people who went abroad and went through sacrifice for their families. However, that would make the movie about 5 great social issues and I think I did well by leaving it out".

However, because there are four social issues to be dealt with, some say the movie feels repeated and boring. "I know that and I knew there would be a risk. The climax would have to be repeated because there are 4 elements in the movie. So as a director I decided to add recent events into it. It's like a summary of the Busan "Ggotbun" story. I intended on using current issues to reflect back into the past and put in a lot of time and effort into the switch".

Yoon Je-kyoon chose Hwang Jeong-min as Deok-soo. "I could think of no one else but him". How does Yoon Je-kyoon see Hwang Jeong-min? He says Hwang is respectable.

"I respect him as an actor. An actor has to bring out more than what the director wants and he did more than that. I was in awe. I like him as a person too and I thought, 'actors can be as humane as him. He's innocent'. I had a lot to learn from him. I asked only for sincerity towards the movie. Not exaggerated nor contained. I knew sincerity would relate with the public. I want to work with Hwang Jeong-min for the rest of my life".

Yoon Je-kyoon also mentioned U-Know from TVXQ who made a cameo appearance as well as Kim Yoon-jin, Oh Dal-soo, Ra Mi-ran, Jang Yeong-nam and Jeong Jin-yeong. U-Know might sound random but he was the 'hidden card'.

"I wanted someone to play Nam Jin's younger character and it required a few things. He needed to know how to speak in the Jeolla dialect and needed to sing. So I looked at my list of singers and met U-Know for the first time. He is a great person. So polite. It would be a lie if I said I didn't have biased thoughts about singers who act. I always think acting comes before fame and U-Know was tested several times. He helped me break down the prejudice towards idol-actors but if I ever work with more of them again I will test them and give them a role that suits them".

It took Yoon Je-kyoon 5 years to come back with "Ode to My Father". That's how long it took him to edit the scenario and settle with investments and distributors. We asked him about his next challenge and he said, "There's no 'next' for directors".

"I haven't made detailed plans about the next movie. "Ode to My Father" has to do well first. I never think of the next one. The current one has to succeed for me to move onto a new one. It cost 1.8 billion won to produce "Ode to My Father" so I can't afford to lose money can I? I wish we would just pas breaking point. A director can succeed or fail. I always think like that. But I hope the next one doesn't take me 5 years to make. I want to communicate with the public as soon as possible".

Source : news.tf.co.kr (hancinema)

Director of 'Ode To My Father' To Tell More Stories Of His Film



Director Yoon Je Kyun of movie ‘Ode To My Father’ will appear in ‘JTBC Newsroom’.

If the movie hits 10 million views, ‘Ode To My Father’ will be 12th film to record 10 million views among Korean movies and director Yoon Je Kyun will be the first movie director who filmed two 10 million-view films.

'Ode To My Father’ depicts a story of Duksoo who lived through from the Korean War. The story of the fathers in this generation became controversial due to its ideological conflict. How the director would think about this issue? He will tell further information about it with Son Suk Hee tonight.

Meanwhile, Son Suk Hee’s ‘JTBC Newsroom’ airs every night at 9pm.

Contact: news@bntnews.co.uk

‘Ode to My Father’ stirs nostalgia, controversy


People purchase tickets at a theater in Yeouido, Seoul, to watch the drama film “Ode to My Father.” (Yonhap)

A Korean drama film that delves into the repercussions of the Korean War and the generation that fought through the period has taken the local box office by storm, amid political controversy surrounding the era.

“Ode to My Father,” directed by Yoon Je-kyoon (“Haeundae”), topped the local box office for the third consecutive week, garnering over 8 million viewers, according to the official box office tracker, Korea Film Council.

It is on pace to become the first film this year to reach the 10 million viewer milestone.

The 126-minute film is the story of Deok-soo, a man who lived through Korea’s tumultuous period from the 1950s to 1980s.

When the Korean War breaks out, Deok-soo, played by veteran actor Hwang Jung-min (“New World,” “You are My Sunshine”), is separated from his younger sister and his father and becomes the breadwinner of the family. Even at a young age, he dares to take all kinds of difficult and odd jobs in order to provide for his mother and other siblings in Busan, where the family fled to from North Korea.

In search of opportunities, he traverses the globe, including working as a migrant coal mine worker in Germany. There where he meets Korean nurse Young-ja, played by “Lost” star Kim Yun-jin, and they get married.

The heartwarming film follows Deok-soo’s journey of five decades, sacrificing his youth and dreams to support his family. In doing so, he stands as witness to some of the most important events in modern Korean history, including the Korean War, the Vietnam War and the reunion of separated family members in the 1980s.

The move was for director Yoon a personal tribute to his father.

“My father passed away when I was in college and I didn’t have a chance to say thank you,” said Yoon at the press conference before its premiere in November. “I hope the film serves as the channel for communication between the old and young generation.”

He used his parents’ real names for the two lead roles: Deok-soo and Young-ja.

The film’s popularity was slower than expected when it premiered in mid-December.

The buzz started when some film pundits dubbed it as a “conservative” flick for emphasizing the sacrifices of older generations and justifying nationalism, and President Park Geun-hye used a scene from the movie to call on Korean people to show more patriotism.

Park is a conservative leader whose rise in politics was greatly aided by nostalgia for old days as her father ― military strongman Park Chung-hee ― led the country’s rise from postwar poverty. The late Park ruled the country from 1961 until his assassination in 1979.

Citing a scene in the film in which the husband and wife suddenly halt an argument and pay a hand salute to the national flag when they hear the national anthem playing, she emphasized the need for patriotism in order for Korea to overcome national adversity.

Many in the political circles watched the film, including Rep. Kim Moo-sung, chairman of the conservative ruling Saenuri Party, and Rep. Moon Jae-in, the liberal opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy’s flag-bearer in the 2012 presidential election.

“There were scenes in the film that emphasized patriotism, but that was the reality of that time period,” Rep. Moon told reporters after watching the film.

“It is unreasonable to say that the film is conservative,” said the liberal lawmaker.

For Shin Tae-wook, a 32-year office worker, the film was a moving drama, regardless of the controversy.

“It was an opportunity to see what my parents and grandparents had to go through in the past. I am very grateful for that,” he said.

Another moviegoer in her 70s said: “It brought back memories of the past. They were hard times, but without it, Korea won’t be the same country as now.”

She came to watch the film with her friends after her daughter recommended it to her, she said.

The film’s popularity has also extended to Busan, as many people are flocking to the southern port city to see different venues featured in the movie, especially Gukje Market (the Korean title of the film). The largest traditional market opened in 1946 and served as the place for war refugees to set up stalls in order to make a living, just like Deok-soo in the film.

(kpopherald)

Ode to My Father extends box office streak



Ode to My Father 국제시장 (pictured) has extended its winning streak at the South Korea box office to four weekends.

Between Friday and Sunday, the J.K. YOUN 윤제균 | 尹薺均 film earned ₩9.12 billion (US$8.4 million) from 1.13 million admissions, representing a week-on-week drop of 31.5%. It has now earned ₩75.6 billion (US$69.6 million) from 9.69 million admissions. The CJ Entertainment Inc ＣＪ엔터테인먼트 release is expected to break the ten million admissions mark this week – the 14th film to do so.

Taken 3 remained in second place, earning ₩3.01 billion (US$2.77 million) from 363,000 admissions between Friday and Sunday. The action sequel has earned ₩14.2 billion (US$13.1 million) from 1.77 million admissions after two weekends.

The top new film this weekend was biopic Unbroken, earning ₩1.59 billion (US$1.47 million) from 202,000 admissions on its first five days. British family comedy Paddington opened fifth-placed, earning ₩1.47 billion (US$1.35 million) from 195,000 admissions over five days.

Local comedy Casa Amor: Exclusive for Ladies 워킹걸, about two women who start an adult products business, earned ₩883 million (US$814,000) from 108,000 admissions over five days.

Indie documentary My Love, Don't Cross That River 님아, 그 강을 건너지 마오 dropped to sixth place, earning ₩36.2 billion (US$33.3 million) from 4.64 million admissions after seven weekends. The Con Artists 기술자들 dropped to seventh place, earning ₩19.4 billion (US$17.9 million) from 2.51 million admissions.

(Film Business Asia)

Korea Box Office: ‘Ode’ Dominates Weekend, Heads for Record Books



The top three spots at the Korean box office remained unchanged from last week as the “Ode To My Father” stream roller continued strongly. The film is now close to achieving 10 million admissions, a mega-blockbuster status that would put it in the top 10 films of all time in Korea.

“Ode,” a melodramatic, nationalistic metaphor filled with nostalgia and struggle, dropped only 31% in its fourth week on release and held on to an unchanged 42% market share. Its weekly haul was $8.33 million, propelling it to a cumulative score of $68.9 million. As of Sunday night it had sold 9.68 million tickets, according to KOBIS, the box office tracking service of the Korean Film Council (KOFIC).

Holding on second was “Taken 3” which added $2.74 million for an 11 day cume of $12.9 million. It was followed by “The Penguins of Madagascar,” which added $2.1 million for a 12 day cumulative score of $9.48 million.

Highest new release film was Angelina Jolie’s “Unbroken,” which charted in fourth spot with a score of $1.07 million and $1.45 million including previews.

“Paddington,” another new release, was fifth with $975,000 from the weekend and $1.34 million in total.

Local documentary sensation, “My Love Don’t Cross That River” ran “Paddington” a close sixth and now stands on a ticket sales total of 4.64 million and a gross of $33 million.

The final installment of “The Hobbit” scored $368,000 in ninth spot for a total that was extended to $22 million since its Dec. 17 release.

(variety.com)

'

Taken 3' Wins Box Office Over 'The Hobbit'



LOS ANGELES (AP) — After three weeks atop the box office, "The Hobbit" has been taken down by Liam Neeson.

"Taken 3" nabbed the top spot at the weekend box office in North America with $40.4 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. The third installment of the 20th Century Fox thriller series stars Neeson as a vengeance-seeking retired CIA operative with "a very particular set of skills."

The original "Taken," which also features Maggie Grace and Famke Janssen, debuted in 2009 with $24.7 million, while "Taken 2" launched in 2012 with $49.5 million. "Taken 3" also earned $41 million in 36 international territories this weekend.

"For Neeson to be at this stage in his career and be considered one of the premier action heroes is certainly unexpected, but it's really cool and lucrative," said Paul Dergarabedian, senior media analyst at box-office tracker Rentrak. "I don't think Neeson expected back in '09 that 'Taken' would take off the way it has. It's really enhanced his box-office appeal."

"The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies" slid to fourth place with $9.4 million following three straight weeks in first place. The total domestic take for filmmaker Peter Jackson's Middle-earth finale now stands at $236.5 million. "The Hobbit" also earned $21.8 million internationally this weekend, pushing the worldwide total to $545.3 million.

"Into the Woods" milked $9.7 million in third place in its third week at the box office, bringing the total haul of Disney's Broadway musical adaptation to $105.3 million.

With the Golden Globes kicking off Sunday night and Academy Awards nominations looming Thursday morning, several trophy seekers expanded into more theaters this weekend.

Paramount's civil rights drama "Selma" moved from 22 to 2,179 theaters, arriving in second place behind "Taken 3" with $11.2 million. The film chronicles the historic 54-mile march from Selma to Montgomery, Alabama, and stars David Oyelowo as the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.

"With the Globes tonight, no matter what happens, there's nothing better than having your clips running and people having conversations about your movie because it creates a big awareness," said Megan Colligan, Paramount's president of worldwide distribution. "Then, we have Martin Luther King weekend next weekend. I think we're in great shape to just play and play and play."

Other possible awards-season hopefuls that moved into more theaters this weekend included the Louis Zamperini biopic "Unbroken," the Alan Turing biopic "The Imitation Game" and filmmaker Paul Thomas Anderson's trippy mystery "Inherent Vice."

"There are a lot of titles out there in the mix," Dergarabedian said. "It's all about timing with these awards-season contenders. With the Globes tonight and the Academy Award nominations Thursday, it's no accident they're expanding. It's completely calculated, but it's sort of anyone's game to win because there are so many great contenders."

"American Sniper," which stars Bradley Cooper as Navy SEAL Chris Kyle, bagged $555,000 from just four theaters. Warner Bros. plans to greatly expand the war drama's scope on Friday.

__

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Rentrak. Where available, the latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.

1. "Taken 3," $40.4 million ($41 million international).

2. "Selma," $11.2 million.

3. "Into the Woods," $9.7 million ($7.6. million international).

4. "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies," $9.4 million ($21.8 million international).

5. "Unbroken," $8.7 million ($5.7 million international).

6. "The Imitation Game," $7.6 million ($5.5 international).

7. "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb," $6.7 million ($46.2 million international).

8. "Annie," $4.9 million ($14 million international).

9. "The Woman in Black 2: Angel of Death," $4.8 million ($1.5 million international).

10. "The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1," $3.7 million.

[150112] Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada), according to Rentrak:

1. "Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb," $46.2 million.

2. "Taken 3," $41 million.

3. "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies," $21.8 million.

4 (tie). "Exodus: Gods and Kings," $15 million.

4 (tie). "Miss Granny," $15 million.

5. "Big Hero 6," $12.6 million.

6. "Ode to My Father," $9.5 million.

7. "Penguins of Madagascar," $9 million.

8. "Seventh Son," $8.1 million.

9. "Into the Woods," $7.6 million.

10. "The Taking of Tiger Mountain," $7.5 million.

(Huffington Post)

South Korea Box Office: 'Unbroken' Debuts in Fourth Place


South Korean drama Ode to My Father topped the local box office for the fourth consecutive week, reaping 42.9 percent of weekend sales for the Jan. 9-11 period.

The CJ Entertainment release has earned a total of about $70 million, according to the Korean Film Council's KOBIS database. Meanwhile, Angelina Jolie's Unbroken came in fourth in its first weekend.

Ode to My Father, a family drama starring Lost actress Yunjin Kim, is expected to break 10 million admissions in the coming days as 9.69 million tickets had been sold as of the end of the weekend.

It will be JK Youn's second title to reach the milestone since his 2009 tsunami blockbuster Haeundae (a.k.a. Tidal Wave). He will be the first Korean filmmaker to have two titles attract 10 million admissions here, or a fifth of Korea's population of 50 million. Only a dozen films including Avatar have crossed the record in Korea, where offices mainly use admissions to measure a film's performance.

The generational epic about a man making sacrifices for his family will have its international premiere at the Berlin Film Festival's Panorama section next month.

Meanwhile, Taken 3 and The Penguins of Madagascar defended their second and third places, respectively. The Liam Neeson actioner distributed by Twentieth Century Fox Korea took 14.1 percent of the weekend revenue, grossing a total $13.1 million. The Penguins, also handled by CJ Entertainment, accounted for 10.8 percent of sales and has so far earned about $9.6 million.

Read more 'Unbroken' Gets China Release Date

Unbroken debuted in fourth place with box-office revenue of about $1.47 million. The Universal Pictures International Korea title has been making headlines here for its portrayal of Japan's wartime cruelties, which remains a sensitive issue in Korea, a former Japanese colony (1910-1945).

Paddington landed in fifth place during its first weekend in Korean theaters. Distributed by Lotte Entertainment, the family film grossed a total of $1.35 million.

(Hollywood Reporter)

Review South Korean 'Ode to My Father' expertly mines human drama


Tugging shamelessly yet persuasively on the heartstrings, "Ode to My Father" is an epic South Korean melodrama capturing more than half a century of recent history through the eyes of an everyman shopkeeper.

Director JK Youn, responsible for the tsunami blockbuster "Tidal Wave," has an undeniable knack for crafting crowd-rousing, character-driven spectacle.

Here, the elderly father in question, Deok-Su (played by Hwang Jung-min in not-so-convincing old age makeup) looks back over an eventful life beginning with a harrowing escape during the Korean War along with 14,000 refugees aboard the U.S. cargo freighter Meredith Victory.

But his arrival in South Korea is just one momentous stop in a life that also takes him to Germany in the mid-'60s, where he works as a coal miner and meets his future wife (Yunjin Kim), as well as to war-torn Vietnam in the '70s.

Each sequence is masterfully calibrated for maximum lip-quivering effect, swelling strings and all, but none jab at the tear ducts more than the re-creation of a 1983 live TV broadcast that reunited families displaced by the Korean War.
Like that television event, "Ode to My Father," which handily topped the final "Hobbit" installment at the South Korean box office, mines human drama to undeniable effect, emotionally connecting with audiences.
"Ode to My Father"
Running time: 2 hours, 6 minutes.
Playing: CGV Cinemas, Los Angeles.

(LA Times)

Ode to My Father Among the Best of This Week’s Limited Releases



Yoon Duk-soo (Hwang Jeong-min) is an old man in modern day Busan, but he still keeps busy providing for his family both immediate and extended. His adult children crack wise about his refusal to slow down and focus on something other than money, but flashbacks to his earlier life reveal why he’s so driven. We see him as a young boy who along with his parents and siblings are attempting to evacuate their seaside village before the advancing Chinese arrive, and in the chaos and panic that ensues he loses his grip on his younger sister’s hand. His father jumps into the sea in search of her but not before passing “man of the house” responsibilities to young Duk-soo. From there we between the present and various stages of his life as his family and his efforts to support them grow in tandem.

Director Jk Youn‘s last film was the disaster film Tidal Wave — it’s about a tidal wave — and he carries that film’s attempted balance between humor, spectacle and drama onto this project with more consistent results. There are moments of slapstick-like humor throughout, oftentimes separated by only a minute or so from scenes of loss, suffering and heartbreak. It doesn’t always work leading to moments that gags that feel too broad and moments that tease overwrought melodrama, but more often than not the film pulls viewers in to Duk-soo’s heartfelt adventure of life.

Hwang is a big part of why it works — an impressive feat as part of the film requires him (and Kim Yunjim as his wife) to act beneath some less than successful old-age makeup — as he’s onscreen throughout and delivers a driven performance as a man determined to do whatever’s necessary. That drive takes Duk-soo to Germany as a miner and Vietnam as an engineer before he manages to settle down in Busan, and the globetrotting allows for mine disasters, gun fights with the Viet-Kong and a spectacularly presented explosion.

Oddly, while Duk-soo has numerous children none of them stand out as the “author” of the tale, the one making this ode to their father. We don’t get to know any of them, and their dialogue consists mostly of complaints without personality. That child connection is ultimately unnecessary though as Duk-soo’s story leaves plenty of room for familial drama. A sequence late in the film, one based on real televised events from Korea in the early ’80s, is guaranteed to lubricate your eyes.

This is big biography the likes of which Hollywood rarely makes these days. The recent Unbroken tries, but it focuses more on ideas and themes than on the man at its center. Here though we simply have a man struggling like many before him and many after him, and it’s that familiarity that makes his tale so much more compelling.

Ode to My Father is currently in limited theatrical release.

(Films School Rejects)

‘Ode to My Father’ portrays Korea's recent past


Local media covers news about the movie 'Ode to My Father.'

The film “Ode to My Father” is warming hearts across society these days, especially as we approach the year end.

The movie takes place in Korea from the 1950s to the 1980s. As of December 24, eight days after its first screening, it has recorded more than 2.3 million ticket sales, becoming the most-seen movie in Korea this week. The realistic portrayal of life and society during those times is considered to be its key to success.

Though fiction, it wins sympathy from all viewers, as it is based on fact. The movie begins with the Hungnam Evacuation in December 1950 during the Korean War (1950-1953). U.N. forces had to make a large-scale withdrawal from Hamheung, Hamgyeongnam-do (South Hamgyeong Province), because of a massive attack from North Korea and China. The family members of the hero, Deoksu, escape from Heungnam Port barely escaping the Communist regime and head to the South.

Thousands of Koreans were separated when they got onboard the U.S. naval ships there for evacuation. Deoksu was no exception. He lost his youngest sister and father when boarding the ship.

After arriving in Busan with no money, his family does any chore to survive and lives close to the Gukje Market. In order to support his mother and siblings in the 1960s, Deoksu leaves for Germany to work as a miner. During the three-year contract term, he works diligently and comes back home with the large amount of money he saved. During his stay in Germany, he met a Korean woman who was working there as a nurse. The two get married. Thanks to the money he saved, he was able to buy a house and set up the economic foundation for his family as a breadwinner.



Deoksu, who decides to work as a miner in Germany to support the tuition fees of his sibling, meets Yeongja, who also works as a nurse in the country. The two eventually get married.


Both Korean miners and nurses comfort their loneliness by getting together. Many of them became couples


While working as a miner in Germany, Deoksu faces a moment of danger due to a mining accident.

In fact, Germany was regarded as an object of envy for Korean youth at that time. Many Korean men and women in their 20s left for Germany to work as miners, nurses and nurse’s aides. From December 21, 1963, to the late 1970s, a total of 7,936 Korean miners and 11,057 nurses and nurses’ aides worked in mines and hospitals in Germany, according to the association of Korean workers dispatched to Germany as miners and nurses.

In the early 1970s, Deoksu again leaves, this time for Vietnam, in order to make money for the wedding of his sister. He works in logistics with the Korean soldiers fighting there. In Vietnam, he is shot in the leg and becomes disabled for the rest of his life. After coming home, he maintains his family while running a shop that sells imported goods in the Gukje Market.

Though it’s not based on a single true story, the experiences of the Korean War, and working in Germany and the Vietnam War draw the sympathy of many people, especially those in their late 60s and 70s. They all lived through the same historic events.

The reunion of separated family members in the 1980s marks the end of the film, as Deoksu finds his youngest sister who was separated during the evacuation of Heungnam Port during a live broadcast on KBS. The live broadcast of the reunion of separated family members was actually a real event at the time. The scene perfectly recreates the air of the times.

Director Yoon Je-kyoon explained the purpose of making this film by saying, "This movie is dedicated to the generation of our fathers who devoted their lives to the fullest during times of hardness, exhaustion and intensity. Though based on the story of a family, this movie is expected to attract more movie lovers, as it displays Korea’s modern history such as the war, working overseas and the reunion of separated families."

Korea.net
By Wi Tack-whan, Yoon Sojung
Korea.net Staff Writers
whan23@korea.kr
Photos: Ode to My Father Facebook, Naver Movie

'Ode' likely to pass 10M admissions

[150112]
viewers:  156,357
Total viewers: 9,844,991

Film Review: 'Ode To My Father' Is A Visual Feast Which Celebrates Korean Perseverance


Kim Yunjin and Hwang Jung Min star in "Ode to My Father."

New Yorkers can be jaded but there was not a dry eye in the theater, following a recent screening of “Ode to My Father.” “Ode to My Father” is a Korean movie which speaks to all audiences through its rough-hewn portrayal of war torn Korea and the difficult events which follow.

Directed by JK Youn, “Ode to My Father” opens with Deok Su (Hwang Jung Min) and his wife, as they reflect upon their life and send their adult children away on an excursion while looking after the grandchildren. During a walk in the streets with his granddaughter, Deok Su is plunged into memories of his childhood in North Korea.


As a child, Deok Su is forced to flee from North Korea.

He reflects upon a scene in which his family is firmly in the grip of North Korea, as tensions between the Southern regions, China, and U.S. forces started to reach a boiling point. At is at this point that audiences are introduced to Deok Su, a young boy who is given the daunting task of looking out for his little sister, as chaos ensues around him.

Deok Su fails to keep up with his sister during a mass exodus in which North Korean families struggle to scale American military vessels which will provide them with entrance to safety in the South. His father turns back to seek out his sister during this critical point. At a very young age, Deok Su is given the daunting task of serving as the head of his household, which consists of his mother, sister, and brother. Downtrodden but safe from the perils of North Korea, the young family seeks refuge with Deok Su’s aunt at her small shop in Busan.

The film brilliantly captures the grungy, undeveloped streets of Busan and the post-Korean War nation which is a stark contrast to the gleaming cities featured in marketing materials that are currently served up by the Korean Tourism Board. Deok Su navigates the shanty town and rickshaws that populate the city.

As an immigrant from the North, he faces strong discrimination which he reflects upon in his old age, while defending an immigrant couple who is being harassed by local student. Korea is a homogeneous nation and the general sentiment becomes apparent during these scenes.


Deok Su meets Yeong Ja on the outskirts of a German mining village.

As the film progresses, Deok Su establishes a strong friendship with Dal Gu (Oh Dal Su) which leads to his enlistment as a worker within a German coal mine. In Germany, he falls in love with Yeong Ja (Yunjin Kim), a nurse of Korean origin. After a near-fatal mining accident, Dal Gu is nursed back to health by Yeong Ja, leading to their marriage.

“Ode to My Father” embraces pivotal events for Koreans and also touches upon conflicts which impacted the world. Deok Su and Dal Gu willingly travel to Vietnam as engineers, where they witness the atrocities of the war. At this point, Deok Su wisely reflects upon the similarities between the horrid conditions in Vietnam and those he faced as a young boy in North Korea. He is greatly affected when the women and children of a fishing village attempt to flee with the assistance of American soldiers. TVXQ’s Yunho delivers a touching cameo during this scene.

If the screenplay were weaker, “Ode to My Father” could be dismissed as yet another Korean film which focuses on the hardships of filial responsibility.Through its cinematography and strong story, “Ode to My Father” is a gem of a film which ushers in a promising year for Korean movies.

Running Time: 126 minutes

(kdramastars)

[HanCinema's Box Office Review] 2015.01.09 ~ 2015.01.11


Yoon's "Ode" continues uncontested.

The Korean box office might not be roaring currently, quieted, perhaps, by the success of Yoon Je-kyoon's heartfelt war drama: "Ode to My Father". Since its released mid-December, "Ode to My Father" has held firm at the top of pile, and its arrival at the ten-million-views mark is dawning. The film added 1.1M stubs over the weekend, continuing its phenomenal run and pushing its total tally now to 9.6M ($69.7M). If, or rather when, it reached 10M admissions, it will become only the eleventh film in Korean film history to do so, placing it in Korea's pantheon of pictures; a hall of fame and fortune that includes such wonders as "Silmido" (the first of its kind), "Snowpiercer", "The Attorney", "The Thieves", and, more recently, "The Admiral: Roaring Currents".

"Taken 3" has thus far been its closest rival having remained in second for the past two weeks behind Yoon's "Ode". This Neeson-studded action flick racked up another 364K stubs (14.1%) over the weekend, moving the film's bottom line in Korea now to just over $13.1M (1.7M admissions). But this stoic hero also had constant competition in the animated form of DreamWorks' "The Penguins of Madagascar". Last weekend "The Penguins" pocketed 498K (12.2%) over 615 screens for third place; this week that haul was reduced to 301K (10.8%) from 527, enough to retain its podium finish. Thus far "The Penguins of Madagascar" has attracted 1.3M filmgoers and banked $9.6M.

In fourth entered Angelina Jolie's war drama "Unbroken"; which is based on Laura Hillenbrand's "Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption", a best-selling biography on the life of Louis Zamperini. The film claimed 5.5% of the box office pie during its opening weekend (147K) over 399 screens, only narrowly outperforming "Paddington" and his own earnest entry into the fray.

Paul King's "Paddington" (which is, like Jolie's film, based on other stories. This time it's Michael Bond's character "Paddington Bear", who made his first appear back in 1958 in the children's book: "A Bear Called Paddington") came close to overtaking "Unbroken" with its 142K (5%), but even with a handful more screens ("Paddington" was give 408) Bond's marmalade-loving classic had to eventually be content with fifth.

The hit documentary "My Love, Don't Cross That River" is still with us, but down two places as it slowly steps back from its record-breaking run. Jin Mo-young's tale of his '100-year-old lovebirds' added another 137K (5.1%) to bring its tally now to 4.6M ($33.3M, making it the highest-grossing independent film to be released in Korea).

Kim Hong-seon's "The Con Artists" was next, and found itself down two places in seventh with 122K (4.7%), while Jeong Beom-sik's "Casa Amor, Exclusive for Ladies" opened its account in eight with 74K (2.9%). Lastly, the weekend was closed out by "The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies", which continued to under perform with just 44.9K (1.8%), and the Australian science-fiction thought experiment: "Predestination" (42K - 1.6%).

(Hancinema)

Popularity of "Ode to My Father" renews interest in Busan's Gukje Market


Visitors pose at a filming location for "Ode to My Father" in Busan - hancinema

As its title suggests, "Ode to My Father" tells the story of a typical father from Korea's older generation, through the main character Deoksu.
After growing up during the Korean War, Deoksu later gives up on attending college to support his younger siblings, and heads to Germany in the 1960s to earn money as a dispatched miner, then to Vietnam as an engineer during the Vietnam War.

After some time, Deoksu finally opens up his own shop at Gukje Market, the largest traditional market in the southern port city of Busan.

The popularity of the film has led to a resurgence in interest in the market, which now houses more than 15-hundred small shops. The market usually draws in 20- to 30-thousand people during the week and some 50-thousand on the weekends. But those numbers have more than doubled since "Ode to My Father" was released on December 17th.

Many of those coming through are young people who want to see the setting of the film for themselves. Some are also looking to connect to the generation of men who lived through the Korean War of the 1950s and its aftermath. Gukje Market opened in 1946 and began to thrive during the war, as it served as a central market among refugees who fled to Korea's southern port city of Busan.

Park Ji-won, Arirang News.

Busan offers tour of locations from ‘Ode to My Father’

The Busan Tourism Organization announced it would offer a tour of spots featured in the movie “Ode to My Father.” The movie is about Koreans living in the poverty-stricken 1950s and ’60s who leave the country to work overseas. The movie takes place in Busan and shows major sites including Nampo-dong; PIFF Plaza; food alleys; Bupyeong Market, also known as Kkangtong (Tin Can) Market; and Yongdusan Park. The tour takes two hours and will include old stories about Busan told by local people. For more information, visit bto.or.kr.

(kpopherald)

'Ode to My Father' Set to Pull 10 Million Viewers



The melodrama "Ode to My Father" is set to become the 14th film ever to draw 10 million viewers here on Tuesday.

The first film to achieve the mark in Korean cinema was the 2003 blockbuster "Silmido."

As of 2013, the average Korean moviegoer saw 4.12 movies a year to rank at the top of the world after the U.S. (3.88). Third is Australia (3.75) followed by France.

Although 2014 statistics are not yet out, a calculation based on data from the Korean Film Council shows each Korean saw 4.19 films, even more than the previous year.

◆ Older Viewers

Almost 40 percent of those who bought tickets for "Ode to My Father" on the website of theater chain CGV were in their 40s or above, way more than for other movies.

CGV said many young people also bought tickets for their parents, so older viewers definitely make up the majority of the audience for the film.

The weepie follows a man through notable events of the postwar years, milking the sacrifices of the generation that built modern Korea for all they are worth.

Movie critic Oh Dong-jin said, "In Western countries, aging rockers can still release new albums and go on tour because they have their legions of old fans who are active consumers of their products. It seems that there is a similar trend developing among older Koreans who want something that suits their taste."

The trend was evident in the epic movie "Roaring Currents," based on the life of legendary Admiral Yi Sun-shin. The film also drew more than 10 million viewers.

◆ Precedents

So far the only movies that bridged all generation gaps were blockbusters that opened in vacation seasons along with other major productions and spread by word of mouth on social media. But "Ode to My Father" did not follow this formula.

It opened rather quietly in mid December and was not much talked about on social media. Instead, it became a topic in the family or other social gatherings.

A staffer with JK Film, which produced the movie, said the film is popular because it strikes a chord with several generations.

A CGV spokesman said, "The popularity of this movie stems from the power of sharing memories that are passed down from one generation to another and transcends politics."

(The Chosun)