"Secret Reunion" takes first win on Korean box office

Korean film "Secret Reunion" and "Harmony" took over the Korean box office over the weekend to end the reign of Hollywood blockbuster "Avatar," estimates showed on Monday.

According to figures by the Korean Box Office Information System (KOBIS), newly released action film "Reunion" knocked out seven week winner "Avatar" out of the top spot by selling 741,552 tickets between February 5 and 7.

"Reunion," about a former South Korean intelligence official and North Korean spy who re-encounter each other six years after their initial meeting, stars actors Song Kang-ho and Gang Dong-won who play the role of the failed agents.

Korean drama "Harmony," starring actress Kim Yun-jin of the U.S. "Lost" series, followed after "Reunion" on the local box office for the second consecutive week with 388,383 admissions.

While "Avatar" fell back two slots to No. 3 with 363,639 moviegoers over the three-day period, the James Cameron mega-hit pic hauled in an accumulate 11.9 million viewers since its release to become the third most-watched film in Korea's box office history.

Rounding off the top five were Korean films "WOOCHI" with 79,435 viewers and "Le Grand Chef 2: Kimchi Battle" with 63,114.

Other movies in the top ten were "Le Petit Nicholas", "Attack of the Gas Station 2", "Did You Hear About the Morgans?", "I Hate Valentine's Day", and "Astro Boy".

Reporter : Lucia Hong luciahong@asiae.co.kr
Editor : Jessica Kim jesskim@asiae.co.kr