KBO: Traffickers and Local Releases Dominate Chart (08/31-09/02, 2012)

Traffickers and Local Releases Dominate Chart

	Title	Release Date	Market Share	Weekend	Total	Screens
1	Traffickers	8/29/12	26.40%	533,243	749,694	497
2	Neighbors	8/22/12	21.20%	425,597	1,914,969	494
3	The Grand Heist	8/8/12	13.20%	289,126	4,595,784	361
4	The Thieves	7/25/12	12.70%	265,435	12,591,574	365
5	Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (us)	8/30/12	10.00%	188,955	237,799	337
6	Step Up 4 (us)	8/15/12	4.40%	94,188	849,187	194
7	R2B: Return to Base	8/1/12	2.30%	51,498	1,172,907	141
8	577 Project	8/8/12	2.30%	48,395	62,534	191
9	Total Recall (us)	8/15/12	1.60%	34,037	1,206,506	153
10	Sammy's Adventures 2 (ge)	8/23/12	1.30%	29,268	1,438,477	88

Business slowed another 20% this weekend as we exit the summer season but nonetheless over 2 million tickets were sold, which was a 33% year-on-year gain. The real story is that almost 80% of admissions were for local films, a 20% increase on 2011.

Traffickers, another new release, took the the top spot with a relatively strong 533,243. The dark thriller has been getting positive reviews and will hope to hang on to some of its audience for a chance to reach 2 million admissions and beyond.

After a great start Neighbors fell a hefty 45% for 425,597. Following 11 days in theaters the pic has almost banked 2 million admissions but at this rate it is not likely to cross 3.

The Grand Heist also fell hard (47%) as it sold another 289,126 tickets. It's about 400,000 away from the 5 million mark, a milestone it should reach in about two weeks.

Meanwhile, The Thieves fell 48% as it amassed another 265,435. It's another half a million admissions shy of The Host's benchmark but should be able to cross it in the next two to three weeks. Much more uncertain is Avatar's overall record which is still just over a million admissions away.

Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter had a tepid opening at no.5 with 188,955 and is unlikely to stay long in theaters.

Further down at no.7, R2B: Return to Base crumbled 72% for 51,498 while the Ha Jung-woo doc 577 Project had a so-so start with 48,395 at no.8.

Next week's major Korean release is Wedding Scandal which may well benefit from the lack of romantic fare these past few months but is not likely to make a huge impact. Also opening will be the final Hollywood blockbuster of the season, The Bourne Legacy, which will vie of first place.


Source: kobis.or.kr


The Korean Box Office Update is a weekly feature which provides detailed analysis of film box office sales over the Friday to Sunday period in Korea. It appears every Sunday night (Korean Standard Time) on Modern Korean Cinema. For other weekly features, take a look at Korean Cinema News and the Weekly Korean Reviews. Reviews and features on Korean film also appear regularly on the site. 

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