KBO: A Werewolf Boy Chews Up the Competition (11/09-11/11, 2012)

A Werewolf Boy Chews Up the Competition

	Title	Release Date	Market Share	Weekend	Total	Screens
1	A Werewolf Boy	10/31/12	51.70%	1,333,425	3,603,599	855
2	Confession of Murder	11/8/12	23.80%	567,631	725,877	548
3	Skyfall (us/uk)	10/26/12	8.90%	222,312	2,119,922	350
4	Masquerade	9/13/12	6.90%	174,674	11,734,840	317
5	Upside Down (us)	11/8/12	3.70%	93,968	126,282	308
6	Now Is Good (uk)	11/8/12	1.10%	26,495	34,742	142
7	Jungle Emperor Leo (jp)	11/8/12	0.90%	25,189	25,725	159
8	Perfect Number	10/18/12	0.90%	22,622	1,534,523	192
9	Argo (us)	10/31/12	0.60%	14,519	128,393	121
10	Brave (us)	9/27/12	0.40%	9,711	1,222,736	58

Business took a big leap this weekend, once again bucking the trend for this time of year, as over 2.5 million tickets were over the frame, a jump of over 1 million compared with last year's comparable weekend. Perhaps even more impressive was the performance of local films which collectively accounted for about 85% of all tickets sold, a huge jump over 2011's 55%.

Leading the chart in its sophomore frame was A Werewolf Boy which, after an enormous debut, soared over 30% to record an enormous 1,333,425 admissions. That, on top of its big weekday figures, amount to a running total which has already crossed 3.5 million. The 5 million milestone can't be far off it seems and it will be interesting to see how far this pic, which is in some ways reminiscent of Twilight, will do in the coming weeks.

The new Showbox thriller Confession of Murder opened this weekend with a decent 567,631 but was largely out-shadowed by its powerful CJ compatriot. However, word on the film has been quite strong so it could hold well over the coming weeks, though historically there is rarely space for more than one hit film at a time at the Korean box office.

Skyfall, in its third outing, crossed the 2 million mark as it scored another 222,312 admissions but it lost 50% of its business in the process and will likely quickly makes its exit as fresher fare finds its way into theaters.

Masquerade slowed 35% for 174,674 as is slowly nears the end of its run, though it will most likely cross the 12 million mark before long. It is also a day away from overtaking Taegukgi (2004) to become the 4th best performing Korean film of all time.

Meanwhile, Hollywood's sci-fi romance Upside Down stumbled out the gate in 5th place as it recorded an underwhelming 93,968 admissions.

Next week's big opening is the final chapter in the Twilight franchise but it is unlikely to take top spot unless A Werewolf Boy takes a huge fall.

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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