Summer Box Office, the Hot Battle Between the Sea and the Sky

'Hansan' vs 'Emergency Declaration' Virtually a Two-Way Race
Disaster vs Naval Battle Box Office Showdown

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Isul] It is a battle between the sea and the sky.

Two blockbuster films with budgets of 30 billion won each face off within a week. "Hansan: Rising Dragon" (directed by Kim Han-min), opening on the 27th, and "Emergency Declaration" (directed by Han Jae-rim), releasing on August 3rd, bring the sea and sky to the screen.

Theaters, revitalized by the birth of 10 million viewer films after shaking off the dust caused by the pandemic, have entered the peak summer vacation season. Each distributor has scheduled tentpole films. The summer battle was opened by director Choi Dong-hoon's 33 billion won blockbuster "Alienoid." The film, released on the 20th, attracted only about 910,000 viewers by the first weekend.

The summer box office is expected to be essentially a showdown between "Hansan: Rising Dragon" and "Emergency Declaration." "Hansan," opening this week, draws attention as the second film in director Kim Han-min's Admiral Yi Sun-sin trilogy, who previously drew the largest audience of 17.61 million with "The Admiral: Roaring Currents" (2014). Park Hae-il stars as Admiral Yi Sun-sin, depicting the Battle of Hansan, five years before the Battle of Myeongnyang, where Admiral Yi and the Joseon navy unite with desperate strategy and courage to defend Joseon against the advancing Japanese forces.

The highlight of the film is the naval battle that unfolds refreshingly over 51 minutes at sea. The director realized this through pre-visualization work based on his experience with "The Admiral: Roaring Currents." It was completed using Pre-Visualization and Virtual Production technologies. Most of the scenes were shot on an indoor VFX set created in a 3,000-pyeong space at the Pyeongchang skating rink in Gangwon Province.

"Emergency Declaration" opens a week later. It tells the story of a plane that declares an unconditional landing due to an unprecedented aviation terror and the people confronting the disaster. It was screened in the non-competitive section at last year's 74th Cannes Film Festival, receiving high attention. The film features stellar performances by actors Song Kang-ho, Lee Byung-hun, Jeon Do-yeon, as well as Kim Nam-gil and Im Si-wan, solidifying the story.

Director Han Jae-rim, who attracted 9.13 million viewers with "The Face Reader" (2013) and 5.31 million with "The King" (2016), which portrayed the dark side of power, focuses on universal events in special situations and special stories in universal realities through "Emergency Declaration."

"Emergency Declaration" is a film that offers an immersive experience as if you are actually on board an airplane. Its timely subject matter is also appealing. It remains to be seen whether it will follow the summer disaster hit formula.