by REERA YOO | @reeraboo
editor@charactermedia.com
Ode to My Father, a South Korean postwar melodrama, grossed more than $2 million in ticket sales after screening in North American theaters for just five weeks, said the U.S. branch of CJ Entertainment & Media on Tuesday.
Directed by JK Youn (Haeundae), Ode to My Father depicts the life of an ordinary man named Deok-soo, who makes sacrifices to support his family through the tumultuous period after the Korean War. As a young child, Deok-soo gets separated from his father and youngest sister during the Hungnam Evacuation of 1951, in which thousands of refugees fled to the south by U.S. navy vessels. Deok-soo’s last words to his father was a promise to always protect his family. As he matures, his promise leads him to dangerous jobs, such as mining in the German coal mines and doing engineering work in a war-torn Vietnam.
According to Yonhap, the melodrama is currently the fourth-highest grossing South Korean film in North America after blockbuster Admiral: Roaring Currents; Kim Ki-duk’s quiet drama Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter… and Spring; and monster flick The Host. The film is screening in 18 North American theaters in Los Angeles, New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Toronto, Vancouver and Washington, D.C.
Over the weekend, Ode to My Father also became the second most watched Korean film in Korean box-office history after it surpassed the 13 million viewer mark, according to the Korea Film Council. This milestone comes only two months after the film released domestically mid-December.
While the tearjerker has mesmerized millions of South Korean moviegoers, American viewers may not be as enamored with its overly melodramatic scenes and bullet-point structure, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
You can watch the trailer for Ode to My Father below:
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Featured image courtesy of CJ Entertainment
