Korea’s ‘Spy’ uses laughs to land major opening

Almost half of the moviegoers in Korea over the weekend chose to watch the new Korean comedy “The Spy,” according to numbers released by the Korean Film Council.

“Spy” has pulled in more than 7.2 billion won ($6.6 million) since its Thursday opening, accounting for 44.8 percent of all movie admissions over the weekend. In just four days, it slightly topped 1 million admissions.

The action-comedy, which features veteran actors Sol Kyung-gu and actress Moon So-ri, along with Korean-American star Daniel Henney, provided a welcome change of pace after a summer of dark thrillers and serious stories.

“The Spy” was produced by Yoon Je-gyun, who directed Sol Kyung-gu in the 2009 smash hit “Haeundae,” which topped 11 million admissions.

The Hollywood film “Now You See Me” fell to second place with 14.1 percent of ticket sales.

“Elysium” fell two spots to fourth, while the animated film “Despicable Me 2” rose to fifth, despite not officially opening until Thursday.

Hayao Miyazaki’s “The Wind Rises” opened weakly in sixth, with just 80,000 admissions from Thursday to Sunday.

Director Kim Ki-duk’s extremely controversial movie “Moebius,” finally opened in Korea after much cutting, finishing in 10th with 22,000 admissions.

BY LEE SUN-MIN [summerlee@joongang.co.kr]