2023.11.23 Now Playing

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2023.11.23 Now Playing

Published: 23 Nov. 2023, 15:40

LIM JEONG-WON
lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr

A scene from ″12.12: The Day″ [PLUS M ENTERTAINMENT]

12.12: The Day (12)
Drama / 141 mins. / Korean / Nov. 22

A gunshot echoes in downtown Seoul on Dec. 12, 1979. It is the start of a coup d’état and military mutiny that would end the short period of democratization after the former president was assassinated.

Set around the real events of that day, when former president Chun Doo Hwan ordered the arrest of General Jeong Seung-hwa without authorization from the acting President Choi Kyu-hah, "12.12: The Day" takes the audience through nine hours of the historic day that changed Korea's history forever.

Hwang Jung-min plays Chun Doo-kwang, a military leader who overthrows the Fourth Republic of Korea to establish a de facto dictatorship. Jung Woo-sung plays Lee Tae-shin, the Commander of the Army Capital Security Command who faces off against Hwang’s character in a game of military strategy.

Lee Sung-min, Park Hae-joon and Kim Sung-kyun play supporting roles in “12.12: The Day” alongside Hwang and Jung. The film is directed by Kim Sung-su, who is known for having helmed films such as “Beat” (1997), “Musa” (2001) and “Asura: The City of Madness” (2016).

A scene from ″Single in Seoul″ [LOTTE ENTERTAINMENT]

Single in Seoul (12)
Melodrama, romance / 103 mins. / Korean / Nov. 29

Is single life better than being in a relationship with someone, since it is more liberating and comes with no baggage? One man believed so, but then he met a woman who couldn’t disagree more.

Yeong-ho, played by Lee Dong-wook, is a star lecturer and influencer who seems to have it all — except love, which he professes that he does not need. Yeong-ho is asked to write an essay on the single life for a publishing company, and meets Hyeon-jin, played by Lim Soo-jung, who works at the company. The two are an unlikely match, but they slowly develop feelings for each other and find love among the backdrop of the city of Seoul.

Esom and Lee Sang-yi play supporting roles in “Single in Seoul.” Directed by Park Beom-su, the film shows some of the most famous spots of Seoul in visually stunning scenes, such as Gyeongbok Palace and the Jamsu Bridge.

A scene from ″The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes″ [NOORI PICTURES]

The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes (15)
Action, sci-fi / 157 mins. / English / Nov. 15

A prequel to the massive hit "Hunger Games" franchise, based on the novel of the same name, “The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes” focuses on the younger days of Coriolanus Snow, the antagonist of the main series who is the dictator of the Panem nation.

Set decades before Snow becomes the president of Panem, the film follows him as he struggles to uphold the reputation of his family, who were once prominent members of the Capitol society but have since fallen on hard times. Snow is assigned to mentor Lucy Gray Baird from District 12 for the upcoming annual Hunger Games, and forms a close bond with her as they navigate the games.

Tom Blyth and Rachel Zegler take on the leads as Snow and Lucy, respectively, while Viola Davis, Peter Dinklage, Jason Schwartzman and Hunter Schafer play supporting roles. Francis Lawrence, known for directing films such as “Constantine” (2005) and “I Am Legend” (2007) before directing three of the four Hunger Games main films, returns as director for the prequel.

A scene from ″Five Nights at Freddy's″ [UNIVERSAL PICTURES]

Five Nights at Freddy’s (12)
Horror / 109 mins. / English / Nov. 15

Animal robots come to life every night at a haunted pizzeria. Can a security guard, desperate to make this job work, fight off the predatory haunted robots and make it through five nights?

Mike Schmidt is fired after he gets into an altercation with a customer while working as a mall security guard and must find another job before his younger sister Abby is taken from him by social services. He desperately takes on a job at a local nearly-abandoned pizzeria, which he later finds out is the place where five children were murdered in the 1980s. Mike must face the strange events that take place at Freddy’s and survive five nights in order to earn his due as a security guard.

Josh Hutcherson plays the leading role of Mike, while Piper Rubio, Elizabeth Lail, Mary Stuart Masterson and Matthew Lillard play supporting roles. “Five Nights at Freddy’s” is a Blumhouse Productions work, the production company behind hit horror films such as “Paranormal Activity” (2007-21), “Insidious” (2010-23), “The Purge” (2013-21), “Oculus” (2013) and “Get Out” (2017).

BY LIM JEONG-WON [lim.jeongwon@joongang.co.kr]