Opening D-6 'Crime City 3', Ma Dong-seok's franchise power?

《Kang Minkyung's Insert》
Like an insert scene that enlarges important points in a movie, reporter Kang Min-gyeong of Ten Asia focuses on issues in the film industry. Let's take a closer look at the front and back of the topic from a three-dimensional perspective.

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With only 6 days left until the release of the movie 'Crime City 3' (director Lee Sang-yong), it is already showing signs of a box office hit.

On the 25th, according to the integrated computer network of movie theater tickets of the Film Promotion Committee, as of 3:30 pm, the real-time reservation rate of 'Crime City 3' is 50.9%, and the number of reservation audiences is recording 244,187 people. Through these figures, it can be seen that interest in 'Sin City 3', which is about to be released, is hot. It is because expectations are high for Ma Dong-seok's fist, the signature action of the 'Criminal City' series. There were three movie series released, including 'The General's Son' and 'The Gangster's Wife'. However, there was no case where the 3rd and 4th episodes were filmed at the same time as in 'Criminal City'. 'Sin City 3' is about to be released, and 'Sin City 4' is currently editing.

Even at a glance, it is a number that is different from “The Little Mermaid” (14.2%, 68,191 people), which ranked second in real-time reservation rate. It was followed by 'Fast and Furious: Ride or Die' (11.8%, 56,806 people) and 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3' (9.4%, 45,193 people). What stands out is the number of advance reservations six days before the release of 'Sin City 3'. The previous film, 'Crime City 2', sold over 200,000 copies the day before its release. 'Criminal City 2' surpassed 310,000 pre-orders on the day of its release, ranking 4th in Korean film history.

The new record for Korean film reservations based on the release date of all time is held by 'Along with the Gods - Cause and Effect' (640,000 copies) in 2018. In 2017, 'Battleship Island' (600,000 copies) followed. 'Criminal City 2' recorded the highest number of pre-orders as of the opening day, following 'Parasite' (500,000 copies) in 2019. The number of advance reservations for 'Crime City 3' is expected to continue to increase.

An official said, "Because the previous series did well, I have high expectations for the sequel 'Sin City 3'. Since the 'Sin City' series is a work that has been exposed to the public a lot, I am familiar with it and am more curious about it." "It's a situation where curiosity has increased. This is leading to reservations. Moreover, it is because it is a franchise that has appeared in up to three Korean films."

'Crime City 3' took off the veil through media distribution previews and VIP previews. Amidst the favorable reviews, spoiler-free reviews were also posted on online communities and social media. Accordingly, prospective audiences are looking forward to seeing 'Sin City 3' soon.

Among the Korean films released this year, two have exceeded 1 million viewers. Only 'Negotiation' (directed by Lim Soon-rye) starring Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin and 'Dream' (directed by Lee Byung-hun) starring Park Seo-joon and IU. Starting with 'The First Slam Dunk', Japanese animation and Hollywood blockbusters such as 'Suzume's Lockdown', 'Guardians of the Galaxy Volume 3', and 'Fast and Furious: Ride or Die' dominated the box office.

In a situation where the anxiety of the Korean film industry is growing, 'Criminal City 3' is scheduled to meet the audience. The previous film, 'Crime City 2', was selected as a support work for the campaigns 'Alive Korean Movies' and 'Alive Theater' in May of last year. In addition, it set a new box office record by mobilizing 12.69 million people with the lifting of the ban on eating in the theater and word of mouth. In particular, the box office success of 'Crime City 2' ranked 13th in the Korean box office of all time.

In fact, directors Lee Sang-yong and Ma Dong-seok, who were in charge of directing, could not predict the box office success of 'Crime City 2'. Director Lee Sang-yong said, “In a way, it seems that the audience relieved the stress accumulated by watching the movie as Corona 19 was resolved.” Ma Dong-seok also said, "The box office success of 'Crime City 2' was during the pandemic period, so we couldn't predict it. We are grateful and thankful that it went well. We were also surprised. We did not expect the score to be that high. Thanks to that, we are fortunate to be able to continue as a franchise." said.

'Crime City 3' was pre-sold in 158 countries, including major Asian countries such as Taiwan, Hong Kong and Vietnam, as well as North America, the Middle East, England, Australia and New Zealand, before its release in Korea. The break-even point of 'Sin City 3' is 1.8 million people. Ma Dong-seok said, "The goal is always the break-even point when making a movie. I hoped it would be a little bit higher than the break-even point. I am grateful that I have high expectations this time around, but for now, the goal is the break-even point. I don't know what will happen after that." hoped

'Sin City 3' surpassed the pre-booking volume of its previous film 'Sin City 2' six days before its release. Now, on the opening day, it is cruising toward 310,000 pre-orders. The movie that recorded the highest pre-order this year was 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3' (270,000 copies). I wonder if the pre-booking amount of 'Criminal City 3' will exceed that of 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3' and even break the previous record of 'Criminal City 2'.

Reporter Kang Min-kyung, Ten Asia kkk39@tenasia.co.kr