Ma Dong-seok and Lee Jun-hyuk's confidence in 'Crime City 3', where they dedicated their lives

The ‘Crime City’ worldview created by Ma Dong-seok returns for the third series. Following the previous film, 'Crime City 3' aims to attract 10 million viewers and is set to become a box office hit. Here, the lives dedicated by Ma Dong-seok and Lee Jun-hyuk will be revealed.

The situation in the theater district in May of last year and the current theater district are similar, although the results are slightly different. This time last year, the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continued and the audience decreased. However, 'Crime City 2' was selected as a support film for the 'Korean Cinema is Alive' and 'Theatre is Alive' campaigns and met with audiences. The result was a huge success. 'Crime City 2' attracted 12.69 million viewers thanks to the effect of revenge consumption, the lifting of the ban on eating in theaters, and word of mouth. It also ranked 13th in box office history.

Coincidentally, the release date of ‘Crime City 3’ is also similar. Currently, the Korean film industry is unable to escape the swamp of stagnation. It failed to capitalize on the onslaught of foreign films and animations such as 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Volume 3', 'Super Mario Bros', 'Suzume's Lockdown', and 'The First Slam Dunk'. Moreover, since 'Negotiation' starring Hwang Jung-min and Hyun Bin, which was released in January of this year, there has not even been a Korean film that exceeded 1 million viewers.

Among the four tentpole films this summer, 'Smuggler' (directed by Ryu Seung-wan) starring Kim Hye-soo and Yeom Jeong-ah and 'The Moon' (directed by Kim Yong-hwa) starring Sol Kyeong-gu and Do Kyung-soo have been confirmed for release. The remaining two works are expected to be 'Concrete Utopia' (directed by Um Tae-hwa) starring Lee Byung-hun, Park Seo-joon and Park Bo-young, and 'Kidnapped' (working title, directed by Kim Seong-hoon) starring Ha Jung-woo and Ju Ji-hoon. 'Crime City 3' is an attractive card that will change the atmosphere of theaters before the tentpole movie is released. Accordingly, the Korean film industry has no choice but to bet on the performance of 'Crime City 3'.

Ma Dong-seok, who planned, produced, and appeared in 'Crime City 3', was also well aware of the current Korean film industry and theater atmosphere. Ma Dong-seok, who described himself as an audience member, said, "It seems like there are fewer people coming to the theater to see movies these days. I feel sorry about that. With the release of our movie, we hope that people can enjoy the movie as fun as before, even if only slightly." “If I can be of help, I am willing to work hard and attract audiences,” he said.

Ma Dong-seok hoped, “I don’t know if the culture of always coming to the theater in groups to watch movies will return to the same extent as before, but I hope that the situation of coming to the theater and watching movies again will improve.” He mentioned the dedication of Lee Jun-hyuk and Aoki Munetaka, who appear as the new two top villains in 'Crime City 3'.

Ma Dong-seok said, “During the filming of the movie, actor Lee Jun-hyuk gave everything he lived, his entire life. I always do the same, but I am grateful that actor Lee Jun-hyuk gave his all. Aoki also gave all his dedication and passion. "I don't enjoy the details themselves. That's because a movie is fun if it's fun. If the viewer isn't having fun, it's not fun. So, it's up to the audience to find enjoyment in the movie."

Director Lee Sang-yong, who took charge of directing once again following the previous film, said, "The reason why 'Crime City 2' did well was because of luck and various other factors. We didn't set the release date expecting it to do well. The coronavirus situation just happened to be good. “It was resolved, and there may have been an influence from the Marvel movie ‘Eternals’ starring Ma Dong-seok and actor Son Seok-gu, the main character ‘Mr. Goo’s Sick’ from the drama ‘My Liberation Journal’.” He said, "A lot of things went well together, and I think it was a movie that the audience needed. I think the exciting action and comedy touched the audience well."

Like the previous film, 'Crime City 3' was rated 15 years and older. The trailer for 'Crime City 3' was deemed unsuitable for viewing by minors. Accordingly, the majority of responses were that this episode would also be judged unsuitable for viewing by young people. Ma Dong-seok emphasized, "There was a smoking character in the trailer, so he almost got 19 years old. We processed this part and released the trailer, but the movie itself came out as if he was 19 years old. From the beginning, we filmed it at the same level as the previous film."

Ma Dong-seok appeared in 120 movies over 20 years. He expressed his love for the 'Crime City' series, saying, "There was trial and error, and I played many roles, but I devoted my whole life to creating the characters and worldview of the 'Crime City' series. I paid so much attention to the point that I had hair loss in circles." revealed. Director Lee Sang-yong also said, "I really felt a lot of pressure while making the work. In fact, while making the prequel, there were many twists and turns, such as being kicked out of Vietnam, the location, due to the aftermath of the coronavirus, but it wasn't as difficult as it was then. It's not just confidence, but confidence. That confidence comes from being a new actor. , which resulted from a greater focus on new action, new story, and new structure,” he said.

Attention is being paid to whether the new 'Crime City 3', which reflects the lives of Ma Dong-seok, Lee Jun-hyuk, and Aoki Munetaka, will succeed at the box office following the previous film, and whether director Lee Sang-yong's confidence will be proven in numbers.

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