S. Korean sports film draws over 5 million viewers

SEOUL, Aug. 24 (Yonhap) -- Ticket sales for the South Korean ski jumping film
"Take Off (Gukgadaepyo)" topped 5 million over the weekend, becoming the second
most-watched local film among this year's releases, the Korean Film Council said
Monday.

Featuring the country's oft-overlooked national ski jumping team, the film drew
more than 5.2 million viewers as of Sunday, its 26th day of screening, the film
council said.
"Take Off" is the second movie to surpass the 5-million viewer mark among this
year's domestic releases following "Haeundae," and continues to top the local box
office.
"Haeundae," a big-budget disaster film directed by Yoon Je-kyoon, has drawn more
than 10 million viewers, according to its distributor JK Films, becoming the
fifth South Korean movie to reach the milestone.
Part non-fiction, "Take Off" spotlights a hodge-podge ski jumping team assembled
to support a bid by the Korean city of Muju for the Winter Olympics in 1996.
Directed by Kim Yong-hwa, creator of the 2006 box office hit "200 Pound Beauty,"
the film stars actor Ha Jeong-woo, who plays a Korean-American adoptee and former
U.S. junior alpine skier.
South Korean films have been holding up relatively well among a deluge of
Hollywood blockbusters this summer as they venture into genres normally dominated
by U.S. films. South Korean productions saw their worst sales figures in eight
years in 2008, falling by more than 20 percent from the previous year.
hayney@yna.co.kr
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