The Admiral
The Korean historical block buster featuring the feats of Admiral Soon-shin Lee, has accumulated 8 million views in Korean cinemas alone to today. It has only been 10 days since the release of this epic drama and film fans, critics and historians are all expressing a great deal of praise for the picture.
According to the Korean Film Council, The Admiral has reached 8 million views than any movie that was ever released in Korea. Another film, Thieves which features a story of Korean mobs robbing a casino in Macao reached the same number in around 16 days. The Admiral however achieved this record in only 10 days. “The Admiral” is still holding the number one seat in the Korean box office.
Many critics estimate that the blockbuster might reach 10 million views faster than any other film in history. The Korean Film Council announced that on average around 790,000 peoples watch the movie every day. At this rate, many believe the 10 million view record can be reached by this weekend. In addition, the film may even be crowned as the film that accumulated the highest number of views in Korea. As of now, the film that ever received the most views before it was taken down from the big screen is James Cameron’s Avatar. However this Hollywood picture reached 8 million views in around 25 days after its release. A much slower pace in comparison to The Admiral.
One of the reasons the movie has become so successful was the fim makers’ attention to detail and what really happened. The Admiral is based on the Battle of Myeong-Ryang which took place in 1597 during the war between the Chosun Dynasty (Korea) and unified Japan which lasted from 1592 to 1599. The production designers and the director Han-min Kim explained that all the crew and actors were required to analyze and study the historical documents that tell us about this war, particularly Admiral Lee’s personal journal.
The battle of Myeong-Ryang is a battle that broke the minds of naval and military historians all over the world. According to history, Admiral Lee was believed to have defeated to have defeated the Japanese fleet of 330 ships with only 12 Korean warships. Many historians have tried to understand how this could have been accomplished, and reached the conclusion that it was a combination of Admiral Lee’s knowledge of the seas of Myeong-Ryang, his strategic mind and the naval power of Korean ships at the time. This battle along with so many other maritime victories during the Japanese invasion made Admiral Lee one of the most respected Koreans in history.
Min-sik Choi, a veteran actor was cast to play the role of the iconic general. Choi had starred in many major Korean pictures including Shiri, Old Boy, and New World. The director, Han-min Kim is also known for producing many iconic Korean historical films including Cheon Woo-chi, Gwang-hae, and The Bow. All the other actors and crew are receiving much praise from critics for bringing the hero of the Chosun Dynasty back to life to a certain extent, for many believe that the 21st century lacks a kind of hero who is willing to serve and sacrifice for the nation and people.
Meanwhile, the second highest rated picture in the Korean box office is a comic historical drama called Pirates, followed by How To Train A Dragon 2. Earlier this week, The Admiral was released in cinemas outside of Korea including the CGV Cinema in Korea Town in Los Angeles.
