9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Korea Herald
Korean comedy 'Hi-Five' hits million-ticket milestone
Superhero farce becomes fifth domestic film to reach benchmark this year, though critical reception remains divided
Korean comedy "Hi-Five" crossed one million admissions on Saturday, marking a milestone for local cinema amid generally favorable but mixed audience reactions.
According to the Korean Film Council's latest box office data, the superhero comedy reached 1,040,358 total admissions as of Saturday evening, hitting the benchmark nine days after its May 30 release. The film ranked second in daily ticket sales with 134,333 admissions, trailing only the Hollywood live-action remake "How to Train Your Dragon," which pulled in 165,319 tickets for the day, following its June 6 debut.
"Hi-Five" maintained its momentum on Sunday, adding another 110,149 admissions to bring its running total to approximately 1.15 million.
The latest effort by director Kang Hyung-cheol ("Scandal Makers," "Sunny") joins four other Korean films that have surpassed the million-ticket mark so far this year. "Yadang: The Snitch" leads the pack with 3,375,154 admissions, followed by "Hitman 2" (2,547,598), "The Match" (2,145,532), and "Dark Nuns" (1,670,559).
Despite reaching the milestone, "Hi-Five" still falls short of the reported 2.9 million ticket sales needed to recoup its 15 billion won ($11 million) production budget.
The film follows five individuals who gain supernatural abilities after each receives an organ transplant from a mysterious donor. When a shadowy cult seeks to steal their powers, the unlikely heroes must join forces to fight back.
Lee Jae-in anchors the ensemble as a super-strong teenager, supported by Ahn Jae-hong's character who wields hurricane-force breath, Ra Mi-ran as a yogurt seller harboring secret abilities, Kim Hee-won as a factory worker blessed with healing powers, and Yoo Ah-in as a hipster wannabe capable of manipulating electronics.
Though overall reception has been generally positive, opinions remain notably split. On local search engine Naver, viewers awarded the film a generous 8.30 out of 10 rating, while users on the film review site Watchapedia gave it a more modest 3.2 out of 5.
'Hi-Five' began its international rollout with a June 6 premiere in Cambodia. It heads to Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Brunei on June 12, followed by releases in Indonesia, Vietnam, Taiwan and East Timor on June 13. Audiences in Hong Kong and Macao can catch the film starting June 19.
