After a period of lackluster performance, Korean movies are gaining ground again this summer.
Although most blockbusters feature celebrities and are made by award-winning directors, industry insiders say it's not the name value that's selling the tickets.
Lee Jeewon explains.
The number of movie-goers in July jumped more than 21 percent compared to the previous month to 17-and-a-half million.
Korean movies in particular accounted for half of total screenings nationwide last weekend.
That's a rebound from their record low of 7 percent in May.
Korean-style Western movie ''The Good, the Bad, and the Weird'' is the box-office hit with 5.4 million viewers so far.
As for director Kwak Kyungtaek's action flick ''Eye for an Eye,'' more than a million people watched it in its opening week.
''Sunny,'' a movie set during the Vietnam War, attracted more than 1-and-a-half million theater-goers.
[INTERVIEW : Lee Sangyong, Korean film investment team,CJ Entertainment] ''It's true there used to be a tendency to rely on a movie's scale and cast. But the current trend shows what's the most important is the story.''
The domestic industry had suffered lackluster popularity in the months leading up to July due to over-investment and poor production quality.
This professor of film industry studies says now is a good time to turn the tables around.
[INTERVIEW : Seo Insook, Professor,Sangmyung University] ''Economic slowdowns tend to boost the number of movie-goers. I think it's a crucial time for Korean movies.''
In the late 19-90s the Asian financial crisis opened doors for Korean productions to gain favor in the domestic movie industry.
With sluggish economic growth many Koreans are turning to cinema once again for comfort.
Lee Jeewon, Arirang News.
AUG 06, 2008
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Arirang Town
Wednesday, FEB 10, 2010, (KST) 
