This winter, the film 'Sinui Akdan' (director Kim Hyeong-hyeop), which tells a miracle-like story that bloomed in the coldest place, signaled box office promise as it received a flood of enthusiastic praise from real audience members immediately after being revealed at a preview screening.
At the special preview of 'Sinui Akdan' held on the 18th, young people in their 20s and 30s from Seoul and the metropolitan area and audience members who actually participate in praise teams attended in large numbers and brightened the event. After the screening ended, sobbing could be heard throughout the theater, and audience members were seen lingering in their seats, unable to leave until the ending credits rolled as they savored the afterglow.
'Sinui Akdan' fills the screen with CCM hits familiar to people of all ages, such as "Passing through the wilderness", "Grace", "Taking off the yoke of suffering", "Way Maker", and "Living hope (Lord Jesus, my hope of the mountain)" within the unique premise of a North Korean security officer organizing a fake praise team. Added to this is Lim Young-woong's "Love always runs away" (originally by Lee Moon-sae), which further stirs deep emotion. Audience members said they were able to feel the film's weighty impact multiplied as they sang along to the characters' desperate yet beautiful harmonies.
After watching the film, audience members collectively praised it, saying, "I thought it was just a simple comedy, but it had a weighty emotion and grace that exceeded expectations." A viewer in their 20s said, "When the praise they started as fake became a genuine confession and resonated, I felt chills," adding, "Especially the moment when actor Jeong Jin-woon sings 'Passing through the wilderness,' the tears I had held back burst out," and shared vivid impressions.
One audience member said, "The sound of praise echoing from the land with the least freedom, North Korea, shook my heart," and strongly recommended, "I will come back to see it again with my team at the end of the year."
Also, the final line delivered by the character 'Park Gyo-sun' played by Park Si-Hoo has been cited by many audience members as the best memorable scene. Audience members predicted voluntary word-of-mouth spread, saying, "The afterglow of the final scene lasts so long," "I cried the most among the films I saw this year," and "It is the perfect gift-like film that I can show my nonbelieving friends without discomfort."
The film 'Sinui Akdan' starts from the outrageous premise that a North Korean security officer organizes a fake praise team to earn foreign currency, but ultimately depicts true sacrifice, love and restoration in the process. The story of how the 'fake' becomes 'real' offers universal humanity and emotion beyond religion and is expected to warmly color theaters during the year-end and New Year period.
Meanwhile, with overwhelming praise from real audience members and its rise as a "must-watch movie," 'Sinui Akdan' will open in theaters nationwide on the 31st.
[Photo] Provided by Lotte Entertainment
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