“I Love Korean Women” — Film Director Visits Korea Amid Unexpected Box Office Surge

As big-budget commercial films underperform, the rise of independent films is creating a buzz in the Korean film industry. One such success story is The Fall: Director’s Cut, which has experienced an unexpected resurgence at the Korean box office. Originally released in 2006, the film didn’t gain much attention at the time but has found new life after its re-release on December 25, 2024. Seven weeks in, it has surpassed 100,000 cumulative viewers, a rare feat for an arthouse re-release.

The Fall: Director’s Cut is a fantasy adventure film about stuntman Roy (Lee Pace) who tells an imaginative tale of five bandits to a curious young girl named Alexandria (Catinca Untaru) as they travel across breathtaking locations in 24 countries. The film’s visually stunning, CGI-free cinematography has won the hearts of audiences.

When the original version of The Fall was released in Korea in 2008 under the title The Fall: The Door of Fantasia, it attracted only 28,000 viewers. However, the director’s cut has amassed five times that figure, with over 100,000 attendees in just seven weeks. Distributors and theaters had modest expectations, but steady word-of-mouth has turned the film into a box office phenomenon.

Adding to the excitement, director Tarsem Singh recently visited Korea to participate in a Q&A session with audiences, where he expressed gratitude for the warm reception from Korean women. “According to demographic data, many women in Korea have been watching my film. I am incredibly thankful for their love and would say I’ve fallen in love with Korean films and Korean women,” Singh said. His Q&A session sold out, and additional sessions were scheduled due to high demand.

Tarsem Singh is known not only for his films but also for his work on music videos and commercials. He directed Lady Gaga’s 911 music video, which gained attention for its symbolic visuals, as well as the iconic 2004 Pepsi Gladiator commercial featuring Britney Spears, Beyoncé, and Pink. His distinct visual style has clearly carried over into his films, making them unique visual spectacles.

Independent and arthouse films have been gaining more recognition in Korea in recent years, while commercial blockbusters have seen a decline due to a lack of compelling narratives. One such example is Nocturnal (starring Ha Jung-woo and Kim Nam-gil), a crime thriller about a man uncovering the truth behind his brother’s death. Despite opening at No. 1 on its first day, negative reviews have caused its momentum to falter, with only 60,000 cumulative viewers by its third week.

Meanwhile, The Fall: Director’s Cut has steadily climbed the box office rankings. As of February 10, it ranked sixth—up three spots—while Nocturnal slipped to fourth, losing its position to Dark Nuns (starring Song Hye-kyo and Jeon Yeo-been). On February 11, the real-time reservation rate showed The Fall in eighth place and Nocturnal in ninth.

On Naver’s real audience ratings, The Fall: Director’s Cut has earned a score of 8.89 with over 110,000 cumulative viewers, while Broken holds a much lower score of 5.79 despite its larger audience of 170,000.

The recent success of independent films like The Fall and Oscar-nominated The Substance (starring Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley) reflects a shift in audience preferences, as moviegoers seek unique narratives and sensory experiences. Younger audiences, in particular, are drawn to films offering new cinematic adventures, driving the popularity of smaller yet distinctive movies.

Industry insiders attribute this shift to the diversification of audience tastes and the growing demand for innovative storytelling. The rapid spread of word-of-mouth through online platforms and social media has further amplified the success of independent films. This trend is expected to continue, injecting fresh energy into the Korean film industry and encouraging the production and distribution of diverse genres.