[Weekend Box Office] Brad Pitt’s ‘Heart of the Beast’ Takes No. 1; Alaskan Survival Thriller Draws 20,000

Special Forces veteran fights to survive after being stranded in the Alaskan wilderness

The film ‘Heart of the Beast,’ starring Hollywood actor Brad Pitt, took the lead in the weekend box-office race. According to data from the Korean Film Council’s integrated ticketing network on the 30th, ‘Heart of the Beast,’ directed by David Ayer, drew about 21,000 moviegoers the previous day, claiming the No. 1 spot at the box office with an 18.2% share of revenue.

Released on the 28th, the film vividly depicts the desperate fight for survival waged by James (played by Brad Pitt), a former Special Forces soldier stranded in the Alaskan wilderness after a plane crash, and Odin, his military dog, as they battle extreme conditions.

Japanese animation holds strong at the box office, surpassing 2.36 million admissions

The Japanese animated film ‘Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island,’ backed by a devoted fan base, took second place at the domestic box office. It drew about 19,000 moviegoers the previous day, with an 18.0% share, putting it just behind the leader. Since opening on the 30th of last month, it has recorded about 2.362 million admissions, extending its long-running box-office success.

A 40-day comedy of confinement and the latest advance ticket sales

Director Lee Yong-jae’s new film ‘The Secret of the CSAT,’ which opened on the 28th, drew about 10,000 moviegoers, or a 7.9% share, to land in third place. The comedy follows the chaotic misadventures of examiners tasked with writing questions for the College Scholastic Ability Test while completely cut off from the outside world for 40 days. Lee Sunbin plays Maeng Bo-ram, a Korean-language teacher who joins the group due to an administrative error, while You Chea Myung plays Moon Ju-yeol, head of the Korean-language question-setting committee, adding to the film’s polish.

Heo Jin-ho’s ‘Assassins’ drew about 7,000 moviegoers, a 6.4% share, to rank fourth. Its cumulative admissions have reached about 3.406 million.

Meanwhile, as of 9 a.m. that day, ‘Chiikawa the Movie: The Secret of Mermaid Island’ held firmly at No. 1 in real-time advance ticket sales, with 20.1% and about 54,000 tickets sold. The confined-space psychological drama ‘Final Interview,’ which is set to open on the 4th of next month, ranked second with 12.2%, or about 32,000 tickets, followed by ‘Heart of the Beast’ at 11.2%, or about 30,000 tickets. ‘The Secret of the CSAT’ was in fourth place, with 7.8% of advance sales, or about 21,000 tickets.