4 weeks after its preliminary launch, South Korean horror movie “Exhuma” remains to be burning via the nation’s field workplace. “Pamyo,” because it’s recognized in Korea (which immediately interprets to “exhumation for relocation or cremation”), has resonated in a serious method with audiences who’ve proven up in droves to see the story of a shaman named Hwa-rim (Kim Go-eun) and the wandering spirits she takes on with Bong-gil (Lee Do-hyun), her protégé. This week: it expands in the USA.
Only one week into its launch, “Exhuma” turned the highest-grossing Korean movie of 2024 to date, knocking the Timothée Chalamet-starring “Wonka” off the highest spot following its delayed launch there. Chalamet’s different huge movie of the second, “Dune: Half Two,” positioned second in Korea for 3 successive weekends within the wake of “Exhuma” too.
That signifies that, almost a month in, “Exhuma” has made $67.8 million with gross sales of 9.3 million tickets, crossing the 9 million admissions mark 4 days sooner than final yr’s most-viewed Korean film, a historic drama titled “12.12: The Day.” That makes “Exhuma” essentially the most profitable Korean occult horror movie by far, and likewise locations it among the many prime 25 greatest field workplace hits the nation has ever seen.
It gained’t be lengthy till “Exhuma” passes the ten million — and possibly even 11 million — mark in South Korea, which implies at this charge, director Jang Jae-hyun’s third function is on observe to overhaul not only one, however probably three legendary Bong Joon Ho hits: “Snowpiercer,” “Parasite,” and “The Host,” respectively.
Weirder issues have occurred, and to be honest, “Exhuma” itself is fairly bizarre, too, with a few of its supernatural shenanigans, however how did we get right here within the first place? What’s it about “Exhuma,” particularly, that’s dug so deep into the nation’s collective consciousness?
It’s price noting that Jang isn’t fairly a famend director in the identical method that director Bong is, though that’s set to now change following the success of “Exhuma.” His debut function, 2015’s “The Clergymen,” carried out properly with over 5 million ticket gross sales, touchdown it a spot within the prime 75 highest-grossing Korean movies of all time. However his follow-up, “Svaha: The Sixth Finger,” didn’t attain those self same heights (though it was nonetheless a primary hit domestically in 2019).
Each movies dabble within the occult, and each additionally star huge names similar to “Parasite” star Park So-dam and Emmy-winning “Squid Sport” lead Lee Jung-jae. The identical can be true of “Exhuma,” which incorporates Choi Min-sik, the internationally acclaimed star of “Oldboy,” who has continued to attract in huge audiences throughout the twenty years that adopted, most notably in South Korea’s highest-grossing movie ever, 2014’s “The Admiral: Roaring Currents.” His feng shui grasp is joined by “Little Girls” star Kim Go-eun, whose star could be very a lot on the rise, and Lee Do-hyun, whose current run of TV hits in “Candy House,” “The Glory,” and “The Good Unhealthy Mom” has led him right here to his first huge function position.
The celebs have fairly actually aligned for this movie, however that alone doesn’t clarify the already enduring success of “Exhuma.”
Homegrown horror movies like “Practice to Busan” and “A Story of Two Sisters” have lengthy resonated with Korean audiences, and that’s very true of occult fare together with Na Hong-jin’s “The Wailing” and Kim Seong-sik’s current hit “Dr. Cheon and the Misplaced Talisman” — to not point out Jang’s personal earlier movies, too. In a rustic by which numerous religions and traditions co-exist, together with shamanism, Buddhism, and Christianity, there’s one thing notably fascinating about the best way these totally different faiths intersect as we speak in trendy Korean society.
“Exhuma” faucets into this very particularly Korean tackle spirituality with its story of a shaman and her group working to guard the infant of a rich Korean American household from a generational curse. Kim Go-eun’s eerie exhumation rituals contain every kind of loud, tumultuous prayers and singing that are charming, certain, but it surely’s the eye to element in smaller moments that actually assist floor the exorcisms that native Korean audiences know and acknowledge — like when the feng shiu specialist tastes the soil to find out the land’s high quality or when the undertaker removes gold ornaments from an open coffin.
Within the wake of the success of “Exhuma,” The Korea Occasions even revealed an article about these burial customs and why the “myoji” (or grave tablets) with which the deceased are buried stay so essential, each as a sacred tribute to the departed and likewise as a useful historic document of life in earlier eras.
Horror is amplified tenfold when the world it’s set in feels extra actual, so by digging into these Korean-specific historic influences (together with an rising anti-Japanese motif), “Exhuma” channels plausible horrors to floor the story’s weirder facets with scary precision. “Exhuma” isn’t fully distinctive in that strategy, however few movies of current years have managed this so successfully, and with a lot expertise each in entrance of and behind the digicam in addition. But that also doesn’t fairly account for the movie’s success past South Korea.
Throughout the previous month, “Exhuma” has already turn into the highest-grossing Korean movie of all time in numerous Asian territories, together with Vietnam and Indonesia, smashing data with ease. Following these profitable runs overseas, success in North America appears doubtless too. After grossing $65,000 throughout simply three Los Angeles space screens up to now week, it appears “Exhuma” has the potential to turn into America’s subsequent huge Asian crossover hit with the movie’s expanded launch this week.
Admittedly, the worldwide evaluations revealed to date haven’t been fairly as constructive as you may count on, averaging out at 71 % at present on Rotten Tomatoes. However that’s simply from seven evaluations to date, and 89 % of consumer scores are constructive with a present common of 4.5 out of 5.
It’s the constructive word-of-mouth that can assist “Exhuma” extra in the long term anyway, and that’s very true of style fare like this which frequently has a greater shot at translating to worldwide success. Horror tropes are common to a level — everybody will get scared — and the visible side will help entice informal cinema-goers extra proof against subtitled cinema. South Korean movies, particularly, have a powerful popularity for horror, after which there’s additionally the truth that scary films, on the whole, proceed to be extra dependable viewers attracts — to not point out moneymakers — post-COVID. Suppose “5 Nights at Freddy’s,” “Scream VI,” and “M3GAN,” simply to call a number of from final yr.
It’s not simply worldwide horror that fares properly on the North American field workplace nowadays both. Final yr alone, Japan’s “The Boy and the Heron” and “Godzilla Minus One” grossed $56 million and $46 million domestically even earlier than they each gained Oscars this March. Indian crossover hits like “RRR” and “Pathaan” are making an affect, too, signaling a newfound openness to international language cinema within the West.
Whether or not that’s because of the improved accessibility of those movies by way of streaming or whether or not it’s only a pure results of IP blockbuster fatigue, this all signifies that “Exhuma” has an actual shot at crossing over huge time, constructing upon its record-breaking run in Asia and Korea, particularly. It doesn’t damage that this crossover attraction is baked into the movie itself — “Exhuma” really begins with Hwa-rim and Bong-gil flying to L.A. — so don’t be shocked if Jang Jae-hyun’s smash hit wanders abroad like a very decided spirit and begins burning its method via the American field workplace.
A Effectively Go USA launch, “Exhuma” expands its restricted launch this week.
