Attention both inside and outside the film industry is focused on director Na Hong-jin's fourth feature film, "HOPE." Having made a glamorous start with its selection in the competition section of the 79th Cannes Film Festival in May, "HOPE" has become the center of attention following its domestic release.

Although it showed explosive box office momentum, surpassing 1 million viewers in just three days and 2 million in five days of release, extreme polar reactions to the film have emerged since its early days in theaters.

Audiences praising the film were enthusiastic about its construction of Korean-style sci-fi with an unprecedented budget of 60 billion won—the largest in Korean cinema history—and its delivery of speed and spectacle unseen in any previous Korean film. On the other hand, critical audiences expressed deep disappointment over below-expectation CG and an incomplete narrative.

The extreme divide over 'HOPE' is escalating into off-screen debates, heating up further. An excited atmosphere has developed where blind criticism is directed at those praising the film, while those criticizing it have their cinematic standards brought into question.

It remains uncertain whether this debate surrounding the film will serve as a boon or a bane for its box office performance. This is because the ways audiences choose and consume movies have recently shown a shift.

◆ Side Effects of Extreme Reactions... From Judging Taste to Debating Cinematic Standards

The narrative of 'HOPE' is incomplete and unfriendly to viewers. The movie presents the incident from the very beginning and dazes the audience with a fierce chase between the pursuer and the pursued. After about an hour of chaos following the start of the film, a brief lull ensues before delivering another massive climax leading through forests and roads.

Director Na Hong-jin aimed for "a movie where the story is felt through action." 'HOPE' is not a difficult or complex film, but an incomplete and unfriendly one. Because it does not offer a self-contained narrative within the film, viewers fill in the blanks left by the director with interpretation and imagination after watching. A rare sight is unfolding where colorful analyses—perhaps not even intended by the director—emerge, akin to "over-interpreting a dream."

With reviews sharply divided between praise and criticism, 'HOPE' is witnessing a trend where people attack others' feelings and opinions. One's preferences and tastes are being used as a yardstick to judge their discernment and standard. Critics, YouTubers, and celebrities who have left reviews for 'HOPE' are primary targets.

For example, film critic Lee Dong-jin gave the film 4 out of 5 stars after watching 'HOPE,' commenting that it is "daringly dashing through a bizarre mess, with the whole film acting as a giant crescendo." In response, some netizens raised suspicions that he gave a generous score out of personal friendship with director Na Hong-jin or consideration for the stagnant film industry.

As groundless and unnecessary suspicions spread, critic Lee Dong-jin explained the reason for his rating and offered a sharp rebuke, saying, "That HOPE is wonderful is my opinion, and that it is terrible is also your opinion," adding, "An opinion does not become fact just because the majority agrees."

◆ A Boon or a Bane for the Box Office... Realistic Outlook Based on Audience Trends

'HOPE' is known to have invested 60 billion won, the largest production budget in Korean film history. Its investor and distributor, Plus M Entertainment, has shown an extremely sensitive reaction regarding the production cost and break-even point, having never officially disclosed the exact figures. It is extremely rare for a released film, especially a blockbuster, not to reveal its budget and break-even point. This appears to stem from the burden of focused attention from inside and outside the film industry, as well as concerns that focus will be placed solely on box office performance.

'HOPE' was pre-sold to about 200 countries worldwide through the Cannes Film Festival in May. Through this, it is known that the break-even point in audience count was lowered to the 7 million mark. This is because revenue from overseas sales and additional profits depending on contract terms and box office performance in each country can be expected.

Even with overseas pre-sale revenues, the film must meet its targets in the domestic market. It is extremely rare for a film that flops at home to succeed abroad, and domestic market figures also impact overseas promotion and additional sales.

'HOPE' surpassed 1 million viewers in three days and 2 million in five days of release, making it the fastest among films released this year. However, analyzing the trend indicates that optimism regarding the break-even point is not fully guaranteed.

Lee Ha-young, head of Haha Films, who has long analyzed box office data, remarked on HOPE's opening weekend performance (1.5 million viewers): "Given the genre, cast, and season, this is a movie that should draw audiences heavily in its first week, but it is somewhat weaker than expected." He analyzed, "A rebound is needed. A rebound is likely to happen if the drop from Saturday to Sunday is small or if audience numbers increase. However, that is not the case for HOPE. On the contrary, from Friday to Saturday and Saturday to Sunday, the drop has been widening. In particular, the drop from Saturday to Sunday fell by 23%."

He added, "Looking solely at the data, the projected score for HOPE is around 5 million, give or take 300,000. We have no choice but to hope for a reverse trajectory. Marketing support seems needed to back it up."

What makes the current scorecard for 'HOPE' disappointing is that the figures already reflect the second round of 6,000-won movie theater discount coupons distributed by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korean Film Council. 'HOPE' drew 330,000 viewers on its opening day and 1.5 million over its first weekend. Considering the positive impact of the discount coupons, the results were underwhelming. This implies that audiences either have not yet used their coupons or have not focused on 'HOPE.' The validity period for these coupons runs until September 8.

To reach the break-even point, performance in the second weekend is crucial. Next week, 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day' opens, and the following week, 'The Odyssey' joins the competition. Before these competing titles open, 'HOPE' needs to draw at least 4 million viewers by this weekend and early next week.

◆ An Era of Summaries and Overflowing Information... Audiences Become More Cautious

Before COVID-19, 10-million-viewer blockbuster hits were born around 20 days after release. Tentpole films generated massive box office hits by pouring in all distribution power and promotional budgets within two to three weeks of release. Audiences also consumed anticipated movies as quickly as possible.

Nowadays, the trend is for audiences to carefully check movie information and reviews online, through online communities, and by word of mouth before moving slowly. This is also an ongoing change driven by rising ticket prices and the rise of OTT streaming services.

'HOPE' showed its status as a hot topic, with reviews as well as detailed plot summaries and analysis posts flooding YouTube and online communities right from its first week of release. However, the overflow of information can have the side effect of dampening audiences' desire to see the movie with their own eyes. Watching a movie in theaters requires not only money but also time. On top of that, it requires the physical effort of traveling to the cinema.

The runtime of 'HOPE' approaches three hours. Summary videos of around 20 minutes easily found on YouTube condense this noisy controversy, offering a sense of satisfaction as if one had watched the movie without actually having done so.

Rather than stimulating the mindset of "I will watch and judge the movie with my own eyes," the heated early debates surrounding the film are heading toward a pattern where people consume controversies online and make premature judgments about the movie.

Currently, reservation rates by the Korean Film Council stand at 49.8% for 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day,' 25.2% for 'HOPE,' and 11% for 'The Odyssey.' Heading into its second weekend, 'HOPE' finds itself in a situation where it must wage an all-out effort to draw moviegoers.