High Society (2018 film)

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High Society
High Society (2018 film).jpg
Theatrical release poster
Hangul
상류사회
RR Sangnyusahoe
MR Sangnyusahoe
Directed by Byun Hyuk [1]
Written byByun Hyuk
Produced byKim Chul-yong
Starring Park Hae-il
Soo Ae
CinematographyPark Se-seung
Edited byKim Seo-hee
Music byJang Young-kyu
Production
company
Hive Media Corp.
Distributed by Lotte Entertainment (South Korea)
Netflix (International)
Release date
  • August 29, 2018 (2018-08-29)
Running time
119 minutes
CountrySouth Korea
LanguageKorean
Box officeUS$5.6 million [2]

High Society is a 2018 South Korean drama film directed by Byun Hyuk. It stars Park Hae-il and Soo Ae. [3] The film was released in South Korea on August 29, 2018. [4]

Contents

Plot

Tae-jun and Soo-yeon are a married couple who, despite their relatively young age, have achieved high status thanks to their exceptional abilities. Tae-jun is a professor at the Seoul National University, while Soo-yeon is the deputy director of an art gallery.

However, they both harbor a strong ambition to climb even higher. Tae-jun gains national attention after proposing a low-interest citizen's bank as a solution to gentrification and heroically saving an elderly man who attempted self-immolation during a protest. He ends up receiving a nomination from the conservative party. Meanwhile, Soo-yeon, who had been aiming for the director position but was constantly pushed aside by a conglomerate-backed director and junior staff, decides to actively support her husband's bid for parliament in order to gain influence.

But Tae-jun begins an affair with a young female aide who was once his student. Despite their physical intimacy and constant presence together, Soo-yeon knowingly overlooks the affair for the sake of her ambition.

Around the same time, Soo-yeon also rekindles a relationship with her ex-boyfriend, a promising artist, leading to an affair that continues all the way to Paris, where they are filmed having sex on camera. Unfortunately, the footage ends up in the hands of Chief Min, her rival for the director position, threatening Soo-yeon's ambitions. Unlike Tae-jun's affair, hers now risks exposure.

In a desperate move, Soo-yeon seduces the chairman of the conglomerate that owns the gallery, offering herself in exchange for the directorship. The chairman is someone who claims to create "art" by having sex with celebrities on canvas and preserving the imprints.

Meanwhile, Tae-jun, now a conservative party candidate, attempts to secure funding for the citizen bank from corporations. But he later discovers the party is colluding with those very corporations, using the citizen bank merely as a political tool. It is revealed that even the elderly man he rescued had been paid off to stage the incident.

Just before Soo-yeon consummates her deal with the chairman, the current director, his wife, storms in, turning the tables. Soo-yeon then offers the director a compromising video of the chairman in exchange for power, ultimately becoming co-director alongside the chairman's son.

In the end, unable to endure their sordid lives, Soo-yeon and Tae-jun make a bold decision. On the opening day of a new exhibition, Soo-yeon publicly screens her own sex tape as an art piece, delivering a self-critical confession of her desires and exposing the corruption within the gallery. She receives applause from Tae-jun and the audience.

Tae-jun gives up his seat in parliament and hands over evidence of the conservative party's corruption to a prosecutor. The two are shown having liberated themselves from their ambitions and elite trappings. Tae-jun now runs a small-scale citizen bank, while Soo-yeon operates her own independent exhibition space. [5] [6]

Cast

Production

Principal photography began on November 1, 2017. Production ended on January 11, 2018. [12]

Reception

The film was released on August 29, 2018 in South Korea, showing at 867 screens across the country. During its opening day, the film finished second, trailing behind On Your Wedding Day by attracting 131,802 moviegoers with US$775,270 gross. It became the domestic R-rated film with the biggest opening day for 2018. [13] However, the film dropped to third place during the weekend, finishing behind On Your Wedding Day and new release of the week Searching by attracting 291,228 moviegoers with US$2.4 million gross. [14] It suffered a 72.5% gross drop during its second weekend, finished at fourth place with US$643,039 from 85,522 attendance. [15] [16]

As of September 10, 2018, the film attracted 766,031 total admission with US$5.6 million gross. [2]

References

  1. "Film Marks Return of Award Winning Director BYUN Daniel H." Korean Film Biz Zone. 9 November 2017.
  2. 1 2 "High Society (2018)". Korean Film Biz Zone.
  3. "Su Ae, PARK Hae-il, and LEE Jin-wook to Perform Together in High Society". Korean Film Biz Zone. 9 November 2017.
  4. 상류사회. Naver (in Korean). Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  5. "High Society (Korean Movie 2018)". HanCinema . Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  6. "(Movie Review) 'High Society': an intriguing premise ruined by a rushed climax". Yonhap News Agency . 24 August 2018.
  7. 수애·박해일 부부 호흡 맞출까 "'상류사회' 검토中". TV Report (in Korean). 7 September 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  8. 라미란·윤제문, '상류사회' 합류…수애와 호흡. Nate (in Korean). Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  9. "Ra Mi-ran and Yoon Je-moon join "High Society – Movie"". HanCinema . 6 October 2017.
  10. 이진욱, 영화 '상류사회' 출연 확정…수애·박해일과 호흡. Joong-ang Daily (in Korean). 27 October 2017. Retrieved 19 August 2018.
  11. "Sanglyusahoe (2018) / IMDb". IMDb . Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  12. 상류사회. Korean Film Biz Zone (in Korean). Archived from the original on 3 September 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  13. "[SC무비] "올해 19禁 최고 오프닝"…'상류사회' 첫날 13만 안착". Sports Chosun (in Korean). 30 August 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  14. [무비:스코어] '너의 결혼식' 194만 돌파, 1위 수성…'서치'·'상류사회' 2·3위. Xports News (in Korean). 3 September 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  15. 2018년 33주차-36주차 박스오피스. KOFIC (in Korean). Retrieved 11 September 2018.
  16. [영화순위]'서치' 박스오피스 1위…2위 '너의 결혼식'·3위 '업그레이드', '신과함께2' 역대 12위 등극. Kyungin Daily (in Korean). Retrieved 11 September 2018.