With growing momentum of Parasite, Memories of Murder will be re-released in North America.
Kwak Shin Ae, CEO of Barunson E&A, mentioned during an interview held at a cafe in Seoul, that NEON, the North American distributor of Parasite, is discussing the reopening of Memories of Murder. NEON is said to have already bought the rights to North American edition of Memories of Murder.
When asked about any specific discussions made on Korean films and filmmakers since Parasite won 4 Academy Awards, Kwak answered, “First of all, many films featuring actor Song Kang Ho have begun to get the spotlights” and added that NEON is pushing for the reopening of Memories of Murder.
“Talk about reopening the movie started even before ‘Parasite’ won the Oscars. I heard it so,” Kwak explained.
She also commented that “There is this list of recommendations going around in social media and media outlets with the title, Watch this if you enjoyed ‘Parasite’.”
Director Bong Joon-ho’s second feature film, Memories of Murder, was released in 2003 in Korea and became a hit with 5.25 million viewers. The story is based on the true story which swept the country in 1980s, the Hwaseong serial murder cold case.
The movie has been introduced at several film festivals and is said to be one of the best work of Director Bong, but it didn’t perform well in North America. About two years after its Korean release, Memories of Murder opened in one North American theater in July 2005 and was screened for just three weeks. When the movie was released, it earned only 15,357 dollars.
Meanwhile, director Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite surprised the world by sweeping four categories, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Screenplay, and Old Foreign Language Film at the 92nd Academy Awards. At the same time, it proved the potential of Korean film to the world. Previously, he won the 72nd Cannes Film Festival for Golden Palm Prize, the 77th Golden Globe Awards for Foreign Language Film Award, the 73rd British Academy Awards for Screenplay Award, and the Foreign Language Film Award.
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