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'Roaring Currents' Most Successful Korean Film of All Time

"The Admiral: Roaring Currents" became the most successful film in Korean history on Saturday.

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Until that day the period flick had been seen by 13.99 million people, surpassing the previous record of 13.62 million set for Hollywood blockbuster "Avatar" in 2009. By Sunday morning, the Korean film had surpassed the 14-million mark.

"The Admiral: Roaring Currents" managed the record in just 18 days since the release.

As of Saturday, it had grossed W109.7 billion (US$1=W1,022), the first Korean film ever to break the W100 billion mark.

The pace of "The Admiral: Roaring Currents" is twice faster than "Avatar" and "The Host", which had been the top hits so far. "Avatar" had attracted 6.22 million moviegoers and "The Host" 7.74 million on their 18th day.

"The Admiral: Roaring Currents" owes much of its success to middle-aged and senior citizens, while previous hits were mostly led by young people.

According to a ticket booking site MaxMovie, 34.5 percent of viewers were in their 40s.

The Chosun Ilbo and MaxMovie polled 3,183 people who booked tickets for "The Admiral: Roaring Currents" last Tuesday and Wednesday, and 30.9 percent said they chose the film because the movie is about naval hero Admiral Yi Sun-shin.

Younger people said their faith in stars Choi Min-sik and Ryu Seung-ryong was the biggest factor in their decision.

The fact that the film was watched by many families also helped accelerate the record-breaking pace. Park Hye-eun at MaxMovie said, "Analysis shows that this film has been watched by almost equal numbers of men and women, and that it is most watched by those in their 40s. This is typical for a film that is popular among families".

In the survey, 56.2 percent said they watched it with a family member. Many people in their forties seem to have chosen it for both educational and entertainment purposes, with 25.9 percent saying they watched it with their children.

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