10 highly anticipated South Korean films of 2017

The King (January 18):Newly released in South Korea, the crime drama The King immediately attracted over 2 million viewers in just one week. Starring Jung Woo Sung and Jo In Sung, and directed by Han Jae Rim (The Face Reader), The King follows a detective from his early days in the profession to his rise to power through underworld maneuvering in 1990s South Korea.

Single Rider (February 22):Lee Byung Hun is currently in excellent form. After completing The Master in his home country and The Magnificent Seven in North America in 2016, he starred in the drama A Single Rider, directed by newcomer Lee Joo Young. In the film, he plays a man embroiled in a major scandal in South Korea who is forced to leave his homeland and seek refuge in Australia, where his wife and children live. A Single Rider garnered attention as it was Warner Bros.' second Korean film after The Age of Shadows (2016).

On the Beach Alone at Night (Spring 2017):In the summer of 2016, the Korean entertainment industry was rocked by the affair between married director Hong Sang Soo and actress Kim Min Hee. The scandal occurred during the filming of "On the Beach Alone at Night," a new film selected for the Golden Bear at this year's Berlin Film Festival. Strangely, the film's plot closely resembled a real-life story, revolving around the thoughts of a woman having an affair, portrayed by Kim Min Hee. Following the film, she and Hong Sang Soo were also scheduled to release "Claire's Camera" and another project in 2017.

A Special Lady (Spring 2017):Known as a "sex bomb," Kim Hye Soo is actually very talented and consistently proves her charm through each of her works. After Coin Locker Girl (2015), the beauty returns with a leading role in a new work by director Lee An Gyu. In A Special Lady, Kim Hye Soo plays a prostitute who gradually rises to the second position in a large gang. While enjoying her new life, she discovers she has a child out of wedlock, which becomes a weakness for her enemies to exploit.

Battleship Island (summer 2017):In the summer of 2015, the crime film The Veteran attracted 13.4 million Korean viewers, giving director Ryoo Seung Wan "sweet revenge" on the producers who had doubted his talent. This year, Ryoo will release Battleship Island, a film set during the time when the Korean Peninsula was under Japanese occupation. On Hashima Island, 400 exploited Korean prisoners try to break through the enemy's encirclement to return to their homeland. The project stars two handsome actors, Song Joong Ki and So Ji Sub, along with Hwang Jung Min, the star of The Veteran.

Okja (summer 2017):Following the blockbuster The Snowpiercer (2013), director Bong Joon Ho returns to the monster movie genre, where he achieved resounding success with The Host a decade ago. Like his most recent project, the talented filmmaker has assembled a multinational cast for Okja, including Ahn Seo Hyun, Tilda Swinton, Jake Gylenhaal, Paul Dano, and others. The film revolves around a young Korean girl's journey to rescue the strange creature Ojka from dark corporations. Okja is expected to be screened at the Cannes Film Festival before being distributed by Netflix.

Taxi Driver (Summer 2017):Jang Hoon is a director with a string of quality films to his name, including Rough Cut (2008), Secret Reunion (2010), and The Front Line (2012). This year, he explores a topic of great interest to the South Korean public: the 1980 Gwangju Massacre. According to the producers, Taxi Driver is a road trip film that follows a taxi driver (Song Kang Ho) trying to help a German reporter (Thomas Kretschmann) reach the scene to report on the bloody event.

Along with the Gods (Part 1) (summer 2017):This is one of the most intriguing film projects currently in South Korea, boasting a budget of $25 million and based on the comic series of the same name. However, Along with the Gods is considered a prequel to the manhwa series, divided into two parts, recounting seven trials that a deceased man must overcome in hell over 49 days. Director Kim Yong Hwa reunites with Ha Jung Woo after the hit film Take Off (2009), and has recruited several other stars such as Cha Tae Hyun, Ju Ji Hoon, and Ma Dong Seok for this blockbuster.

Glass Garden (summer 2017):This film marks Moon Geun Young's second feature film in 10 years, following The Throne (2015). In Shin Su Won's Glass Garden, she plays Jae Yeon, a scientist specializing in artificial blood research, living in seclusion in a glass house. Jae Yeon's life intrigues a writer, who decides to tell her story in his new work.

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