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The Spy Gone North

The Spy Gone North (Korean: 공작; Hanja: 工作; RR: Gongjak) is a 2018 South Korean spy drama film directed by Yoon Jong-bin. It stars Hwang Jung-min, Lee Sung-min, Cho Jin-woong and Ju Ji-hoon. The film is loosely based on the true story of Park Chae-seo, a former South Korean agent who infiltrated North Korea's nuclear facilities. It was released in theaters on August 8, 2018.

Plot

The story follows a South Korean spy who infiltrates the North to obtain intelligence on the country's nuclear-weapons plans in the mid-1990s only to find his own side is manipulating his country's political elections with the help of the North.

Cast

Hwang Jung-min as Park Seok-young (codename Black Venus)
Lee Sung-min as Ri Myung-woon
Cho Jin-woong as Choi Hak-sung
Ju Ji-hoon as State Security Department Head Jung
Park Sung-woong as Han Chang-joo, South Korean businessman
Joo Hae-eun as North Korean agent
Gi Ju-bong as Kim Jong Il
Kim Hyun as Real estate office owner
Kim So-jin as Han Chang-joo's wife
Park Min-su as Ri Myung-woon's son
Lee Hyori as herself (cameo)

Production

Filming began on January 24, 2017 and concluded on July 25, 2017. Some parts of the film that were set in Beijing and North Korea were filmed in Taiwan.

Release

The film made its world premiere in 2018 Cannes Film Festival. It released theatrically in South Korea on August 8, 2018, with age 12-rating. The film was sold to more than 100 countries, and was released theatrically in North America on August 17, 2018. The Wilson Center's Center for Korean History and Public Policy hosted the film's U.S. East Coast premiere on August 14, 2018.

The Spy Gone North was released on VOD by CJ E&M on September 13, 2018.

Reception

Favorable response

On review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, The Spy Gone North has an approval rating of 100% based on 20 reviews and an average rating of 7.1/10. On Metacritic, the film received average score of 69 out of 100 based on 6 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".

Charles Bramesco of The Guardian rated the film 3 out of 5 and wrote: "Yoon [Jong-bin] executes all the classic double-agent set pieces with finesse, and those enamoured of the genre will appreciate a change of setting."

Maggie Lee of the Variety wrote: "Instead of the usual dose of action and suspense one expects of this genre, watching this dense 140-minute political drama unfold is like fumbling through a long tunnel that’s nonetheless worth it when the ray of light emerges at the end."

Deborah Young of The Hollywood Reporter described the film as "a stylish, blood-pounding thriller of the type Asian cinema is so good at making...For sheer topicality, the film is hard to beat, and to find a full-blown entertainment yarn in Cannes' midnight section that's partially set in newsworthy North Korea is rather astounding."

Gary Goldstein of The LA Times wrote: "Park and Ri’s evolving friendship adds depth and humanity to this timely, ambitious tale which boldly reflects some of the region’s more unsettling aspects. Eerily vivid re-creation of Jong-il’s insular, lockstep-oriented world, plus a stirring score by Cho Young-Wuk, are highlights."

Yoon Min-sik of The Korea Herald wrote: "The scene of South and North Koreans sitting together and conspiring over what to do in order to retain power shows that things are not always so black and white. Heukgeumseong, taught to regard all elements of the hermit kingdom as evil, sees the human side of the North Koreans through his interaction with them, extending his perspective to beyond what is presented to him... The flick looks at the event that occurred more than two decades ago, yet the message is strangely contemporary. The search for what is right and wrong is an eternal question."

Boon Chan of The Straits Times wrote: "Things get really riveting in the last act when larger forces come into play, proving the cynics' case that politics makes for the strangest of bedfellows and the fundamental aim of those in power is to stay in power."

Critical response

James Marsh of the South China Morning Post rated the film 3.5/5 and wrote: "Rather than strive for a James Bond-style spy caper, Yoon explores his characters’ patriotic motivations, and in the process humanises many of the film’s primary antagonists, while exposing endemic corruption in South Korean politics. Thankfully these moments are countered by some expertly executed sequences of high-stakes espionage, balancing the film’s even-handed politics with similarly assured thrills."

Nicola Chan of the SCMP Young Post wrote: "There are, however, some logical flaws in the plot. While Park is a highly skilled double agent, there are a few traps in the movie that even he shouldn’t have been able to avoid. And the ending, while touching, is somewhat cliché."

Box office

The film finished second during its opening week behind Along with the Gods: The Last 49 Days, with US$15.7 million gross over five days of screening (Wednesday to Sunday). On its second weekend, the film finished second behind The Witness, with a 45% drop in gross to US$6.3 million. After finishing second for two consecutive weekends, the film placed third during its third weekend, behind On Your Wedding Day and The Witness. It had a 59% drop in gross, earning US$2.6 million from 317,447 attendance.

On August 28, 2018, the film reached its break-even point with 4.7 million audience members having watched the film. During its fourth weekend, the film had a 74% drop in gross compared to its third weekend, finishing at seventh place with 86,336 attendance. The film stable on seventh place during its fifth weekend.

As of September 24, 2018, the film grossed US$38.3 million from 4,970,004 total attendance.