Sea Fog Explained

Sea Fog
Director:Shim Sung-bo
Music:Jung Jae-il
Cinematography:Hong Kyung-pyo
Distributor:Next Entertainment World
Runtime:110 minutes
Country:South Korea
Language:Korean
Gross:[1]
Native Name:
Hangul:해무
Hanja:海霧
Rr:Haemu

Sea Fog (; Haemoo) is a 2014 South Korean crime thriller film directed by Shim Sung-bo. The film is adapted from the 2007 stage play Haemoo,[2] which in turn was based on the true story of 25 Korean-Chinese illegal immigrants who suffocated to death in the storage tank of the fishing vessel Taechangho; their bodies were dumped by the ship's crew into the sea southwest of Yeosu on October 7, 2001.[3] [4]

It was selected as the South Korean entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 87th Academy Awards and the 72nd Golden Globe Awards, but was not nominated.[5] [6] [7]

Plot

The 69-ton fishing vessel Jeonjinho fails to catch as much fish as its crew had hoped. To make more money, the crew decides to smuggle thirty illegal immigrants into Korea. But things don't go according to plan when the Jeonjinho encounters heavy fog, rain and waves on its return journey, while also being chased by a ship from the South Korean Maritime Police. On orders from the captain, several crew members hide the illegal immigrants inside the fishing tank, where they are in danger of suffocating to death. Amid the chaos, the youngest crew member Dong-sik tries to protect a young female migrant with whom he'd fallen in love.[8]

Cast

Production

Sea Fog is the first feature film directed by Shim Sung-bo, who co-wrote the screenplay of Memories of Murder with director Bong Joon-ho. Bong is this film's producer.[9]

Kim Yoon-seok was first cast in the role of the ship's captain in June 2013. Song Joong-ki was originally offered to star opposite Kim,[10] but had to turn down the role when he received his enlistment papers for mandatory military service. K-pop singer and actor Park Yoochun was cast instead in August 2013, in his big screen debut.[11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] Filming began on October 6, 2013, with locations in Masan, Goyang, Busan and Ulsan,[17] and ended on March 6, 2014.

Budgeted at,[18] the film was pitched for pre-sales at the American Film Market in November 2013.[19] [20] [21] The first official press conference was held on July 1, 2014.[22] [23] [24] [25]

Box office

Sea Fog was released in South Korea on August 13, 2014. It reached 1,084,375 admissions after one week.[26]

Critical reception

The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 77% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 13 reviews, with an average rating of 6.17/10.[27] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 61 out of 100 based on 6 critic reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews".[28] The Hollywood Reporter described the film as "A possible riveting nightmare fogged up by concessions to blockbuster conventions."[29] It praised Hong Kyung-pyo's cinematography and Lee Ha-joon's production design as "effective in highlighting the differences between the lands of vast, cold port and the unforgiving environments of the sea and cramped insides of the fishing boat," but criticized director Shim Sung-bo's lack of subtlety and reflection, "with Haemoo subscribing to many of the conventions of both disaster epics and revenge drama, and the over-dependence of a central seaborne romance."[29]

Variety wrote, "Turning a real-life human trafficking tragedy into a comment on social inequality and the cost of survival, Haemoo dramatizes a stark nautical ordeal fraught with tension. Produced and co-written by internationally recognized Korean auteur Bong Joon-ho (Snowpiercer, The Host) this directing debut by helmer-scribe Shim Sung-bo echoes Bong's trademark cynical vision of human nature, but the characters lack dimensionality and psychological depth."[30]

International release

Sea Fog made its international premiere at the 2014 Toronto International Film Festival.[31] [32] It was also invited to the following:

The film's rights were also pre-sold at the Cannes Film Market to Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Japan and France. Its Japanese release was scheduled for early 2015 while Taiwan and Singapore released the movie at the end of 2014.

Awards and nominations

YearAwardCategoryRecipientResult
2014Golden Orchid for Best Narrative FeatureSea Fog
Best New Actor Park Yoochun
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Best New DirectorShim Sung-bo
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best CinematographyHong Kyung-pyo
Best LightingKim Chang-ho
15th Busan Film Critics AwardsBest New DirectorShim Sung-bo
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Best New DirectorShim Sung-bo
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best ScreenplayShim Sung-bo, Bong Joon-ho
Best CinematographyHong Kyung-pyo
Best LightingKim Chang-ho
Best Art DirectionLee Ha-jun
Popular Star AwardPark Yoochun
Best CinematographyHong Kyung-pyo
2015Best New ActorPark Yoochun
10th Max Movie AwardsBest ActorPark Yoochun
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best TrailerSea Fog
Best PosterSea Fog
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Technical Award
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best ScreenplayShim Sung-bo, Bong Joon-ho
Best Supporting ActressHan Ye-ri
Best New ActorPark Yoochun
Best CinematographyHong Kyung-pyo
Best Art DirectionLee Ha-jun

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Haemoo (Sea Fog). Box Office Mojo. January 23, 2015.
  2. Web site: ko:해무. http://www.playdb.co.kr/playdb/PlaydbDetail.asp?sReqPlayNo=1320. PlayDB. Korean. July 1, 2014.
  3. Web site: Gluck. Caroline. S Korea says sorry over dumped corpses. BBC News. August 19, 2013. October 10, 2001.
  4. Web site: Jung. Seung-ho. Crew Members Closed the Exit of Net Storage. The Dong-a Ilbo. August 19, 2013. October 10, 2001.
  5. Web site: Frater. Patrick. Korea Sets Sea Fog on Foreign-Language Oscar Course. September 22, 2014. September 22, 2014. Variety.
  6. Web site: Ford. Rebecca. Oscar Nominations 2015: The Complete List. The Hollywood Reporter. January 23, 2015. January 14, 2015.
  7. Web site: Foreign Language Films Compete For Golden Globe. December 2, 2014. Golden Globe Award. Serge. Rakhlin.
  8. Web site: Ahn. Sung-mi. Herald Review: Under the ocean, ugliest side of human desire. The Korea Herald. August 19, 2014. August 17, 2014.
  9. Web site: Conran. Pierce. Bong Joon-ho to Set Sail as Producer with SEA FOG, Song Joong-ki in Talks to Star. Twitch Film. August 19, 2013. May 29, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131007235547/http://twitchfilm.com/2013/05/producer-bong-joon-ho-to-set-sail-with-sea-fog-song-joong-ki-in-talks-to-star.html. October 7, 2013.
  10. Web site: Conran. Pierce. Kim Yun-seok Climbs Aboard Bong Joon-ho Produced SEA FOG. Twitch Film. August 19, 2013. June 14, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20130819195557/http://twitchfilm.com/2013/06/kim-yun-seok-climbs-aboard-bong-joon-ho-produced-sea-fog.html. August 19, 2013.
  11. Web site: Kang. Jung-yeon. JYJ Yuchun Confirms Big Screen Debut. TenAsia. August 20, 2013. August 20, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20140714204646/http://www.tenasia.com/jyj-yuchun-confirms-big-screen-debut/. July 14, 2014.
  12. Web site: Ha. Ji-won. JYJ's Park Yoo-chun talks about love-making scene in Sea Fog. The Korea Herald. July 29, 2014. July 29, 2014.
  13. Web site: Lee. So-dam. Interview: JYJ Park Yoo Chun Makes Another Leap Through Film Sea Fog. enewsWorld. August 4, 2014. August 3, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303221100/http://mwave.interest.me/enewsworld/en/article/72262/interview-jyj-parkyoochun-talks-about-acting-in-sea-fog. March 3, 2016. dead.
  14. Web site: Lim. Ju-ri. JYJ's Park makes big-screen debut. Korea JoongAng Daily. August 8, 2014. August 7, 2014.
  15. Web site: Lee. Ji-yeong. K-wave Actor PARK Yoo-chun: Look How He Starts Up. Korean Cinema Today. September 20, 2014. September 3, 2014.
  16. Web site: Choi. Song-hee. Interview: Sea Fog's Park Yoo Chun, Actor Beyond Expectations. BNTNews. September 26, 2014. September 3, 2014.
  17. Web site: Tae. Sang-joon. SEA FOG Goes into Production. Korean Film Council. October 15, 2013. October 8, 2013.
  18. Web site: Frater. Patrick. Berlin: Finecut Adds Night Flight, Sells Sea Fog. Variety. February 7, 2014. February 7, 2014.
  19. Web site: Kim. Nemo. AFM: Bong Joon-ho Backs Shim's Shipwreck Tale Haemoo. Variety. October 31, 2013. October 30, 2013.
  20. Web site: Cremin. Stephen. Finecut takes Sea Fog and Obsessed for AFM. Film Business Asia. January 19, 2014. October 30, 2013. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20131116043939/http://www.filmbiz.asia/news/finecut-takes-sea-fog-and-obsessed-for-afm. November 16, 2013.
  21. Web site: Tae. Sang-joon. Bong Joon Ho-Produced SEA FOG to Open in August. Korean Film Council. July 1, 2014. June 2, 2014.
  22. Web site: An. So-hyoun. JYJ Park Yoo Chun Shares on Filming His First Movie Sea Fog. enewsWorld. July 1, 2014. July 1, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20160304055106/http://mwave.interest.me/enewsworld/en/article/69656/parkyoochun-is-nervous-about-his-first-movie-sea-fog. March 4, 2016. dead.
  23. Web site: An. So-hyoun. Kim Yoon Suk Says JYJ Park Yoo Chun Will Have Long Acting Career. enewsWorld. July 1, 2014. July 1, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20160303220119/http://mwave.interest.me/enewsworld/en/article/69667/kimyoonsuk-praises-parkyoochun. March 3, 2016. dead.
  24. Web site: Kim. Min-jin. Director praises Park Yoo-chun over acting in Sea Fog. The Korea Herald. July 3, 2014. July 2, 2014.
  25. Web site: Sunwoo. Carla. Sea-themed movies set to make their maiden voyages. Korea JoongAng Daily. July 4, 2014. July 3, 2014.
  26. Web site: Kim. Min-jin. Actors of Sea Fog celebrate surpassing 1m viewers. The Korea Herald. September 3, 2014. August 20, 2014.
  27. Web site: Sea Fog (Haemoo) (2015) . . . May 25, 2020.
  28. Web site: Sea Fog Reviews . . . May 25, 2020.
  29. Web site: Tsui. Clarence. Haemoo: Toronto Review. The Hollywood Reporter. September 6, 2014. January 23, 2015.
  30. Web site: Toronto Film Review: Haemoo. Variety. September 10, 2014. January 23, 2015. Lee. Maggie.
  31. Web site: Conran. Pierce. SEA FOG Lands Gala Spot in Toronto. Korean Film Council. July 25, 2014. July 23, 2014.
  32. Web site: Sea Fog Invited to Toronto Film Festival. The Chosun Ilbo. July 25, 2014. July 24, 2014.