The Pirates (2014 film)

The Pirates (Korean해적: 바다로 간 산적; lit. "Pirates: Bandits Going to the Sea") is a 2014 South Korean period adventure film starring Son Ye-jin and Kim Nam-gil.[2][3]

The Pirates
Hangul
Hanja
海賊: 바다로 간 山賊
Revised RomanizationHaejeok: Badaro Gan Sanjeok
Directed byLee Seok-hoon
Written byChun Sung-il
Choi Yi-young
Produced byIm Young-ho
Chun Sung-il
StarringSon Ye-jin
Kim Nam-gil
CinematographyKim Young-ho
Edited byLee Jin
Music byHwang Sang-jun
Distributed byLotte Entertainment
Release date
  • August 6, 2014 (2014-08-06)
Running time
130 minutes
CountrySouth Korea
LanguageKorean
BudgetUS$13 million
Box officeUS$64.41 million[1]

A standalone sequel, titled The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure, was released in theaters on January 26, 2022.

Plot

edit

On the eve of the founding of the Joseon Dynasty, a whale swallows the Ming Emperor's Seal of State being brought to Joseon by envoys from China. With a big reward on whoever brings back the royal seal, mountain bandits led by Jang Sa-jung go out to sea to hunt down the whale. But he soon clashes with Yeo-wol, a female captain of pirates, and unexpected adventure unfolds.[4][5][6]

Cast

edit

Main

edit
  • Son Ye-jin as Yeo-wol[7][8]
    • Lee Do-yeon as young Yeo-wol; She was born in an environment where her father was a pirate and her mother was a haenyeo, but her mother was killed and became a pirate due to her father's pirate activities.
  • Kim Nam-gil as Jang Sa-jung[9][10][11]

Supporting

edit

Pirates

edit

Bandits

edit
  • Yoo Hae-jin as Chul-bong
  • Kim Won-hae as Choon-seop
  • Park Chul-min as Monk
  • Jo Dal-hwan as San-man
  • Kim Won-joong as Catfish
  • Song Yong-ho as Snakehead
  • Moon Seong-bok as Eel
  • Jeon Won-gyu as Pine cone
  • Lee Jae-ho as Cudgel
  • Kim Jae-hak as Straw

Joseon officials

edit

Others

edit

Release

edit

Domestic

edit

The Pirates sold 272,858 tickets during its first two days of release, placing second on the box office chart behind The Admiral: Roaring Currents.[12] After 17 days in theaters, it became the third Korean film in 2014 to reach 5 million admissions.[13] At the end of its run, the film reached 8,665,269 admissions, and also grossed US$64,414,955.[1]

International

edit

Lotte Entertainment pre-sold The Pirates to 15 countries at the 2014 Cannes Film Market.[14][15]

Reception

edit

The film received mixed reviews from critics and currently holds a 57% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.[16] Martin Tsai of The Los Angeles Times described the film as a "derivative trove of swashbuckling action, romance, comedy, special effects and revisionist history" which contains typical Hollywood devices,[17] while Nicolas Rapold of The New York Times notes that "Neither the action nor the comedy in this action comedy is consistently strong."[18] Frank Scheck of The Hollywood Reporter criticizes the film for its "endless slapstick fight scenes" and the film's special effects but praised the underwater scenes with the whales which he says have a "hauntingly ethereal quality."[19]

Sequel

edit

A sequel of the film titled as The Pirates: The Last Royal Treasure, directed by Kim Jeong-hoon, produced with new cast of Kang Ha-neul and Han Hyo-joo was released on January 26, 2022 by Lotte Entertainment.[20]

Awards and nominations

edit
Year Award Category Recipient Result
2014 Best Actress Son Ye-jin Won
Best Supporting Actor Yoo Hae-jin Won
Best Cinematography Kim Young-ho Nominated
Best Art Direction Kim Ji-a Nominated
Best Costume Design Kwon Yu-jin, Im Seung-hee Nominated
Best Lighting Hwang Soon-wook Nominated
Technical Award (sound) Lee Seung-yup Nominated
15th Busan Film Critics Awards Best Actor Lee Geung-young Won
22nd Korea Culture and Entertainment Awards Best Film The Pirates Won
Best Director Lee Seok-hoon Won
Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Yoo Hae-jin Nominated
Best Art Direction Kim Ji-a Nominated
Technical Award Kang Jong-ik (visual effects) Won
1st Korean Film Producers Association Awards Best Supporting Actor Yoo Hae-jin Won
Technical Award Kang Jong-ik (visual effects) Won
2015
6th KOFRA Film Awards[24]
Best Supporting Actor Yoo Hae-jin Won
10th Max Movie Awards Best Actress Son Ye-jin Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Yoo Hae-jin Nominated
Technical Award Nominated
Best Visual Effects Kang Jong-ik Nominated
Best Actress Son Ye-jin Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Yoo Hae-jin Won

References

edit
  1. ^ a b "The Pirates". KOFIC. 2015-10-02. Retrieved 2015-10-05.
  2. ^ Sunwoo, Carla (3 July 2014). "Sea-themed movies set to make their maiden voyages". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
  3. ^ Ahn, Sung-mi (7 July 2014). "Historical films set to cool off summer". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2014-07-08.
  4. ^ Lee, Eun-ah (3 July 2013). "Kim Nam-gil and Son Ye-jin Cast in New Adventure Pic". TenAsia. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  5. ^ Tae, Sang-joon (5 August 2013). "Period Adventure Film PIRATES Set Sail". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2013-08-14.
  6. ^ Ahn, Sung-mi (11 August 2014). "Laughter on the high seas". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2014-08-19.
  7. ^ Jung, Hyun-mok (5 August 2014). "Pirate's life for Son Ye-jin". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2014-08-06.
  8. ^ "Son Ye-jin Jumps into Action in Pirate-Themed Film". The Chosun Ilbo. 9 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-13.
  9. ^ Lee, Sun-min (6 September 2013). "Actor injured during filming". Korea JoongAng Daily. Retrieved 2013-09-06.
  10. ^ Ha, Soo-jung (26 July 2014). "Interview: Kim Nam Gil Enjoyed Filming Pirates with Son Ye Jin and f(x)'s Sulli". enewsWorld. Retrieved 2014-07-26.
  11. ^ Ahn, Sung-mi (29 July 2014). "Herald Interview: Kim Nam-gil returns in perfectly tailored role". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 2014-07-29.
  12. ^ "Comedy Pirates Takes on Naval War Hero". The Chosun Ilbo. 8 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-13.
  13. ^ "Comedy-action movie The Pirates tops 5 million viewers". The Korea Herald. 22 August 2014. Retrieved 2014-09-03.
  14. ^ Noh, Jean (22 May 2014). "Lotte pre-sales on The Pirates". Screen International. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
  15. ^ Conran, Pierce (23 May 2014). "THE PIRATES to Set Sail in 15 Countries". Korean Cinema Today. Retrieved 2014-06-06.
  16. ^ "The Pirates (2014)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
  17. ^ Tsai, Martin (September 11, 2014). "South Korean 'The Pirates' follows Hollywood formula". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
  18. ^ Rapold, Nicolas (September 11, 2014). "Follow That Whale. 'The Pirates,' a Korean Swashbuckler". The New York Times. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
  19. ^ Frank Scheck (September 15, 2014). "'The Pirates': Film Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 6, 2015.
  20. ^ Hyo-joo Bae (October 29, 2021). "강하늘·한효주·이광수·권상우 '해적:도깨비 깃발' 내년 설 연휴 개봉[공식]" [Kang Ha-neul, Han Hyo-joo, Lee Kwang-soo, Kwon Sang-woo's 'Pirates: Goblin Flag' to be released next year for the Lunar New Year holiday [Official]]. Newsen (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved December 5, 2021.
  21. ^ Kim, June (12 November 2014). "The 51st Daejong Film Awards Nominations Announced". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  22. ^ Conran, Pierce (24 November 2014). "ROARING CURRENTS Tops 51st Daejong Film Awards". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2014-11-25.
  23. ^ Kim, June (18 December 2014). "35th Blue Dragon Awards Names THE ATTORNEY Best Film". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2014-12-18.
  24. ^ "Han Gong-ju picked as best film of 2014 by Korean film reporters". The Korea Herald. 16 January 2015. Retrieved 2015-01-27.
  25. ^ Ma, Kevin (9 March 2015). "Hard Day leads Chunsa Film Art nominations". Film Business Asia. Archived from the original on 14 March 2015. Retrieved 2015-03-19.
  26. ^ Yoon, Ina (4 March 2015). "Korean Films and Artists Nominated for the Asian Film Awards". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2015-03-19.
  27. ^ Conran, Pierce (27 May 2015). "CHOI Min-sik and REVIVRE Triumph at 51st Paeksang Arts Awards". Korean Film Biz Zone. Retrieved 2015-05-28.
edit