The Divine Fury (Korean: 사자; Hanja: 使者; RR: Saja; lit. emissary, with connotations of the underworld) is a 2019 South Korean action horror film written and directed by Kim Joo-hwan. It stars Park Seo-joon, Ahn Sung-ki and Woo Do-hwan. The film was released on July 31, 2019.[4]
| The Divine Fury | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster | |
| Hangul | |
| Hanja | |
| Literal meaning | Emissary |
| Revised Romanization | Saja |
| Directed by | Kim Joo-hwan |
| Written by | Kim Joo-hwan |
| Starring | |
| Music by | Koo Ja-wan |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | Lotte Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 129 minutes |
| Country | South Korea |
| Language | Korean |
| Budget | ₩14.7 billion[1] |
| Box office | US$11.8 million[2][3] |
Plot
The film tells the story of Yong-hoo (Park Seo-joon), a martial arts champion who gains divine powers to fight a powerful evil force. After a tragic childhood in which both of his parents died, Yong-hoo harbors deep resentment toward the Almighty.[5] He channels his anger to become a successful MMA fighter.[6] After a bout in the United States, he develops a stigmata, which forces him to seek the help of Father Ahn (Ahn Sung-ki).[7] The priest, who is an exorcist, sees potential in Yong-hoo after his wound defeats a demon.[5] The two partner up to battle demonic activity in Korea and run up against the disciple of evil, Ji-shin.
Cast
- Park Seo-joon as Yong-hoo
- Lee Chan-yoo as young Yong-hoo
- Ahn Sung-ki as Father Ahn
- Woo Do-hwan as Ji-shin
- Park Ji-hyun as Soo-jin
- Jung Ji-hoon as Ho-seok
- Lee Seung-hee as Possessed Man
- Sim Hee-seop as Father Kim
- Kim Si-eun as Nun Theresa
- Kim Seon-min as Angela
- Kim Bum-soo as Bum-soo
- Ryu Kyung-soo as Doctor
- Seo Jeong-yeon as Soo-jin's Mother
- Jo Eun-hyung as Hong-jin
- Jung Eui-soon as Veronica
- Kim Ye-ji as Past Apostle
- Hikaru Yamamoto as Maria
- Rika Adachi as Lola
- Rina Takeda as Mean Girl
Special appearance
- Choi Woo-shik as Father Choi
- Park Jin-joo as Chinese restaurant delivery woman
- Lee Seol as Seol
Production
The film began production on August 14, 2018. It reunites director Jason Kim and actor Park Seo-joon, after Midnight Runners.[8][9]
Release
The film was released in cinemas in Australia and New Zealand on August 8, 2019, licensed by Purple Plan and distributed by Magnum Films,[10] and in the United States and Canada on August 16, 2019, distributed by Well Go USA Entertainment.[11]
Reception
The film was released on 1405 screens on July 31, 2019. It opened at second place with 380,092 admissions.[2] With a total production cost of ₩14.7 billion, it required at least 3 million (South Korean) admissions to cross the break-even point. The film was produced with a sequel in mind, but the successor is unclear due to the film's box office failure.[1]
References
External links
- Australia and New Zealand official web page
- U.S. and Canada official web page
- The Divine Fury at AllMovie
- The Divine Fury at HanCinema
- The Divine Fury at IMDb
- The Divine Fury at Metacritic
- The Divine Fury at Box Office Mojo
- The Divine Fury at Rotten Tomatoes
