The Prison
(Korea)
Opened March 23
Crime, action. Directed by Na Hyun
Ik-ho (Han Suk-kyu) reigns as king at a local prison, whose inmates escape outside at night to commit undetectable crimes throughout the country. Former police officer Yoo-geon (Kim Rae-won), accused of a hit-and-run, burying evidence and bribery becomes incarcerated there. Ik-ho sees a potential criminal mastermind in Yoo-geon’s ruthless grit and temper. Together, the two plan a grand plot.
Ordinary Person
(Korea)
Opened March 23
Drama. Directed by Kim Bong-han
Sung-jin (Son Hyun-joo) is a police investigator, an ordinary working man who dreams of one day living in a two-story home with his family. By coincidence, he arrests a man whom he suspects as the first serial killer to be found in Korea. In digging the case, Sung-jin becomes embroiled in a covert operation carried out by intelligence agent Kyu-nam (Jang Hyuk). The two agree to team up on a risky mission, and Sung-jin ends up forgoing his ordinary life for a dangerous one.
Beauty and the Beast
(US)
Opened March 16
Romance, fantasy. Directed by Bill Condon
This live-action remake of Disney’s famed 1991 animated film features Emma Watson as the bookish young woman Belle, who is taken prisoner in a mysterious castle by a horrific-looking Beast (Dan Stevens) when she ventures there to rescue her father Maurice. Belle soon comes to befriend the lively talking, moving furniture in the castle and see past Beast’s physical appearance to recognize the kind heart of the Prince within.
Kong: Skull Island
(US)
Opened March 8
Fantasy, science fiction. Directed by Jordan Vogt-Roberts
It is 1973. A secret organization called Monarch finds an island that is known to hold a new species of animals. An expedition team learns that a giant ape called Kong lives on there, fighting predators called Skull Crawlers for dominance over the island. The expedition crew is concerned with its own survival on the dangerous island, but some members begin to see that Kong is also in need of rescuing. The film stars Tom Hiddleston as hunter James Conrad and Samuel L. Jackson as the leader of a helicopter squadron.