Lee Myung-se's 'Ran 12.3' is the first political documentary to lead the presales chart since 2018
A documentary reconstructing former President Yoon Suk Yeol's short-lived martial law gambit on Dec. 3, 2024, is leading presales two days ahead of its Wednesday opening.
According to the Korean Film Council's box office tracker, director Lee Myung-se's "Ran 12.3" had sold 43,684 tickets as of Tuesday morning, taking a 15.8 percent market share.
That puts it narrowly ahead of the 20th Century Studios sequel "The Devil Wears Prada 2," which had sold 42,916.
It is the first political documentary to top the presales chart since "Intention," Kim Ji-young's 2018 film on the Sewol ferry disaster. "Ran" in the title translates to "war" or "turmoil."
The film reconstructs the chaotic hours following Yoon's late-night televised address on Dec. 3, 2024, in which he accused the opposition of being "antistate forces" aligned with North Korea and declared martial law.
Troops were deployed to the National Assembly and the National Election Commission, the latter of which Yoon alleged had overseen fraudulent elections.
Lawmakers broke through police lines and scaled fences to reach the chamber floor as protesters gathered outside the complex. Within hours, 190 lawmakers, including some from Yoon's own party, voted unanimously to strike down the decree.
Yoon was impeached by the parliament roughly two weeks later and removed from office by a unanimous Constitutional Court ruling on April 4, 2025. He was convicted of insurrection on Feb. 19 this year and was handed a life sentence at the first trial.
Lee Myung-se, an industry veteran best known for the 1999 action thriller "Nowhere to Hide," makes his documentary debut with the project.
The documentary forgoes narration and interviews, relying instead on footage and photos sourced from more than 150 citizens, records from 50 parliamentary offices and other on-site material from reporters and YouTubers.
The project was backed by a crowdfunding campaign that raised 1 billion won ($680,000) from roughly 15,000 contributors.
moonkihoon@heraldcorp.com
