‘Project Cheonan Ship’ resurfaces to grab viewers’ interest

“Project Cheonan Ship,” a documentary on the ill-fated Cheonan naval corvette that sank off the west coast in early 2010, was supposed to sink into oblivion; surprisingly, it’s floating back to social media’s hot-button issues.

The movie, directed by Baek Seung-woo, was released on Thursday, but was then removed from the lineup of national multiplex chain Megabox on Saturday, after a two-day screening. Megabox cited security concerns for moviegoers as conservative groups vehemently protested the screening.

But viewers seem to be more willing to watch the film not least because it’s not widely available. Only seven theaters across the entire nation are now screening the film, while a survey showed that public interest in the documentary has gone up.

In an online survey by Max Movie, 53.9 percent of respondents said they were not interested in the documentary at first, but now want to watch it after Megabox’s decision.

“Project Cheonan Ship” deals with the sinking of the Cheonan near Baengnyeongdo Island that left 46 South Korean sailors dead. The documentary questions whether the conclusion of an international team’s investigation -- North Korea torpedoed the warship -- was true, a stance that apparently angered conservatives and the family members of the victims.

While some conservative groups threatened to stage protests in front of any theater screening the film, local film organizations held a press conference on Monday and demanded that the conservative groups which allegedly “sank” the documentary be identified.

By Im Woo-jung, Intern reporter
(iwj@heraldcorp.com)