Dark Nuns: Song Hye-kyo makes a return to the big screen after 10 years
The film premiered in Korea on 24th January and will be released in Malaysian theaters from 13th February 2024 onwards.
The sequel to the horror film The Priests (2015), Dark Nuns focuses on the intense battle between nuns and evil forces to save the soul of a young boy (Moon Woo-jin). The film not only enhances the horror element with detailed and dramatic exorcism scenes, but also deeply depicts the psychological struggles of the characters.
Dark Nuns has officially premiered in its home country and achieved outstanding results at the box office, taking up more than 40% of the market share at the theater. The film's ticket booking rate is quite impressive, surpassing other works released at the same time to take the Top 1 position at the Box Office on the first day of its release in Korea. The film is directed by Kwon Hyeok Jae, with a cast including Song Hye Kyo, Jeon Yeo Bin, Heo Jun Ho.
Song Hye Kyo's return to the big screen after 10 years of absence
Dark Nuns is considered a performance by a talented cast of artists who continuously show off their characters' in-depth charisma. As ISPlus shared, "The tense atmosphere of the exorcism scene between Jeon Yeo-been and Song Hye-kyo really makes viewers suffocate every second" or Ten Asia also mentioned that "Song Hye-kyo's determined eyes and strong energy quickly immerse the audience into the screen".
In addition, child star Moon Woo-jin also received many compliments for his acting in Dark Nuns when he first transformed into acting with two parallel personalities in a possessed child. Moon Woo-jin's extreme suffering and haunting "demon possession" scenes affirmed the acting ability of the child actor. This is the unexpected highlight of Dark Nuns when it continuously stimulates the audience's inner self to the climax of the film.
Horror spirituality becomes the new hot topic
In recent years, the theme of demonic possession and exorcism has not only been exploited by Korean filmmakers, but has also been warmly welcomed by audiences in their country in particular and Asia in general. Film projects in the above genre always receive a lot of attention, and at the same time reap positive box office revenue such as Ghost Hand , Transformation (2019), blockbusters Grave Digger or Mr. Ghost (2024)...
Therefore, critics have become more strict with works with the same theme. Especially after the resounding success of Exhuma (2024) or The Priests (2015) directed by Jang Jae-hyun, many opinions said that Dark Nuns is not strong enough to beat its two "senior" works. However, most audiences are eager to go to the theater to directly verify the quality of Dark Nuns.
But it would be unfair to simply compare the film Dark Nuns because right from the start of filming, the film was oriented to be the first exorcism performed by two nuns. According to Catholic tradition, exorcism rituals are performed by ordained priests, and the decision to exorcise must also be strictly approved by the Church.
Therefore, by breaking the rules that have existed for thousands of years, for the sake of saving innocent souls, the two nuns in Dark Nuns will show their courage as well as their daring and determination. Obviously, the role of Father Paolo (played by Lee Jin Uk) also clearly shows the responsibility when representing God to give Sister Giunia (played by Song Hye Kyo) the right to perform the ritual. This is also a special point of director Kwon Hyeok-jae's insertion of the attitude of recognizing and respecting feminism in Korea.
Currently, Dark Nuns has been licensed for distribution in 160 countries, including Malaysia. The film premiered in Korea on 24th January and will be released in Malaysian theaters from 13th February 2024 onwards.
