Confidential Assignment (Korean: 공조; Hanja: 共助) is a 2017 South Korean action comedy film directed by Kim Sung-hoon. It stars Hyun Bin, Yoo Hae-jin and Kim Joo-hyuk.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9] In the film, a North Korean officer and a Seoul detective team up to track down a dangerous fugitive, who is running a gang of counterfeiters.
| Confidential Assignment | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Hangul | 공조 |
| Hanja | 共助 |
| Literal meaning | Cooperation |
| Revised Romanization | Gongjo |
| McCune–Reischauer | Kongcho |
| Directed by | Kim Sung-hoon |
| Written by | Yoon Hyun-ho |
| Produced by | Yoon Je-kyoon |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Lee Sung-jae |
| Edited by | Lee Jin |
| Music by | Hwang Sang-joon |
Production company | JK Film |
| Distributed by | CJ Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 125 minutes |
| Country | South Korea |
| Language | Korean |
| Budget | US$8.52 million[1] |
| Box office | US$57 million[2] |
Plot
editIm Cheol-ryung, an officer of a special investigation team in North Korea, barges into a warehouse that prints counterfeit money, where he learns that his superior Cha Ki-seong and his own team are there to steal the master plates to print the counterfeit money. A shootout ensues where Cheol-ryung's wife Hwa-ryung and his team are killed, while Cheol-ryung is gravely injured.
Meanwhile, the North Korean officials learn that Cha Ki-seong has fled to South Korea, where Cheol-ryung is ordered to capture Ki-seong and retrieve the stolen master plates, and is given only three days to complete his mission. However, South Korean officials suspect that Ki-seong is really a killer, and they assign Detective Kang Jin-tae from Seoul to watch over Cheol-ryung tightly as they suspect he intends to kill Ki-seong for revenge. Jin-tae meets Cheol-ryung at the airport, and they head for Myeong-Dong to check on one of Ki-seong's men, Park Myung-ho, but Cheol-ryong escapes after learning about Jin-tae's mission. Cheol-ryung arrives at Myeong-Dong to Jongro where Jin-tae also arrives there and interrogates Park, but the latter escapes. After the orders from his superior, Jin-tae takes Cheol-ryung to his home to spy on him.
Having guessed the Jin-tae's plan, Cheol-ryung removes the SIM card which Jin-tae had inserted in his phone to track his location anytime. The duo learns about the location where Park was supplying drugs and a fight ensues where Cheol-ryung takes the phone of one of the men and gives it to Jin-tae. Cheol-ryung learns Park's location after secretly bugging Jin-tae's phone. The duo heads to the restaurant where they find that Park is conversing with one of Ki-seong's comrades (who had been present at the warehouse). The comrade learns that Park plans to settle in South Korea, where he kills him under Ki-seong's orders. Cheol-ryung arrives and warns Ki-seong of his impending death, where he fights the comrade, who escapes. After checking Park's belongings, the officials learn about Cheol-ryung's mission.
Meanwhile, Jin-tae learns about Cheol-ryung's past and decide to help him. They reach the place where Ki-seong has arranged a deal to sell the plates, but Ki-seong kills the buyer when Cheol-ryung arrives and kills the henchmen where he is about Ki-seong, but Jin-tae stops him which gives time for Ki-seong to escape. Cheol-ryung takes the master plates and leaves. However, Ki-seong kidnaps Jin-tae's family and demands the plates. A frightened Jin-tae tells Cheol-ryung, where he takes the plates and heads to the location. Jin-tae and Cheol-ryung arrives and gives the plates to Ki-seong, who leaves Jin-tae's family where Jin-tae takes his family to a safe place. A battle ensues where Cheol-ryung and Jin-tae manages to kill Ki-seong. One year later, Cheol-ryung and Jin-tae receive their next mission.
Cast
edit- Hyun Bin as Im Cheol-ryung
- Yoo Hae-jin as Kang Jin-tae
- Kim Joo-hyuk as Cha Ki-seong
- Jang Young-nam as Park So-yeon
- Im Yoon-ah as Park Min-young
- Lee Dong-hwi as Park Myung-ho
- Oh Eui-shik as Lee Dae-pal
- Kong Jung-hwan as Sung-kang
- Lee Hae-young as Detective squad chief Pyo
- Park Min-ha as Kang Yeon-ah
- Jun Gook-hwan as Won Hyung-sool
- Um Hyo-sup as Chairman Yoon
- Lee Yi-kyung as Lee Dong-hoon
- Shin Hyun-bin as Hwa-ryung
- Park Jin-woo as Jang Chil-bok
- Park Hyung-soo as NIS executive
- Kim Jun-han as NIS agent
- Eum Moon-suk as Troops #4
Reception
editConfidential Assignment opened in second place at the box office on January 18. It rose to first place in its second week selling an accumulative four million tickets by January 30 and surpassed the five million mark two days later.[10][11][12][13]
The movie became the most viewed Korean movie during the first half of 2017 by attracting 7.8 million audience domestically. However, this record was surpassed in August by A Taxi Driver.[14]
International
editConfidential Assignment was sold to 42 territories, including the U.S. and several countries in Asia.[15][16]
Awards and nominations
edit| Year | Award | Category | Recipient | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | 53rd Baeksang Arts Awards | Best New Actress | Nominated | [17] | |
| Most Popular Actress | Won | ||||
| Korean Film Shining Star Awards | Newcomer Award: Best New Actress | Won | [18] | ||
| Best Director | Won | ||||
| Fantasia International Film Festival | Action! Award | Confidential Assignment
|
Won | [19] | |
| 22nd Busan International Film Festival | Marie Claire Asia Star Awards: Rising Star Award | Won | |||
| 1st The Seoul Awards | Best Supporting Actor | Won | [20][21][22] | ||
| Most Popular Actress | Won | ||||
| Best New Actress | Nominated | ||||
| 54th Grand Bell Awards | Nominated | [23] | |||
| 38th Blue Dragon Film Awards | Nominated | [24] | |||
| Best Film Editing | Confidential Assignment
|
Nominated | |||
| 1st Marianas International Film Festival in Saipan | Best Popular Asian Actress | Won | [25] | ||
| 6th Korea Top Star Awards | Popular Star Award | Won | [26] | ||
| 2018 | 12th Asian Film Awards | Best Newcomer | Nominated | [27] | |
| AFA Next Generation Award | Won | [28] | |||
| 13th University Film Festival of Korea | Best Actress Award | Won | [29] |
Sequel
editConfidential Assignment 2: International, a sequel was announced on August 24, 2020.[30][31] Filming started on February 18, 2021[32][33] and was released on September 7, 2022.
References
edit- ^ "Yoo Hae-jin, Yoona, Hyun Bin to star in action movie". The Korea Times. 16 November 2015. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ "Confidential Assignment (2017)". Korean Film Biz Zone. Korean Film Council. Retrieved June 16, 2021.
- ^ Conran, Pierce. "Hyun Bin Sets COOPERATION as Next Project". Korean Film Biz Zone. Korean Film Council. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ Conran, Pierce. "Yoon-a Joins Hyun Bin on COOPERATION". Korean Film Biz Zone. Korean Film Council. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ Conran, Pierce. "Hyun Bin Kicks Off COOPERATION Shoot". Korean Film Biz Zone. Korean Film Council. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ Conran, Pierce. "COOPERATION with Hyun Bin Wraps Production". Korean Film Biz Zone. Korean Film Council. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ Son, Ji-hyoung. "Hyun Bin wraps up filming for 'Cooperation'". Kpop Herald. Herald Corporation. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ "Teaser trailer for action film 'Cooperation' starring Hyun Bin unveiled". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved January 9, 2017.
- ^ "Kim Joo-hyuk's Unforgettable On-Screen Appearances | Viu". Viu. 2017-11-13. Archived from the original on 2020-08-11. Retrieved 2017-11-14.
- ^ "'The King' opens at No. 1 beating 'Confidential Assignment'". The Korea Herald. Herald Corporation. January 19, 2017. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
- ^ Yoon, Sang-geun. '공조' 누적관객 400만 돌파..설 연휴만 193만 '더킹' 넘나. Naver (in Korean). Star News. Retrieved January 30, 2017.
- ^ Jie, Ye-eun. "'Confidential Assignment' surpasses 5m mark". Kpop Herald. Herald Corporation. Retrieved February 2, 2017.
- ^ "Comedy-action film 'Confidential Assignment' attracts 5 mln viewers". Yonhap News Agency. Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved February 4, 2017.
- ^ "A Taxi Driver' surpasses 8 mln in attendance, becoming most-viewed film this year". Yonhap News Agency. August 15, 2017.
- ^ "Confidential Assignment (공조)". CJ Entertainment USA. CJ E&M Corp. Archived from the original on February 2, 2017. Retrieved January 26, 2016.
- ^ Lee, Hyo-won (27 January 2017). "South Korean Film 'Confidential Assignment' Sells to Multiple Territories". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved January 29, 2017.
- ^ "'Guardian,' 'The Handmaiden' win big at Baeksang Awards". 2017-05-04. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
- ^ 김윤진·장혁부터 도경수까지...한국영화를 빛낸 ★들 [종합] (in Korean). 4 July 2017. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
- ^ "'Confidential Assignment' wins best action award at Fantasia Festival". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 2017-08-28.
- ^ ‘[더서울어워즈] '비밀의 숲'·'박열', 대상 수상…반박 불가 ★들의 잔치(종합) 본문듣기 설정 (in Korean). Retrieved 2017-10-27.
- ^ '서울어워즈' 송강호·나문희·지성·박보영 주연상…·'박열'·'비숲' 대상[종합]. TV Report (in Korean). October 27, 2017.
- ^ 박형식·임시완·윤아·김세정, '더 서울어워즈' 인기상 영예 (in Korean). October 24, 2017.
- ^ '대종상영화제' 후보작 공개..'택시' 송강호 男주연상 받을까. Osen News (in Korean). 29 September 2017.
- ^ "THE MERCILESS Leads Nominations for 38th Blue Dragon Film Awards". Korean Film Biz Zone. 14 November 2017.
- ^ "Youth is Best Picture at MIFF". Saipan Tribune. December 11, 2017.
- ^ 제6회 톱스타상, 수상자 절반이 불참...반쪽짜리 시상식 [종합]. Osen (in Korean). December 28, 2017.
- ^ "Asian Film Awards 2018 nominations". South China Morning Post. January 11, 2018.
- ^ "Asian Film Awards: 'Youth' Wins Top Prize From 'Demon Cat'". Variety. March 17, 2018.
- ^ ""영화·영상 전공 대학생들의 축제"···제13회 대한민국 대학영화제 열렸다". 24 November 2018.
- ^ Bae Hyo-joo (August 24, 2020). "현빈X유해진 '공조2'서 만날까 "제안 받고 검토 중"(공식입장)". Newsen (in Korean). Retrieved January 24, 2021.
- ^ Jo Yeon-kyung (August 24, 2020). "'공조2' 나온다, 흥행콤비 현빈X유해진 "제안받고 검토중"[공식]". Naver (in Korean). Retrieved January 24, 2021.
- ^ "유해진, 키이스트와 전속계약..'공조2'부터 작업". MT Star News (in Korean). February 5, 2021. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
- ^ Ko Jae-wan (February 16, 2021). "[단독] 아역 박민하, 영화 '공조2' 캐스팅 확정…전편 캐릭터, 18일 촬영 시작". Sports Chosun (in Korean). Retrieved February 18, 2021.
External links
edit- Confidential Assignment at HanCinema
- Confidential Assignment at IMDb
- Confidential Assignment at the Korean Movie Database (in Korean)