The film opened theatrically in South Korea on 28 March 2018, in the United States on 13 April 2018, and in the Philippines on 2 May 2018.[4][5] A commercial success, it also became the third most-watched horror film in South Korea after A Tale of Two Sisters and Phone.[6] Later, it was screened at the 20th Udine Far East Film Festival.[7]
Plot
Two boys are recording their exploration of the abandoned Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital, where rumor states that the hospital's ping pong-loving director murdered all the patients before disappearing. The two head to Room 402, the intensive care unit, which no one has ever managed to open. They try to unlock the door but suddenly hear a ping-pong ball. Their livestream broadcast abruptly ends, but not before capturing a glimpse of a ghostly face. News of their disappearance prompts Ha-joon, owner of the YouTube channel "Horror Times," to investigate the hospital.
Ha-joon enlists a group of six people—three women (Ah-yeon, Charlotte, and Ji-hyun) and three men (Sung-hoon, Seung-wook, and Je-yoon)—to conduct a livestreamed exploration. Ha-joon remains at a base camp near the site to oversee the broadcast while the others enter the building. Unknown to the women, Je-yoon, and the livestream audience, Ha-joon, Sung-hoon, and Seung-wook have pre-scripted the ghost hunting scenario, as with previous "Horror Times" videos, planting fake scares for the women and viewers to react to. Before entering, the group ties underwear to a tree as a marker. Once inside, Charlotte pours holy water into a bowl to record its reactions. The group finds a photo of the hospital's patients and staff in the director's office, along with a doll that they realize has moved on its own and matches one held by a patient in the photo. Outside, the camp's propane burners turn on by themselves, and Ha-joon's equipment suffers power failures, temporarily cutting him off from the group.
Je-yoon and Ah-yeon attempt to open Room 402 while the others explore the common room, where they find closets with holes in them. When Ji-hyun places her hand inside one, it is pulled and scratched. Frightened, Ji-hyun and Charlotte decide to abandon the project and leave the asylum. Meanwhile, Ha-joon watches footage of all six participants together and becomes unsettled, unsure who filmed it. Though also startled, Seung-wook and Sung-hoon agree to continue the scripted livestream after Ha-joon promises them higher pay. In the supply room, they encounter a wheelchair moving on its own, followed by objects levitating and moving uncontrollably, knocking Seung-wook unconscious. Sung-hoon is dragged outside the room by an unseen force and is also struck unconscious.
Outside, Ji-hyun and Charlotte find themselves repeatedly encountering the marker, revealing they are trapped in a loop. Ji-hyun falls into a trance and her eyes turn completely black. Terrified, Charlotte flees toward the camp but finds herself back at the asylum in Room 402, where she sees Ji-hyun facing a wall. She looks down to see the doll on her foot before a naked man appears and attacks her, dragging her into the darkness.
Sung-hoon wakes and runs to Je-yoon and Ah-yeon, who are still trying to open Room 402. He admits to them and the livestream audience that some earlier events, including the doll, were staged, but now real paranormal forces are at play and they must rescue Seung-wook. A ping-pong ball is suddenly thrown at them, followed by Charlotte's screams from inside Room 402. The group's infrared cameras detect a presence as the door finally opens.
Sung-hoon, Je-yoon and Ah-yeon find themselves trapped in a dark, water-filled room with no exit. Ghostly apparitions surround and possess them one by one. Ha-joon, seeing his view count nearing one million, enters the asylum to investigate but is strangled to death, seemingly by the ghost of the director. Seung-wook awakens strapped to the wheelchair and is dragged into Room 402.
The livestream is revealed to have ended abruptly after Sung-hoon admitted it was scripted. Unaware of the paranormal events inside the asylum, viewers mock the failed stream, which had only peaked 503 viewers, far fewer than the near-million Ha-joon saw on his screen. Meanwhile, a camera set up by the group shows the holy water inside the bowl beginning to boil.
The film takes place in the former Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital in Gwangju, Gyeonggi Province, purportedly one of Korea's most haunted locations. In 2012, CNN Travel selected it as one of "7 freakiest places on the planet."[8][9]
Most of the scenes in the film were filmed in the National Maritime High School in Busan, with the production team adhering closely to the floor plan of the actual hospital to recreate exactly the same exterior and hallways.[10]
Controversy
Before the release of the film, the owner of the asylum filed a lawsuit against the film being shown in theaters, claiming that the film will have negative effects on the sale of the building. However, a Seoul court in late March 2018 ruled in favor of the film being shown.[11] On 28 May 2018 Gonjiam Psychiatric Hospital was demolished.[12]
Release
The film released in South Korea on 28 March 2018. In the United States, the film was released by Well Go USA on 18 April 2018, and in the Philippines, the film was released by Multivision Pictures in partnership with Viva International Pictures on 2 May 2018.[13]
In April 2018, just days after the film was released, actor Lee Seung-wook who made his debut with the film announced his departure from the entertainment industry. The actor, who was reportedly absent from promotional activities for the film, cited personal reasons for the decision.[14]
Reception
Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum came in first at the domestic box office on March 28, 2018, alongside the openings of Hollywood film Ready Player One and local film Seven Years of Night, collecting US$1.2 million from 198,369 admissions.[15] Remaining at the top spot for the next four days, the film earned US$10.2 million from 1.37 million admissions in its opening weekend and accounted for 40% of the total weekend box office receipts,[16] the biggest March opening ever achieved by a Korean film.[17]
After three weekends, Gonjiam: Haunted Asylum has attracted near to 2.6 million viewers and accumulated US$21 million in box office takings, the second biggest gross for a Korean horror film, behind 2003's A Tale of Two Sisters.[18][19]
Aedan Juvet of Bleeding Cool claimed the film "mastered" found footage horror, naming it amongst some of the best of its genre.[20] The review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes reported that 91% of critics have given the film a positive review based on 11 reviews, with an average rating of 6.4/10.[21]
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