Korean Killer Wild Boar Movie Takes a Bite out of European and Asian Territories Author: Kim Song-ho and Keith Aiken Source: Finecut Co., Ltd., Ascot Elite Home Entertainment Official Movie Site: CHAW Special Thanks to Lim Ji-yoon
On September 11, the South Korean international film sales company Finecut Co., Ltd. announced that their new monster movie CHAW had been picked up for release in the UK. Finecut had signed the agreement with British distributor Optimum Releasing during the 2009 Toronto International Film Festival. Finecut also held a private screening of CHAW at the event. Released in Korea on July 15, CHAW is the tale of various oddball characters who have gathered to hunt down a giant, man-eating wild boar. The film mixes both horror and comedy, and was written and directed by Shin Jeong-won, a former music video producer and art director who had made a successful debut with his first feature TO CATCH A VIRGIN GHOST (Sisily 2km) in 2004. The movie recorded approximately 1.8 million admissions during its domestic theatrical run. Optimum Releasing is an "all rights" company that handles film distribution to theaters, home video, television and online in the UK. It launched in 1999 with a theatrical re-release of the acclaimed THE THIRD MAN (1949) and has followed up with a wide range of titles including Hayao Miyazaki`s SPIRITED AWAY (Sen to Chihiro no Kamikakushi, 2001), Michael Moore`s FAHRENHEIT 9/11 (2004), Bong Joon-Ho`s THE HOST (Gwoemul, 2006), and Darren Aronofsky`s THE WRESTLER (2008). Optimum was acquired by the French film company StudioCanal in 2006. In a press release, Finecut CEO Young-joo Suh stated that, "I have worked with Optimum Releasing for THE HOST previously, and as they are particularly strong at marketing and distribution for this film genre, it is a great pleasure to work with them again."
Optimum co-founder/COO Danny Perkins and head of acquisitions Berenice Fugard issued a humorous reply: "We`re delighted to start the market with such a meaty acquisition, and we are looking forward to bringing home the bacon with this one." The UK deal marks the latest international sale for CHAW, which had already been picked up for release in Germany, Australia, India, Malaysia, Singapore, New Zealand, Brunei, Austria, Vietnam, Indonesia, Switzerland, and Thailand. German distributor Ascot Elite Entertainment Group has already announced a Blu-ray release for December 10. Ascot`s Blu-ray will present CHAW in 2.35:1 /16:9 HD-anamorphic widescreen and include trailers plus German and Korean DTS-HD Dolby Digital 5.1 audio tracks. The German title for the film is KEILER: DER MENSCHENFRESSER, meaning BOAR: THE MAN-EATER.
For more information on CHAW please see the previous coverage here on SciFi Japan: