In Our Prime

In Our Prime
In Our Prime
	Theatrical release poster
Hangul	이상한 나라의 수학자
Hanja	異常한 나라의 數學者
Lit.	Mathematician in Wonderland
RR	Isanghan naraui suhakja
MR	Isanghan naraŭi suhakcha
Directed by	Park Dong-hoon
Written by	Lee Yong-jae
Produced by	Ha Jeong-wan
Starring	Choi Min-sik; Kim Dong-hwi; Park Byung-eun; Park Hae-joon; Jo Yun-seo;
Cinematography	Park Hong-yeol
Edited by	Kim Sun-min
Music by	Lee Ji-soo
Production; company	Joy Rabbit
Distributed by	Showbox
Release date	March 9, 2022;
Running time	117 minutes
Country	South Korea
Language	Korean
Box office	US$4.1 million

In Our Prime (Korean: 이상한 나라의 수학자; lit. 'Mathematician in Wonderland') is a 2022 South Korean drama film directed by Park Dong-hoon. The film stars Choi Min-sik as a genius mathematician with a hidden past and Kim Dong-hwi as a student who is failing math. The supporting cast includes Park Byung-eun, Park Hae-joon, and Jo Yun-seo.^[2]^[3] The film was released theatrically on March 9, 2022.^[4]

Plot

A genius mathematician, Lee Hak-sung, defects from North Korea in pursuit of academic freedom. To conceal his identity and past, he takes on the role of a security guard at an elite private high school, where only the top 1% of gifted students are admitted.

With his cold and stern demeanor, Hak-sung becomes the most avoided figure on campus. However, his life takes an unexpected turn when he meets Han Ji-woo, a struggling high school student who has given up on math. After discovering Hak-sung's true identity, Ji-woo persistently begs him to become his tutor.

As Hak-sung teaches Ji-woo not just how to find the right answers, but how to navigate the process of problem-solving, both of them experience an unexpected transformation in their lives.

Cast

Choi Min-sik as Lee Hak-sung, a school security guard and defector from North Korea
Kim Dong-hwi as Han Ji-woo, a student who asks Hak-sung to teach him math
Park Byung-eun as Kim Geun-ho, a math teacher
Park Hae-joon as An Gi-cheol, agent of the National Intelligence Service who monitors Lee Hak-sung
Jo Yun-seo as Park Bo-ram, Ji-woo's classmate
Tang Jun-sang as Lee Tae-yeon, Hak-sung's son^[5]
Kang Mal-geum as Han Ji-woo's mother^[5]
Kim Hee-jung as Park Bo-ram's mother
Joo Jin-mo as Oh Jeong-nam, a mathematician who participated in an international math competition with Hak-sung
Kim Won-hae as Park Pil-ju, a North Korean defector and Economics professor

Reception

Box office

As of 31 January 2023^[update], the film has a gross of US$4,081,864, and 534,287 admissions.^[1]

Accolades

Award	Date of ceremony	Category	Recipient(s)	Result	Ref.
Baeksang Arts Awards	May 6, 2022	Best Director	Park Dong-hoon	Nominated	^[6]
		Best Actor	Choi Min-sik	Nominated
		Best Screenplay	Lee Yong-jae	Nominated
		Best New Actor	Kim Dong-hwi	Nominated
Chunsa Film Art Awards	September 30, 2022	Best New Actor		Won	^[7]
Buil Film Awards	October 6, 2022			Nominated	^[8]
Busan Film Critics Awards	December 9, 2022			Won
Grand Bell Awards	December 9, 2022			Nominated	^[9]
Blue Dragon Film Awards	November 25, 2022	Best New Actor		Won	^[10]

References

^ ^a ^b "KOFIC, KOBIS (Korean Box Office Information System) The Box office: Korean films of 2022". KOFIC. Retrieved 23 March 2022.
^ Song, Seung-hyun (9 February 2022). "'Oldboy' Choi Min-sik to return to big screen as genius mathematician". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
^ Kwak, Yeon-soo (15 February 2022). "Choi Min-sik says his new film 'In Our Prime' parallels 'Good Will Hunting'". The Korea Times. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
^ Kim Ji-won (February 15, 2022). [종합] "수포자 감독이 만든 수학 영화" 대배우 최민식X신예 김동휘의 차진 호흡 '이상한 나라의 수학자' [[Comprehensive] "Mathematics movie made by a desperate director" Great actor Choi Min-sik X rookie Kim Dong-hwi's breathing 'Mathematician in Wonderland']. Ten Asia (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
^ ^a ^b Kim Ye-eun (March 11, 2022). 강말금·탕준상, '이상한 나라의 수학자' 속 반가운 얼굴들 [Kang Mal-geum and Tang Jun-sang, familiar faces in 'Mathematicians in Wonderland']. Export News (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
^ Ahn Byung-gil (April 11, 2022). "58회 백상예술대상 후보 공개…영광의 주인공은?" [58th Baeksang Arts Awards nominations revealed... Who is the hero of glory?]. Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved June 1, 2022.
^ 후보자(후보작) 리스트 [Candidate (Nominations) List]. Chunsa Film Festival (in Korean). August 26, 2022. Archived from the original on September 28, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2022.
^ Nam, Yoo-jung (August 28, 2022). "헤어질 결심 브로커 둘 다 8개 부문 후보 올라" [Decision to break up and Broker both nominated for 8 categories] (in Korean). Busan Ilbo. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 29, 2022 – via Naver.
^ "제 58회 대종상 영화제 내달 9일 개최... '헌트' 12개, '헤어질 결심' - '한산' 11개 부분 노미네이트" [The 58th Daejong Film Festival to be held on the 9th of next month... 12 nominations for 'Hunt', 'Decision to break up' - 11 nominations for 'Hansan']. KBS Media (in Korean). 12 October 2022. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022 – via Naver.
^ "43회 청룡영화상 후보 발표, 박찬욱 감독 '헤어질 결심' 13개 부문 최다 노미네이트" [Nominations announced at the 43rd Blue Dragon Film Awards, Director Park Chan-wook's 'Decision to break up' received the most nominations in 13 categories]. KBS Star (in Korean). Naver. November 8, 2022. Archived from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved November 9, 2022.

External links

In Our Prime at the Korean Movie Database (in Korean)
In Our Prime at IMDb
In Our Prime at HanCinema

[box:korea-1] "KOFIC, KOBIS (Korean Box Office Information System) The Box office: Korean films of 2022". KOFIC. Retrieved 23 March 2022.

[2] Song, Seung-hyun (9 February 2022). "'Oldboy' Choi Min-sik to return to big screen as genius mathematician". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 11 March 2022.

[3] Kwak, Yeon-soo (15 February 2022). "Choi Min-sik says his new film 'In Our Prime' parallels 'Good Will Hunting'". The Korea Times. Retrieved 11 March 2022.

[4] Kim Ji-won (February 15, 2022). [종합] "수포자 감독이 만든 수학 영화" 대배우 최민식X신예 김동휘의 차진 호흡 '이상한 나라의 수학자' [[Comprehensive] "Mathematics movie made by a desperate director" Great actor Choi Min-sik X rookie Kim Dong-hwi's breathing 'Mathematician in Wonderland']. Ten Asia (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved March 11, 2022.

[tang:en-5] Kim Ye-eun (March 11, 2022). 강말금·탕준상, '이상한 나라의 수학자' 속 반가운 얼굴들 [Kang Mal-geum and Tang Jun-sang, familiar faces in 'Mathematicians in Wonderland']. Export News (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved March 11, 2022.

[6] Ahn Byung-gil (April 11, 2022). "58회 백상예술대상 후보 공개…영광의 주인공은?" [58th Baeksang Arts Awards nominations revealed... Who is the hero of glory?]. Sports Kyunghyang (in Korean). Naver. Retrieved June 1, 2022.

[7] 후보자(후보작) 리스트 [Candidate (Nominations) List]. Chunsa Film Festival (in Korean). August 26, 2022. Archived from the original on September 28, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2022.

[8] Nam, Yoo-jung (August 28, 2022). "헤어질 결심 브로커 둘 다 8개 부문 후보 올라" [Decision to break up and Broker both nominated for 8 categories] (in Korean). Busan Ilbo. Archived from the original on August 28, 2022. Retrieved August 29, 2022 – via Naver.

[9] "제 58회 대종상 영화제 내달 9일 개최... '헌트' 12개, '헤어질 결심' - '한산' 11개 부분 노미네이트" [The 58th Daejong Film Festival to be held on the 9th of next month... 12 nominations for 'Hunt', 'Decision to break up' - 11 nominations for 'Hansan']. KBS Media (in Korean). 12 October 2022. Archived from the original on 12 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022 – via Naver.

[10] "43회 청룡영화상 후보 발표, 박찬욱 감독 '헤어질 결심' 13개 부문 최다 노미네이트" [Nominations announced at the 43rd Blue Dragon Film Awards, Director Park Chan-wook's 'Decision to break up' received the most nominations in 13 categories]. KBS Star (in Korean). Naver. November 8, 2022. Archived from the original on November 8, 2022. Retrieved November 9, 2022.

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