Overview of Phantom

‘Phantom’ is set in the year of 1933. To overthrow the Japanese government from Korea, the patriots in Korea form a spy organisation called Phantom. Each spy in the organisation is known as a Phantom.

The movie was released on 18 January 2023 and features Park So-dam, Sol Kyung-gu, Lee Hanee, Seo Hyun-woo and Park Hae-soo. Lee Hae-young is the director of this South Korean action thriller. The cinematography and direction of the film are impeccable. Also, the film gives vital importance to female characters. The fight scenes are another attraction of the movie.

Profile 

• Name: Phantom
• Genre: Action, Thriller, Drama, Historical, Crime
• Starring: Park So-dam, Sol Kyung-gu, Lee Hanee, Seo Hyun-woo, Park Hae-soo
• Directed by: Lee Hae-young
• Screenplay by: Lee Hae-young
• Distributed by: CJ Entertainment
• Release date: 18 January 2023
• Music by: Dalpalan
• Edited by: Yang Jin-mo
• Running time: 133 minutes
• Production Company: The Lamp
• Languages: Korean, Japanese
• Country: South Korea

Cast

• Sol Kyung-gu as Murayama Junji
• Lee Hanee as Park Cha-kyung
• Park So-dam as Yuriko
• Park Hae-soo as Takahara Kaito
• Seo Hyun-woo as Cheon Gye-jang
• Kim Dong-hee as Baek-Ho
• Esom as Nan-yeong
• Kim Jong-soo as a projectionist at the Golden Hall theater
• Lee Joo-young a ticket office worker
• Kim Joong-hee as Tadashi
• Bibi as a new secretary of the Chief of Government Affairs

Synopsis

The Korean patriots are in agony by the flourishing of Japanese colonialism in the country. To overthrow the colonial government, the patriots work with Phantoms – who are spies. As part of the conspiracy to overthrow the Japanese government, spies start to work in the government offices. To transfer the crucial messages, a branch for decoding the code messages has developed. In code languages, messages spread in every means like film posters, money etc.

In front of a movie theatre, 2 women exchange secret messages. The Korean patriots and the phantoms are planning to kill the new governor on the day he visits the Joseon shrine.

On the third day, the new governor visits the Joseon shrine. The assassin misses her target and gets killed by the Japanese soldiers in front of the eyes of Park Cha-kyung. The murder attempt gives the Japanese authority information about the functioning of the spy group Phantom. The trusted man of the governor assures him of wiping out the organisation and the people who support it.

To conduct the next plan, Park Cha-kyung visits the theatre to pass the message and there she meets the chief of security at the theatre. Park Cha-kyung informs Woo-dang, the old man who is in charge of designing the movie posters. When Woo-dang is ready to go home after work, Junji Murayama, a soldier comes to visit him and after exchanging a couple of conversations, he leaves.

Unexpectedly, Park Cha-kyung is taken to a hotel by a Japanese military man. At the hotel, she meets a couple of other people like Section Chief Cheon, Junji Murayama, etc. Then arrives the chief security into the dining room with the evidence seized from the Woo-dang’s cabin. He explains the existence of the phantom to them.

The chief suspects these people and puts them under custody in the hotel. The hotel is an isolated building on the seaside. The chief gives them an opportunity either to confess their involvement in the anti-Japaniese movement or to help them in hunting down the Phantom group. To record every movement of the hostages, the chief arranges a vigilant team to tap their conversations. No one is allowed to leave the hotel and the chief hesitates to kill the suspects.

Codebreaker Mr. Cheon, secretary to the deputy governor-general Yuriko, office worker Baek-ho, communications officer Park Cha-kyung and Japanese-Korean police officer Murayama are under the observation of the chief and his men. To save their lives, the group in the custody should protect their involvement with Phantom.

The roommates search each other’s belongings to trace the things which connect them to the phantoms. A Japanese officer doubts Murayama Junji because his mother is Korean. Park Cha-kyung tries to escape from the hotel but fails. Under suspicion, the chief takes Baek-Ho in custody. Murayama Junji starts to doubt Park Cha-kyung and they have an argument. After pulling out the wires of the hidden devices, Murayama Junji confesses that he is a phantom. He asks her to work as a team to escape the building.

The chief captures Murayama Junji suspecting he is the phantom. He swears that he is not a spy. The chief almost confirms that Murayama Junji is a phantom. Baek-Ho who is already in custody confesses that Park Cha-kyung is also a phantom to save his mother.

The chief arranges a dinner for the hostages. At dinner, he asks Murayama Junji and Park Cha-kyung to confess their association with phantom. The chief kills Baek-Ho to provoke Murayama Junji and Park Cha-kyung from their silence. Watching the death of Baek-Ho, Yuriko starts attacking the chief. By the time everyone escapes from the dining room, Park Cha-kyung sits near the dying young employee when Yuriko enters the room. She tells Park Cha-kyung to be vigilant and shows the scars of brutal torture that Yuriko has gone through in her life.

Later, the two women start to work together to flee. They set fire to the electrical room and escape. The chief’s men start searching for the hostages. The girls unlock a grill door and Yuriko helps Park Cha-kyung to escape through the ventilation.

Hearing the sounds of the chief and his men behind them, Yuriko closes the ventilation and tries to commit suicide. However, her suicide attempt fails and the chief captures her. To save Yuriko, Park Cha-kyung sets fire to the fuel room.

While Murayama Junji and the chief fight, Park Cha-kyung rescues Yuriko. In the fight he kills the chief while Park Cha-kyung and Yuriko try to flee in a car. Murayama Junji tries to stop the girls from escaping.

Murayama Junji takes charge as the new head to hunt down the phantoms. In an inauguration ceremony, he displays 2 phantoms on the stage with a rope around their neck.

But Murayama Junji is interrupted by Park Cha-kyung and Yuriko and after a vigo finarous fight, the girls finally kill him.

Theme

‘Phantom’ takes the audience to 1933 when the Koreans suffer the Japanese dominance. To get rid of the Japanese colonial power, a n anti-Japanese movement outbreaks.

Awards

• Buil Film Awards 2023
  Best Music – Dalpalan

Interesting Facts about Phantom 

1. ‘Phantom’ premiered on 1099 screens on 18 January 2023 with a total of 41,499 admissions.
   
2. According to the estimate of July 2023, ‘Phantom’ accumulated a profit of US $5,188,615 and ranked as the sixth highest-grossing Korean film of 2023.
3. The filming of ‘Phantom’ was started on 4 January and ended on 21 May 2021.
4. The movie was inspired by the 2007 novel Feng Sheng by Mai Jia.
   

FAQs

1. Who is the director of ‘Phantom’?
   Lee Hae-young
2. When is ‘Phantom’ released?
   18 January 2023.
3. What is the Instagram ID of Park So-dam?
   @Imsodamm.