If you are looking for a Korean musical you are in luck but only partially as I can only find two true musicals but multiple other films with singing/singers. Here is an overview.

구미호 가족 (Gu.mi.ho ga.jok)
The Fox Family

One of my favorite Korean films turns out to be a black comedy musical where mythical fox creatures can change into human form to try and eat a fresh human liver. But before you watch the film it is good to know some background information. The characters in this film are based off of the Gumiho (구미호) legend which literally means “9 tailed fox”. In oral tradition the gumiho is a seductive shape shifting female fox. In modern history it first came onto the silver screen in 1994 (“구미호”). This movie, “The Fox Family” changed the idea of gumihos in general as the appearance this was an animated family film (“Yobi, the Five Tailed Fox”).

In this film an entire family of gumihos come out from the mountains into the city of Seoul as they must consume a human liver during a special 1,000 year eclipse otherwise they will remain in fox form forever. Not being used to civilization their attempts at winning people over don’t result well. Will they have better luck with an Adam’s Family style circus or by trying to recruit the homeless from a tunnel?

Their visit to the city just happens to correspond to a number of murders in the area. Is it a coincidence or is someone getting hungry before the eclipse?

One of my favorites and the other true musical is “삼거리 극장” (Sam.geo.ri Geuk.jang) “ The Ghost Theater / Midnight Ballad for Ghost Theater”. But I already wrote about it here: Friendly Ghost Films –  so I don’t want to say the same things again. In quick summary; multiple songs, multiple musical styles, unique story; worth watching.

댄싱퀀 (Daen.shing qwin)
Dancing Queen

A man on the street saves a man from certain death in a subway mishap and becomes an instant hero. Using this media appeal he leaves his lawyer job and runs for office.

This means his life should be squeaky clean and shouldn’t stand out in ways his opponents could use against him. His wife is played by Uhm Jung-wha (엄정화) who has been a very popular singer in real life. With her characters background and the appeal of various singing contests on TV she decides to enter and see how far she can go.

This conflicts with the straight arrow image her husband is trying to achieve. Her success on the stage could mean the end of his political career before it even starts.

If you enjoyed the male lead (Hwang Jeong-min 황정민) or female lead check out their other work as they both have quite a bit to chose from. Also having sold over 4 million tickets it is one of the highest grossing films of the year.

미녀는 괴로워 (Mi.nyeo.neun Goe.lo.wo)
200 Pounds Beauty (sic)

Popular artists have been known to lip-sync or have someone else provide the vocals. That is the case here where the vocals are provided by an obese woman who doubles as a phone sex operator, again because of her voice. After a mean spirited joke rubs her the wrong way she decides to blackmail a phone sex client into giving her a total body cosmetic surgery makeover. It sounds pretty bad but they kind of gloss over this as the focus is the obese turned beauty and her new world where she tries to adjust.

And in this new form will she become everything she wants to be? And how long will she be able to keep the secret from her manager, her best friend, or even her dog?

While the movie is about singers who can dance there isn’t a lot of either. The main track is a cover of “Maria” but not much other singing except for a few concert and album recording scenes. Nothing spontaneous I’m afraid.

Honorable Mentions:
다세포 소녀 (Da.sae.po so.nyeo)
Dasepo Naughty Girls

While this movie was based off a popular web comic it didn’t fare well in theaters since audiences didn’t find it as shocking as the comic. There is one good song sequence at the beginning of the film but I cannot remember any others.

써니 (Sseo.ni)
Sunny

This is the 2011 about girls growing up, not to be confused with the same name film from 2008 about the Vietnam War.

While being one of the top grossing films in Korean history this isn’t really a musical but it does have some music and some dancing and is well worth watching.

화이트 (Wha.ee.tu)
White

A girl group hits it big releasing a remake. As they become more popular the members become more competitive to be the lead singer. But as each takes the lead position they fall victim to horrible accidents until the realization the song itself is cursed.

Being completely honest this is the only film I haven’t seen yet and that is because it is a horror film. I’m not sure how much music there is compared to horror but if you like the genre go for it.

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About the author

Richard Moore holds a B.A. in film production and has finished his M.A. in English Education in Seoul. You can see other posts about the life of him and his wife in Korea at www.rickandnyo.com.

Richard was my roommate in Seoul and now is a very good friend of mine. He and Nyo are undoubtedly my guiding light whenever I am in doubt about anything related to life in Korea.