REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, SEOUL -- Slightly more than half of films seen by moviegoers in South Korea last month were Korean films thanks to the popularity of such movies as "Kundo: Age of the Rampant" and "The Divine Move," official box-office data showed Monday.

According to figures compiled by the Korean Film Council, homegrown films drew about 10 million viewers in South Korea last month, up 1.72 million from a year ago.

The figure represents 51.5 percent of the total number of people who visited theaters to see movies.

Also last month, Korean films earned 79.3 billion won (US$76.9 million) at the box office, an increase of 1.9 billion won from a year ago.

Boosted by the success of Korean films, local theaters drew 19.87 million viewers in July, up about 1 million from last year, with their combined sales rising by 19.9 billion won to 155.6 billion won.

Meanwhile, attendances for foreign films declined by 670,000 to 9.64 million people during the month. Sales, however, rose 900 million won because of an increase in the number of 3D films, which are more lucrative than ordinary films, screened this year.

Released on July 23, "Kundo: Age of the Rampant," a period action flick by director Yoon Jong-bin, has attracted around 3.9 million viewers nationwide. "The Divine Move," a crime-action film starring veteran actors Jung Woo-sung and Ahn Sung-ki, was attended by around 3.6 million people. The movie about professional baduk players' quest for revenge was released on July 3.

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