[Dispatch=Lee Myung-ju Reporter] Director Na Hong-jin's new film "Hope" is showing promising signs at the box office.

The Video Ratings and Administration Committee announced on the 1st the rating decision for "Hope." The film was classified as 15 and over.

"Hope" underwent assessment in a total of seven categories. In the categories of subject matter and violence, dialogue, and horror, it received a 15 and over rating, while in selectivity and other categories, it received an all-ages rating.

The committee explained, "There are damaged animal carcasses, killings and bloodshed from attacks by bizarre creatures, and bodily injuries, but they are not graphic."

It added, "There are scenes with elements that induce fear, such as extracting organs from bizarre creatures and scenes of grotesque monsters chasing, but these are not sustained."

Regarding some crude profanities in dialogue, the committee stated that while there are multiple instances of derogatory language, they are at an acceptable level in the context of the story.

"Hope" has a runtime of 160 minutes. This matches the version submitted to the 79th Cannes Film Festival, which competed in the main selection. It appears efforts were focused only on reinforcing the CG.

"Hope" is a work set against the backdrop of the demilitarized zone's Hopogang. It begins as the entire village is thrown into emergency over news of a tiger appearing.

Before its release, it achieved the highest pre-sales figure in Korean film history. With distribution confirmed in approximately 200 countries worldwide, the production recovered half of its production costs early.

Meanwhile, "Hope" will be released domestically this summer. A September release in North America has been confirmed.

<Photo provided by PLUS M Entertainment>