AFTER a six-year hiatus, South Korean movies are set to return to the Chinese mainland’s big screens in wide release at last. Cinemas on the Chinese mainland will run the 2020 comedy “Oh! My Gran” starting Friday, the Beijing News reported Wednesday. Directed by Jeong Se-gyo and written by Kim Soo-jin, the title stars Na Moon-hee as Moon-hee, the titular spirited grandma suffering from Alzheimer’s disease who is the only witness of a hit-and-run accident that leaves her grandchild unconscious. The film tells the story of the sleuthing that ensues when she remembers a clue to the culprit. A South Korean film hasn’t had a proper theatrical outing on the Chinese mainland since 2015’s “The Assassination,” co-written and directed by Choi Dong-hoon, but seven South Korean films were invited to screen at the Beijing International Film Festival in 2018, including Hong Sang-soo’s “Claire’s Camera” and “The Day After.” Veteran South Korean actress Na was born in Beijing. Many viewers in China who were familiar with “Oh! My Gran” or her past works encouraged others to see the title in theaters over social media. Next year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of formal diplomatic relations between South Korea and China. According to data from Alibaba’s Beacon database, the top five highest-grossing South Korean films in China of all time are the 2015 spy flick “Assassination,” which grossed 47 million yuan (US$6.73 million), 2014’s “The Admiral: Roaring Currents,” which earned 27 million yuan, “The Thieves” in 2013, which grossed 22 million yuan, 2011’s sci-fi actioner “Sector 7” (21.2 million yuan) and the 2009 thriller “Tidal Wave” (16.7 million yuan).(SD-Agencies) | 