[Edaily Starin YUN GI BACK Reporter] This week, two films with completely different tones await audiences at the box office: “The Intern,” which shifts its setting to a Korean workplace for the first time in 11 years, and “Resident Evil: Night Zero,” a fresh reboot of the popular video game franchise. One adds warmth to intergenerational understanding and relationships, while the other delivers nonstop horror and action for 94 minutes.

◇“The Intern,” Rewritten by Choi Min-sik and Han So-hee
“The Intern,” released on the 16th, is a Korean reinterpretation of the 2015 Hollywood film of the same name starring Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway. The story unfolds when Ki-ho (played by Choi Min-sik), a “silver intern” with 37 years of experience, joins the company led by Sun-woo (played by Han So-hee), the CEO of a fashion startup.
The key point of interest lies not in “how similar it is to the original,” but rather in “how it has been adapted to a Korean context.” While the overall structure and warm sentiment remain familiar, the perspective on generational differences and workplace culture has been refined to reflect contemporary Korean society. Director Kim Do-young also explained that he placed emphasis on the story of people with different “labels” clashing and coming to understand one another.
Above all, the pairing of Choi Min-sik and Han So-hee feels fresh. Rather than simply imitating a sophisticated, Robert De Niro-esque older gentleman, Choi Min-sik portrays “Ki-ho” with a distinctly Korean sense of everyday life, while Han So-hee also distances herself from the influence of Anne Hathaway to bring her own unique take on “Seon-woo” to life. For audiences familiar with the original, there is the fun of making comparisons; for those who aren’t, there is the appeal of a cross-generational office drama.

◇Completing a 94-Minute Quest… ‘Resident Evil’
Released on the 17th, “Resident Evil: Night Zero” is a survival thriller in which Brian (played by Austin Abrams), a medical courier, encounters unidentified entities while heading to Raccoon City General Hospital in the middle of the night. Rather than continuing the story of the existing film series, this film draws on the atmosphere of the original “Resident Evil” video game within a standalone universe.
The appeal of ‘Resident Evil: Night Zero’ lies in its ability to keep the audience engaged by constantly shifting the atmosphere. Rather than lingering in any one location, the film rapidly moves between roads, farms, tunnels, alleys, and sewers, continually transforming the nature of the crisis. Coupled with the gradual escalation of weapons and situations, this creates a rhythm closer to a “survival game” than a simple chase thriller.
Director Jack Kreger is also skilled at modulating the intensity of the horror. He builds tension to the max, then gives the audience a breather with unexpected humor, before ramping up the threat again to fine-tune the pacing. Brian, the central character, is not a typical action hero but an ordinary person who is frightened and flustered, making it easier for the audience to get drawn into the situation. Audiences seeking a short, intense dose of genre thrills are likely to be highly satisfied.