The “Worst Manners” category included professional misbehaviors and personal scandals. Jung Woo Sung topped the list with his latest paternity scandal, which derailed his career accolades. He starred in ‘12.12: The Day’, which dominated all of this year’s South Korean award shows, but his romance with model Moon Ga Bi and a long-term relationship timeline made the public uneasy.
An annual event, the program ‘Sports Kyunghang’ relies on 51 of the country’s key film journalists to decide the most disappointing performances and productions of the year. The following commercial Korean releases from December 2023 to November 30, 2024, qualified for this consideration. Three main categories drew attention to the worst performances in acting, manners, and overall films.
Kang Dong Won, who acted in ‘The Plot’, won the first prize in the “Worst Acting” category. The critics pointed to his “monotonous performance with no emotional depth” as one of the major reasons for the failure of the film, which gained a miserable 4.8/10 rating on IMDb. The jury was so unimpressed with his performance that they left the second place empty.
Action thriller ‘Project Silence’ makes Ju Ji Hoon top the list of “over-the-top acting”. Fourth place is a tie by Song Joong Ki and Song Seung Hun for different reasons. Song Joong Ki of “My Name Is Loh Kiwan” has been castigated on account of uneven acting in the film, not forgetting his questionable Yanbian accent. Song Seung Hun’s “flat performance” in “Hidden Face” could not save him from some of his fellow actors muscling him into the shadows.
The “Worst Manners” category included professional and personal scandals. Jung Woo Sung led the pack with the latest paternity scandal, which ruined his career’s accolades. He headlined ‘12.12: The Day’, which dominated all of this year’s South Korean award shows, but his romance with model Moon Ga Bi, and a long-term relationship timeline, had the public uneasy.
Academy Award winner Youn Yuh Jung (Minari) was also nominated for being rude, including asking journalists her age during interviews and smoking indoors. Critics said that “she blurred the fine line between being honest and being rude.”
The two who shared the third place were Jeon Do Yeon and the deceased Lee Sun Kyun. Jeon was attacked for “overreacting to a light-hearted joke” in her appearance on ‘You Quiz on the Block’, while Lee was criticized for perceived arrogance in group interviews. Kwak Do Won made the list due to his controversy over a DUI case, while Gong Yoo is on the list due to praise of former President Park Chung Hee and the unfeeling interview responses he made.
The “Worst Films” category crowned ‘The Plot’ as the worst film of the year. The movie failed in the storyline and the acting, thus attracting many critics. ‘Amazon Bullseye’ and ‘Project Silence’ ranked second and third, respectively.
Tied for fourth place was ‘Wonderland’, a high-profile project featuring stars like Park Bo Gum, Suzy, Gong Yoo, and Jung Yu Mi, alongside ‘Dead Man’ and ‘Devils Stay’. Even though it had an ensemble cast, ‘Wonderland’ was criticized for failing to meet expectations, thereby ensuring its place on the list.
Although the Raspberry Film Festival seeks to critically review and reflect on the current Korean cinema, the outcome of the festival this year has evoked debates from fans as well as critics. Being the case that stars as prominent as Song Joong Ki and Gong Yoo have fallen into scrutiny, the event has been used as a reminder that even these celebrated names are not free from criticism.