Concrete Utopia

• Lee Byung-hun as Yeong-tak: a new resident representative.[14][9]
• Park Seo-joon as Min-seong: Myeong-hwa's husband who is a public servant.
• Park Bo-young as Myeong-hwa: Min-seong's wife who is a nurse.
• Kim Sun-young as Geum-ae: the daughter-in-law of the imperial palace apartment[15]
• Park Ji-hu as Hye-won: a high school student survivor[16]
• Kim Do-yoon as Do-gyun: an uncooperative resident[17][18]

• Lee Seon-hee as a resident of apartment[19]
• Joo In-young as Kim Po-daek[20]

• Uhm Tae-goo as homeless man[21]

On August 4, 2020, Lotte Entertainment announced a disaster thriller film with Um Tae-hwa as director and Lee Byung-hun and Park Bo-young in pivotal roles.[22] Park Seo-joon was also named to star in the film to be based on webtoon Pleasant Bullying by Kim Soongnyung.[14][23] Park Ji-hu[16] and Kim Do-yoon joined the cast in April 2021.[17]

The film is directed by Um Tae-hwa and produced by Climax Studio, and co-produced by BH Entertainment. It is distributed by Lotte Entertainment, who also work as international sales agent for the film.[1] The music of the film is composed by Kim Hae-won, while Cho Hyoung-rae is the cinematographer.[24]

Principal photography began on April 16, 2021.[25][26] The filming was finished in the end of August 2021.[27]

The film was released on August 9 on 1621 screens.[33] It opened at first place on the Korean box-office with 231,015 admissions,[34] and surpassed 1 million audience on 12 August, in 4 days of release by mobilizing 1,000,498 viewers.[35] It registered next million in 3 days, thus surpassing 2 million viewers in 7 days on August 15.[36] The 3 million mark was achieved on August 24, the 16th day of its release.[37]

As of September 19, 2023, it is the third highest-grossing Korean film of 2023 with gross of US$28,012,454 and 3,818,970 admissions.[3]

On the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes website, the film has an approval rating of 100% based on 14 reviews, with an average rating of 7/30.[11]

Choi Jeong-ah reviewing for Sports World praised the acting of Lee Byung-hun, writing "this movie is a comprehensive gift set for Lee Byung-hun’s acting." And also recommend him for the Best Actor Award. Choi felt the film was "more creepy than most horror movies." Concluding Choi wrote, "I feel like my black head has been caught by the lines of the famous painting called 'ordinary people'as a lot of thoughts come to mind while watching the movie."[38] John Lui reviewing for The Straits Times graded the film with 3 stars out of 5 and wrote, "Concrete Utopia unravels slightly at the end, but is mostly a darkly funny take on Nimby-ism as a force so powerful it will survive the ending of the world."[39] Casey Chong of Fiction Horizon rated the film 8 out of 10 and described the film as "An intriguing disaster movie that skilfully blends black comedy and psychological thriller." Praising the performances of lead cast especially Lee Byung-hun, Chong wrote, "Lee’s chameleon-like acting is no doubt one of the best performances I’ve ever seen in his illustrious career." He commended Tae-Hwa’s "confident pacing and crafty direction." Concluding, he opined that the film is a "cliched and oft-told as a disaster movie, still it can overcome its familiarity by giving it a thought-provoking twist with relatable themes, intriguing storytelling, and solid acting."[40]

Allan Hunter for ScreenDaily writing a positive review said, "A slick, inventive blend of jeopardy, violence and black comedy gains further appeal from the echoes of J. G. Ballard’s High-Rise and elements of biting satire in the style of Triangle of Sadness."[41] Alex Hudson writing in Exclaim! described the film as "a canny allegory about the haves and the have-nots". Hudson graded the film 7/10 and felt that albeit it lost the emotional impact of the film's survival element due to not having a fleshed-out relationship between lead couple, but in the last scene gets the themes back, "reinforcing Concrete Utopia as a savvy dystopian thriller with plenty to say".[42] Anna Miller writing in Next Best Picture graded the film 8/10 and wrote, "Concrete Utopia is a gripping, disturbing, and powerful representation of the worst of society, yet equally showcasing the best qualities in humans and how hope, community, and decency will always exist through the dust and devastation."[43] Kevin L. Lee reviewing for AwardsWatch at Toronto Film Festival, graded the film B- and praised the direction writing, "Despite handling familiar themes, Um Tae-hwa pulls through thanks to his direction and technical execution." Concluding Lee opined, "Concrete Utopia may not have something new to say but it has a lot of heart and soul in the telling."[44]

Metro Style describing Concrete Utopia as South Korea's submission in the Best International Feature Film category at the 96th Academy Awards, said "It is a strong action thriller that keeps you glued to the outside, but inside it is also a psychological drama that criticizes social phenomena."[49]