# 12.12: The Day

12.12: The Day (Korean: 서울의 봄; RR: Seour-ui Bom; lit. Seoul's Spring) is a 2023 South Korean period drama film directed by Kim Sung-su, starring Hwang Jung-min, Jung Woo-sung, Lee Sung-min, Park Hae-joon and Kim Sung-kyun. The film is set against the backdrop of the December 12, 1979, military coup from the late 1970s to early 1980s. It was released theatrically on November 22, 2023.
The film has earned a worldwide gross of over US$97 million against a budget of about $17 million, making it the highest-grossing Korean film of 2023 and the fourth-highest-grossing Korean film of all time. It was also selected as the South Korean entry for the Best International Feature Film category for the 97th Academy Awards.

## Plot

After President Park's assassination, martial law is declared. Security commander Chun Doo-gwang and the officers who follow him stage a coup. Lee Tae-shin, a stubborn commander of the Capital Garrison Command who believes that soldiers should not take political action, fights against Chun Doo-gwang. As the conflict between the two men grows, the military leaders postpone their decisions, and the Minister of Defense disappears. In this chaos, spring in Seoul, which everyone longs for, heads in an unexpected direction.

## Cast

* Hwang Jung-min as Major General Chun Doo-gwang
* Jung Woo-sung as Major General Lee Tae-shin
* Lee Sung-min as General Jeong Sang-ho
* Park Hae-joon as Major General Noh Tae-geon
* Kim Sung-kyun as Brigadier General Kim Jun-yeop
* Kim Eui-sung as Oh Guk-sang
* Jung Dong-hwan as President Choi Han-gyu
* Ahn Nae-sang as Lieutenant General Han Young-gu
* Choi Byung-mo as Brigadier General Do Hee-cheol
* Park Hoon as Colonel Moon Il-pyeong
* Lee Jae-yoon as Lieutenant Colonel Lim Hak-ju
* Kim Sung-oh as Brigadier General Kim Chang-se
* Park Won-sang as Lieutenant General Go Jae-young
* Nam Yun-Ho as Colonel Kang Dong-Chan
* Yoo Seong-joo as Lieutenant General Min Seong-bae
* Hong Seo-jun as Ha Chang-soo
* Ahn Se-ho as Jang Min-ki
* Jeon Su-ji as Lee Tae-shin's wife
* Paul Battle as U.S. ambassador to South Korea
* Brad Curtin as General Beckhum
* Jung Man-sik as Major General Gong Soo-hyuk
* Jung Hae-in as Major Oh Jin-ho
* Lee Joon-hyuk as Warrant Officer Kwon Hyung-jin

## Production
### Background

Director Kim Sung-su revealed at the press conference that he was a senior in high school at the time of the Coup d'état of December Twelfth and was living in Hannam-dong, Seoul, where the incident occurred. He left his house and was walking around the neighborhood, and when he heard a gunshot from the Army Chief of Staff's official residence, he went there, but the soldiers controlled it. He was scared because he heard gunshots all night and he couldn't get close, but he was full of curiosity and questions at the time because he couldn't figure out what was going on, which led him to make this film.
The scenes set at the headquarters of the South Korean army were shot at the headquarters of Kyungpook National University in Daegu, North Gyeongsang.
In the film, similar pseudonyms are used instead of the real persons' names and, although it is based on real events, there are also fictional elements.

### Filming

Principal photography began in February 2022 and ended in July 2022.

## Reception
### Box office

As of December 3, 2023, 12.12: The Day has grossed $34.2 million with a running total of 4.66 million tickets sold. It became the biggest film of 2023 in Korea, when it grossed $90.5 million by end of December 2023. By the end of February 2024, it has grossed over $97 million.

### Public response

The film is in the 1980s, but Korean spectators consisted mostly of younger people (in their 20s and 30s) rather than middle-aged people (e.g. in their 40s and 50s). There was even a heart rate challenge among them, where people would check their heart rate using their smartwatches while watching the movie, then take a picture of it and upload it on social media to express heightened stress or righteous anger while watching the film.
As a consequence of the growing popularity of the film, Korean audiences showed an increasing interest in other film works with historical dimension, such as 5th Republic, which focuses on the Korean Coup d'état of December Twelfth.

### Critical response

A review for Screen Daily indicated that the film was "also entirely accessible to viewers with little knowledge of South Korean politics." "It's not often that a movie that's both so historically accurate and entertaining comes around, which makes 12.12 especially laudable," wrote The Escapist. Other reviews praised the production.

## Accolades

Name of the award ceremony, year presented, category, nominee of the award, and the result of the nomination :
| Award ceremony | Year | Category | Nominee / Work | Result |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Film | 12.12: The Day | Nominated |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Director | Kim Sung-su | Nominated |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Hwang Jung-min | Nominated |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Supporting Actor | Park Hoon | Won |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Editing | Kim Sang-bum | Won |
| Asian Film Awards | 2024 | Best Cinematography | Lee Mo-gae | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Grand Prize – Film | Kim Sung-su | Won |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Film | 12.12: The Day | Won |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Director | Kim Sung-su | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Jung Woo-sung | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Hwang Jung-min | Won |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Best Screenplay | Hong In-pyo, Hong Won-chan, Lee Young-jong, Kim Sung-su | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Technical Award | Hwang Ho-kyun (SFX makeup) | Nominated |
| Baeksang Arts Awards | 2024 | Technical Award | Lee Mo-gae (Cinematography) | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Film | 12.12: The Day | Won |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Director | Kim Sung-su | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Jung Woo-sung | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Hwang Jung-min | Won |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Supporting Actor | Park Hae-joon | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Screenplay | Hong In-pyo, Hong Won-chan, Lee Young-jong, Kim Sung-su | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Editing | Kim Sang-bum | Won |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Cinematography and Lighting | Lee Mo-gae, Lee Sung-hwan | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Best Art Direction | Jang Geun-young, Eun Hee-sang | Nominated |
| Blue Dragon Film Awards | 2024 | Technical Award | Jung Do-ahn (SFX) | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Film | 12.12: The Day | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Director | Kim Sung-su | Won |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Hwang Jung-min | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Actor | Jung Woo-sung | Won |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Screenplay | Hong In-pyo, Hong Won-chan, Lee Young-jong, Kim Sung-su | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Cinematography | Lee Mo-gae | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Art/Technical Award | Jang Geun-young | Nominated |
| Buil Film Awards | 2024 | Best Music | Lee Jae-jin | Nominated |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2024 | Best Director (Film) | Kim Sung-su | Won |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2024 | Best Actor (Film) | Hwang Jung-min | Nominated |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2024 | Best Actor (Film) | Jung Woo-sung | Nominated |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2024 | Best Screenplay | Hong In-pyo, Hong Won-chan, Lee Young-jong, Kim Sung-su | Won |
| Director's Cut Awards | 2024 | Best New Actor (Film) | Kim Eui-sung | Nominated |

## Related history

* Fifth Republic of Korea
* The Man Standing Next - film about the assassination of President Park Chung Hee.