Two new Korean films push fresh forms of truth and everyday life in contemporary cinema.

Inspired by real events, but all characters and circumstances are fictional. Good News, Netflix released last month, opens with this caption. In true-story adaptations, this kind of line is common, but the film’s audacity starts from there. After the caption “Truth?”, the film presents lines that echo famous quotable phrases: “Truth sometimes exists on the far side of the moon. That does not mean the front side is false.”

The film’s Black Comedy is a standout, delivering its humor effectively. Set in 1970s Japan, it depicts hijackers who attempt to reach North Korea, only to be duped into landing at Gimpo Airport under the impression that it’s Pyongyang. The operation’s key figures are a nameless fixer under the orders of the KCIA chief and an elite-tinged Air Force lieutenant Seo Go-myeong. Rather than being weighed down by the era, the movie crafts its fun with a breezy tone, marking a new aspect for Korean cinema that treats real events.

In contrast, The World Owner seems like a familiar everyday drama at first. The film follows Eujin, a proactive student who refuses to join a mass petition and then receives an anonymous note. It develops without routine flashbacks and reveals how characters carry wounds and biases, prompting the audience to feel a wide range of emotions. This approach—new in its own right—demands the audience’s engagement with ordinary life as a theatrical space.

Like Bong Joon-ho’s Parasite, The World Owner withholds detailed plot points. Since its late-month release, it has drawn nearly 100,000 viewers. While it may not rank among this year’s top Korean films at the box office, it is hard to discuss the year’s Korean cinema without mentioning it. Its release amid the industry’s stagnation is a welcome sign.

Both Good News’s Beon Seong-hyeon and The World Owner’s Yoon Ga-eun are in their early 40s. The pairing of authorial voice and mass appeal has long been a pillar of Korean cinema. These two 1980s-born directors’ new works confirm that trend while signaling a new step forward.