The new James Bond movie "Die Another Day" was released Monday in 145 theaters nationwide as some civic groups held protests in front of major theaters of Seoul, Busan, Gwangju, and Daegu because one of the film's bad guys is a North Korean. The movie has been discussed by some netizens who think the film could trigger hostility between South and North Korea, and those who say a movie should be viewed simply as a movie.

The percentage of tickets sold in advance stayed at a low 30 percent on Monday. However, 50 to 60 percent of tickets were sold on Tuesday in major movie theaters in Seoul.

Criticisms about the film arose on the Internet saying that the movie depicts South Korea as a developing nation. Furthermore, the movie has been condemned for portraying a North Korean military officer conspiring to use satellite weapons to initiate a war on the Korean peninsula.

Members of Solidarity for Reunification protested in front of Seoul and Daehan movie theaters Tuesday against watching the new James Bond film. Protesters shouted, "Put down the billboard of the movie that distorts the reality of the Korean peninsula."

In relations to this, President Lee Joo-sung (46) of Fox Korea stated that "Die Another Day" portrays both North Korean hard-liners as well as pacifists. Lee also said that he believes the Korean viewers have the intellectual ability to distinguish between reality and fiction.

Na Yong-min, who watched the film said, "I understand the protesters, but the main attractions of a movie is its fictional plot."

(Lee Tae-hoon, libra@chosun.com )