Bohemian Rhapsody, the movie that celebrates the band Queen and the life of lead singer Freddie Mercury, has rapidly become a national cultural obsession in both South Korea and Japan, reports Laredo Morning Times.

In South Korea, a country of just 51 million people, the film has already sold 9.4 million tickets, with box office receipts of $72 million second only to the United States and even overtaking those in the band's home country of Britain, according to film industry data.

Rising fast, in fourth place globally, with receipts of $56 million already, lies Japan, where word of mouth has played a key role in widening the film's audience since it opened in early November.

In South Korea, Queen-related events are being held across the country, including an exhibition of the photos by the band's official photographer Richard Young, and a hastily arranged tour by British tribute band The Bohemians.

Queen's songs are taking over South Korean national television as well, featuring in commercials and reality shows. A major broadcaster replayed the 1985 Live Aid concert in December, while young singers from the nation's enormously popular K-pop bands, who were not even born when Mercury died, staged a tribute ensemble in a televised year-end show.

In Tokyo, the movie is discussed endlessly in company cafeterias, bars and restaurants, with fans sharing their favorite scenes, where they could not hold back the tears and even which movie theaters allow people stand up, sing and dance along with the songs.

That in itself is quite something in reserved Japan, where moviegoers usually sit in absolute silence, even through the credits at the end of films.

Read more at Laredo Morning Times.

(Photo - 20th Century Fox)