the image. the story. the performances. parts of a South Coreean historical drama. like many others. but only at the search sigh. because it is more a parable than recreation of an episode from the past. it is touching and dark and strange. a story about love and power and relationships in a not ordinary manner, a story who not use the myth but represents a bitter trip to the essence of things. a film for a precise target. because it is wise answer to different challenges, because reflects the politics and personal life in a manner who reminds old taboo and ambiguous rules.it preserves the atmosphere of historical dramas, it propose same questions and solutions but it remains different because it preserves the rhythm of every day contemporary existence. short, a film about survive. and that definition could be enough.

I found this movie accidentally which also led me to start watching several South Korean soap operas later.I want to explain why the director employed such intensive sexually explicit scenes in the movie. One reason might be sex is the most powerful and primitive human behavior which would carry out the subsequently tragic endings. All to be said and done, this movie gave me such reflections which I felt the story couldn't be better. The struggling between conscious and desires is forceful enough to overwhelm audience's mind. The scenes and customs were also splendid in details. One thing I would like to point out is I watched both English and Chinese subtitles of this movie. Not to mention that Chinese version is way better. I think the language barrier can affect how you see the movie. The culture difference between east and west also have impacts.It is loosely based on history. The plot was unexpected and mind blowing. Some reviews criticized the young actor who played the guard was not veteran enough. I would differ over that because the director tried to show the young man's first love which would be longing, obsessed and addicted. The affection between the guard and queen was growing from lust to love. If you can imagine the society at that time which the two lovers only could express their affections privately, you will understand why the director used extensive sexual contents in this movie. However, the third part of their mating was excessive and unnecessary which only served for box office ticket sale.If you like those eastern historian movies, you probably should understand the society some. Then you will see the movies in different way.

This movie is nothing all that new and the taboo part of this movie is what drives it. Although it has some sword fighting sequence than and there. And the fight sequences although isn't the major part of this movie is well done. The other elements in the movie besides the taboo aspect of the movie is interesting enough to be passable. So the king of Goryeo Dynasty has palace guards and is being suppressed by the Yuan Dynasty and is pressured to make a heir from the Yuan princess. And things go wrong from there on. This movie also features Ju Jin-mo and Jo In Sung, two of the popular actors in Korea. This movie has few disturbing parts but if it had a bit more originality it would have been better cause it has been done before. Maybe a bit of a different direction with some shock factor, cause overall it's actually quite predictable. This is a watchable movie but doesn't really stand out as much as it should have.6.0/10

This film should have been a whole lot more engaging for my money. The film starts out as an epic sword fighting--die to protect the king--like saga (you see these boys being groomed to be the king's bodyguards and warriors when they grow up--kind of like a school for boy secret service agents actually.) where the "die for the king" like mantra is tried and true. This mantra gets severely tested later on in the film when the king starts going off his rocker--but we;ll get to that in a second. The king starts taking to this one particular warrior (a more "sensitive" kind) and appoints him his own personal bodyguard. Before too long--the 2 men are in a secretive affair. The king however decides to get married to a woman--got to protect the throne of course. eventually the king decides that he needs to produce and heir to protect the throne---however the king is having some sexual issues in bed with his wife (possibly because he secretly pines for his bodyguard when he's in bed with her.) He then gets the bright idea of having his lover/bodyguard to impregnate his wife on his behalf. The bodyguard who has probably never said No to the king in his entire life of course agrees to it--and before too long--the bodyguard and the queen are engaging in a secretive affair all their own. (yes i realize the affair can't be that secretive if the king hired him to impregnate the queen in the first place--but the queen and the bodyguard end up meeting behind closed doors in non officially sanctioned romance sessions as well)The King Then loses His mind with jealousy basically. I kept wondering who he was jealous of at first. Was he jealous of The Bodyguard or his wife? Turns out Both! That's more or less it for the plot---there's a king or queen or some kind of royalty at another kingdom who's plotting to take the king down and those attempts are the basis for some very well done attacks on the king's throne that the bodyguard (and other warriors as well) must fight off...but the main plot line seems to be all about the increasing jealousy of the king for his lover and for his wife. While i wish there was more of a competing plot line to go with here because this plot line while filled with good old fashioned drama--and dressed up in an old fashioned royalty costumed drama as well is kind of a bore after a while. I personally really relished the attacks by the other kingdom if only because it distracted me from the ultimate predictability of what was about to happen (although i will admit the actual ending was pretty darn good--when the inevitable happens and the king finally has a reason to justify his jealousy--his actions finally make the film suspenseful...not to mention squirm inducing as well--that's all i'll say about that--i leave what happens to the king and bodyguard to you fine folks to see--but it ain't pretty.) Film has gorgeous set design and costumes and lighting and plush scenery that really pops on camera--the whole works were done as is traditional for a costume royalty drama genre piece...and that's all well and good--but if the heart of the story doesn't grab you and keep you interested the whole way through, then its all for naught.