Korean historical drama centers on a love that can never be
EPIC ROMANCE: THE SWORD WITH NO NAME (Kim Yong-gyun, 2009)
Tribeca Cinemas
54 Varick St. at Laight St.
Tuesday, June 19, free, 7:00
212-759-9550
www.koreanculture.org
www.tribecacinemas.com
Operatic in its emotional scale and shameless melodrama, Kim Yong-gyun’s The Sword with No Name is a sweeping romantic epic set in late-nineteenth-century Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. King Gojong (Kim Yeong-min) is taking a new queen, Min Ja-young (Soo Ae), soon to be known as Empress Myeong-seong. Before arriving at the palace, Min meets Moo-myoung (Cho Seung-woo), a local villager who takes her to visit the sea and then saves her from a vicious attack. Although theirs is a love that can never be, Moo-myoung earns a position as a low-level guard at the palace, determined to protect Min no matter what. The queen is interested in leading the nation out of its isolationism, becoming intrigued with European culture. However, as she sidles up with Russia, Japan starts feeling threatened, and the king’s father, Daewongun (Jeon Ho-jin), who is against change and modernization, challenges his son’s authority. As battles rage, loyalty is betrayed, jealousy reigns, and secret plots abound, the queen’s life is threatened, and it’s up to Moo-myoung to save her. Despite an increasingly sappy score, several ridiculous video-game-like fight scenes, a nationalistic fervor, and a choppy narrative, The Sword with No Name still manages to be an intriguing bit of historical fiction, based on actual events surrounding the Insurrection of 1882. The fiery passion between Min, who was Korea’s queen, and Moo-myoung, who is a made-up character, drives the film, even when the story gets way out of hand. The Sword with No Name is screening for free June 19 at Tribeca Cinemas, concluding the Korean Cultural Service film series “Epic Romance.”
Sex can be a very dangerous game, as clearly displayed in the epic Korean historical drama Forbidden Quest. After being labeled a coward for not filing an appeal after the brutal beating of his brother, investigations officer Kim (Han Suk-kyu) is summoned by the king to track down a forger who replaced an original painting by his favorite concubine, Jung-bin (Kim Min-jeong), with an exact copy. Kim seeks help from the Angel of Death, justice administrator Lee (Lee Beom-soo), the very man who was behind the near killing of Kim’s brother, to catch the forger, but in so doing he discovers the hidden world of erotic literature, where a mysterious figure named In Bong has become a hero to the women of the community as he churns out dirty book after dirty book that are sold in secret. A well-respected writer and scholar, Kim is at first taken aback by the existence of this illegal underground literary sensation, but soon he immerses himself in it, taking the pen name Chu Wol Sek and turning out hotly anticipated sordid tales involving a lady of the royal court, inspired by his continuing contact with Jung-bin. But when he takes things too far, a scandal breaks out that threatens violence and death. Written and directed by Kim Dae-woo (The Servant), Forbidden Quest is an engrossing, erotically charged drama of loyalty, fidelity, honor, betrayal, and responsibility, driven by a strong lead performance by Han (Green Fish, The President’s Last Bang), who is always cool, calm, and collected as things swirl around him, showing a Zen-like resolve even in the most extreme of circumstances. But even he can’t help but crack a few smiles when using his male copiers to act out potential sex scenes for his novels. Forbidden Quest is screening for free June 5 at Tribeca Cinemas as part of the Korean Cultural Service film series “Epic Romance,” which concludes June 19 with Kim Yong-gyun’s The Sword with No Name.
While most free Korean Movie Nights at Tribeca Cinemas focus on newer films, this week it reaches back to 2000 to commemorate the sixtieth anniversary of the Korean War. Park Chan-wook’s (the Vengeance Trilogy) drama takes place at the DMZ Joint Security Area known as Panmunjeom, the dividing line between North and South Korea and where soldiers from each country actually face one another directly. Major Sophie Jean of the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (Lee Young-Ae) has arrived to investigate the violent murder of two North Korean officers but discovers during her inquiry that key facts are missing involving South Korean hero Sgt. Lee Soo-hyeok’s (Lee Byung-hun) relationship to injured North Korean Sgt. Oh Kyeong-pil (Song Kang-ho). Told in a series of flashbacks, the gripping story deals with duty, honor, courage, and brotherhood — as well as the absurdity that war and politics inject into individual behavior and common human decency. As always, Song Kang-ho’s (THE HOST, THIRST) big, round face dominates the screen, his hulking figure at the center of the controversy.