A Frozen Flower (2008)

A historical drama set in the Koryo dynasty and focused on the relationship between a king and his bodyguard.

Director:

Ha Yoo (as Ha Yu)

Writer:

Ha Yoo (screenplay) (as Ha Yu)

Stars:

In-Sung Jo, Ju Jin-Mo, Song Ji-Hyo

4 wins & 6 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
In-Sung Jo	...	Hong-rim (as In-seong Jo)
Ju Jin-Mo	...	King
Song Ji-Hyo	...	Queen
Cho Jin-woong	...	Tae Ahn-gong
Ji-ho Shim	...	Seung-ki
Ju-hwan Lim	...	Han-baek
Tae-won Kwon	...	Jo Il-moon
In-beom Ko	...	Yeon Ki-mok
Yong-gu Do	...	Ki Won-hong
Min Ji-Hyun	...	Queen's maid (as Ji-hyeon Min)
Son Jong-hak	...	Emissary
Song Joong-ki	...	No-tak (as Joong-ki Song)
Jong-Hyun Hong	...	King's Man #1
Hyun Woo	...	King's Man #2
Lee Poong-Yoon	...	King / young

Storyline

The period is the late 14th century, and the last waning gasp of the centuries-old Goryeo Dynasty. As that regime comes to a bitter end thanks to the machinations of the Yuan Dynasty, The Goryeo king responds by organizing a military force known as Kunryongwe, led by the daunting commander Hong Lim. The leader captivates the king to an alarming degree - to such an extent, in fact, that he almost completely diverts the regent's attention away from his queen, leaving her with tremendous feelings of reluctance and hesitancy about this relationship. Meanwhile, the manipulativeness of the Yuan doubles: they unsuccessfully attempt to subvert the king by placing a threatening ruler in a high position, but the king - sensing this Machiavellian scheme - adamantly refuses, much to the consternation of the top-tiered Goryeo officials. The ruler also devises a complex and wickedly clever scheme to protect the Goryeo line for future generations by appointing Hong Lim to impregnate the queen and ...

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Plot Keywords:

sex | bodyguard | royal court | gay man has sex with a woman | castration | 

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance

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Did You Know?

Quotes

Hong-rim: [from subtitle]
[He kneels on the ground, behind the king who is standing]
Hong-rim: Your Majesty. I deserve to die. I was blinded by foolish desires and betrayed and humiliated you.
[He put a special sword in front of himself on the ground, crying]
Hong-rim: This is the very sword you granted me. Please take my life with it. I shall seek your forgiveness in death.
King: [the king turns back and looks at him] You've given away something more precious than life. What good would it do to take your life, now?

User Reviews

Mind Blowing and Moving

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 portray 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 could only 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.

Details

Official Sites:

Vidio [Indonesia]

Country:

South Korea

Language:

Korean

Release Date:

30 December 2008 (South Korea)

Also Known As:

A Frozen Flower

Filming Locations:

South Korea

Box Office

Budget:

$10,000,000 (estimated)

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$18,980,744

Company Credits

Production Co:

Opus Pictures, Universal Pictures

Technical Specs

Runtime:

133 min 143 min (director's cut)

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1