Hoo-goong: Je-wang-eui cheob

Things jump quickly from one thing to another and it was hard to follow what was going on. Felt like a series on fast forward. Just couldn't keep up with the different characters. Why they did what they did isn't explained well.

This is probably a good, or maybe even great, movie. I struggled through the entire thing. I am a native English speaker with a Masters degree ... I CAN read English. The sub titles appear on the screen and are gone too fast for anyone to completely read. Countless times I had to stop the film and skip back to read the subtitle. It was IMPOSSIBLE to take in the subtitle content and to appreciate the beautiful photography. The subtitle appeared on the screen as the actor began to speak and then immediately disappeared as their line was finished. Leaving the subtitle up for perhaps another 5 seconds, as in other subtitled movies (and I watch a lot of them), would have solved the problem. Such a shame to ruin a beautiful film with such a stupid technical error.

One might say there is a pun in my summary line ... maybe even two. That aside, the movie is really tight when it comes on the story. It is quite fast paced all things considering and especially if you think about how much it does pack in.

Concubine may suggest some erotic encounters - and if that is what you think and expect you will not be dissapointed entirely. Just do not expect this to be focused on that. The scenes of sexual nature have a meaning to the story and to the characters. They also move along the story or plot lines.

Having said that, I guess this was discovered in the West because of the main actress being a part of Parasite. This goes to show you, there is much to find in Korean cinema that we haven't yet had a chance to view yet.

You may not like how characters act and what they decide to do. The questions if we couldn't just love each other instead of being so suspicious towards each other ... well you wouldn't have this tension filled movie otherwise now would you?

You would think this movie is solely a movie about two guys wanting the same woman and being willing to do anything to have her. While this is a part of the film it is only a small part of a much larger drama that has much more to do with mothers.

The title is a bit confusing and I can only assume that it was named such due to a "Spilling the Beans" moment in the film. There is sex but not in the volumes that one might expect by the title.

The acting was quite well and I could really feel the emotional energy from the female characters coming through. It was filmed well but the scripting was convoluted in places and could've been delivered just as well with a few things omitted.

Overall, I enjoyed the film. I liked our female characters and the obsessive nature, be it fueled by jealousy, lust or revenge, of the males. Glad I found and watched it and I will be recommending it as a nice work of dramatic historical fiction.

The previous reviewer dwelled on the penis thing and the erotic aspect of this film, but I think he, along with many others, missed the point. It's partly the fault of the advertising campaign, which I understand emphasized Jo YeoJung's (as well as other actors') nude scenes -- but I don't know how anyone can still retain the impression that this movie is an erotic bodice-ripper after actually watching it. This is a dark, perilous journey through the obsessions and grudges of people who cannot stop running lest they fall behind, and the sweat is all of the cold kind.

The said scenes involving nudity and sexuality are not in the least erotic, nor did I find Kim DongWook's reaction to the coitus-by-the-book(literally) as the hapless young king at all comedic, intentionally or otherwise; rather he did a fine job of assaying a pathetic and desperate character trapped in an intolerable situation, and his mental near-collapse was almost palpable. And the supporting characters' stories did not interfere with the unfolding of the main plot for me -- they were not subplots so much as back stories for the characters' motivations, and served to flesh out, not complicate, the plot.

Aside from the mostly fine direction and the acting -- which latter ranged from decent (in a few cases) to very good (mostly) -- for me the art direction and cinematography were particular standouts. While most historical epics tend to emphasize sumptuous costumes and the splendor of the architecture and ornamentation, this movie did the opposite; while it is visually rich in its own, gloom-laden way, everything in it is in dark, muted colors as if it were dyed with tea, the ladies wear little jewelry and the sets are kept very lean, to sometimes very striking, almost expressionistic, effect, as when HwaYeon's maid is assigned new, better quarters of her own after catching the King's eye, but the room is entirely empty, and the woman is shown laughing in semi-hysterical self-congratulation on a tiny mat on an otherwise bare floor.

There are many, many scenes shot at very close range, often lit by simulated candlelight at night, creating an overall claustrophobic feel that visually replicates the suffocating atmosphere of the intrigue-riddled court these people endured. Fittingly, the scenes of violence are presented suddenly and starkly, with minimal cues in the soundtrack, which makes them all the more shocking yet realistic.

While not exactly a masterpiece, this movie is a well-thought out and well-executed production, much superior to the kind of titillating fluff it is made out to be by some. It definitely deserves a thoughtful watch.