O Trono

I'm FURIOUS after seeing the rating of this movie. Nobody can call this movie 'average'. Historical facts are researched well; all characters' stories are fully developed; all actors actualize historical figures on the screen 'phenomenally'; mise-en-scene is traditionally artistic.

I especially want to point out that the effort of the director and the writer to develop all main characters' story fully so the audience can learn and really feel thoughts, emotions, and motivation making up this historical event. The son went crazy ignoring the duty of the prince and presenting eccentric behaviors. The father pressures his son in anyway possible to the point of madness and eventually kills him. It's difficult to understand the behavior of either one. However, the movie explains it all and persuades the audience. The father loved his country more than his son. The son went crazy because he thought he could not make anyone be proud of him. It was beyond sadness, almost aching to understand the responsibility and burden of the throne.

Song Gang-ho and Yoo Ah-in's acting .... makes me speechless. No words can describe how talented they are in this movie. Both the king and the prince are not easy to portray, but their actualization on the screen is magnificent.

Maybe, 40 minutes in the beginning little bit boring and slow, but must to watch until the end. I love how the plot told back-forward story, just watch the King's beard if you got confused hehe. This is drama of father and his son in the palace. The message that we can took from this movie is even though we don't believe to anyone, even as a King, please be nice to your own child.

A father son relation is beautifully narrated in this movie. Editing is 10/10. One must not miss that

I walked into this film, with the extent of my knowledge being the drawn portraits of Prince Sado and King Yeongjo floating around google images. By the time I left the cinema, I felt I've become close companions with these men.

There is a tragically mesmerizing direction Lee Joon Ik accomplishes in his intimate insight into the Royal family. It is difficult to project the arduous politics of the kingdom in a way which doesn't diminish the drama, but heightens its emotional punch. Believe me, it's quite a punch. A series of flashbacks investigates how the relationship between King Yeongjo and his son, Crown Prince Sado deteriorates. Essentially showing how a once proud father can condemn his son to a brutal punishment. It's a wonderful piece of film editing, gripping the viewers to a claustrophobic degree as we witness Sado's sufferings, while never losing interest in the family's origins whenever the film jumps back a few years or so.

Perhaps, the greatest element of this film is undoubtedly it's ability to depict deceased historical figures with a brooding complexity and vibrance. Particularly, Yoo Ah In's portrayal of Sado is captivating in its depiction of the man's compassion, thirst for freedom and his eventual conflicted psyche. Never is there once a hint of a stereotypical, one dimensional, cold blooded lunatic. No. This is an incredible portrayal of a human being, as these historical figures were.

The inability to emphasize with and encourage others is a fault exposed here. This is how the film transcends from a dramatic period piece to a work of art which deeply resonates in families caught in strife. It truly is an absorbing insight into life between the palace walls during the height of familial tension, boasting an emotional prowess that would tingle within you for some time. A masterpiece has been extracted from this segment of history.

My respect goes to Yoo Ah-in (Crown Prince Sado)for his performance, though there were other quite good performances as well. I have watched many Korean films, and was surprised to have not seen Yoo Ah-in's face before, so I googled his name. He appears to have been a model before taking on acting, and rightfully so based on his good looks. Not sure if modeling came before acting, but either way, this guy is not just another pretty face actor. There were a couple of scenes in the film where his character simply commanded me to well-up. The "trivia of decorum" is a phrase that stuck with me after watching this film. The only advantage of being the first born boy to a monarch in many ancient cultures (not just Asian), was that you were at least guaranteed meals, especially if times were hard. Otherwise, the pressures on young heirs seems to have been almost unbearable.