Masquerade

Korea in the seventeenth century. King Gwanghae fears being poisoned and orders that someone resembling him be found; on dangerous nights that man will sit on the throne in his place. The man they find is Ha-seon, a street performer who makes his living imitating the king. Then the king really is poisoned and does not come round for days. The court has to hide it, and Ha-seon stays as king. He begins running the affairs of state. And he makes different decisions. Choo Chang-min directs. Lee Byung-hun plays both the king and Ha-seon. It was a large commercial success in Korea and among the most watched films of its year, taking many of the country's film awards as well. The idea is this: how power is used depends not on who you are but on what you know. Ha-seon comes from the people and decides accordingly, which unsettles the court. Gwanghae was a real historical figure, and there is said to be an unexplained gap in the records of his reign; the film fills that gap with its invention. Lee Byung-hun separates the two characters through speech and bearing; no makeup or technical trickery is used. Its limit is the emotional register; the last section leans on a crowded farewell and the narrative softens there. Who it is for: viewers who like Korean period film and narratives of court intrigue. Who it is not for: it is long, the historical names are hard to follow, and the ending raises the emotional pressure.