The
play’s still the thing for King Yeon-san, the worst tyrant of the Chosun
era. However, it will be the consciences
of his enemies in court that will be pricked by the productions staged by two
very different thespian-minstrels in Lee Jun-ik’s King and the Clown (trailer here), which screens this Tuesday as part of
the Korean Cultural Service’s fortnightly free Korean Movie Night in New York.
Newly
arrived in Seoul, female impersonator Gong-gil and his ambiguous protector
Jang-seng hit upon a popular gimmick when they start mocking the dissolute
monarch in their skits. Of course, this
attracts the wrong sort of attention from zealous court ministers. To forestall a flogging, Jang-seng agrees to
a dangerous proposition—make the King laugh with their controversial routine or
face execution.
Though
not exactly prone to self-deprecating humor, Jang-seng and Gong-gil somehow
manage to turn that frown upside down.
Frankly, it was largely the feminine Gong-gil. Nevertheless, the King quarters the entire
troupe in the palace. Getting tips from
the wise councilor Cheo-sun, their next command performances skewer thinly
veiled court officials for their corruption and disloyalty. Since the King uses the resulting discomfort
as proof of a panged conscience and grounds for execution, these shows are
decidedly unpopular with the titled bureaucracy. The King quite enjoys them though and he is
also becoming quite taken with Gong-gil.
This does not sit well with his Machiavellian consort Jang Nok-su, or with
the increasingly disillusioned Jang-seng.
While
K&C might imply a heck of a lot,
it never shows even the slightest bit of handholding between Gong-gil and the
King. Yet, its chaste homosexual themes
were more than enough for the notoriously homophobic Chinese Communist
government to ban the film. The
depiction of a corrupt tyrant hastening his downfall through the capricious
abuse of power probably did not help either.
Frankly, the China no-go is always a positive indicator a given film is
definitely worth seeing.
Indeed,
K&C is an entertaining costume
drama, with plenty of intrigue and a fair amount of action (but no hanky-panky). As Jang-seng, Kam Woo-seong is a totally
manly, completely credible action hero and a monster brooder. Lee Jun-ki’s Gong-gil seems to be stuck in a
state of arrested development, emotionally and intellectually, but he certainly
looks the part. Jeong Jin-yeong seethes
like mad, but he is also quite compelling expressing the roots of the King’s
madness. However, it is Kang Seong-yeon
who really delivers the guilty pleasures as the lovely and deliciously devious
royal consort.