Title(s) AKA: The Royal Jester
Film Director(s): Lee Jun-Ik (Lee Joon-Ik)
Released: 2005 [Korea]

Plot: After being arrested for a public performance satirizing the king, two actors are given a stay of execution on the condition that they make the king laugh. This Chosun Dynasty dramedy was Korea’s all-time highest grossing film on its 2006 release.

Overview: Jang-seng and Gong-gil are co-workers, and the one and only true friend to each other, who belong to the same acting team on the road in the 1500s during the Chosun Dynasty. But being indignant of Gong-gil’s falling prey to the powerful and rich nobleman as a pervert, Jang-seng persuades Gong-gil to come to Seoul for a big show site to make money on their own. Jang-seng, with distinguished leadership and unparalleled acting skills, in addition to his creative ideas for the shows, turns into a leader of an acting team on the road and leads his team to hit the jackpot by playing a show about the King, who takes no heed of his country but goes on the racket and his lady, femme fatale, Nok-soo. Jang-seng’s team makes a lot of money and it feels like almost the happiest moment of their lives. But they are all arrested for insulting the royal king. All the team actors are flogged like hell, but Jang-seng, so unbending with his belief that ’there is a way out of every situation however bad,Â’ has the guts to say that they want the King to watch the show and that if the King laughs, they are free from the charges they’re arrested for. But in front of the King, all the members of the team are on edge and far from showing their real ability. However, Gong-gil, usually so quiet and reserved, shows an unexpectedly voluptuous girlish role and it causes the king to laugh off his seat, which leads all the members to staying in the palace.

Cast: Gam Woo Sung (Karm Woo Sung), Lee Jun Gi (Lee Joon Gi), Jung Jin Young, Kang Sung Yeon

Running Time: 121 mins. (approx.)
Languages: Korean (Dolby Digital 2.0 - Stereo), Mandarin (Dolby Digital 5.1 Surround)
Subtitles: ENGLISH, Chinese, Korean