The Last Princess (2016)

It is heavy opera. Nothing light-weight about it. And a rather outrageous (national) affront, too

"The Last Princess" is about Princess Deokhye, the youngest daughter of the 26th and last King Gojong of the Joseon Dynasty. The (sad) story is told in haunting images.


----------------------- SIDE NOTE: --- Historical context of Princess Deokhye ---
Under pressure from Japan, in 1907 the King had to abdicate in favor of prince Sunjong. Princess Deokhye herself wasn´t born at that time, but five years later, in 1912. The former king was then already 60-year-old. Being the daughter of his concubine, Deokhye initially received no official status as a princess. Yet she was very much loved by her father. However, the still young princess had to leave her parents and country at the age of 13 and grew up as a hostage in Japanese exile...
---------------------------------------


In taking on the princess´ story, the KMovie is simultaneously portraing a truly gloomy chapter in Korean history. Thus the movie itself makes you feel not only sad but even angry at times. One could say, the plot is about ´makjang´, written by history itself.

Although the historical facts are mixed up with a bit of poetic freedom, this (in my opinion) doesn't detract from the authentic circumstances of the Korean people being oppressed by the Japanese at that time. The producers of the KMovie have been accused of portraying the princess (despite her mental instability) in an overly sympathetic attitude towards the Resistance. Additionally her supposed engagement obviously was fictionally romanticized and falsified for the smoothness of the plot - on the other hand historiography doesn't know everything and why not fill the gaps with life by your own imagination und thus get a lively look&feel of almost forgotten times...

In any case, via the horrified eyes of the princess you will experience what colonialization might have felt like. There is plenty of heart and soul, as Son Ye-jin splendidly brings the tragedy of the princess back to life - with all her traumatization by the numerous personal blows of fate and forced by the historical circumstances of her time. Eventually, the movie brings this traumatic past vividly back to memory for those who experienced it themselves, and closer into the consciousness of today's society as well.

In short: It is heavy opera. Nothing light-weight about it. Nowhere. It is confronting the audience with a rather outrageous national affront. The movie want´s you to make a stand. And it actually succeeds in emotionally catching your compassion.

Read More

I saw this movie as soon as the subs were out. The poster caught my eye and so did the synopsis. I am so glad I watched it. It's a very well-directed and acted film.

FYI it is based on the real life of the last princess of Joseon Dynasty of Korea and her life's events are more or less depicted accurately. Some parts have been dramatized for entertainment but I liked that the major events shown were how they went down in history. It's quite emotional and I think irrespective of the country you are from, you will be able to relate with the pain Korean people went through under Japan's rule.

The casting of the film was on-point. Right from the child actress to Kim So Hyun to Son Ye Jin, everyone portrayed the princess excellently. I felt her pain and sympathized with what might have happened to her. Not only her but so many people in her life were affected because of the Japanese rule and if you look up her life on Wikipedia, it's becomes even more sad.

I love that this movie has an undertone of patriotism throughout and everyone can relate to that. The romance and rebellion is also there but it doesn't ruin or make the movie any heavier than it could have been. It's rather lighter than how I expected it to be. While this princess had a hard life I equally felt for her servants who waited for her for some 40-odd years.

The best part about the movie was the ending. Not only was it inspirational that life can go on in spite of hardships, it shows that this person who went through so much in her life got what she wanted at the end.

Hope everyone watches this film because it will make you respect the princess. The only flaw was the 'villain' because he was a little difficult to be taken seriously. At times it seemed too fictional and that's where the movie got lost a bit.

I commend the nice direction, great costumes, sets and the cast for their acting. Do watch this for a memorable experience.

Read More

No depth

Without knowing anything on the real history of the princess, this fictional account left me unsatisfied. I feel like there wasn't much going on here. The princess is sent to Japan as a hostage, but it only touches the surface of her situation in Japan. There isn't much character development and I'm left with a sad story with no real depth.

The acting was good. I felt for the princess who tried so hard to be a beacon of hope for her people, but was thwarted by the enemy. Our main leads were both invested in their roles and their performances were noteworthy. Unfortunately, the storyline wasn't very riveting, so there is only so much they can do with the script. I felt like some of the talent was wasted and underused in this film. Not worth the time.

Read More

This movie was so emotional and beautifully done. I cried my eyes out when Deok Hye returned to Korea. All three actresses that portrayed the princess did an amazing job of it.
This is based on the true story of Princess Deok Hye's life, so it's very hard to watch without crying.
I do wonder what happened to Jeong Hye, the princess' daughter?
Some of the plot was a little hard to follow for me, and I couldn't really tell the difference between the characters save for Deok Hye, Bok Soon, and So Takeyuki.
Overall it was an amazing and educational movie, and I'd recommend it to anyone who wishes to find out a bit more about the Japanese colonisation of Korea. (Spirits' Homecoming is another one to watch for that reason, but it is very jarring.)

Read More

The trailer for this movie looks exciting and intense. But when you finally watch it, it's not as exciting as the trailer makes it look. It's definitely intense - you won't be able to fall asleep while watching, but it has lulls in the plot. Plot-wise, it's meant to depict the life of the last princess of Korea; as you'd expect, it's not a happy story. I might be able to argue it has a bittersweet ending, but not happy. There's nothing objectively wrong with the way the story unfolds, it's just not the kind of ending that I find enjoyment out of, so for me, it's not a higher rated movie.

Read More

A touching historical story

Bukan pekerjaan yang mudah untuk membuat penonton merasakan emosi yang dialami oleh karakter secara natural, dan itu pencapaian terbaik dari film ini. Sutradara Hur Jin-ho berhasil membuat setup cerita yang oke dari kisah yang mengambil dasar dari novel berjudul Princess Deokhye karya Kwon Bi-young, ia buat kamu merasakan "feel" dari sejarah di dalam cerita tapi pendekatan yang ia berikan lebih modern dan tidak kaku. Itu yang membuat saya merasa mudah untuk klik, ini mengangkat salah satu kisah menyakitkan dari sejarah yang dimiliki Korea tapi mengapa kisah perjalanan dari Princess Deokhye terasa menarik hingga akhir karena yang film ini jual tidak melulu tentang sejarah, ini seperti kombinasi antara history story dengan melodrama rasa modern, a not so typical "heavy" drama tentang pendudukan Jepang di Korea.




Teman saya mengatakan ini merupakan kombinasi kisah nyata dengan sedikit elemen fiksi, sepertinya itu mengapa kisah ini jadi terasa menyenangkan untuk diikuti. Saya suka cara Hur Jin-ho mengemas cerita di sini, tentu saja ada pesan patriotisme tapi fokus kita sebagai penonton lebih diarahkan pada rasa sakit yang dialami Princess Deok-hye. Kisah tentang sejarah tetap clear tapi Hur Jin-ho bumbui dengan elemen fiksi yang berhasil membuat sisi sensitif yang dimiliki cerita jadi bersinar. Klasik sebenarnya, melodrama yang mencoba mengundang air mata penontonnya, tapi itu tidak terasa menjengkelkan karena mereka tidak terasa dipaksa. Ya, seperti yang disebutkan tadi pencapaian terbaik film ini adalah menyentuh emosi penonton dengan cara yang terasa natural, and Hur Jin-ho playing on it till the end.




The Last Princess terus mencoba membuat kamu merasa empati pada sakit yang dirasakan Deok-hye dengan cara manis, menyajikan dramatisasi yang oke dan tidak berlebihan. Ini unik meskipun bukan merupakan orang Korea di beberapa momen di film ini saya merasa haru biru pada apa yang dialami oleh Deok-hye. Itu karena selain unsur sejarah di cerita Hur Jin-ho membuat semuanya terasa universal, menjahit kisah tentang kasih sayang dengan emosi yang halus tapi terasa nendang. Meskipun begitu walaupun menjual drama film ini juga tidak melupakan elemen di luar emosi dan empati tadi yang sedikit lebih thrilling. Ketika Kim Jang-han muncul kamu akan bertemu dengan sebuah action thriller yang oke, usaha dan pengabdiannya untuk melindungi Deok-hye menjadi sisi lain yang mampu membuat rasa patroitisme menjadi sedikit lebih tebal tapi tidak mengganggu drama utama.




Tapi seperti disebutkan di awal tadi pencapaian terbaik film ini menampilkan emosi yang terasa natural, Hur Jin-ho mampu membentuk agar karakter punya kesempatan mengeluarkan emosinya dan tentu saja kesuksesan itu juga akibat kinerja dari aktor dan aktris itu sendiri. Bintang utamanya tentu saja Son Ye-jin yang menampilkan kedalaman emosi yang cantik dari penderitaan yang dialami oleh Deok-hye, menyajikan sensitifitas yang memikat dari kondisi bingung dan patah hati, rasa lelah terpancar manis di ekspresi dan tatapan matanya. Park Hae-il juga berhasil menjadi pendamping yang oke, ia menampilkan kasih sayang dan loyalitas dari Kim Jang-han kepada Deok-hye secara seimbang, ketika berurusan dengan bagian action ia menyuntikkan rasa intens tapi di bagian drama ia juga mampu menampilkan emosi yang cukup berwarna. Ra Mi-ran dan Kim So-hyun juga berhasil mencuri perhatian.




The Last Princess (Deokhye-ongju) berhasil menggambarkan penderitaan yang dialami oleh masyarakat Joseon ketika berada di bawah pendudukan Jepang, tapi itu bukan satu-satunya hal menarik dari film ini. Di tangan Hur Jin-ho ini merupakan sebuah kisah tentang pengorbanan, perjuangan, dan kasih sayang dengan memasukkan mereka ke dalam penderitaan yang menyakitkan, bermain dengan emosi dan air mata tapi tidak pernah terkesan memaksa dan berlebihan. Terasa natural, itu hal paling impresif dari film ini buat saya, meskipun klasik but there's a heartbreaking emotions at the end of the story. Segmented. ♡

Read More

Where I have been in 2016

OMG, I wish I didn't see the movie it's broken me into pieces, and the shock when it's based on a true story, I feel so sad about what kind of fate that's waiting for her in japan but in the end, she finally made it back to her homeland and all her memories coming back.

Besides the director make a great job by choosing an amazing actor & actress for this big movie and also the rest of the team make a great job on the music and the way of writing the senior.

This movie tells us how great nations and countries like Korea face injustice from the japan empire but they paid the full price through nuclear attacks by the USA in 1945.

Read More