Today’s movie is “The Handmaiden” (2016), the South Korean drama directed by Chan-wook Park and written in collaboration with Seo-kyeong Jeong, based on the novel Fingersmithby Sarah Waters. The film follows Lady Hideko (Min-hee Kim), who is convinced to hire Sook-Hee (Tae-ri Kim) as a handmaiden based on the advice of a conman known as Count Fujiwara (Jung-woo Ha), in an effort to deceive Lady Hideko out of her inheritance.

Spoilers ahead.

I didn’t realize just how sexual this film would be when I started it. This film has all the lesbian intensity of “Blue is the Warmest Color” (2013), but set during the Japanese annexation of Korea in the early 20thcentury. The story has an emphasis on Lady Hideko’s uncle, Kouzuki (Jin-Woong Cho), and his collection of rare pornographic books, which he trained Lady Hideko to read and, in some cases, act out for other rich collectors.

Set in front of this erotic tapestry, however, is a very clever crime thriller told in a very excellent way. The first part walks through the proposed scam, with a surprise twist in story at the end. The second part serves as almost an origin story for Lady Hideko, with new perspectives during her courtship, and another surprise twist. And the final part finishes the story, in a simultaneously gruesome and erotic manner. Chan-Wook Park and Seo-kyeong Jeong’s translation to 20thcentury Korea is masterful, and Park’s direction and composition are incredible.

So, if there are any drawbacks, one is that this film is extremely erotic, which is necessary to the source material, but can sometimes upstage the overall narrative. And that upstaging is pretty amazing, given the two hour twenty-four minute running time, sometimes not really adding anything more to the story aside from another peek at the steamier events. It can also be extremely graphic, with lots of blood and physical abuse, which might be off-putting to many viewers.

“The Handmaiden” (2016) is an excellent film that everyone should walk into knowing what to expect. It deals with dark and erotic themes, but with a clever story and an excellent cast brought to life by masterful direction. Viewers not offended by the subject material will find an excellent film, set during a unique time in history.

Rotten Tomatoes: 95% (CERTIFIED)

Metacritic: 84

One Movie Punch: 8.2/10

Podcast: onemoviepunch.libsyn.com/episode-122-the-handmaiden-2016

“The Handmaiden” (2016) is not rated and is currently streaming on Amazon Prime.

Episode 122 - The Handmaiden (2016)

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Joseph Dobzynski, Jr.

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