South Korean Film 2018

The Princess and the Matchmaker (South Korean Film Review)

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• Genre: Historical, Romance
• Date Released: February 2018
• Origin: South Korea

Cast:

• Shim Eun-kyung as Princess Songhwa
• Lee Seung-gi as Seo Do-yoon, the fortune teller
• Yeon Woo-jin as Yoon Shi-kyung, fourth candidate as husband to the princess
• Kang Min-hyuk as Kang Hwi, second candidate as husband to the princess

• Choi Woo-shik as Nam Chi-ho, third candidate as husband to the princess

It is a very interesting story with top notched leads in Shim Eun Kyung as Princess Songhwa and Lee Seung-gi as the fortune teller. Both excellent actors.  I have to say also that Yeon Woo-jin never fails to deliver an excellent performance even as an anti-hero.  The rest of the cast are also brilliant.

The story started in a drought-ridden kingdom.  The people and the Royals are getting worried about the prolonged drought that they called every diviner, sooth-sayer, fortune teller in the land to end the drought.

It was agreed that the only solution is for the king’s daughter to be married at once.

The king agreed but he does love his daughter, though sired by a concubine.  The king held a series of contests to determine the most suitable husband for the princess.

The list was finally narrowed down to four.

The Princess was very upset and yet intrigued.  She overheard one of the candidates bad-mouthing her.  In her distress and fury, she ended up kissing the very surprised fortune teller/guard.

The Princess then decided to leave the palace and see for herself the candidates in their own turf.

While she was in her mission, the fortune teller met her again and accompanied her to meet the first candidate.

He was only 13 years old, too young, too immature.

The next candidate was super handsome and knows it.  He was hedonistic and into orgies and she found out that after marriage he is not likely to give up his penchants for beauties.

The third candidate was a very cruel man.  He likes punishing anyone even for a minor misdemeanor. She was lucky, she almost died in his hand if not for the protection of the fortune teller.

She decided to go back to the palace.

The fourth candidate is very cunning and very ambitious.   He forced the fortune teller, by threatening his blind relative, to write/fake a soji indicating that the fourth candidate, Yoon Shi-Kyung, is the most suitable one to marry the princess.

All was arranged, the princess was to marry Shi-kyung.  He even arranged for Seo Do Yoon to be tied up and locked and guarded so that the wedding can go ahead without any hindrance.

At the last moment, Seo Do Yoon appeared, having been helped by his apprentice to escape.  He confessed that it would be wrong for the wedding to go ahead as he was forced by Shi-kyung to write the soji.

Seo Do Yoon ended up being banished by the king while Shi-Kyung was arrested.

The princess begged the king to allow Do Yoon to come back, she said she was willing to give up her status as a royal.

This only enraged the king.  He asked her, “what is love?”

To which the princess says:

If in a person’s life is without love, what else is there?

A few days later it rained and rained.

The king gave the princess a choice.  Go and be with Seo Do Yoon but she can never return to the palace.  She will be stripped of her princess status and she will be removed from the royal records.

Awww, the ending reminded me of Julia Robert and Hugh Grant’s Nottinghill and.

“I am just a girl, standing in front of a boy, asking him to love her.”

But what Princess Songwa said was, ” I am just a woman in front of your eyes.”

To which he replied, “in my eyes, there is no other woman but you.”

Awww and this scene was in the middle of a forest carpeted by white daisy flowers.

Cute love story.