| I Am the King | |
|---|---|
 Promotional poster forI Am the King | |
| Korean name | |
| Hangul | 나는 왕이로소이다 |
| Hanja | 나는王이로소이다 |
| Revised Romanization | Naneun Wangirosoida |
| McCune–Reischauer | Nanŭn wangirosoida |
| Directed by | Jang Kyu-sung |
| Written by | Hwang Seong-gu |
| Based on | The Prince and the Pauper byMark Twain |
| Produced by | Kang Young-mo Kim Won-guk Lee Sung-jin |
| Starring | Ju Ji-hoon Park Yeong-gyu Baek Yoon-sik Byun Hee-bong Kim Soo-ro Lee Hanee |
| Cinematography | Kim Dong-cheon |
| Edited by | Shin Min-kyung |
| Music by | Kim Jun-seok |
Production company | Daisy Entertainment |
Release date |
|
Running time | 120 minutes |
| Country | South Korea |
| Language | Korean |
| Box office | US$4.4 million[1] |
I Am the King (Korean: 나는 왕이로소이다;Hanja: 나는 王이로소이다;RR: Naneun Wangirosoida;MR: Nanŭn wangirosoida, also known asI Am a King) is a 2012South Korean historical comedy film, starringJu Ji-hoon,Park Yeong-gyu,Baek Yoon-sik,Byun Hee-bong,Kim Soo-ro andLee Hanee. Inspired byMark Twain's 1881 novelThe Prince and the Pauper, the film is set in theJoseon Dynasty with Ju playing thedual role of a king and a beggar.[2][3] It was released on August 8, 2012 and ran for 120 minutes.[4]
The movie depicts the three months before Choong-nyung (the futureSejong the Great) becomes king. TheAnnals of the Joseon Dynasty, which follow the history of theJoseon Dynasty between 1413 and 1865, leave out records of this crucial period. While to future generationsKing Sejong would stand as a legendary figure for his creation of theKorean alphabet and advancing the country’s scientific research and law, as Prince Choong-nyung he was known to be a bit of a reclusive bookworm.[5]
When his older brothersYangnyeong andHyoryeong fail to impress their fatherKing Taejong, the king makes a royal command for Choong-nyung to become the next ruler of the kingdom instead. The prince, who strongly refuses to become the king and just wants to live a happy and stress-free life buried in his books, chooses to escape the palace before his coronation ceremony.
After hours of contemplation, Choong-nyung escapes by climbing over the palace wall. There he runs into a bad-tempered drunken slave named Deok-chil, who happens to be at the palace to save the love of his life who was captured by government officials and put in prison for being the daughter of a suspected spy.
Deok-chil perfectly resembles the prince, so Choong-nyung instantly grabs the chance to disguise himself as a slave and they exchange clothes with each other. In a terrible twist of fate, when Choong-nyung wakes up after being knocked unconscious, he is mistaken for a slave and Deok-chil gets put on the throne. As Choong-nyung ventures outside the palace walls, he begins to open his eyes to the people living in extreme poverty and experiences the life of the common man.[6]
On August 13, 2012, a special screening was held atDeoksu Palace inSeoul, the first Korean movie screened outdoors on the palace grounds. Some 500 citizens as well as independence fighters and their families were in attendance. The event markedNational Liberation Day, which commemorates Korea's independence fromJapanese colonial rule.[9][10]
The film ranked third and grossed ₩3,400,628,393 in its first week of release,[11] and grossed a total of ₩5,037,762,632 domestically after two weeks of screening.[12]