| The Sword with No Name | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical poster | |
| Hangul | 불꽃처럼 나비처럼 |
| RR | Bulkkotcheoreom nabicheoreom |
| MR | Pulkkotch'ŏrŏm nabich'ŏrŏm |
| Directed by | Kim Yong-gyun |
| Written by | Lee Suk-yeon |
| Based on | Like Fireworks, Like Butterflies by Yasulok |
| Produced by | Yun Sang-oh Kim Mi-hee Park Min-hee |
| Starring | Cho Seung-woo Soo Ae |
| Cinematography | Kim Myeong-joon |
| Edited by | Kim Sang-bum Kim Jae-bum |
| Music by | Choi Yong-rak |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Showbox |
Release date |
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Running time | 124 minutes |
| Country | South Korea |
| Language | Korean |
| Box office | US$10,928,195[1] |
The Sword with No Name (Korean:불꽃처럼 나비처럼;RR:Bulkkotcheoreom nabicheoreom;lit. 'Like Fireworks, Like Butterflies') is a 2009 South Koreanhistoricalaction drama film, starringCho Seung-woo andSoo Ae. This film is based on a fictionalized account ofEmpress Myeongseong.[2][3] The film sold 1,671,387 tickets nationwide.[4]
Mu-myeong is a bounty hunter during theJoseon period who lives day-to-day by catching fugitives. His life is forever changed when, on one of his missions, he meets a beautiful noblewoman, Min Ja-young, and falls in love with her. Several years pass and Ja-young enters the royal palace to be married toEmperor Gojong as the next queen of Joseon. Lovesick, Mu-myeong joins the royal guard to be near Ja-young, staying loyally by her side as she navigates court politics and rises to the throne to become theEmpress Myeongseong.
Myeongseong tries to modernize the dynasty by breaking it off from its hermit kingdom past while avoiding being colonized by Russia and Japan. She becomes embroiled in a political power struggle with the court's conservativeConfucian faction, led by her own father-in-law, the regentDaewongun. As threats against the queen grow, Mu-myeong tries to protect her by fending off assassination attempts from foreign and domestic enemies.[5]
| Year | Award | Category | Recipients | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
2009 | 30th Blue Dragon Film Awards | Best Art Direction | Min Eon-ok | Nominated |
| Best New Actor | Choi Jae-woong | Nominated | ||
| 29thKorean Association of Film Critics Awards | Won | |||
2010 | 4th Asian Film Awards | Best Costume Designer | Shim Hyun-seob | Nominated |
| Deauville Asian Film Festival | Lotus Action Asia | Kim Yong-gyun | Nominated |