A Frozen Flower (2008) User Reviews

Mind Blowing and Moving

[cheer88 · 8/10 · 17 July 2015]

I found this movie accidentally which also led me to start watching several South Korean soap operas later.

I want to explain why the director employed such intensive sexually explicit scenes in the movie. One reason might be sex is the most powerful and primitive human behavior which would carry out the subsequently tragic endings.

All to be said and done, this movie gave me such reflections which I felt the story couldn't be better. The struggling between conscious and desires is forceful enough to overwhelm audience's mind. The scenes and customs were also splendid in details.

One thing I would like to point out is I watched both English and Chinese subtitles of this movie. Not to mention that Chinese version is way better. I think the language barrier can affect how you see the movie. The culture difference between east and west also have impacts.

It is loosely based on history. The plot was unexpected and mind blowing. Some reviews criticized the young actor who played the guard was not veteran enough. I would differ over that because the director tried to portray the young man's first love which would be longing, obsessed and addicted. The affection between the guard and queen was growing from lust to love. If you can imagine the society at that time which the two lovers could only express their affections privately, you will understand why the director used extensive sexual contents in this movie. However, the third part of their mating was excessive and unnecessary which only served for box office ticket sale.

If you like those eastern historian movies, you probably should understand the society some. Then you will see the movies in different way.

A Nutshell Review: A Frozen Flower

[DICK STEEL · 7/10 · 25 July 2009]

A Frozen Flower got billed here as "The Year's Sexiest Blockbuster", and writer-director Ha Yu's movie could probably be also billed as an equivalent to Zhang Yimou's Curse of the Golden Flower, given its period setting and schemes within a royal household, plenty of gorgeous costumes, opulent production sets, with a tinge of wire-fu martial arts and a chock load of mixed romances thrown in for good measure too.

Set in the Korean Koryo era where it's under the control of the Mongol's Yuan Dynasty, the current gay Koryo King (Joo Jin Mo) sets up his own elite bodyguard troops, recruiting 36 young boys to undergo extreme training and eliciting pledges of unfettered loyalty from this group of trusted men. Amongst all he favours Hong Lim (Jo In Sung), and spent plenty of personal and quality time with his pet, from the open plains hunting to the courtyards training, right down to the games both play in the royal bedroom. Nepotism runs in the royal household, since it's an open secret as to why the King appoints Lim as chief of his bodyguards, undoubtedly also because of the advantage of up close and personal already from within the royal chambers.

The male-centric world soon got shaken by the introduction of the Yuan princess to be Queen (Song Ji Hyo) in an alliance forged by marriage, and I guess you can see how this third party could cause severe problems. Pressure mounts when the royal family is expected to bear an heir, otherwise a successor to the throne will be appointed. This displeases the King of course, given someone on the outside waiting in the wings for his demise, but then his sexual preference also meant that he can't get it up. So in desperation, he crafts a crazy plan in over to hang onto power, and that's to order his lover Hong, to impregnate the Queen and produce an heir whom he will accept as his own, thereby protecting his throne. The Queen reluctantly agrees of course, but as a woman who accepted to be loyal to the kingdom, she's got to do what is best for her husband. As for Hong, well, it's duty toward both King and Country.

What this does is in fact to push both the Queen and Hong into an uncontrollable sexual awakening, which the rest of the film pretty much centres upon, dealing in relationships, and the vast emotions that come along with it, including the negative ones like jealously and ultimately, rage and hatred. While at first Hong couldn't get himself to betray his first love, I guess it probably is easier for any guy to treat sex as sex without an emotional baggage, though it did tickle Hong's heart that perhaps the female of the species was more interesting, and his breakaway from a male-centric relationship, was seen as a betrayal and treason to the King.

As for the Queen, the power of fleshly pleasures from this perverse consummation of a marriage, sees to it that she gains some strength in taking over some control in her restricted life, and plots to seduce Hong even more so that she could satisfy her lust, which for both parties, transform into a healthy heterosexual relationship in which the King obviously despises. I suspect there will be some quarters cheering the film in depicting that homosexuality can be cured by a good dose of sex to open their minds, but I thought it was more of a matter of choice and opportunity being presented here, since the sexual preference get contrasted between Hong and the King's is quite clear – one's obviously following the heart, the other his orders, which slowly developed into silent insubordination, before the heart fully takes over. In any case this romantic triangle will push and probe when you're viewing this, as there are plenty of insights to gain from if you were to put yourself into the shoes of either party, and determine how you would react to the sequence of lustful events.

The film of course goes beyond love and lust issues, although Hong and the Queen go at each other like jackrabbits. There's also a subplot involving the usual political intrigue (having the film set in a period setting and not dwelling on this seems wasted), with political assassinations bringing about some major set action sequences. I felt it would have probably benefited audiences with no clue about the Yuan dynasty control over Korea at the time if this was given a little more focus, but I suppose it's left to further reading on our own. Or had a bit more about the bodyguard unit because they were being utilized for a lot more activities like counter-espionage rather than just plain protection purposes.

This being Singapore, you'll get to see the more explicit heterosexual scenes between the bisexual and the straight woman quite intact, though the only (at least the only one that made it) homosexual one was butchered for the most parts. Those who prefer their films intact could go opt for the DVD instead, as the Koreans have already released this, which includes a limited, unrated 2-disc edition.

The Frozen Flower Shop

[samuelding85 · 6/10 · 14 July 2009]

One would be puzzled with the title of the movie: Frozen Flower, or better known as Frozen Flower Shop in Korean. While the title was related to a song performed in the movie, the plot is far stretched from what it seems to be.

Set in the Koryo Dynasty, the King (Ju Jin-Mo) and Hong Lim (Jo In-Seong), the chief of guards, are two best friends growing up together. Hong Lim devoted his life to the King, while the King sees him as a close friend he can trust, including the physical intimacy they shared with each other.

Under the pressure from the Yuan Kingdom of China for unable to have a son as a heir, the King comes with a solution: to allow the Queen (Song Ji-Hyo) conceived by Hong Lim. After sharing the intimacy with Hong Lim, the Queen began to meet Hong Lim in private, so as to fulfill her desire. It ends up in a tragedy which no one would have foreseen in the first place.

Directed by Ha Yu (Marriage is a Crazy Thing), Frozen Flower dealt with the modern day issues in a ancient Koryo Dynasty background. Homosexuality and adultery are the two topics which is a hush-hush in South Korea today, has been fully exploited and utilized in the palace. Issues such as conspiracy on overthrowing the King and control of power, which were commonly seen in a Korean drama, did not get a chance to see the daylight. It ends up as a supporting agenda to tell the story.

The movie revolves around the King, the Queen and Hong Lim, on exploring their desires for each other, betrayal and lust. Apart from that, there is nothing much left to see on the remaining characters, since they are dispensable, and their existence in the story do not give much support to the presentation of the story.

The affection between the King and Hong Lim were displayed through their daily conversations and actions to each other, such as feeding each other when sick, exchange of sword fighting skills and pillow talks. On the other hand, you will get more than what you see for the relationship between Hong Lim and the Queen, where both were seen having sex most of the time.

Frozen Flower can be easily related to any modern day love triangle relationship drama, or some modern day Korean drama sharing the similar plot. However, the movie is greatly similar to Intimate Confessions of a Chinese Courtesan (1972) from HK's Shaw Brothers Studios. The 1972 production discussed similar issues, in the view of 2 women and a inspector.

If sword fighting and love triangle relationship is your cup of tea,Frozen Flower will be a good choice.

Totally enjoyable

[eucalyptus9 · 20 October 2011]

I didn't think that a film about a homosexual king persuading his lover to sleep with the Queen to produce an heir would be very exciting. But as so often happens, it was. I've watched this twice now, and appreciated the film a lot more the second time around.

The lead characters are well drawn, the dialog is interesting, the acting is excellent - heck, I even liked the music. There's not an over-abundance of battle and fight scenes, but what scenes there were were well -staged, and I thought the final scenes were as good as anything I've seen.

And, of course, there's sex - lots of bare-bottomed bare-breasted, tongue in tongue, man on man, man on woman sex. But none of it descends into sleaziness and perhaps because Ji-hyo Song is such a beautiful woman (and, dare I say it, In-seong Jo is such a beautiful man) the scenes don't become tedious as they do in so many other other movies. The scenes are completely integral to the movie. Funnily enough, I've always thought of the French as being the only ones capable pf handling sex in cinema properly. The Germans and Spanish and Australians always tend towards crudity, the Americans invariably imbue their sex scenes with their childish puritanism, and sex in Asian cinema can be downright ludicrous. But having said that, the most erotic and interesting sex scenes I've seen have all been in Asian movies - "Samsara", "Erotic Ghost Story", "A Frozen Flower".

I really like this film - it gets a 9/10 from me.

Don't play with other people's feelings

[AppleEye2U · 7/10 · 8 November 2016]

Just saw the director's cut of this movie, because I wanted to see some earlier work of actors, who are playing in recent k-drama series, and I am still reeling from the shock. The shock effect of Blood & Flowers or The Frozen Flower has nothing to do with the sex, violence, or death scenes in this movie. I found the story harsh, because of its total lack of romance. I can handle Asian love stories, that are heading towards an inevitable unhappy ending, but a complete absence of love, or love that is misunderstood, makes me sad.

This movie made me think of that old French classic "Les Liaisons Dangereuses" (1782) of Choderlos de Laclos. It shows how people, who are playing with other people's loyalty and love, will destroy everybody involved, including themselves.

I won't reveal too much about the story lines and I don't want to discuss the homo sexuality in this movie either. It has been done already, and better. This movie left me with a lot of questions about love. Can lust turn into love? What is love anyway, is it just a pleasant misunderstanding between lovers, if it isn't tried too much? Can you gain something in life if you use your heart in stead of your brain? I won't take 'no' for an answer, but this movie does. At least I got the impression the second man in the king's guard, who wanted to claim the position of his chief, survived everyone in the end, because he was such a cold, calculating bastard.

My verdict: Blood & Flowers left me in the dark, and in a dark mood. I still give it a 7 out of 10, because the acting was really good. Also the characters are fleshed out, no one is really good or evil. I recommend this movie to everyone, who wants to discuss the meaning of love with some friends afterwards.

A really great movie.

[naazanin · 10/10 · 19 September 2015]

"A frozen flower" is a great movie in terms of acting, scenes and directing. The whole combination made this movie a big hit.

1)In acting, two main actors and the actress did a great job. The characters are really complicated while facing opposite emotions such as loyalty and betrayal, love and hate, duty and passion, obey and disobey at the same time. It is not easy to show cruelty and affection at the same time as two main actors did great in this movie. The actress also was great in showing her two different kinds of relationship with them. They all did a great job to reveal these emotions in their mimics and actions. Their internal combat reflects in their acting amazingly.

2) In scenes, the movie includes both sexual scenes and historical scenes. While a lot of discussions has been made about the sexual ones, I believe they serve the purpose of the movie perfectly. They are not similar to some sexual scenes in other movies, when you feel like they are not necessary and are just there to make it an R rate movie. No. Here these scenes reflects the growing emotions and changing winds in the characters' souls. The historical scenes are vivid as well. full of colors, actions and harmony,each and every second of them serves the storyline and events. They help to actually take our minds to that historical era in Korean history. They show us how they pray, socialize and celebrate life events in that time, which is crucial to make us understand the characters, their duties, feelings and social aspects.

3) Directing and editing (metaphored as the second directing) are done perfectly. The camera angles are chosen wisely both in big shots in events and close ups while dealing with characters' mimics and inner feelings. Colors and designs works in harmony to elaborate the settings of that era. Imagine I saw the movie without any background in Korea's history; and it encourages me to search a bit to know more.

Great movie to watch, to enjoy and also to explore a different time era if you are interested.

It's alright but nothing all that new even with the taboo elements

[KineticSeoul · 6/10 · 26 January 2012]

This movie is nothing all that new and the taboo part of this movie is what drives it. Although it has some sword fighting sequence than and there. And the fight sequences although isn't the major part of this movie is well done. The other elements in the movie besides the taboo aspect of the movie is interesting enough to be passable. So the king of Goryeo Dynasty has palace guards and is being suppressed by the Yuan Dynasty and is pressured to make a heir from the Yuan princess. And things go wrong from there on. This movie also features Ju Jin-mo and Jo In Sung, two of the popular actors in Korea. This movie has few disturbing parts but if it had a bit more originality it would have been better cause it has been done before. Maybe a bit of a different direction with some shock factor, cause overall it's actually quite predictable. This is a watchable movie but doesn't really stand out as much as it should have.

6.0/10

Gorgeous and Tragic

[AJ_McAninch · 10/10 · 23 May 2019]

Put Korean skills together with gorgeous costumes, settings, and actors--then add a great director and three skillful actors in the leads--especially the talent of Jo In-Sung who can say more with his eyes and the gentle play of emotion across his face than most actors ever approach, and you have a great movie. It is sexy, thrilling, part love story part sword and martial arts and all intrigue. I disagree that the film is homophobic: the king's mistake plays out clearly. The theme is more about obsession on the king's part and resultant outcomes of jealousy, rage, and revenge. There is no question he is at fault: not for 'turning' the chief gay--but for setting up the entire tragedy himself and misunderstanding the power of love. If you want to keep your lover, find someone else to 'do the deed.'

Its Good But Its A Film That When Its Finished Will Have You Wondering, "What Was The Point?"

[silicontourist · 6/10 · 25 July 2022]

A homosexual King, a bisexual bodyguard (who doesn't realize it) and a straight Queen; who after losing her virginity becomes a nymphomaniac. So how on earth was this even worthy of making when there is no real substance for a great story. I watch a lot of South Korean films (and a lot of its period setting ones) and stumbled upon this accidentally. The story did not interest me so I was going to give it a miss but, that gut feeling tingle changed my mind. By the end though I had but one thought going through my mind...Why?

Costumes, settings and all tech side attributes were lavish and excellent and, for me, were the main success of this film. Set the gay aspect to one side and its just a story of a three way love affair and the green eyed monster known as jealousy. Throw in the usual, behind the Royal back, of plots and subterfuge etc, and it could be a story set in any country and age. I don't think that it was a worthy film to make but the actors involved did a good job with it. I am glad I did watch it but my 6 stars for it are all for the tech side, settings and beautiful costumes.

Perfectly Perfect

[shydaeat · 10/10 · 1 February 2021]

Recently came across this film and I was immediately drawn to it because the main actor is also in 'That Winter the Wind Blows' (also really good) and I think he's really talented. I'm always drawn to love triangles, & angsty/steamy movies so the synopsis immediately had me hooked.

Skipping over the plot summary (it's already been well covered) I'm diving straight into my analysis. It's obvious that from the beginning the King was in love with the Chief Commander... almost obsessively so. He favored him since he was a boy and introduced him to pleasure, albeit a one-sided type of pleasure. The King's first mistake was making someone you love sleep with another person regardless if it's a man or a woman. Opening that door is just asking for trouble. The second mistake was listening to them actually engage in the act. WHY would anyone want to listen to their lover being intimate with someone else?? Unless you have that type of kink, that's a no-no. Moving onto the Commander, I don't think he did anything wrong. Both him and the Queen were each other's first, her being a virgin and him having never been with a woman. Now this is where a lot of ppl have been saying he fell in love with her after their first consummation. I disagree. I believe the Commander had always been intrigued by her, like when he was a boy and noticed when the King refused to greet the Queen, when he overheard her talking about her perfume satchet (& later on remembered it got lost) and when he secretly stared at her when she was singing at the lunch outing. His intrigue is only solidified when they sleep together and then it evolves into love. I think the Queen's initial feelings toward him lean more towards lust as she's sexually 'awakened' but then moves into love when she experiences the Commander's gentleness and thoughtfulness (he replaces her lost satchet). I'm not sure if their relationship constitutes as an affair. If affair equates to deception, then yes. But if it means betraying the one you love, then that doesn't apply. The Queen never had the opportunity to love, or even know the King since he only had eyes for the Commander. The Commander, I think confused 'love' with loyalty because that's how the King led and groomed him to behave. After being with the King and then the Queen, he then had both perspectives and yet he still preferred to be with the Queen. The tragic ending was bound to happen as is common with most Asian dramas but it really didn't have to end that way in my opinion. If the King TRULY loved the Commander, he wouldn't have emasculated and castrated him (even in a jealous fit of rage) just so no one else could have or want him. He would have asked the Commander what he wanted and then accepted his decision. Because that's what you do for those you love, you set them free or do what makes THEM happy despite how you may feel. All in all, this is a great thought-provoking film. It was wonderfully choreographed with talented actors. *viewer discretion advised*

A sumptuous, gorgeous epic

[robtyrrell-98607 · 10/10 · 26 February 2021]

Wow, what a terrific movie! I originally just wanted to see it because of the "hot Asian men in love" theme, but it delivered so much more than that. Palace intrigue equal to anything Shakespeare ever wrote, for starters. The relationship between the leads, the king and his bodyguard, is intense to watch but the story spins out beyond that in multiple directions. Aside from the story, the film is just beautiful in terms of gorgeous sets, vibrant colors and fabulous costuming. I wanted to pause about a dozen times just to get decorating tips, since I love Chinese furnishings! Add in beautiful actors (and let's face it, one with a particularly nice butt), and the visuals alone are compelling. Without giving away anything, suffice to say that the palace intrigues keep exploding until the probably-inevitable conclusion. Truly an interesting ride from beginning to end. And yet another refreshing break from the mountains of Hollywood drivel. I'd sooner watch this again than another "car chases and explosions" piece of garbage anytime.

Gorgeous Looking But Very Shrug Worthy Plot line.

[mbs · 4/10 · 6 October 2010]

This film should have been a whole lot more engaging for my money. The film starts out as an epic sword fighting--die to protect the king--like saga (you see these boys being groomed to be the king's bodyguards and warriors when they grow up--kind of like a school for boy secret service agents actually.) where the "die for the king" like mantra is tried and true. This mantra gets severely tested later on in the film when the king starts going off his rocker--but we;ll get to that in a second. The king starts taking to this one particular warrior (a more "sensitive" kind) and appoints him his own personal bodyguard. Before too long--the 2 men are in a secretive affair. The king however decides to get married to a woman--got to protect the throne of course. eventually the king decides that he needs to produce and heir to protect the throne---however the king is having some sexual issues in bed with his wife (possibly because he secretly pines for his bodyguard when he's in bed with her.) He then gets the bright idea of having his lover/bodyguard to impregnate his wife on his behalf. The bodyguard who has probably never said No to the king in his entire life of course agrees to it--and before too long--the bodyguard and the queen are engaging in a secretive affair all their own. (yes i realize the affair can't be that secretive if the king hired him to impregnate the queen in the first place--but the queen and the bodyguard end up meeting behind closed doors in non officially sanctioned romance sessions as well)

The King Then loses His mind with jealousy basically. I kept wondering who he was jealous of at first. Was he jealous of The Bodyguard or his wife? Turns out Both!

That's more or less it for the plot---there's a king or queen or some kind of royalty at another kingdom who's plotting to take the king down and those attempts are the basis for some very well done attacks on the king's throne that the bodyguard (and other warriors as well) must fight off...but the main plot line seems to be all about the increasing jealousy of the king for his lover and for his wife.

While i wish there was more of a competing plot line to go with here because this plot line while filled with good old fashioned drama--and dressed up in an old fashioned royalty costumed drama as well is kind of a bore after a while. I personally really relished the attacks by the other kingdom if only because it distracted me from the ultimate predictability of what was about to happen (although i will admit the actual ending was pretty darn good--when the inevitable happens and the king finally has a reason to justify his jealousy--his actions finally make the film suspenseful...not to mention squirm inducing as well--that's all i'll say about that--i leave what happens to the king and bodyguard to you fine folks to see--but it ain't pretty.)

Film has gorgeous set design and costumes and lighting and plush scenery that really pops on camera--the whole works were done as is traditional for a costume royalty drama genre piece...and that's all well and good--but if the heart of the story doesn't grab you and keep you interested the whole way through, then its all for naught.

Great movie

[wwwbec-34577 · 9/10 · 19 February 2021]

I've just finished watching it it's such a great move it's like an emotional rollercoaster but the movie has a lot of erotic scenes I love their acting God their facial expressions were priceless the ending was full of emotion gooood I'm dying here I love the movie

Love Triangle

[Foutainoflife · 9/10 · 3 October 2018]

In this story, we have a gay king, in love with his chief bodyguard, who needs to produce an heir with his queen. Unable to perform with a woman, he commands his lover bodyguard to do the deed in his stead. While initially this is met with resistance, the bodyguard obeys the king's command with unforeseen consequences.

This ended up being a great movie. It is well written, acted and filmed. The costuming, as well as the settings, are vibrant and ornate creating significant visual appeal. The characters are passionate and sincere. Even the music plays a part in pulling you into an experience.

I enjoyed this far more than I expected to and I love films that can surprise me like this.

Almost perfect

[boursalidousofia · 9/10 · 4 April 2021]

"A frozen flower" is a story about a rather unique love triangle, taking place at the inner court of the Goreyo period in today's Korean peninsula. When I first watched the film I felt numb for days, so I re-watched it again and again because there is something addictive about this film. Maybe it is the perfect pace, the amazing dialogues, the beautiful setting, maybe it is the great acting or even the emotional love scenes and the mesmerizing fight scenes. Yu Ha creates an engaging story about love, loyalty, power, and betrayal, the script is so well written that it is like a guide to script writing. And although the story is taking place during a power struggle over the throne and palace intrigues we are all focused on the inner conflicts of the heroes and their struggle to protect what they hold dear. How does Yu Ha accomplish it?

Every scene is a key point that leads to the final resolution of the story, if any of them( except the two last) would be taken out, the story wouldn't make sense. They follow the rule of scene structure, this way in every scene we have an Argument, a seduction, or negotiation, that develops the plot and makes it character driven. The scenes not only build the plot but work as foreshadowing for the next, a good example is the execution of the officials that plotted against the king since it reveals for the first time the limits of the king's benevolence, and what will come if the king discovers the betrayal of his lover.

The dialogues are equally articulate, they deepen the understanding of the characters, and often have double meanings creating layers on the perception of what is said. A very good example is the first duel of the King with Hong Rim, where the king is reacting to what is he is presented as truth but his words reveal that he acknowledges what might have truly happened. Or the metaphor with the horse and the next scene with the queen.

Even the music is used symbolically, as the song of the king, which is declaring the begging of an intimate relationship between a man and a woman, just after Hong Rim gave in to his feelings and started an affair with the queen. Or the farewell song at the picnic, which foreshadows that the queen will be left by her beloved at the end. Or when Hong Rim tries to get the Queen from the palace, the song describes his emotional state.

One of my favorite scenes is where the King talks about his dream. Why this dream is presented at this point? Because exactly at this point is so futile. The King dreams of himself hunting happily at the Liaoning plains with Hong Rim, exactly in the previous scene it is demonstrated that Hong Rim has changed and his mind isn't focused on the king anymore, at this point the perfect relationship exists only in the king's imagination. The hunting takes place at the Liaoning plains also for a reason, this area will be never possessed by the Goreyo, just like Hong Rim's heart won't be ever again possessed only by the king. It shows the difference in the perception of the reality, since at the end of the scene Hong Rim declares that he wishes to leave as soon as possible. That makes this scene so meaningful.

I guess this beautiful scene was shot eventually and Yu Ha just didn't want to waste it and decided to use it at the end. That was a big mistake because at this point the scene is not adding anything to the story and rather creates a cringe after the whole experience of the film. I have the same opinion about the flashback scene after the final fight, since it is not reviling anything new, rather repeating already given information. If Yu Ha hadn't added these scenes at the end, the film would be perfect and not almost perfect. If the movie had ended at the last fight scene it would be truly epic. I don't understand why he is doing it. So if you stop watching the film after this scene you will get the full experience anyway.

I have a special love for the last fight scene. It is so intense as if they want to destroy the whole world, the past, and the future, it creates the perfect conclusion for the story. It is the second time that we see Hong Rim speaking his true feelings not only to the king but to himself as well and they end their unfortunate fate most believably and appropriately.

Let's not forget that the film shows just an interpretation of an existed story and romanticizes it. I like how Yu Ha pays attention to the inner conflict of Hong Rim showcasing an example on how character development is done. He follows all the steps Hong Rim had to take from the absolute devotion to the king to the disappointment and hate, that was enough to kill him, even if that was be the last thing he did.

In the end, it is a story that reveals the many faces of love, devotion, and betrayal. The story is bound by its context and would be impossible to happen under different circumstances, and that makes this film so beautiful.

All cast

[jokerlover-77652 · 10/10 · 7 December 2020]

In this story, we have a gay king, in love with his chief bodyguard, who needs to produce an heir with his queen. Unable to perform with a woman, he commands his lover bodyguard to do the deed in his stead. While initially this is met with resistance, the bodyguard obeys the king's command with unforeseen consequences.

This ended up being a great movie. It is well written, acted and filmed. The costuming, as well as the settings, are vibrant and ornate creating significant visual appeal. The characters are passionate and sincere. Even the music plays a part in pulling you into an experience.

I enjoyed this far more than I expected to and I love films that can surprise me like this.

Porcelain movie

[Vincentiu · 9 October 2011]

About love. Its nuances, price and forms. Beautiful, powerful and aesthetic exercise. Fight scenes makes with delicate attention and the action as mountain river. Nothing new for a Coreean production. ButA Frozen Flower is interesting not only for colors and recreation of an era. Cntemporan questions are parts of a historical drama and the answers are sword blades. The tyrant is not a gray character. The loyal friend is not the traitor without conscience. The child is seal of crisis. Love is not a white page but a drawing in which two men hunt. The happiness and the sense of their search. In fact, a movie of porcelain. Game of emotions and sensitive description of feelings. The end, not special, is ribbon of a military book about peace essence.

Homophobic luxurious film

[christophercy · 2/10 · 23 January 2019]

Beautifully presented with sets and costumes but it's showcasing a homophobic agenda The gay King takes a lover at an early age (him and lover) and arguably made him gay Their only set scene quick and predominantly shot shoulders up Queen can't get pregnant and the land wants a heir So King orders male lover to serve her After 1.5 goes he's now straight and in love with the queen This leads into several long lovingly heterosexual sex scenes from all angles The subtext is gay is a choice and a vagina can cure you Watch the king and the clown instead Stupid film

Well Worth the Watch

[theredhairedcrow · 9/10 · 3 April 2022]

A brilliant historical drama set in Korea filled with intrigue, plot twists, dangerous passionate love and well choreographed battle scenes. It centers on the relationship between a Chief Guard and the King he protects. A King under pressure not only to produce an heir with his young queen, but to thwart plots within his court to overthrow his rule.

While the King has his Chief and private guard against the traitors, the matter of a son to secure the line is something over which he has no control. He makes a decision based on trust and love of his faithful guard, but which produces unexpected results.

The costumes are magnificent, the pace is steady, and although the plot isn't a new one, it is well done and the machinations(!), the machinations are razor edged and truly about the long game. The story really helps you feel for each of the players because the actors performed their roles very, very well. Joo Jin Mo (as the King) was outstanding.

Be aware there were several fairly graphic sex scenes, including between two men, which was fine but even I finally found them too frequent considering the type of film. Overall, I was so glad to have found this diamond level film, but do wish there were more films that included LGBTIIQ relationships in a normal, unremarkable way as they have been a part of any and every culture and society since the beginning of human times and can be lifelong and loyal.

The song of Love

[masha-56541 · 9/10 · 8 July 2021]

I didn't dare to add this film to the list of "To Watch", for a long time I walked around the bush, as the genre of the film was a little embarrassing. After watching, I was in a kind of stupor.

Genre: melodrama, tragedy, gay theme, bisexual relationships, historical, erotica, romance, drama. A rather controversial film, which takes place in the middle of the XIV century during the reign of Wang Kongmin, 31 rulers of the Korean state, the era of Goryeo, the last Korean reformer who wants to restore the territory of Korea and a liberator from the Mongol yoke.

The film was released in 2008 and at the time was the most expensive film to be shot by South Korea. On the day of the premiere, more than 3.5 million tickets were sold, and the total box office grossed more than 19 million. In Korea, it received a 20+ rating for its abundance of erotic scenes and scenes of violence. The main theme is the struggle between passion and duty.

The title of the movie "Ice Flower" is the title of one of the famous Korean song of the Goryeo era - Ssangwajom - a love song.

A little about the plot. Historical facts.

Against the background of the struggle for power, political games and confrontation with the powerful Yuan Empire (the Mongol invasion of Korea. For a long time the Goryeo dynasty was a tributary of the Mongol Yuan dynasty), a love triangle unfolds between Wang Kongming, his wife Noguk and his lover Kongmin, a guard his personal guard - Hon Rim.

Hon Rim. Wang's personal guard. This character has come a long way from boundless loyalty, falling in love to understanding that it was all false. What could the little boy, whom the future king selected to his personal guard, could understand, saying the words "I will die for you, my king" - did he know and did he then understand at least something about life? Or was all this devotion or love just the suggestion of an influential patron? And was it not the king himself who pushed him down the path of insight, disappointment and hatred?

Kongming-wang was a homosexual who did not want to share a bed with his queen, but due to political squabbles with the Yuan dynasty, he had to give birth to an heir. What he asked his lover about. It was from this point A that Hon Rim moved forward, overcoming his experiences and fears, and ended up at point B. Which brought changes in his life and the lives of the rest of the characters.

The screen characters of the film are a bit different from their historical prototypes. Here the scriptwriters probably decided to fantasize a little.

Queen Noguk was a loyal and loving spouse who did not even think about treason. She strongly supported her husband. And the king did not mind and did not neglect the conjugal duty. They lived together for 16 long years. They had no children and she died while was giving a birth to a child. The king observed mourning, but he also did not miss the opportunity to visit his 4 wives and 2 concubines, as well as have love relationships with young men from his personal guard. Among them was the same Hon Rim, who dared to have an affair with the king's wife named Lik from the Khan clan. Upon learning of the betrayal of his wife and lover, Konmin-wang ordered his guards to kill Hon Rim, but everything happened exactly the opposite. The guards revolted and killed the king.

About the film.

Emotionally heavy film. It is difficult to say whether I liked him or not, but he definitely kept me in suspense. For such a plot, it seemed that the timing was too small, the plot twists dashingly replace each other. Little attention has been paid to the feelings of the queen and the guard. There was not enough consistency, smoothness, tenderness in the development of their relationship. It feels like you are reading a very fascinating novel, where interesting events unfold, you read one page, the second, and you realize that several chapters between them are missing, as if someone tore them out, lost. Therefore, there is a feeling of a certain crumpledness, as if I missed something. Although it was still interesting to watch how feelings arose from a simple horizontal plane and turned into something deeper. Not even that. It all started from the very beginning with fear, duty, excitement, and on both sides. And until the moment of falling in love and passion. It was precisely this transitional moment that was not obvious, I did not see the evolution of feelings in the protagonist, perhaps the actor did not succeed very well, or maybe it's time for me to buy glasses.

The passion of a man for a woman, who until then indulged in attraction to a man. And this woman won in this story, and this victory caused a terrible, wild jealousy, which led to tragedy and bloodshed. The result of the film is that love can be cruel, especially in such harsh times.

around challenges

[Kirpianuscus · 24 October 2015]

the image. the story. the performances. parts of a South Coreean historical drama. like many others. but only at the search sigh. because it is more a parable than recreation of an episode from the past. it is touching and dark and strange. a story about love and power and relationships in a not ordinary manner, a story who not use the myth but represents a bitter trip to the essence of things. a film for a precise target. because it is wise answer to different challenges, because reflects the politics and personal life in a manner who reminds old taboo and ambiguous rules.it preserves the atmosphere of historical dramas, it propose same questions and solutions but it remains different because it preserves the rhythm of every day contemporary existence. short, a film about survive. and that definition could be enough.

Engrossing, painful

[aniugochukwu · 8/10 · 1 January 2022]

For over a year I battled to see where to watch this movie, until I eventually stumbled on it in Dramacool and gave it the attention I'd wanted to give it for long. And honestly, this movie is a BOMB. The love triangle is intensely captured. Imagine, chief and the king, with the former growing up under the latter and the latter loving the former from their formative years...and Chief, even as a kid, saying the best person is one who would lay his life down for the king. Reading through comments here I can see people berating the king and hating on him, but in this instance I feel he did what he had to do given the circumstances. I do not applaud it, but I understand it, and him. Furthermore, with the introduction of sex between the Chief and Queen, we see Chief opening up to a new, strange love he'd never witnessed and also being sad about it; he did go to the queen, then sleep next to the king and cuddled him, with tears leaking from his eyes. That was a sign that he loved this man, and he felt sad and confused about loving another. Then the anger, the sense of betrayal, the brutal punishment meted out, are all mind blowing. For me, chief did really love King, even though he told him otherwise in his last moments, to deeply hurt him. I know I would say the same, in the same circumstances... But the love remained there, as, even as he lay dying, he turned to King, in those very last, dying moments he had. That, dears, was love right there.

Great build-up

[clairetabago · 10/10 · 3 November 2022]

I liked the direction of the whole movie, not too fast nor too slow. The arcs were also good, beginning with the King being homosexual and having a threat on his throne since he could not produce and heir, then having his lover have sex with his Queen to resolve this. Meanwhile, the two found themselves deeply in love, which drew the jealousy to the King, thus the ending.

Also, I liked how the conflict was presented and the sexual awakening of the Queen and Hong Lim which also led to their affection to each other. I heard from my friends about this and how they didn't find the scenes fitting. As for me, I thought the sex scenes where meticulously directed and shot, and it gave the depth about the awakening of the three characters.

historical drama

[RezaGlobal · 5/10 · 20 April 2023]

A historical drama that explores the themes of love, loyalty, and sacrifice. The film is a beautifully crafted piece of cinema that features stunning cinematography and a hauntingly beautiful soundtrack that perfectly captures the mood and atmosphere of the film. The lead actors, Jo In-sung, Joo Jin-mo, and Song Ji-hyo, deliver outstanding performances that bring a depth and complexity to their characters, making them all the more compelling. The film's plot is engaging and emotionally resonant, balancing the political intrigue and action with the more intimate moments of the love triangle. However, the pacing can be slow at times, and the film's ending may not be satisfying for all viewers. Despite its flaws, "A Frozen Flower" is a film that is well worth watching for its stunning visuals, excellent performances, and emotionally resonant story. It is a testament to the power of cinema to transport us to another time and place and leave a lasting impact on the viewer.

One Of The Best Movies Ever!!!

[nikelasho · 10/10 · 7 September 2023]

To say I loved this movie would he an understatement. "A frozen flower" has the most beautiful yet tragic story. I loved the three main characters - the Queen, King and bodyguard. It had everything. Cinematography, plot, acting, everything was perfect! The characters were complex characters that actually felt human. I expected the erotic scenes to be cringe and uncomfortable to watch but they proved me wrong. I could feel every emotion - confliction, love, liberation, sadness. No one can do it like them for real. I loved loved loved! It and I wouldn't mind watching it again. Kudos to the actors, director and the crew behind this masterpiece! I hope to see more movies like this being released in the future.