Bichunmoo

Bichunmoo (Korean: 비천무; RR: Bicheonmu) is a 2000 South Korean martial arts fantasy drama film written and directed by Kim Young-jun and featuring Shin Hyun-joon, Kim Hee-sun, and Jung Jin-young. At the time of its release, it was the most expensive film in Korean history (it was supplanted in 2001 by Musa).

Bichunmoo
Hangul
Hanja
Revised RomanizationBicheonmu
McCune–ReischauerPich'ŏnmu
Directed byKim Young-jun
Written byJeong Yong-ki
Kim Young-jun[1]
Based onBichunmoo
by Kim Hye-rin[2]
Produced byLee Tae-won
Yoo Jung-ho[1]
StarringShin Hyun-joon
Kim Hee-sun
Jung Jin-young
CinematographyByun Hee-sung
Kim Tae-hwan[1]
Edited byLee Hyun-mee[1]
Music byKim Seong-jun[1]
Production
company
Taewon Entertainment[1]
Distributed byCinema Service[1]
Release date
  • July 1, 2000 (2000-07-01)
Running time
126 minutes[1]
CountrySouth Korea
LanguageKorean
BudgetUS $4,000,000

Plot

In 12th-century China, during Mongol rule, childhood sweethearts Jinha and Sullie are separated but vow to reunite. Orphan Jinha begins training in the Bichun martial arts and discovers his father was a swordsman murdered by the Mongol army. Meanwhile, Sullie's father, a Mongol general, arranges for her to marry a Mongol noble. Believing Jinha to be dead, Sullie marries the noble. Recovering from near-death, Jinha takes on the persona of bandit Jahalang, and begins an anti-Mongol crusade with the help of his army of warriors. Finally Jin-ha and Sullie are re-united, when Jinha's bandit warriors infiltrate Sullie's family manor.

Cast

Production

Bichunmoo was shot entirely in China, with a Hong Kong-based martial arts director.[3]

Criticism

In spite of its financial success, the film was heavily criticized on its initial release in Korea, primarily due to its alleged disloyalty to the comic book on which it was based. Another argument given against the film was the casting choice of Kim Hee-sun, who was perceived as being too modern for a period swordplay film.

Reception

Alan Morrison of Empire called Bichunmoo a "Top-notch martial arts action".[4]

References
  1. "Bichunmoo (Bicheonmu)". Korean Movie Database (KMDb). Retrieved 2021-08-11.
  2. "Bichunmoo Review". The Digital Fix. Retrieved 2021-08-11.
  3. Elley, Derek (2000-11-26). "Bichunmoo". Variety.
  4. "Bichunmoo: Warrior of Virtue Review". Empire. 31 December 1999.


This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.