''Shadows in the Palace'' (, literally "'' (servant-)women of the palace''") is a 2007 South Korean film directed by Kim Mee-jung. The mystery thriller is a fictionalized account of ''

gungnyeo Gungnyeo (literally "palace women")Han, Hee-sook, pp. 141–146 is a Korean term referring to women waiting on the king and other royalty in traditional Korean society. It is short for "gungjung yeogwan", which translates as "a lady officer of t ...

'', court maids during South Korea's Joseon era. This is Kim Mee-jung's first feature film. She previously worked as part of the directing staff in ''

King and the Clown ''The King and the Clown'' (, lit. ''The King's Man'') is a 2005 South Korean historical drama film, starring Kam Woo-sung, Lee Joon-gi, and Jung Jin-young. It was adapted from the 2000 stage play, ''Yi'' ("You") about Yeonsangun of Joseon, a Jo ...

'' (2005) and ''Shadows in the Palace'' was filmed on the same set.

Plot

The film is set amongst a group of ''

'', or palace women in Korea during the time of the

Joseon dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and r ...

, and is primarily about the hidden dynamics that unfold between them. Sworn into secrecy, submission, and celibacy, the women of the palace officially devote their lives to the well-being of the royal family. Currently, the kingdom has no heir to the throne, and at such a time, the royal concubine Hee-bin (

Yoon Se-ah Yoon Se-ah (born January 2, 1978) is a South Korean actress best known for her roles in '' The City Hall'', ''Wife Returns'', ''A Gentleman's Dignity'', ''Stranger'', '' Sky Castle'', and '' Snowdrop''. Yoon was paired with Korean-French-Canadian ...

) has given birth to a son. The queen mother wishes for the queen to adopt the child as her own, but Hee-bin hesitates proceeding with this, fearing she will be disposed of once the adoption is official. One morning, as the court maids go about their work, one of them, Wol-ryung ( Seo Young-hee), also Hee-bin's most trusted maid, is found dead, hanging from the rafters of the palace roof. Initially assuming it to be suicide, Chun-ryung (

Park Jin-hee Park Jin-hee (born January 8, 1978) is a South Korean actress. She is best known for her leading roles in the television series '' Please Come Back, Soon-ae'' (2006), '' War of Money'' (2007), and ''Giant'' (2010), as well as for the film ''Shado ...

), the royal medic, discovers as she proceeds with the autopsy that Wol-ryung was actually strangled. She also discovers that there are signs that the maid had given birth at some time in the past, which would have been absolutely forbidden under palace rules. Ignoring orders from her superiors to wrap up the case quickly, Chun-ryung sets off in search of answers. Amidst a tangled web involving suspicion of Wol-ryung's involvement in an affair with a teacher at the nearby school, the torture of a mute court maid, a beheading, and finally the records of the king's nightly visits to his concubine, an elaborate scheme spearheaded by Hee-bin's advisor transpires, where Wol-ryung was chosen to bear the crown prince, and later murdered to hide the truth of the baby's origin. When exposed, the advisor imprisons Chun-ryung, overpowers Hee-bin and makes off with the baby. She is however intercepted in the forest by the ghost of Wol-ryung, and is murdered. The ghost later also visits the royal palace, and kills the queen mother, thus removing the last obstacle between the crown prince and the throne. The baby is later discovered in the forest by Chun-ryung. The next day, as the palace women mourn the death of the queen mother in white robes, they simultaneously also witness the coronation of the new prince in the arms of Hee-bin and the transfer of power to new hands.

Cast

as Chun-ryung *

as Hee-bin * Seo Young-hee as Wol-ryung * Im Jung-eun as Ok-jin * Jeon Hye-jin as Jung-ryul * Kim Sung-ryung as Inspector * Kim Nam-jin as Lee Hyung-ik *

Kim Mi-kyung Kim Mi-kyung (born October 14, 1963) is a South Korean actress. She is most active as a supporting actress A supporting actor is an actor who performs a role in a play or film below that of the leading actor(s), and above that of a bit part. ...

as ''gungnyeo'' Shim * Nam Jeong-hee as ''gungnyeo'' Noh *

Kim Hak-sun Kim Hak-sun (1924–1997) was a Korean human rights activist who campaigned against Sexual slavery, sex slavery and wartime sexual violence. Kim was one of the victims who had been forced into sexual slavery by the Imperial Japanese Army, Japan ...

as the king * Lee Yong-yi as ''gungnyeo'' Cheon * Go Seo-hee as the queen * Chu Kwi-jung as ''gungnyeo'' Uhm *

Moon Ga-young Moon Ga-young (; born July 10, 1996) is a German-born South Korean actress. She is best known for her roles in ''Heartstrings'' (2011), ''EXO Next Door'' (2015), '' Tempted'' (2018), ''Welcome to Waikiki 2'' (2019), '' Find Me in Your Memory'' ...

as Il-won * Ye Soo-jung as the queen mother * Son Young-soon as chief ''gungyeo'' * Park Soo-young as government official * Han Ye-rin as Sook-young

Awards and nominations

; 2007 Blue Dragon Film Awards * Nomination – Best Supporting Actress – Im Jung-eun * Nomination – Best New Director – Kim Mee-jung * Nomination – Best Lighting – Park Se-mun ;2007 Korean Film Awards * Best New Director – Kim Mee-jung * Nomination – Best Supporting Actress – Jeon Hye-jin ;2007 Women in Film Korea Awards * Film of the Year ;

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Baeksang Arts Awards The Baeksang Arts Awards (), also known as the Paeksang Arts Awards, are awards for excellence in film, television and theatre in South Korea. The awards were first introduced in 1965 by Chang Key-young, the founder of the Hankook Ilbo newspap ...

* Nomination – Best New Director – Kim Mee-jung ;

Buil Film Awards The Buil Film Awards () is a South Korean film awards ceremony hosted by the ''Busan Ilbo'' newspaper. It began in 1958 as one of the earliest film awards in the country. During the 1950s and 1960s, it was the biggest film awards event in the B ...

* Nomination – Best Supporting Actress – Seo Young-hee * Nomination – Best New Director – Kim Mee-jung * Nomination – Best Lighting – Park Se-mun ;2008

Chunsa Film Art Awards The Chunsa Film Art Awards (also known as the Icheon Chunsa Film Festival) have been presented in South Korea since the founding of the prize by the Korea Film Directors' Society in 1990. The awards take their name from the pen name of the early ...

* Best Lighting – Park Se-mun ;

Grand Bell Awards * Best Lighting – Park Se-mun * Nomination – Best Actress –

* Nomination – Best Supporting Actress – Kim Sung-ryung * Nomination – Best New Director – Kim Mee-jung * Nomination – Best Cinematography – Lee Hyung-deok * Nomination – Best Art Direction – Lee Ha-jun * Nomination – Best Lighting – Park Se-mun * Nomination – Best Costume Design – Shim Hyun-sub * Nomination – Best Sound – Oh Seong-jin ;2008 Golden Cinematography Awards * Best Actress –

;2008

Fantasia Festival Fantasia International Film Festival (also known as Fantasia-fest, FanTasia, and Fant-Asia) is a film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. Regularly held in July of each year, it is valued by both hardcore ...

* Best Actress –

References

External links

* * * {{hancinema film, Shadows_in_the_Palace, Shadows in the Palace 2007 films 2000s mystery thriller films South Korean historical thriller films 2000s historical thriller films South Korean mystery thriller films South Korean detective films Films set in the 17th century Films set in the Joseon dynasty Films set in Seoul Cinema Service films 2000s Korean-language films 2007 directorial debut films 2000s South Korean films