What a brilliant movie! To think that I once shunned these types of Korean movies depicting old kings and court intrigue when I was a teenager as boring is a crime I have to confess. I have since watched so many of these awesome Korean movies regarding events and life in the Joseon dynasty. I remember going over to my friend’s house, and his mom would always, and I mean always, have some type of Korean show or movie based in this era on the television. I remember asking her why she found these types of shows so interesting because all the people ever did, from what I saw, was just talk, talk, and talk some more. She’d just snort at me and give the “you’re too young and likely too stupid to understand these types of shows” look. I think The Night Owl is one of those underrated movies that I rarely see get mentioned.

Anytime peasants and workers have to deal with a king during the earlier dynasty eras, care must be taken; otherwise, it’s off with your head. There’s a lot of tension in The Night Owl, and I expected nothing less. Yoo Hai Jin was perfect in his role as King Injo. He was a weak and incompetent king, and he excelled at that portrayal throughout the movie. It’s also interesting to know that the movies are based on real events. I read King Injo’s Wikipedia page to discover that a lot of what happened in between King Injo and his son did in fact occur. King Injo was hesitant and distrustful of him for encouraging him to embrace a future with the Qing dynasty instead of being stuck in the past.

Incorporating a blind acupuncturist who can somehow see when the lights are out is pretty slick. However, I thought that they could have done more with this. Maybe like adding two or three more high-tension pieces where he gets tested? I think I was only able to count two such instances of this happening: once with the crown prince during their first acupuncture session and the other with his superior. Nonetheless, I had a great time with The Night Owl, and it’s making me want to research more on the Joseon era and its many kings.