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SOUTH KOREA · 2016

The Handmaiden

Park Chan-wook
Korean New Wave deception and con artistry forbidden romance colonial occupation class and servitude psychological manipulation
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Synopsis

1930s Korea, in the period of Japanese occupation, a new girl, Sook-hee, is hired as a handmaiden to a Japanese heiress, Hideko, who lives a secluded life on a large countryside estate with her domineering Uncle Kouzuki. But the maid has a secret. She is a pickpocket recruited by a swindler posing as a Japanese Count to help him seduce the Lady to steal her fortune.

Year2016
CountrySouth Korea
DirectorPark Chan-wook
MovementKorean New Wave
Cinematic Threads
In the Realm of the Senses, in the case of The Handmaiden it’s not so much a direct influence in terms of story, but it was just so important in depicting sexuality within a film.
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