The grand story of Jesus' life has been reborn as a high-quality animated film. For some, it is a familiar tale, while for others, it is a stranger's story that meets outstanding technology, instantly drawing us back to 2,000 years ago.
The film 'The King of Kings' (Director Jang Seong-ho) is an animation film that portrays a journey undertaken by the great British writer Charles Dickens and his youngest son, Walter, into the greatest story of 2,000 years ago. Inspired by Dickens' unpublished manuscript 'The Life of Our Lord', written for his children, the film brings this narrative to life.
'The King of Kings' is not solely a work that deals with the Bible. While it depicts the process of Jesus' birth and resurrection, the film starts from a reading event of Charles Dickens. Dickens becomes greatly frustrated when his youngest son Walter and his cat Willa create trouble, ruining the stage of the reading event. In a situation where emotional tensions linger between them, Charles' wife Catherine suggests that he read the manuscript he wrote for Walter. Thus, Charles begins to narrate 'The Life of Our Lord' directly to Walter.
In this way, 'The King of Kings' proceeds with a frame structure in which another story, 'The Life of Our Lord', appears within the film. It enriches the narrative by integrating the stories of Charles and Walter into what could otherwise feel like a tedious old story. Director Jang Seong-ho, who took charge of production, script, direction, and editing, made this choice to broaden the target audience. By adding the sub-story of the conflict and resolution between Charles and Walter, which could easily turn into a simple 'Christian movie' subject, it transforms into a 'family film'.
This ultimately lowers the entry barrier for those who are not Christians to approach the work. From the perspective of those without religion, the contents of the Bible may seem somewhat absurd, or there may be a cynical reaction, but if they focus on the relationship between Charles, Walter, and Willa, which gradually becomes closer as the film progresses, they will easily be able to follow the story. Knowing that 'Walter' was taken from the name of Charles' fourth son, who passed away at the age of 22, makes the emotional connection between them even more poignant.
Due to the nature of its subject matter, 'The King of Kings' overall contains biblical metaphors. For those who are religious, it offers the fun of finding elements here and there, and even for those who may be unfamiliar with religion, if they have encountered a 'Bible meme' at least once in their daily life, they may feel unexpected delight each time a corresponding scene appears.
The most notable aspect of 'The King of Kings' is its technical prowess. Director Jang Seong-ho, who began planning the film in 2015, has diligently produced it over a long period of 10 years. At the premiere, he stated, "I can confidently say that in terms of technical achievements, it will be the highest quality in the history of Korean animation. I believe it is a film worth watching in theaters, not regretting the ticket price."
Having worked in VFX for over 30 years, Director Jang Seong-ho collaborated with cinematographer Kim Woo-hyung to introduce film-level quality and shooting techniques. As a result, he achieved finely detailed and dynamic camera movements that do not resemble typical animations, increasing the completeness of the project through five reshoots, edits, and reviews. The sophisticated graphics, comparable to Hollywood's, break the common prejudice surrounding Korean 3D animation, providing high immersion with its characters and environments from deserts to rough seas, thus explaining Director Jang's 'reasoned confidence.'
'The King of Kings' has captured attention, having surpassed $60.3 million in cumulative revenue since its North American release in April, claiming the title of the highest-grossing Korean film of all time. This achievement also ranks it as the second highest-grossing Asian animation in North America. In addition, it demonstrated overwhelming support with a Rotten Tomatoes popcorn score of 98% and a CinemaScore of A+.
The natural voice acting of top-tier actors guarantees an engaging experience. 'The King of Kings' features popular actors such as Lee Byung-hun, Jin Seon-kyu, Lee Ha-nee, Yang Dong-geun, Cha In-pyo, Kwon Oh-jung, and Jang Kwang, who lend their voices to the main characters. Lee Byung-hun, recognized for his dubbing skills as the character Geema in the recent Netflix film 'K-Pop Demon Hunters', leads the narrative as Charles in 'The King of Kings'. Jin Seon-kyu portrays Jesus, showcasing a different form of his distinctive acting from previous works, and Lee Ha-nee perfectly delivers multiple roles, ranging from Charles' wife Catherine to the Virgin Mary and an angel, with skills comparable to a professional voice actor.
'The King of Kings' is currently screening in 50 countries, including North America, and is set to expand to over 90 countries by the end of the year. With its box office success and artistic value already proven, there is anticipation around whether 'The King of Kings' will also capture the hearts of domestic audiences, continuing its momentum as a global K-animation.
Meanwhile, 'The King of Kings' will be released domestically on the 16th. The runtime is 101 minutes and it is rated for all audiences.
[Photo] Disstation
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