“Palace, a place of insanity, and the lust and mad politics in it." This phrase clearly indicates the film′s personality. Confusing mixture of lust and politics is the real theme of this historical drama. It implies the lesson from history that the macro-world of politics is inevitably entangled with the micro-world of individual desires. It is a great misinterpretation if this film is considered as a mere erotic film with Cho Yeo-jung′s nudity. Her brave challenge after The Servant is something that most actresses would not dare to achieve. A character dresses and undresses depending on the circumstances he or she is in. Think of Tang Wei in <Lust, Caution> and Kim Go-eun in <A Muse>. Such brilliant actresses as Jeon Do-yeon, Moon So-ri and Kim Hye-soo also have moved the audience and grown through their fine acting which involved nudity, respectively in <Happy End>, <A Good Lawyer′s Wife> and <Faceless Beauty>. Also remarkable is the transformation of Kim Dong-wook who played the king, bare with power and love, and Kim Min-jun who played Kwon-yoo who lost both his love and masculinity. Their devoted performances truly underline the film′s message. (JEON Chanil)