South Korea Synopsis
왕의 남자
“Forbidden desire, sumptuous tragedy.”
Set in the late 15th century during the reign of King Yeonsan, two male street clowns and tightrope walkers, Jangsaeng and Gong-gil, are part of an entertainer troupe. Their manager prostitutes the beautiful Gong-gil to rich customers, and Jangsaeng is sickened by this practice. After Gong-gil kills the manager in defense of Jangsaeng, the pair flee to Seoul, where they form a new group with three other street performers.
Titles With Overlapping Themes
Films and series that share thematic tags with King and the Clown. Number on each card indicates how many keywords overlap.
Drama + History in South Korea
41 South Korea titles in our catalog blend the Drama and History genres. Below: the top-rated of them (excluding King and the Clown itself).
Other Titles From Cineworld
The 2004–2006 South Korea Window
King and the Clown holds position #34 of 128 South Korea films in the 2004–2006 window, below highlighted by audience rating.
The 2000s South Korea Landscape
Catalog density by release year across the 2000s in South Korea, 321 titles in total. Highlighted year (yellow) is when King and the Clown premiered alongside 44 others.
Position in Catalog
Released alongside 44 other South Korea films in 2005.
The 225th South Korea title from South Korea we index (earliest catalogued entry: 1955).
Our South Korea catalog contains 1,397 titles in total (931 films).
Audience Engagement
91 audience reviews — more than 82% of South Korea films in our index.
Review volume (82th percentile) outruns trending popularity (66th) — a durable title with sustained audience attention.
Thematic Fingerprint
Tags on King and the Clown, grouped by how common each theme is across the full Asian catalog. Rare tags are more distinctive signals.
- clown · 4
- jester · 1
- based on play or musical · 16
- king · 10
- joseon dynasty · 42
- gambling · 31
Reception Benchmarks
Ranked #645 of 1,397 South Korea films indexed here (54th percentile by TMDB audience score).
Among South Korea Drama productions specifically: #444 of 868 (top 51%).
Production Details
| Primary Country | South Korea |
|---|---|
| Original Language | Korean |
| Production Companies | Cineworld, Cinema Service, Eagle Pictures |
| Runtime | 1h 59m |
| Release Date | December 29, 2005 |
| IMDb | tt0492835 |