Once Upon a Time in a Battlefield - Alchetron, the free social encyclopedia

Official trailer for once upon a time in a battlefield

Once Upon a Time in a Battlefield (Hangul: 황산벌; RR: Hwangsanbul) is a 2003 South Korean war comedy film directed by Lee Joon-ik. Its plot is about the Battle of Hwangsanbeol between Baekje and Silla in the 7th century. The film was the 8th most attended film of 2003 with 2,835,000 tickets sold nationwide. Its popularity has spawned a sequel, titled Battlefield Heroes, which debuted in 2011, and takes place in the subsequent Silla-Tang invasion of Goguryeo.

Plot

Once Upon a Time in a Battlefield Once Upon a Time in the Battlefield 2003 MUBI

The movie starts out with a meeting between the rulers of Baekje, Silla, Tang China, and Goguryeo. They are arguing why the Korean southern kingdoms have to pay tribute to China, even though Tang is only 50 years old. The king of Silla sides with the Emperor of Tang. The movie flashes forward to the scene in which Baekje soldiers rush to the king with ill news of Silla and Tang allying together, bringing an army of 50,000 soldiers. The Baekje council discusses battle plans. But in the end, all of the officials run away out of cowardice. The king of Baekje calls for the great warrior, Kyebaek. He accepts the offer to protect his country after three glasses of wine. Kaebaek is forced to kill his family in fear of something worse happening to them. Soon, Gyebaek engages the Silla forces in so called "battles" where the opponents insult the others with Gyebaek winning in the beginning of these battles.