Recently, historian Shim Yong Hwan posted a video titled "Analyzing and verifying the historical element in "Perfect crown" on his YouTube channel.
In the video, he analyzes how the Korean film "Perfect crown" is in the increasingly popular trend of the "fictional history" genre - especially popular in webtoons and online novels. The historian acknowledges the appeal of this genre, arguing that its strength is the expansion of imagination.
He also conducted verification of details such as the historical context that prevented the constitutional monarchy from continuing in South Korea, the hanbok design and the way of addressing people in the film, emphasizing that these cultural experiments have gone beyond the scope of history to create a new culture.
He said: "False historical fiction works like "Perfect Crown" are currently a popular trend in webtoons and online novels. The advantage is to expand imagination, and if based on a solid foundation, it can become a more subtle work.
However, he also pointed out many inaccuracies, including scenes such as fires in the palace and some cultural details.
One of the biggest issues is the central premise of the film - a modern Korea under a constitutional monarchy. Historian Shim believes that historically, this scenario is almost impossible.
He continued to discuss the film's script with the detail of whether King Lee Ahn (played by Byeon Woo Seok) could take real power instead of the young king. According to Shim Yong Hwan, this is impossible in the historical context of Joseon, because the system at that time was designed to prevent the prince's intervention.
The historian also mentioned details such as the way of addressing and designing costumes, saying that some choices in the film, if considered according to royal protocol, are serious violations, although he admitted that it could be a creative decision.
Words like "yeonggam" or "daegam" represent the rank of officials. In the film, mixing royal costume patterns or loosening the dragon robe, according to rituals, may be punished, but I see that as an issue within the scope of creative design," he said.
The historian commented that the film is "a low-quality fictional historical work from a strict academic perspective".
However, he also analyzed from another positive perspective, saying that "Perfect crown" is part of a larger cultural trend: although not historically accurate, this is an interesting experiment in the storytelling of the modern Hallyu wave.
Meanwhile, "Perfect crown" continues to achieve high popularity, with ratings exceeding 11%, continuously setting personal records. Debates about the balance between historical elements and fiction are increasingly exciting.
