But while The Last Empress takes itself very seriously, it has not
seriously
considered the requirements of a musical. This heavily political
biography
is complicated, shapeless and impersonal, the few emotional moments far
outweighed
by nationalism and heroine-worship.
"You are possibly a genius!" There are, it's true, Westerners who love
abasing
themselves to the leader of their sacred cult ? Moonies, for example
The Japanese, with whom the Koreans make an ill-starred alliance, are
here shown
to be greedy, treacherous and cruel, finally assassinating the brave
queen
(who, 30 years on, doesn't look a day older than her wedding photo). As
vindictive
as it is gratuitous is the showing of a film of the US bombing of
Hiroshima.
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