AllMovie

The subject of this historical epic, set in the late-19th century, is the early days of the home-grown Korean doctrine of Dong-Hak and the life of the second leader of that movement, Hae-Wol. The basic principle is that God is in everyone and everything, and that the goal of believers is to accomplish a transformation known as "Kae Byok." After the first leader, a pacifistic man, was killed amid much torture and bloodshed, the Japanese occupiers of Korea worked hard to suppress the movement. In the story, the son of a military man who dies in one of the many bloody encounters with followers of the movement seeks revenge, but when he finally corners the leader Hae-Wol, the man's spiritual stature and compassion result in the younger man experiencing a "Kae Byok" transformation of his own.