The Fortress

In 1636, the Jurchen leader who has taken control of China as the first Qing ruler demands that King Injo of Joseon submit to him. The king refuses, remaining loyal to the Ming, and when Qing forces invade Joseon on December 14, he and his court withdraw to a mountain fortress at Namhan. There, an army and a group of monk defenders settle in behind the walls, and a siege begins in the depths of winter. As the days pass, the court is split between those who argue for negotiations with the attackers and those who want to fight on. Hunger, cold and the dwindling food supply press on the people inside, and disagreements over how to act test the king's authority while the enemy waits outside.

The Fortress is a Korean historical war drama directed by Hwang Dong-hyuk, who also wrote the screenplay, following Silenced (2011) and Miss Granny (2014). Park Hae-il plays King Injo, with Lee Byung-hun as Choe Myeong-gil and Kim Yoon-seok as Kim Sang-heon. It was produced by Siren Pictures on a budget of about 13 million US dollars and took roughly 30 million US dollars worldwide. On IMDb it holds 6.8/10 from around 4,100 votes and on TMDB 6.8/10 from 166 votes, while a film critics' rating of 6.3/10 from 8 reviews sits close to the audience scores.