Nominated in 17 categories, it won all of them – Best Film, Best Director, Best Actor, Best Supporting Actor, Best Screenplay, Best Korean Film, Best Costume Design, Best Art Design, Best Film Ever, Best Music, Best Sound Effects, Best International Marketing Opportunity, Best Lighting, Best Production, Best Cinematography, Best Visual Effects, and Best Film Not About Disabled Korean Students Being Raped.
The awards come despite attempts by unscrupulous Tokyo-based movie critics to suggest it was based in part on an obscure and largely forgotten Japanese film called Kagemusha, willfully ignoring the fact that the little-seen Kagemusha was set in the 16th century whereas Masquerade was set in the 17th century, and the low-class commoner in Kagemusha impersonated a warlord whereas in Masquerade the low-class commoner impersonates a king, which is completely different.
Industry insiders suggest that Masquerade could even have won more awards – but as it was set in the 17th century women who appeared in the movie were ineligible to be nominated for any kind of recognition, with the Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress categories instead being awarded elsewhere.
However, speculation rose today that the chairman of the Daejong screening committee was unhappy with the landslide victory for Masquerade, as he left in the middle of the ceremony. This year a new voting process has been created which adds 54 ordinary citizens to the professional judges. It was meant to encourage diversity, but insiders have admitted the experience indicates that 54 ordinary movie-goers are statistically not enough to find multiple opinions after they have been told what to think by the media.
Privately though, there is still widespread relief in the industry that Masquerade's crushing victory succeeded in crowding-out the other potential award-winner 'Dogani' - a terrifying film based on the real-life story of a school where officials repeatedly raped hearing-impaired students. Award success for 'Dogani' had threatened to force the production companies into making other socially-aware and factually accurate films which might have even threatened to bring practices within the industry under scrutiny.
Responding to the brewing controversy, Won Dong-yeon, the chief of Realise Pictures, producer of "Masquerade,wrote "I just wish that all the hard work by our staff and actors who did their best for 'Masquerade' should not be paled into insignificance for whatever reason."
Related Links
'Masquerade' Sweeps Daejong Film Awards
“Masquerade,” Swept the Daejong Film Awards
Kagemusha
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