Set in Japan’s Meiji Era, Ryoma’s Wife is a unique period piece. The film seems to follow the traditions of classical Japanese drama, yet places more focus on aesthetic style accompanied by a modernized musical score. In this sense, the film falls into a category that can be called no other than ‘post-modern classical Japanese drama.’ From its opening credits that begin by casting a set of dice, the film has a mischievous tone that constantly twists the conventions of classical Japanese drama. Ryoma’s Wife slowly reveals the complex relationship of four people: the women with whom Ryoma was in love and the men and women who were in love with Ryoma. Through the story, Ryoma is revealed as an ordinary man who is caught in an enormous human comedy rather than being the heroic figure of the Meiji Era who led Japan into modernization. From another viewpoint, the film suggests the Meiji Era that endorsed madness and obsession over love, was in fact a period that embraced individual desire. (Lee Sang-yong)