After the unexpected death of his father, Kikuo is taken in by a prestigious family renowned for kabuki (traditional Japanese theater), where he forms a bond with his friend and rival, Shunsuke. For the next five decades, the two men continue their relationship both on and off the stage—a relationship where they dance between friendship and conflict, admiration and jealousy, compassion and resentment—as they cultivate a yearning for the ‘ultimate beauty.’ Director Lee Sang-il’s KOKUHO portrays the life of an artist who was born as the son of a yakuza, lives through a turbulent era, dreams of perfecting the art of kabuki, and eventually rises to the supreme rank of ‘kokuho’ (national treasure). The lead role is played by the multi-talented Yoshizawa Ryo, who works across film, drama, and theater. Kurokawa Soya, familiar to Korean audiences from Monster (2023), portrays Kikuo’s childhood years. Despite its nearly three-hour runtime and the obscure subject matter, the film was a huge box office hit in Japan, setting a new record as the 2nd highest-grossing live-action film of all time. (Karen PARK)