MyRating: YY1/2Director: Tsui Hark
Cast: Andy Lau, Li Bingbing, Carina Lau, Chao Deng, Tony Leung Ka-fai
A Chinese epic action-mystery film by Tsui Hark, an influential Hong Kong director and film producer (A Better Tomorrow, A Chinese Ghost Story, The Killer, Once Upon A Time in China, The Lovers, Shanghai Grand, Seven Swords) about Di Renjie, a famous official from the Chinese Tang Dynasty and Empress Wu Zetian's Zhou Dynasty, adapted from the book written by Lin Qianyu titled Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame. The film stars the Hong Kong superstar Andy Lau (As Tears Go By, A Moment of Romance, Running out of Time, Infernal Affairs, House of Flying Daggers) as the exiled Detective Dee (Di Renjie), who is assigned by Empress Wu Zetian (Carina Lau), the only woman in the history of China to assume the title of Empress, to investigate a series of mysterious deaths of officials dying instantly due to burning by flames. Accompanied by Shangguan Jing'er (Li Bingbing), a highly skilled martial artist and the trusted maid of the Empress, Detective Dee has to solve the dark mystery that may threaten to delay the inauguration of Empress Wu, and before there are more victims.
Detective Dee is the answer from China to the Hollywood's Sherlock Holmes. A smart detective who solves big cases. This US$ 13 million budget movie did look grand and lavish, as those of the epic movies of Tsui Hark, with great casts, production design and art direction. The settings, costumes and cinematography were beautiful, including the setting of the giant Buddha bronze statue overlooking the imperial city of China. But somehow, the story did not really live up the promising premise, with some plot holes and tedious moments. It was entertaining, but not as much as I expected it to be, and it was purely because of the not so perfect storyline. This movie also used a lot of CGI, some made the film to look beautiful, but some was not that good, including the rough CGI of the burning flames.
The casts were a feast to the eye though. Andy Lau has been my favorite Hong Kong's actor and pop singer for years. Always love his acting and songs, hardworking ethics, humble and charming personality, charitable spirit, and his good EQ when dealing with people, his fans and the press. He is a living legend and an actor who loved by all ages. And I think he played Detective Dee well. The supporting casts were also gave good performances, including the beautiful Li Bingbing (there was a sexy scene between her and Andy Lau here), Carina Lau, Tony Leung Ka-fai and Chao Deng as the albino Supreme Cop officer.
The martial arts action and fighting sequences were choreographed by Sammo Hung, interesting but not outstanding, and a bit too typical for these kinds of movies, with lots of flying and slow motions. It was still far from the satisfaction that we got when seeing the martial arts sequences of Ip Man.
In overall, this was an interesting movie and quite original in the theme, a detective in the ancient era of China, but I wish it could have been better in the storyline. One thing that I sense is, there might be a sequel for this movie, especially if it is successful. A typical Tsui Hark's. (MJ)
