Curse of the Golden Flower [2007]

---

---

Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Chinese director Zhang Yimou ends his bid to outfly Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon with Curse Of The Golden Flower, the third in his Wuxia (the Chinese style of flying and fighting) films. Much like Hero and House Of Flying Daggers, it is drenched in colours so dazzling, and boasts action scenes so exhilarating, that you can almost forgive any shortcomings in the story. Almost. Despite its grandeur, this film is in many ways the least rewarding of the three.

Set in China's tenth century Tang dynasty, the story sees Chow Yun Fat's emperor trying to poison his wife, a trussed-up and progressively unstable Gong Li, who is having an affair with her step-son Wan, and trying to manoeuvre her other son Jai against his tyrannical father. Let's just say that it gets more complicated from there on in, and involves lots of running through endless corridors, but really, it's best to just sit back and let that intense visual style work its magic.

Swapping action for dramatic intrigue might have been Yimou's mistake, but there's no mistaking his knack for breath-taking cinematography. Even if purely on a visual scale, Golden Flower still manages to captivate, and the final battle scene is at least worth the slightly overlong wait. Die hard fans of these films might feel a bit stiffed, but everyone else won't be short of eye candy. --Luke Mawson

---

Customer reviews

review by: Cogito ergo sum date: 2008-06-23 rating:
Chinese eye Candy.
This film is the 'ROlls ROyce' or the 'Ritz' version of 'Crouching Tiger, hidden Dragon'. However, in my opinion, Hero still has to reign supreme over these 3 most well-known chinese masterpieces.
There is no doubt that no expense has been spared producing and making this film. It is opulent, extravagant and has the most luscious, and grand sceneries, backdrops and costumes of the 3 films. Its storyline is just as if not a lot more complex to follow as well, especially if you're being distracted by all the extravagance and action. Gong li as ever is seductively, sublimely, beautiful. If nothing else, buy this to watch and admire her. I would give this 3 and a half stars.

---

review by: date: 2008-05-23 rating:
Curse of the Golden Flower
'Curse of the Golden Flower' is an epic saga of family loyalty and betrayal. The direction is truly sumptuous and the use of colour is as beautiful as in this directors other highly lauded films. The story kept me engaged the whole time and the film sets and costumes were amazing to see. The acting is excellent and you barely even notice you're reading subtitles this film keeps you so engrossed. Although not strictly a martial arts film, this does have some excellent martial arts scenes and the end battle is an epic tour de force. This is one to watch and appreciate again and again. Highly recommended.

---

review by: date: 2008-05-09 rating:
Good film - but suffers in comparison to its brethren
The Amazon review, above, actually sums it up rather well. It's a spectacular looking film that just suffers from being the third film in a series where the first two are true cinematic greats. This is a very good film, just not on the same level as the excellent "Flying Daggers" and the simply breath-taking "Hero".

The cinematography is, once again, superb with a dazzling use of colour. But the plot drags along and the fight sequences don't seem so imaginative, flowing or beautiful as before.

Maybe if I hadn't already seen Hero I would have been more impressed but, as it is, I'm glad I've seen it for the sake of completion if nothing else.

---

review by: date: 2008-04-15 rating:
Fantastic
Much better than "The Warlords" which I saw recently, and I would say considerably better than "The Banquet" which is along the same lines. Gong Li really gets into her role and the twists and turns continue to the exit curtain.


review by: barwill1999 date: 2008-03-19 rating:
A colourful dramatic spectacular epic.
This is not a martial arts film. It is full of intrigue, drama, colour and bloody action especially towards the end of the film. The Emperor is poisoning the Empress and the Empress is plotting a coup to overthrow him. The acting is first class. The scenery and the colours are stunning. The filming is simply superb. When the action comes it is epic in scale. The subtitles are small and sometimes move along at quite a pace, which is a little unfortunate but this should not put you off. Well worth watching. Recommended. I look forward to watching it again.

---

Similar products

The Emperor And The Assassin [2000]
Quentin Tarantino Presents: Hero [2004]
Warriors Of Heaven And Earth [2003]
House Of Flying Daggers [2004]
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon [2001]

---

Similar categories

Video . DVD & VHS . Categories . Action & Adventure . All Action & Adventure
Video . DVD & VHS . Categories . Action & Adventure . Martial Arts
Video . DVD & VHS . Substores . Regular Stores . World Cinema
Video . DVD & VHS . Substores . Regular Stores . DVD Bargains . By Price . From £4.97 . DVDs from £4.97
Video . DVD & VHS . Substores . Regular Stores . DVD Bargains . Heroic Movies at Fearless Prices
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Format (binding_browse-bin) . DVD
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . BBFC Rating (intended_use_browse-bin) . 15
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Release Date (feature_three_browse-bin) . 2000 and later
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Region(feature_browse-bin) . Region 2
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Editions (feature_two_browse-bin) . Standard Edition
Video . DVD & VHS . Refinements . Language (theme_browse-bin) . Chinese

---