Product Description: The ill-fated romance between an imperial bodyguard & a prince takes the lovers on a dangerous journey where royal family secrets are revealed. Studio: Sony Pictures Home Ent Release Date: 08/26/2008 Starring: Jin Chen Yun Fat Chow Run time: 114 minutes Rating: R
Amazon.com: Curse of the Golden Flower, a fictionalized historical glimpse into the brutally complicated politics of Emperor Ping's (Chow Yun Fat) reign during the Tang Dynasty, shows the viewer just how far a megalomaniac must go to gain and retain power in medieval China. Lavish sets, massive ceremonial displays, and perversely fascinating battle scenes impress similarly to the special effects Americans have come to love and expect from Chinese action films like Zhang Yimou's previous House of Flying Daggers and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. An intricate plot involving the Emperor's wife, Empress Phoenix (Gong Li) and their three sons, Crown Prince Xiang, Prince Jie, and Prince Cheng, most closely follows the Empress's secret plan to force abdication upon her corrupt husband as revenge for his slowly poisoning her with Black Fungus tea. Opening on the eve of the Chysanthemum Festival, 928 A.D., the Empress obsessively embroiders gold chysanthemums to adorn her army's uniforms while hatching plans with Jai to overthrow the Crown Prince for control of the throne. Meanwhile, a side plot develops as the Emperor's ex-wife and mother to Crown Prince Yu reemerges as Yu's lover. By the time the Festival occurs, family members are pitted against each other in a King Lear-ian web of lies that can only result in demise. The most sophisticated narrative aspect of Curse of the Golden Flower is that as the royal family crumbles, the Emperor's death grip on China remains unwavering. Gorgeous scenes set in the palace and costume design displaying China's upper class decadence cannot fail to entertain. The paradox between good and evil, here, is highlighted by how the Emperor successfully rules despite, and because of, his utter cruelty. --Trinie Dalton
Customer Reviews
Average Rating:
Rating: - A golden triumph...
Truly one of the most beautiful films of 2006, `Man Cheng Jin Dai Huang Jin Jia' is a truly magnificent film indeed, with an inner beauty that transcends its glorious set pieces and costume design. With ... Read More
Rating: - Incest from Historical Perspective
A Beijing-2008 opening/closing ceremonies look bleak comparing with epic actions this work presents, and 300 (Combo HD DVD and Standard DVD) [HD DVD], computer-assembled digitally-mastered blood-thirsty action ... Read More
Rating: - A lauriat for the senses
Curse of The Golden Flower, despite a few flaws, deserves a place in your DVD collection for its visual style alone. The story is a tad soap opera-ish, with royal family members squabbling over the Imperial throne, ... Read More
Rating: - Colors are amazing
Great Colors, Beautiful picture quality. All-in-All a decent film.
Worth having in your collection if you are a drama/kung-fu junky.
Not as much fighting as i wanted, but the drama did keep ... Read More
Rating: - Agree with a few of the criticisms, but still very much liked this movie!
I can agree with a few of the criticisms offered by other Amazon reviewers. The drama was a bit overblown at times, and the start of the movie was a tiny bit slow. The end was an unholy slaughter and didn't leave off on ... Read More
- Incest from Historical Perspective