ZHONG KUI: SNOW GIRL AND THE DARK CRYSTAL (钟馗伏魔: 雪妖魔灵) (2015)
Genre: Supernatural/Fantasy/Action
Director: Peter Pau
Cast: Chen Kun, Li Bing Bing, Winston Chao, Bao Beier, Yang Zishan
Runtime: 1 hr 57 mins
Rating: PG13 (Scene of Intimacy)
Released By: Golden Village Pictures
Official Website:
Opening Day: 12 March 2015
Synopsis: Legendary Chinese anti-hero Zhong Kui, a young man endowed with mysterious powers who is forced into a battle among the realms of Heaven, Earth and Hell in the course of his attempt to save his countrymen and the woman he loves.
Movie Review:
Back me up here, fellow Chinese readers. Isn’t Zhong Kui supposed to be a hideous ghost catcher sporting a big belly? Why are we seeing a good looking Zhong Kui in the form of popular Mainland Chinese actor Chen Kun here? According to Chinese folklore, this famed vanquisher of evil beings had the power to command demons and is often highly regarded as a powerful guardian spirit.
Before we get all judgmental about looks, let’s give the filmmakers behind this high budget fantasy movie a chance to tell a romantic love story behind the Chinese folk deity – hey, despite how you look, anyone can fall in love right?
Therein also lies the problem of this 118 minute movie. We love Chinese folklore, but seeing them visualised on the big screen with soulless computer generated effects is somewhat off putting. We know how Hollywoodmovies have managed, with the extensive help of modern technology, to churn out mythical universes like Middle Earth and Hogsworth. But one thing filmmakers must never forget is the essence of every good movie – an emotionally engaging story.
This phenomenon seems to be on a rise after Gordon Chan’s Painted Skin (2008), a special effects extravaganza adapted from the beloved Chinese folklore Liao Zhai. It spawned a sequel in 2012 – and one doesn’t simply forget the mess that plagued two of last year’s blockbusters The Monkey King and The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom.
It’s probably the encouraging box office takings that have given confidence to filmmakers to continue producing such flicks. Peter Pau, best known for his Oscar winning work in Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), takes up the challenge and co directs this movie with Zhao Tianyu, focusing on Zhong Kui’s love life. In short, the demon slayer must battle magical forces from both heaven and hell to save mankind and Snow Girl (played by Li Bingbing, whom we always mix up with Fan Bingbing), a woman he obviously loves. The problem here? The titular Snow Girl is a demon.
There is so much budget thrown in to make this movie. Besides having Chen and Li to headline this doomed love story, the filmmakers apparently felt the need to employ New Zealand’s Weta workshop to create the fantastical settings in the story. As much as the backdrops are pleasing to the eye, we couldn’t resist sniggering at the chunkily computer generated creatures and the female demons with superimposed heads.
It doesn’t stop there. The special effects also help Chen’s Zhong Kui morph into a supposedly terrifying giant and Li’s Snow Girl transform into an icy femme fatale who destroys her enemies with deadly icicles. We are waiting for some genius to spoof this character with an Oriental version of “Let It Go”. Elsewhere, Winston Chao does a decent job as a self righteous deity, while supporting characters (the obligatory sources of comic relief) are played by Yang Zishan and Bao Beier.
Since its release in Chinato coincide with the Lunar New Year holidays, this movie has made a very decent amount of money. The USmarket has lapped this up and released it in late February, which means only one thing – we will see more of such products featuring excessive
Movie Rating:
(We love our Chinese folklore, but too much
Review by John Li
You might also like:
