‘Curse of the Golden Flower’ is an exquisite-looking piece of period spectacle and melodrama and welcome news for fans of filmmaker Zhang Yimou and actress Gong Li - who pair up once again after seven productive collaborations between 1987 and 1996.
Along with John Woo and Chow Yun-Fat (now in ‘Curse of the Golden Flower’ to result in one of the most inspired casting pairings in recent times) with their highly popular action films like ‘The Killer’ and ‘Hard Boiled’, Yimou and Gong Li played a fundamental part in establishing Chinese films as worthy imports in the pantheon of international cinema in the early nineties.
“Red Sorghum,” “Ju Dou,” “Raise the Red Lantern,” “The Story of Qiu Ju,” “To Live,” and “Shanghai Triad” all were splendidly diverse films that maxed the potential of both director and actress. As with most successful collaborations, however, they came to a parting of ways after ‘Shanghai Triad’ personally as well as professionally. ‘Curse of the Golden Flower’ marks the return of these two splendid talents where Zhang Yimou seems intent to let the camera bask in the beauty of Li.
The film is a fictionalized, fantastical account of 10th century China, late in the gloriously decadent Tang Dynasty, where royals were surrounded by such ornate and ostentatious details as quartz columns and a constant flow of silk fabrics occupying every space that would allow it. Vibrant colors are in abundance with reds, yellows, and golds bleeding off the screen to appropriately match the tone.
The annual Chrysanthemum festival is approaching and the royal palace is abuzz with preparations in which one daunting task is to fill the vast fortified courtyard with Chrysanthemum golden flowers. Upon completion of this task, the courtyard which contains the immeasurable staircase leading up to the palace is an extraordinary sight of beauty containing thousands of the potted golden flowers which will provide a great surrounding for an unfolding tragedy.
On the eve of the festival, Emperor Ping (Chow Yun-Fat) and his second son, Prince Jai (Jay Chou) unexpectedly return from battling Mongol warriors on the country’s northern border with the pretense of celebrating the festival with the rest of his family that includes the emperor’s eldest son, Crown Prince Wan (Liu Ye) who he had with his first wife and his youngest son, the teenage Prince Yu (Qin Junjie) as well as the empress (Gong Li) whose health seems to be failing.
The festival is one to celebrate the unity of family and with Prince Jai away in battle for three years, there seems to be a particular significance for the convergence of all the family members. The façade is, of course, to have all of the royal family together again but motives run deep among the family members and this reunion may not end up being the joyous occasion that one would expect.
The machinations of this family dynamic are complicated like any good dynasty. The emperor had been married once before which spawned Prince Wan, and the fate of that first wife is clouded in the whispers of debauchery on the count of the emperor who was but only a captain at the time of his first marriage. He managed to engineer his way into another marriage with King Liang’s daughter which brought with it the power of the throne. The marriage between empress and emperor is clearly strained and one senses an enormous weight of resentment on the empress’s shoulders where she seems to be conspiring with Prince Jai to take over the throne.
At the same time, the emperor also seems to favor Prince Jai to take over the throne but all in due time. An early sequence shows the emperor coaxing his middle son into a duel to make sure that Prince Jai is aware that he may not be taken down early or easily. Amidst this drama plays out a sordid affair between the empress and her stepson Prince Wan yet Wan’s heart belongs to another – Chan, the daughter of the emperor’s physician. The empress has her suspicions that Chan is drawing Wan’s affections from her but is unaware that Chan might be contributing to her failing health also.
It appears that the emperor has instructed his physician to slowly poison the empress, a duty the doctor handed off to his daughter whose job is to supply the empress with her medicine - and if all that’s not enough, we have the obstinate youngest son Prince Yu whose jealousy provokes some irreversible actions. And so as the festival plays out, motives, betrayals, mysteries, and uprisings will all reach a crescendo in the best tragic traditions.
That the film was marketed in theaters as an action film in the same vein as Zhang Yimou’s previous films ‘Hero’ and ‘House of the Flying Daggers’ may have led to comparable disappointing returns as people were treated to a tragedy of Shakespearean proportions instead of to a constant supply of martial arts.
The film has action to be sure, and the battle that makes up the climax is an exciting CGI-laden extravaganza of violence, yet the most significant battles are made up of words and pointed stares, conversations had behind closed doors laced with conspiracy. The film is first and foremost a drama so viewers expecting a martial-arts film to rival the above will most likely find the film tedious, even slow.
The film is filled with dialogue but that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s nothing to look at. Yimou has fashioned an extraordinary-looking world here with only a meager attempt at historical accuracy. I say that not to be derogatory but to condone this stylized universe where Yee Chung Man’s costumes and Huo Tingxiao’s production design play as important part of a role as the actors.
Careful casting had to be made for the roles of the emperor and the empress as they had to be strong actors able to go toe to toe within their equally strong characters as well as handle the severe dialogue which could have proved disastrous from the mouth of a lesser actor. Chow Yun-Fat and Gong Li are, of course, perfect for the roles and it would be hard to imagine anyone else filling these roles. Chow Yun-Fat has always radiated a regal stoicism and the right expression from him could mean a page of dialogue from somebody else with Li able to return that expression in kind. The film scorches with tension whenever these two share the screen.
The film is presented in 1.85:1 widescreen and is enhanced for widescreen televisions. The disappointing special features include a competent 20-minute making of featurette which includes the usual behind-the-scenes footage and interviews as well a 2 and a half minute ‘Los Angeles Premiere’ feature that includes some interview footage. There are also numerous trailers for some of Sony’s foreign films though nothing for ‘Curse of the Golden Flower’.
‘Curse of the Golden Flower’ has the grandeur and epic scale of Yimou’s more recent work like ‘Hero’ combined with the more personal calamitous tones of his earlier films such as ‘Raise the Red Lantern.’ The film is a tragedy played out as spectacle with some amazing stylized acting to match the costumes and set design. The film has action but be prepared to pay attention. If you consider yourself a fan of Kurosawa’s King Lear adaptation ‘Ran,’ then this would be the film for you – small dollops of action by way of significant tragedy.
Curse of the Golden Flower is now available at Amazon . As of yet, there is not a release date for this version of the DVD in the UK. Visit the DVD database for more information.
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