The Lost Empire
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Movie Reviews of The Lost Empire
Movie Review: I enjoyed it
Summary: 4 Stars
The special effects are cheesy beyond belief, but I found myself loving this movie.
I especially liked the romance between Kuan Yin and Nicholas Orton. Both actors seemed to be having fun.
Movie Review: The Lost Kingdom
Summary: 4 Stars
Well done modern telling of a classic Chinese tale. Some special effects were not up to todays standards but that did not get in the way of a well done story.Movie Review: The Goddess of Mercy
Summary: 3 Stars
The Lost Empire / The Monkey King is a mini series that tells the story of Nicholas Orton (Thomas Gibson) who finds himself on a save-the-world mission. The plot itself is a bit difficult to follow - it is loosely inspired by 'Journey to the West'- the famous chinese epic. However in this version, it shows us what would happen if 'Journey to the West' had never existed. Demons are trying to destroy the book (for the simple reason of that's what evil demons do with their spare time) and the world is running backwards because of it, deleting all the things that 'Journey to the West' helped inspire (which includes buildings and clocks, strangely enough). So the Goddess of Mercy, Kwan Ying (Ling Bai) travels from her world to find the prophesied Scholar from Above - our own Nick Orton. He is 'above' because all of the mythological characters he later mets live in a copy of China in one of the (very, very, very large) unexcavated tombs, under the musuem. So with the help of Kwan Ying and the famous terracotta warriors that come to life, Nick finds himself inside the tomb/copy of mythological China, faced with the sacastic Monkey King (Russell Wong) who was been trapped inside a mountain by those same demons that are out to destroy 'Journey to the West'. As you can see, the premise is quite confusing, so if you like to sit down and get a nice, logical plot, you might want to give this one a miss, as our heroes do a lot of wandering around and your not actually sure where they're going or why.
However, if you are a fan of other Hallmark fantasy mini-series (the Magical Legend of the Leprechauns, Merlin, Arabian Nights, the 10th Kingdom, the Voyage of the Unicorn) then this is the movie for you. Like the others it boasts great special effects, great set-designs and Kwan Ying and her consort Whitesnake wear the most beautiful outfits I've seen. The lovely Ling Bai is perfectly cast as the Goddess of Mercy, and the scenes that take place in the home of the gods are wonderful. Nick and his reluctant teacher the Monkey King are good too, and get some good one-liners, and their allies Pigsy and Friar Sand should appeal to kids. The romance between Nick and Kwan Ying is nothing new, but still enjoyable to watch, and the carefully choreographed martial-art sequences are amazing.
If you are a Chinese-historian or a purist of any kind, I advise you to steer clear, as I'm sure Confucius wasn't an annoying, back-stabbing traiter as he is portrayed here, but everyone else should just sit down and enjoy the ride without being picky.
Movie Review: Entertainment vs Accuracy
Summary: 3 Stars
I picked 3 stars as a medium for this movie.
For those of you who enjoy mythical worlds for entertainment purposes, then you might rank this as high as 4 stars. Though the acting by Thomas Gibson (playing journalist Nick Orton, the Scholar) falls a bit flat, Russell Wong makes for an enthusiastic and entertaining Monkey King. The costumes are nicely done, particularly that of Pigsy, and the martial arts scenes are well choregraphed though a little cheesy sometimes. The special effects, while not perfect quality, give the movie character and a touch of humor.
For those of you who favor accuracy, this probably falls as low as two stars. (1 if you are an extremist, but then why did you even bother watching this?) The movie was created with little regard of the historical/modern origins of Buddhist religion. Issues of particular note are:
1. the Goddess Kwan Ying's deception/drunkenness at the begining of the movie and the romantic feelings throughout the film conflicting with the modern view of the holy figure Guan Yin (whom Kwan Ying is based on)**
2. the portrayal of Confucious as greedy and selfish instead of wise
3. (though not a religious issue) there seems to be a little bit of a dig at Chinese communism in the movie's second half which may be too much for the politically sensitive. There is some obvious emphasis on Western values such as individualism vs the collectivism of the Chinese.
** For those of you crying bloody murder over the portrayal of Guan Yin and looking for a warped version of a Christian holy figure, see the movie series 'Prophecy' by Gregory Widen. (Interestingly, Russell Wong is also a lead in Prophecy II as Danyael.) The archangel Gabriel has turned against the Christian God and the humans of God's creation. The warping of holy figures doesn't just happen to those of Chinese origin - it happens everywhere.
Note: THIS IS ***NOT*** A RECREATION OF 'JOURNEY TO THE WEST'!!!
Too many people seem to be expecting this. If you are looking for a retelling of 'Journey to the West', keep going as this is not for you. This is a Westernized story that pulls elements from the story "Journey to the West". You will not find a cast of all Asian characters. You will not find Buddhism or Confucionism presented here accurately. This is an entertainment piece and not a historical one. This was made for a the general American (and European?) audience and not an Asian one.
Movie Review: chill ppl, the movie is interesting. why can't you just enjoy it dhuh??
Summary: 3 Stars
it's funny reading some of you ppl ...
making such a big deal over religion, confucius, kuan yin, and all that.
you're so self-righteous that you missed the point of this movie.
kuan yin falls in love with the teacher. she knew she was risking the loss of her godliness ... but being the goddess of mercy,
she was willing to do what she needed to do ...
in order to save the world.
that is what compassion is all about.
confucians being insulted that their master is portray as a snivelling self-centred so and so?
well, maybe he was as self-righteous as those who put down this movie.
step back and stop looking at it from the perspective of the true message; not from what the pig, monkey, kuan yin, white man, yellow man, whatever.
the story and message is good over evil.
and that even gods can fall in love.
some , like monkey , finds love as rather unnecessary.
but, is it not due to their own self-centeredness?
like monkey, who is portrayed as rather arrogant and too concerned with himself. is it no surprise that he finds loving another person unnecessary? he's too much engrossed in himself.
i don't think it was the intention to insult anybody's beliefs or what not. what's the point?
the story is interesting, and the fights are kept to a minimum...
not like the jackie chan and jet li, or kill bill
overkill.
it's meant to send a message , as kuan yin tells the scholar:
you cannot do wrong if you listen to your heart.
remember your past, you were hurt by love,
but you can do great things if you only continue to listen to your heart.
that's all there is ...
no great insults, no subversive insinuations,
... just a simple message.
why make mountains out of molehills???
in closing,
every one has their own perspective of what is and what is not.
we're all unique, and sometimes we need to see it from the other person point of view.
you are not wrong, neither am i. we're just different...
and why don't you just enjoy the movie, huh?
it's an enjoyable movie.
at the end, with monkey , pig and the other walking away...
it reminds me of tin man, lion,...
of wizard of oz.
that was a fun movie, and an unforgettable one,
and so is this one.