The Promise
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Movie Reviews of The Promise
Movie Review: Choice.
Summary: 4 Stars
Choice... I think the title pretty much sums it up. Need I say more? Probably not, but I will. In my brief encounter with the film I found it to be, delicious. It was juicy like a south african steak tenderized to perfection by a million tiny lashes of my tongue over a period of three days.Movie Review: Oh dear....
Summary: 2 Stars
Chen Keige's misbegotten The Promise is possibly the only Asian film that can make you feel sorry for Harvey Weinstein, who pre-brought the film before realizing that he'd made a big mistake on seeing the end result. It's hard not to think that all that bad karma from cutting Asian films to ribbons finally caught up with him with this one. I should have known what to expect when I saw Etchie Stroh's name as one of the producers. It's not a total loss, but it is a helluva mess just on a technical level, boasting probably the worst CGI effects in a big budget film. Some of them look just one step up from animatics or late 80s arcade games, while the opening stampede plays like a Road-Runner cartoon crossed with an early Neolithic cave painting. But then the sound mixing is sometimes equally awkward, leaving you with the impression that the film was rushed into completion in the hopes of scoring some Oscar nominations that they didn't quite manage to finish any it. Of course, it is just possible that everyone concerned saw what a totally bonkers movie this is and decided to sneak home early from work each day.
It's not fair to describe it as Asia's Alexander, because although often horribly executed, there was a governing intelligence behind that. By contrast, this seems more of a cynical attempt to capture a slice of the international market Zhang Yimou and Ang Lee cornered with a fantasy epic cum fairytale. Unfortunately, despite a promising initial premise and mostly game performances, Kaige really isn't suited to this kind of material and seems to be throwing in elements simply because they worked in other people's hit movies. There are a few good moments - the wall of time flashback, the ending - but most of it is just so bizarrely wrong that you just go on watching to see what comes up next. I think rescuing the heroine from her giant gilded birdcage, wrapping her in feathers and then running with her flying like a kite on a string probably takes the WTF? award, but the bull run comes a close second.
Movie Review: Very good film
Summary: 5 Stars
Full of lavish colours, sights, and sounds, this film impresses. I also enjoyed the storyline, which has a very ethnic faerie-tale or "legend" quality to it, but at the same time, this film is very modern, which doesn't really relate to any specific time and place.
What I liked about the story is that it doesn't rely on heavy sentimentality, as most interpretive epics of today do. It has a simple profound truth to it that serves as the backdrop, and doesn't preach or use overly sentimental scenes to cast a shadow on the intricate web of its design.
Movie Review: Great interpretation of a Classic
Summary: 4 Stars
For those of you that enjoyed the old school filming of wuxia movies. You will love this film. For those of you still reluctant to accept fanatasy genre movies you will dislike this film. Its not lord of the rings, but its an interpretation of a legend and a great one. Its not the best films I've seen but one of the newer ones done in the same style. Like crouching tiger and Hero, its strength lies in its fight sequences but lacks a solid storyline. If you enjoyed any of these 3 flicks I urge you to watch The Conquerer's Concubine if you can find it on dvd. It is the rarest movie.Movie Review: This is your movie..if your in the movie for an art film.
Summary: 3 Stars
The promise is beautiful in some shots. The story is terrible. The movie is better, if you ignore the subtitles. Minus one of the scence's, the film has many great scenes.