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Curse of the Golden Flower
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List Price: $19.94
Our Price: $14.99
Your Save: $ 4.95 ( 25% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
Starring: Yun-Fat Chow, Li Gong, Jay Chou, Ye Liu, Dahong Ni
Directed By: Yimou Zhang
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1
Audience Rating: R (Restricted)
Binding: DVD
Brand: Sony
EAN: 0043396167261
Format: AC-3
Label: Sony Pictures
Manufacturer: Sony Pictures
Number Of Items: 1
Publisher: Sony Pictures
Region Code: 99
Release Date: 2007-03-27
Running Time: 114
Studio: Sony Pictures
Theatrical Release Date: 2007-01-12
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Editorial Reviews:
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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
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: Not up to the hype.....
Comment: I am a fan of the Asian artisitic movie style. What draws me to this style of movie is the culture, colors and often time sound effects. This movie did not have a lot of aciton through out the movie. They had big scenes towards the end and an ending that left you unsatisfied. This is the first Asian movie that did not leave me fully satsified and enriched at the end. I also love A/V...and this Blu Ray did not have great PQ and NO AUDIO ADVANTAGE in english. Only the Chinese version has the PCM sound available. This should have been a DVD 5 dollar sale item.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Just Okay, But Worth a Watch
Comment: Let me state first that I am not an expert on Asian foreign films, but I am an avid movie watcher of many genres.
Curse of the Golden Flower was just okay for me. The cinematography and special effects were great. The Behind-the-Scenes feature captured a lot of the mystery involved in the special effects, and the interviews with the cast were enlightening and humorous, giving us a peak inside thier true personalities. Chow Yun-Fat provides an awesome performance. It's not Gong Li's best, but she is, as usual, believable. I'm a new fan!
The idea for the story is good, but the delivery lacks - no fault of the actors, it's the script. There are some areas where the lines are not believable and the best of actors might have a hard time pulling that off. The movie also felt a bit rushed. I felt some scenes simply dropped off for no real reason.
I would add this movie to any good DVD collection, even just for "guest" night.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Worth Watching
Comment: Ancient Chinese stories; fictions and non-fictions, often offer deep subtle cultural values not found in Western philosophy. The Curse of the Golden Flower, despite an inappropriate title because it does not or barely describes what the movie is about, is one of them. The movie is a sobering demonstration of the devastating effects of deceit, malice, lust, envy, personal ambitions combined, yet on the other hand, humility, affection and simplicity swallowed up and ruined by the depravity of men displayed in betrayal, murder and blood-baths, within the backdrop of complex relationships in an imperial family. In few words, I would describe it as a serious, honestly humane, and painfully realistic colossal drama with surprising intrigues. One should not expect this movie to be a mere entertainment where the good guys kill the villains like John Rambo gunning down hundreds of Vietcong soldiers and a happily-ever-after ending, but be prepared to think, feel and learn; something needful in the midst of the nihilistic theme of most typical Holywood movies.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Visual Masterpiece
Comment: First of all this movie has stunning cinematography!!!Yet what an awful story...who needs a family like that. A well told story of deceit,treasury, betrayal, abuse and manipulation. Chow Yun Fat and Gong Li shines as well as Jay Chou's singing at the end credits is quite enjoyable.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Cinematografia Perfecta
Comment: Si ud. aśn no la ve, no lo dude. un 10 a esta pelicula. Si apenas piensa comprar Blu-Ray No lo dude, este es uno de los mejores transfers que se han hecho para este formato. Eso si nada mas tiene subtitulos en ingles.
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