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People are voting emotionally.

Great Film overall

Good movie but grossly overrated

Fantastic!

The Banquet is a Chinese wuxia drama film. It stars Zhang Ziyi, Ge You, Daniel Wu and Zhou Xun. It is a loose adaption of William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet, and features themes of revenge and fate. It is set in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period in 10th century China.It was directed by Feng Xiaogang.Her empire on the verge of a massive revolution as storms begin to brew both within the royal court as well as in the outlying kingdoms, the entrancing Empress Wan gazes upon her stepson, Prince Wu Luan, with the eyes of a forbidden lover rather than a caring mother. When the emperor dies an unexpected death and his younger brother Li ascends to the throne, Empress Wan marries the newly appointed sovereign as a means of both protecting her beloved Wu Luan and cementing her position within the royal court. When assassins dispatched by Emperor Li fail in their attempt to silence Wu Luan and his majesty subsequently announces a lavish banquet, Empress Wan and Wu Luan realize that the time has finally come for them to take action against the murderous despot. This film is as eye opening as it is thought provoking.Xiaogang Feng presents a unique tale that is both beautifully filmed and well acted. Legendary fight choreographer Woo-ping Yuen orchestrates some beautifully fierce aerial battles that while no longer novel are still thrilling to watch. Great performances especially by Zhang Ziyi,who as the cold-hearted matriarch, she more than proves her abilities as an actress who is ready to move onto meatier roles that aren't driven by her beauty.This may be one of the rawest Shakespearean adaptation you'll ever see.

I doubt that anyone could claim that this film isn't very pleasing to look at. The cinematography, the art design, the costumes, the battle choreographies, the settings, they're all very nice to look at, breath-takingly stunning even. Add in talented actors (Zhang Ziyi especially will always remain close to my heart) and a beautifully performed score and you have a film that has a very pretty outer exterior.Unfortunately the story and the plot don't quite manage to keep up. The film suffers from an inability to tell a coherent story and to keep its viewers engaged to the plot. Right from the first few scenes we are left wondering just what in the name of gods is going on and where this story is going. Of course some of these questions get eventually answered and knowing that this is based on Hamlet helps a lot, although it should be able to stand on its own merits when it comes to the latter. Naturally, some might argue that one should just pay attention and that some questions don't need answering, but the fact remains that sometimes a whole scene goes by and only later we learn just what happened, if we learn at all. The major example is the last scene, which to me feels completely useless and confusing, as the main conflict has already been resolved and thus the events of the ending scene just leaves us confused and a bit angry, because it means that we never resolve one of the biggest mysteries of the film, although naturally there are hints and nudges, but all of them are inconclusive. That's just bad storytelling if you ask me. Viewers are naturally curious and leaving us hanging like that serves no purpose.Nevertheless, I can't say that I dislike this film. It's gorgeous to look at, the actors are talented and it's only the plot that keeps this movie from being all that good. But, sometimes the pretty exterior is all that one needs to spend a few hours, and for that purpose this movie is more than enough.

A disappointment. After a bright opening with some superb martial arts fighting, one finally comes to realise that the film is a very direct lift from 'Hamlet' with many details of plot and characterisation directly paralleling Shakespeare's play. But this is a Chinese historical movie set in 907AD!!!! Only the difference is that Gertrude is not Hamlet's mother but his step mother and former lover, and, therefore, becomes the focal point of the film, as she plots and coquettishly manages the men who are in her thrall. Chinese historical films should not look for western plots, they do not work - viz 'Curse of the Golden Flower' based on a thirties Chinese novel was far too way over the top. Although it should be said, this film did need Gong Li and not her younger rival Zhang Ziyi in the lead. The fighting is pretty poor after the opening, the character of Hamlet as a ditherer does not really work, the changing shifting motivations are difficult to believe in because of the different cultural canon, and one is left wondering how the end will come. Yes, they all die, well, most, but where is the outside force in a chaotic kingdom falling apart? Some good imagery with masks, some sexy moments (albeit with a body double for the female star!), and some impressive spectacle in the court, but a missed opportunity.

Loosely based on Shakespeare's Hamlet The Banquet, directed by Feng Xiaogang, is a lavishly produced tale of incest, corruption and revenge during the fall of the Tang Dynasty, a period known as the 'Five Dynasties of Ten Kingdoms'. A web of intrigue has been woven within the walls of the Imperial Palace that ultimately leads to tragedy and bloodshed. The Banquet is by no means a masterpiece, but it is a gloriously spectacular work of visual art with some fine performances, mainly from two of China's brightest stars - Zhang Ziyi and Xun Zhou. Sadly, it's hard to feel any compassion for the three main characters, as they are often cold and callous, putting a distance between them and the viewer. SLP