Painted Skin 2: Resurrection

This movie had me teetering on wanting to say it was excellent in the vein of Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon/Hero or feeling like it wasn't quite up to par. Visually many of the scene were art in motion (a la Hero), but then they have shoddy computer animation (the bear that attacks the Princess and the bird played by Mini Yang). As for a love story it is one of those long suffering epics that sort of grabs and tears your heart. The Princess has a lifetime never ending love for the Warrior and would do anything for him, even "sell her soul to the devil". The Warrior, because of his honorable service to her denies his own love for her. When demons get involved everything is twisted and complicated. My buddy & I gave it a "thumbs up" after watching it.

I came across this flick because it was sold new on 3D for only 5 Euro's and not having any problems with Asian flicks and liking the story I was eager to watch it. I'm glad I did because I liked it.

I knew from before that this was going to be a pure Chinese flick, in which I mean acting, story and score. That said that means that a lot of fantasy geeks will leave this for what it is because they can't catch up with the Chinese/Asian feeling.

The CGI used was also a problem for many but again I didn't had any trouble with it. I agree that some CGI really looked cheap but it fits perfectly in this slow moving love story. But the fight scene's make it watchable and the erotic feeling between the princess and the demon in the bath also makes it watchable. There's no nudity to spot but the scene does give it an lesbian, erotic touch. Not only that, the acting also is sublime what makes this more watchable.

But at the end, if you can't understand Asian horror or fantasy then leave this for what it is but if you are open minded for some melodrama then this is your stuff, no go eat those azaleas...

Gore 0/5 Nudity 0/5 Effects 4/5 Story 3,5/5 Comedy 0/5

I wasn't expecting much from this movie. But it surprised me. The story (already well documented on this site) was not overly complex yet it did have some deeper themes about sacrifice, being enraptured by physical beauty and yet being hollow inside.

The hardest thing for me was that Princess Ying (Vicky Zhao) was supposed to be depressed about her facial scars - hidden by her golden mask. But I find her to be extremely attractive so to imagine her as some horrible ugly thing was hard to swallow. Even when she reveals her mask the scars don't look all that bad.

Actually all three main actresses were very attractive and did very well in their respective roles. The only minor complaint would be the wooden performance by the actor portraying the general. He livens up towards the end so I guess I'll give him a pass.

8/10

Life has been good but at times it gets to be mundane, and boring. So I need to escape from reality and get lost in another world. Many films, such as 'Pan's Labyrinth' and 'Kwaidan', offer me a channel to another world for a couple of hours. 'Painted Skin II' does an equally good job in this regard with its dose of fox demons (the good kind), a princess and warriors.

I watched the film on a BluRay disc. The colour, the imagery, the landscape, the costumes, the feminine sexuality - all visually stunning and often poetic. There are also two love stories in there too, and these are no conventional love stories - they are the very complicated kind. The action sequences, often done in slow-mo, are satisfying. Acting is great, especially by the two leading ladies. This film offers all I need from a fantasy story.

It appears that not many in the North America are aware of this film or have seen it. That is indeed a pity. I hope director Wuershan will move on to do Painted Skin III. Something I very much would look forward to.

I have just watched Painted Skin 2 - The Resurrection yesterday. What a movie! I don't usually write reviews for movies (to much time-consuming), but to this movie I feel the urge to do that, because it is totally worth it.

Firstly, I would like to stress the fact that this kind of fantasy movie is not just for anyone. Being in a country closely related to China in terms of culture, custom, and even language, I feel sorry for viewers from Western countries as well as many others as it's impossible for them to understand the story well. The concept of demons under the skin of a beauty, seducing men for their hearts is not new, in fact, it's a fantasy tale that has been spread among Asia for thousands of years. Hence, the movie itself leaves a very mysterious and beautifully thrilling impression to people who are familiar to the tale.

Opening the movie is the scene of the fox demon being imprisoned under the deadly cold ice. Such was the demon's beauty that a demon bird was attracted, freeing her from the ice. Then her journey of devouring human's hearts began, with the aim of finding a human who would voluntarily offer his heart so that she can become a true human, which leads her to the fateful meeting with the strong on-the-outside-yet-weak-on-the-inside, disfigured Jing princess and her love interest - the damaged hero Huo Xin.

The CGI scenes, which might look badly done and painfully fake to a lot of people, is one of the important factors attracting me. Just let yourself be, forget the reality and get into that fantasy mysterious world. The characters are typical of what people look like at that time - long-haired tough soldiers, beauty with big attractive eyes, fair skin and hair so long that it can touch the floor, flying all over the places beautifully when the wind comes. The movie is totally a feast to the eyes. Stunning visual everywhere, from the landscape to the people.

And the most important thing that contribute to the success of the movie: the actors. Zhou Xun (the demon) is simply flawless. Whether it's her look, or her acting, it's simply perfect. Her role is definitely the highlight of the movie. Whatever she does, no one can hate her. I can feel the pain in her eyes, the sadness hiding behind the mask of a evil demon. That is what I call a true actress. But that doesn't mean Zhao Wei (the princess) did a bad job. She played her role very well. There's no room for complaint. The reason why I love Zhou Xun so much is probably because her character of the demon in the movie is kind of more complicated and interesting to me. Comparing with those 2 actresses, Chen Kun falls a little bit flat. His role is very well played, it's just ... flat. However to combine all the 3 we made a powerful trio, making the mission to conquer all the box offices in China possible.

The plot, although I have to say doesn't have much originality, is still interesting enough to keep my eyes on the screen. The movie is a heart-breaking love story, dealing with the issue of true beauty.

Although we all claim that the true beauty is what people possess inside, isn't it true that everybody is attracted to a beautiful face in some way?