You Seng

Throughout, I felt that this movie had the sensibility of a comic book, but a comic book of genius. The visuals were ceaselessly stunning, every single scene change led to another beautiful surprise; both dramatically and with what we were allowed to gorge our eyes (and sometimes ears) on. Rather than call it "directing", or "photography," or "set design," I want to say that the artwork was breathtaking.

What are movies but comic books with the added dimensions of movement and sound? Both largely tell their stories with visuals, and dialog or narration. Too often I am a stickler for believability in movies but I could not help cutting this movie a lot of slack. "Yes, that is just how a comic book might treat the story but with nowhere near the impact," I found myself thinking throughout...

Narrative structure has never been Clara Law's strong point; but she usually has some kind of conceptual development to tie her images together... this one tries to float like a dream; & ends up sinking like a stone. Watching it, one can't help wondering whether there was a three hour version either scripted or shot: all the elements for an intriguing take on individual responsibility seem to be in place; but none have been allowed to develop beyond the level of operatic manga. As Gertrude Stein observed (probably unkindly) of Oakland, there's no there there....

Then again: perhaps Ms Law just fell in love with her (admittedly quite stunning) images....

Temptation of a Monk is a treat for those viewers who value character development and self discovery. The movie is the story of a army general who strives to transcend the trappings of his position, social expectation and his current state of existence. He enters a monastery which shakes his social foundations (an elder brother monk, 10 years old ordering an ex-general around), but the teachings are ineffective because of his hidden motivations in joining the monastery. After a traumatic event, he moves on to another monastery, where his life begins to change. His newfound learnings and knowledge are again tested to determine whether he perseveres.

The subtlety of the plot and the gradual development of the character is wonderful, much like the metamorphosis of a caterpillar. This is the strength of the film, enticing viewers to watch on to find out whether the protagonist perseveres. The contemporary style of the costumes is another feature of this film adding to the beauty of the landscape. Overall, Temptation of a Monk is an oriental treat -- displaying both the beauty of the land and of the human soul.

Though a little slow at times, Clara Law's Temptation of a Monk is a beautiful and well-acted epic, at times achieving a Kurosawa-esque level of stunning imagery and battle scenes. Joan Chen has two roles, one as a vibrant princess the other as a mysterious assassin. She is very good in both roles. This film is not perfect. The story ultimately doesn't go anywhere, for one. I must recommend it on the basis of its sheer beauty, however. And one battle scene in particular is terrifyingly beautiful. For fans of Kurosawa this is worth seeing. Others might grow restless, though.

One of the greatest non-Kurasawa movies of it's kind, this film has epic scope. The somewhat over the top action sequences are subtle compared to most Chinese films. It all fits and works well together. I viewed this film by accidentally recording it on DVR the first time. What really surprised me was the macho style warrior stuff. You wouldn't think a female director would pull off those stereotypically male sensibilities so well. The film takes several turns, has comedy, adventure, drama, and near the end becomes very spiritual. It's sad that more of the great movies being made in China, Korea, and Thailand don't get any press here in the states. The stream of regurgitated watered down garbage choking out of Hollywood can't compare to many of the movies from overseas these days. Perhaps one day the moguls will realize that people really respond to art and personal stories more than what star is in the film. The American movie audience isn't nearly as sedate as the marketing specialists think. We just don't have much of a choice.