Feng shen Di yi bu: Zhao ge feng yun

This is cinema on a grand scale, everything about it is breathtaking. The cinematography and visuals are stunning, the set pieces are immense, the scope of the story telling is wide and a large cast deliver polished performances. For western audiences, imagine a movie matching the scale and vision of Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy. The stories are completely different but there's something about the sheer scale and vision which they share.

The story is quite straightforward, good vs. Evil, the importance of family, moral corruption and the last for power, however it is done extremely well and makes for compelling viewing. The story is based on a classic story, I am not familiar with the original book so cannot comment on how faithful the movie is to the original.

Production values are very high and all of the cast deliver strong performances. If I have a criticism it is that the good vs. Evil story is very heavy. There is no nuance, no grey, the good people are paragons of virtue, the bad people full on over the top villainous caricatures. Although the main villain starts off as quite tragic in falling for the temptations of a demon that is quickly left behind as he becomes crazily over the top evil. That's why I give 9* instead of 10*, a little more nuance in the characters would have added a lot I think.

Overall a terrific movie for those who enjoy fantasy epics on a grand scale. They don't make many like this.

Absolutely a fantastic movie, the storyline, the acting, the virtual images, the music all made this movie an Epic movie.

Let me talk about the conclusion first: this is the best mythical epic movie in China!

As a fan who read Fengshen Yanyi at the age of seven and re-read the original novel countless times in more than 20 years, I can say responsibly that this movie is definitely not a magic reform! On the contrary, it is the first masterpiece among all film and television adaptations.

Some passages that seem magical at first glance are actually well-founded, and they are the optimal solution after careful research and selection. The adaptation of the movie is very good.

This new story from a contemporary perspective can be called a divine script. It is seamless from beginning to end, and echoes before and after the transition.

Can't wait for the 2nd one!! Highly recommend to everyone!

It's a phenomenal movie, it revolves around the core of the prophase of the Chinese civilization--fatherhood and inheritance. The director has excellent taste in history and Chinese myth. Very clear storyline and character shaping, all of them correspond to the ancient Chinese value system, the kind intent to manipulate his sons equals he wants to dominate the whole regime, but he has the ambition to eliminate his ancestors to build his surmountable power which makes he be seemed as a villain in Chinese culture. The cinematography is top-notch, I am appealed to the whole time in the movie! Highly recommended, it's a stunning epical representation of the Shang Dynasty and Chinese myth!

The original novel was published 400 years ago and have too many memorable moments. So it is very unsuitable for movie use. Moreover, Chinese classical novels, especially this type of novels, (hua beng) do not have the sublimation of characters in modern Western novels, so they are not necessarily suitable for movies. So the director made simplifications and trade-offs here. Many familiar scenes have not been retained. The perspective of the movie is abandoned and the change of a character is the most important driving force for the movie. The visuals have improved a lot. It is already very good to have such a performance.

As a Chinese-speaking expat in China and a movie enthusiast, I've had the opportunity to watch the majority of Chinese films released over the past decade since my move here. With a profound respect for Chinese culture, "Creations of the Gods: Kingdom of Storms" was truly the cherry on top for me. It breathed life into my Chinese mythology fantasies, all while maintaining a remarkable level of professionalism. This movie boasts exceptional quality, and I find myself consistently recommending it to those around me. Witnessing the industry progress to such lengths is nothing short of amazing!

This movie deserves a place in cinemas worldwide. I hope it will be appreciated by viewers around the globe.