My Kingdom

A Lavish Chinese Production That Ends Up Being A Soapy (And Pretty Loopy) Revenge Drama
I had heard a lot of criticism leveled at Gao Xiaosong's "My Kingdom" complaining that its two disparate halves never really fit together into a cohesive narrative. The first part of the film strains for epic grandeur with its story of two orphans being trained in the art and honor of the Chinese opera (not the singing kind). One of the boys sees his family slaughtered in a political maneuver but is saved from imminent death by a wandering opera master and his charge. The three form a offbeat family unit which is threatened when their master is humiliated in a challenge with a Southern rival. The movie fast forwards until the boys are grown and ready to seek a form of retribution as they move into the popular Shanghai opera scene in the twenties. After this simple story is resolved, the second half of the film becomes a loopy bit of revenge fantasy. The screenplay twists and turns as secrets are revealed, implausibilities mount up, and characters have their ulterior motives exposed...

Forty-fine Minutes In
There are certain practices in the long tradition of Chinese cinema that have been used by the most talented Chinese film makers and the least talented. Such as moments of staring up into the sky after a dramatic announcement, showy martial arts maneuvers, revenging a master, and trying to shove a whole life story into the first twenty minutes of the film, to explain character motivation. Sometimes these practices are pulled off well, heightening the experience of the film. In the hands of others, however, these tricks of the trade become the most painful of cinematic tortures. Forty-five minutes into the film My Kingdom, I decided it was clearly torture.
The story centers around two boys living in early 20th century China. Gaun Yi Long, played by Wu Chun, and Meng Er-kui, played by Han Geng . Yi Long is an opera student who begs his master to save Er-kui, after he hears him sing at the execution of his family. Er-kui is being executed with his family as a punishment for...

What was that ending?
This movie was not as I'd expected. The movie started out great but that ending just killed me. It had the potential to be so much more than they made it. What a disappointment. I would definitely rethink buying it but it wasn't dramatically bad. Though I wish they'd thought the plot out a little better. The twist at the end was a little unexpected but nothing can make up for that "throw away" ending.

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