DVD Review - Legend of the Black Scorpion
Rating: 
Feng Xiaogang’s Legend of the Black Scorpion (aka The Banquet) isn’t the first Shakespeare re-make by an Asian director (Kurosawa’s Ran and Throne of Blood come to mind), nor will it be the last. But there’s no doubt in my mind that it is one of the best.
Benefiting from gorgeous cinematography by Zhang Li and fight choreography by legendary master Yuen Woo Ping, as well as taut, grand performances from Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) and Daniel Wu (New Police Story), Xiaogang has crafted a sweeping, mythical epic that succeds in every way possible.
Using the bard’s Hamlet as source material, writers Gangjian Qiu and Heyu Sheng have spun a remarkable re-iteration, taking as much inspiration from their own culture as they have from the original play. Using ancient China as a surrogate for Elizabethan England does little to diminsh the power of the story. All the passion and intrigue is completely intact and, coupled with some truly spectacular visuals and action, Legend of the Black Scorpion makes for some serious entertainment.
The story itself follows Shakespeare’s quite closely. Daniel Wu is Wu Luan, son of the Imperial Emperor of China. Following the assassination of his father by his uncle, the newly-enthroned Emperor Li (Ge You), Luan returns to the capital to plot his overthrow. Complicating matters is his step-mother, the Empress Wan (Zhang Ziyi), who has married the uncle in a bid to retain power. The political maneuvers that ensue eventually consume everyone in the court until the film comes to a spectacular, bloody conclusion.
Viewers familiar with Hamlet will know, for the most part, exactly where the film is going at all the important turns, but as film critic Roger Ebert once said, “It is not what a film is about, but how it is about it.” Such is the case here. I’m sure many will, and no doubt already have, criticise Legend of the Black Scorpion as a case of style-over-substance. It’s a hard charge to deny, but I think any film as gorgeous as Legend would be subject to the same criticism. I say without hesitation that this is one of the high marks of Yuen Woo Ping’s career – and this is a man who has legendary status within the film industry. As Bey Logan says in the commentary accompanying the film, Yuen Woo Ping has choreographed more fights that it is possible to count, and yet he still manages to come up with something new.
The remarkable thing about Black Scorpion is that balletic grace of the action. Instead of focusing on balls-out speed and violence, the action is elegant and telegraphed. It’s interesting to see some of the techniques developed on The Matrix transposed to Chinese film – and even more interesting to see how much better they work. Taking advantage of Tim Yip’s stunning costume designs, the fight scenes are each ballet of silk and leather, as the combatants swirl around each other like liquid flesh. Even when photographed at full speed the result is a marvel to behold.
Even more interesting is that, on the whole, there isn’t that much action in Legend of the Black Scorpion. The film largely consists of dialogue and court intrigue, but don’t get the impression that it is a boring film. There is just the right amount of action, and what there is is stunning. It is also incredibly bloody. Most films of this ilk shy away from the gore, focusing more on the action itself. Not so, in this instance. When people die in this film, the blood flows freely.
On another note, the look of Legend of the Black Scorpion is flat-out gorgeous. The sets are few in number – most of the film takes place inside the Imperial Palace and the immediate environs – are simply amazing. It’s stated that the palace interior was the largest film set in Chinese history at the time of production, and as far as I know that record still stands. In an accompanying interview, directorn Feng Xiaogang claims that the studio was large enough to house a Boeing 747(!). It’s gratifying to see that, somewhere in the world, when they need something to look amazing – they just build it, instead of relying on computer graphics.
Legend of the Black Scorpion is even more remarkable when you stop to consider how uncharateristic the story is for just about everyone involved. Feng Xiaogang, as well as Ge You, are both more well-known for their comedic films (at one point in the additional material Ge You is referred to as the ‘Chinese Jim Carey’ by director Feng). The notion of Zhang Ziyi playing Daniel Wu’s mother is odd to say the least (one of the reasons her role was changed to ’step’ mother in the film), but she embodies an undeniable power that transcends her age. And Wu himself is an American actor, transplanted to Hong Kong, in a mainland Chinese role. And yet, somehow, it comes together perfectly.
Legend of the Black Scorpion arrives this week on a great two-disc set courtesy of Dragon Dynasty, and like Dragon Dynasty’s other releases, the Weinsteins have gone out of their way to provide fans of the film with a bevy of extras. The best, in my opinion, is the feature-length commentary by film expert Bey Logan. Logan is once again a perfect companion, elucidating even the smallest detail. I’ve always been of the opinion that the best commentaries are by those unrelated to a film’s production, and Logan once again supports that notion. If I have any gripe, it is that he pretty flatly gives up the identity of the person who commits the film’s final murder, a fact which Feng Xiaogang decided to leave unspoken. I think the film is more powerful not knowing who throws that dagger (once you see the film for yourself, you’ll know what I’m talking about.)
The rest of the extras, contained on the second disc, are equally compelling, especially the pair of interviews with director Feng Xiaogang and star Daniel Wu, respectively. Xiaogang sheds light on the varied efforts to bring the film to life, while Daniel Wu speaks openly of being the only actor in the film not from mainland China. Normally these kind of things tend to make me nod off, but they are not overlong and worth a watch.
Two ‘Making of…’ mini-documentaries are included, both of which seem to have been produced for Chinese audiences - which I deduce from the fact that Daniel Wu speaks Chinese, and not his native English. They are both very good, however, if for no other reason than we get to see the true scale of the sets and the production. The bamboo forest sets are every bit as stunning as the palace, even when photographed in the raw. It’s also neat to see the wirework in action before all the wires are digitally removed. In terms of length they run about an hour altogether.
A handful of trailers round out the goodies, and while they’re not the kind of thing you’ll watch repeatedly, they are nicely done. A Cannes Promo, narrated in English, is also included, which is pretty cool.
Legend of the Black Scorpion is simply wonderful. As Shakespeare adaptations go, you could do a lot worse than this. It’s got all the action and pageantry you could ask for, backed up by amazing performanaces by everyone involved. I haven’t upgraded to Blu-Ray yet, and I don’t know what Dragon Dynasty’s plans are in that respect, but I can say that this is one of the first films I’ll nab to watch when I do.
Details
Publisher: Dragon Dynasty
Director: Feng Xiaogang
Stars: Zhang Ziyi, Daniel Wu
Running Time: 126 minutes
MPAA Rating: n/a
MSRP: $24.95
Release Date: 02/26/2008
Buy:The Legend of the Black Scorpion
Links
Legend of the Black Scorpion IMDB entry
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