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Cast:
Li
Xuejian
Gong
Li
Zhang
Fengyi
Sun
Zhou
Wang
Zhiwen
Chen
Kaige
Lu
Xiaohe
Gu
Young Fei
Action:
Liu Jiacheng
Producer:
Han
Sanping
Iseki
Satoru
Shirley
Kao
Director:
Chen
Kaige
Score:
 
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THE
EMPEROR AND THE ASSASSIN
AKA:
The First Emperor ||
Assassin
Year:
1999 Reviewer: Pat
King
Three
years before the release of Zhang Yimou's 'Hero',
Chen Kaige finished his lavish epic 'The Emperor and the
Assassin', and like 'Hero' is set during
the
rise of the Qin empire. Taking three years to film and
even longer to research, 'The Emperor and the Assassin' could
be regarded as one of the last true epics as no digital
effects are used, thousands of extras were hired and a palace
five times the size of the real Forbidden City was built
especially for this film.
King
of Qin, King Ying Zhang (Li Xuejian), is bound by a mandate
dictated by his ancestors to unite the seven kingdoms of China
and unify them "all under heaven". By fulfilling
this obligation it is his belief that conquering
the other kingdoms will result in peace after years of
civil war. His wife to be, Lady Zhao (Gong Li), has grown
weary of palace life and wishes to return to her home of Zhao.
However she is moved by Ying Zhang's desire to unite China and
bring peace. They then conger a plot
that will cause the powerful kingdom of Yan to send an
assassin to kill Ying Zhang, then giving him good reason to
lay siege to Yan. It is Lady Zhao's belief that the kingdom of
Yan would surrender before any blood was spilt, and harbours
such confidence in the plan, that she even has her face
branded
to give credibility to the façade of being exiled. She
then
goes to the kingdom of Yan, and finds a suitable
candidate to carry out the assassination in the form of Jing
Ke (Zhang Fengyi), who has no fear of death. However in her
absence Ying Zhang becomes increasingly ruthless after
learning a few home truths.
Released
a year earlier, 'The Emperor and the Assassin' missed the wave
of western interest created by 'Crouching
Tiger, Hidden Dragon'. As such it only received a
limited release in the US. However 'The Emperor and the
Assassin' is more than worthy of
being mentioned in the same breath as 'Crouching Tiger,
Hidden Dragon', 'Hero' and 'House
of Flying Daggers'. In fact in some ways it is superior to
all three of the aforementioned films, namely in it's
narrative and it's attention to character development. Be
warned however that 'The Emperor and the Assassin' is not an
action film, nor is it meant to be. It is an efficient
historical drama. What little action that does exist is very
brief, grittily realistic but perfect for this film.
It
may not have the dazzling visuals of Yimou's 'Hero' and 'House
of Flying Daggers', but the cinematography remains of the
highest quality and is still a beautifully shot film. With
it's palette of muted colours it boasts an almost sepia
quality. Coupled with the expertly measured (though some may
find it bordering on slow) pacing of the film the result is
somewhat mesmerising. With the web of political intrigue and
the destruction
of Ying Zhang's family, interest is always sustained as
Ying Zhang
is corrupted by his power and ambition in his quest to
fulfil his ancestors mandate and his own ideals.
Overall,
'The Emperor and the Assassin' is a minor masterpiece and
comes highly recommended, though it should be stated that this
is not a film for everyone. Chen Kaige has performed admirably
to weave the intricate plot strands together without causing
the narrative to become convoluted. It certainly
deserves more attention than it has received.
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