The Great Conqueror's Concubine
Reviewed by YTSL
From what I had read about it, this 1994 Hong
Kong-Mainland Chinese collaborative effort possessed similar ambitions
and faults as the Chen Kaige directed "The Emperor and the Assassin" which
I had viewed - and was disappointed by - a few months ago. Although
the idea of a(nother) three hour long early imperial historic epic did
not immediately majorly appeal, I eventually couldn't resist checking out
the "cast of thousands" - at least in terms of number of undoubtedly cheap
extras -- Zhang Yimou executive produced work which stars two Hong Kongers
who I feel don't get as many plum roles as they deserve (Rosamund Kwan
and Ray Liu) alongside Mainland Chinese megastars, Zhang Fengyi and Gong
Li.
In THE GREAT CONQUEROR'S CONCUBINE, Ray Liu portrays
a general named Xiang Yu whose military exploits and successes earned him
the sobriquet of "The Western Conqueror" while Rosamund Kwan is his beloved
Lady Yu Gei. Though she spends the bulk - if not all -- of the film
as Zhang Fengyi's rival general Liu Bang's not particularly liked - by
him and many others -- wife, it becomes clear some time before this turbulent
drama's end that the movie's title character is that played by Gong Li.
Even while the production contains numerous differently but always grandly
staged battles between often intimidatingly large rival armies of men (including
that of the then ruling - from 221 to 206 B.C. -- Qin dynasty) as well
as martial displays by scary weaponed individuals, the most bone chilling
and cunning maneuvers are those enacted by Gong Li's conniving Lady Liu
Jeung (who makes Gong Li's "The Emperor and the Assassin" character look
like a naïve idiot and Rosamund Kwan's Lady Yu Gei an impossibly sweet
saint).
THE GREAT CONQUEROR'S CONCUBINE is one of those
films that I can well imagine bringing about a sense of sensory overload
in its viewers. This is due to its being so that apart from its being
a rather lengthy work, those behind its making have elected to cover --
fairly briefly yet in quite a bit of detail -- a lot of episodes in the
political as well as military campaigns of two ambitious men (and one ambitious
women) to bring down their land's rulers and jockey for power plus territorial,
material and other possessions of their own. As such, it is my suggestion
that this four -- rather than the usual two -- VCD occupying saga be watched
in installments rather than in one go; since upon doing so, certain sections
can be better distinguished from others and appreciated more (Personal
favorites include those that took place in the surroundings of the sumptious
imperial residence which a captured Lady Yu Gei was taken to be yet another
of the Qin emperor's playthings and into whose dungeons she was thrown
into after biting his ear...). Alternatively, I think it safe to
state that the two scenes in which Rosamund Kwan and Gong Li share a bath
are ones which will stand out for most people however they choose to view
this generally serious yet never pretentious offering (which does contain
some "only in Hong Kong movies" moments as well as certain "only in Mainland
China" vistas!).
As the work winds down to its inevitable - this
is a pictorial retelling of amply recorded historic events, after all -
conclusion, its story and events get more infused (than previously) with
emotion. In particular, the sections filled with song are the most
alternately heart-warming and -rending. The final confrontation is
also something that moved this (re)viewer (almost to tears). Interestingly,
it additionally emphatically reconfirmed that the moviemakers' sympathies
are not with the man who ended up founding the Han dynasty and the woman
who, after his death, became China's first empress in her own right (a
profile of whom can be found on a "100 Celebrated Chinese Women" web
site). For at least comparative purposes, I'd like to point out
that the feelings I had for their - and others' -- victims is something
which the more well known - at least in the West - 1999 Chen Kaige vanity
project (the director cast himself as the father of the first emperor of
China) never managed to evoke.
My rating for this film: 7.
