First and foremost, please do not be misled by the title that features a Christian word "resurrection". The core of this movie is actually a Buddhist plot tailor-made for our renowned devoted practitioner, Andy Lau (named after Saint Andrew, the Jew who bore a Greek name, and was among the first to be converted to Christianity).

Andy was one of the Five Tiger Generals of a warlord and was never defeated. He declared his disbelief of fate before a Buddha statute in a deserted temple, only to find his way back to the same place 30 years later when he was nearly broke. An atheist turned Buddhist, he was enlightened toward the ending and embraced death with grace.

Compelled by the playwright, poor Maggie Q could do nothing but to join Andy's craziness. As the gifted granddaughter of the rival warlord, she commanded a troop and played the famous piece "Four-direction Ambush" on her Sitar when her men attacked their enemy. Before the final strike, she uttered the words "Buddha bless" and sent the new convert Andy to his afterlife.

The duel would not have had to happen at all if the Oracle (not by Sammo, and I refuse to comment on Sammo's fictional and redundant role) who served Andy's warlord had not made a terribly wrong prediction. Despite his impressive track record, the Oracle was overconfident and was, unfortunately, nothing more than a pagan as well. He thus played a part in testifying the inferiority of non-Buddhist.

One might find it hard to imagine a Marcus Aurelus (the old emperor in the film "Gladiator") who chanted "In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit" when he launched his campaign against the Germans, nearly two hundred years after Jesus' apostles reached Rome. However, the Chinese feel comfortable to anoint both Andy and Maggie Q, important secular figures in the history, even when Buddhism was only officially introduced to China for less than a century and confined to extreme minority at the time in question.

Among many other ahistorical scenes, one actually creates a comic effect. Andy told the Oracle that he followed the warlord for many years and "bowed to his weariness (鞠躬盡瘁)". The latter phrase is in fact known to have been coined by the Oracle himself. This is like boasting the words "I think therefore I am" in front of Descartes or shouting "I have a dream" in the face of Martin Luther King Jr.

 

Leave Your Comment Name: HomePage: Title: Comments: Enter what you see in the box: Register as member to give your ratings How do you find the review? Vote Now! (only for registered members) [0] Interesting [0] Informative [1] I want to try it... Like the review? Add to your Favourite List

Overall Rating  based on Author rating Tried the same thing before? Give your Ratings!

User Comments

i will go and watch this Sunday, 06 April 2008 - Written by banwei i will go and watch this movie, looks good man! Reply / Leave A Comment