tom-dlugosch Stunning cinematography, set design (outshines Blenheim Palace) and choreography! Worth seeing in its own right and as a reference point for many aspects of Hamlet. It's surprising how such meaningful changes could be wrought upon basically the same set of scenes. Brilliant resolutions of some character issues in the original. The Emperor and Empress have more consistent, less conflicted rationales than Claudius and Gertrude, as does the version of Laertes (no need here for an "oops, shot the arrow awry" speech). In this version, guilt is clear and characters get what they deserve, except for Ophelia. It raises Ophelia's profile to great effect and reduces Hamlet's, so given the loss of the language of the play this version is not a replacement for the original, but in many ways it is more focused.

Desertman84 The Banquet is a Chinese wuxia drama film. It stars Zhang Ziyi, Ge You, Daniel Wu and Zhou Xun. It is a loose adaption of William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet, and features themes of revenge and fate. It is set in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period in 10th century China.It was directed by Feng Xiaogang.Her empire on the verge of a massive revolution as storms begin to brew both within the royal court as well as in the outlying kingdoms, the entrancing Empress Wan gazes upon her stepson, Prince Wu Luan, with the eyes of a forbidden lover rather than a caring mother. When the emperor dies an unexpected death and his younger brother Li ascends to the throne, Empress Wan marries the newly appointed sovereign as a means of both protecting her beloved Wu Luan and cementing her position within the royal court. When assassins dispatched by Emperor Li fail in their attempt to silence Wu Luan and his majesty subsequently announces a lavish banquet, Empress Wan and Wu Luan realize that the time has finally come for them to take action against the murderous despot. This film is as eye opening as it is thought provoking.Xiaogang Feng presents a unique tale that is both beautifully filmed and well acted. Legendary fight choreographer Woo-ping Yuen orchestrates some beautifully fierce aerial battles that while no longer novel are still thrilling to watch. Great performances especially by Zhang Ziyi,who as the cold-hearted matriarch, she more than proves her abilities as an actress who is ready to move onto meatier roles that aren't driven by her beauty.This may be one of the rawest Shakespearean adaptation you'll ever see.

vernoncoffee A 4th generation martial arts film in the Crouching Tiger style, with a surprise that took me a while to realize. It is a retelling of a quintessential tale of envy, betrayal, murder, doubt, revenge, and unexpected consequences; in a word Shakespeare's Hamlet. There are numerous changes, generally of reasonable artistic license, for example the fair and innocent Ophelia character no longer has her well worn emotionally deranged scenes after being jilted harshly by Prince Hamlet, just anguish, then dieing in a different manner. The Prince is not at university, but acting school, practicing his craft in a fabulous open air theatre in the woods with a giant slide in the center of the stage; not very practical for a theatre, but excellent for a dramatic assassination attempt that is staged there. The queen has the largest rewrite, portraying her nearly sympathetically; originally a childhood playmate of Hamlet, she becomes the Prince's mother by marriage which obviates some of the awkward intimate scenes (though probably not awkward originally). It is filial love that conflicts her as she realizes the King plans to kill him and this turns her finally against the King. Yet with these many changes and more, from the King's brother assassinating him for his wife, to the final corpse strewn stage of woe, it is without a doubt, Hamlet. Like Crouching Tiger and House of Flying Daggers, it departs from true fight films, and melds martial arts, dance, and acrobatics; here most elegantly in a scene between the queen and Prince, as they practice one of their childhood Kata, an exercise to perfect their sword handling technique. Filmed in slow motion, the swirl of the huge sleeves and tails of their gowns and the flash of the swords truly weds martial arts & dance. It is not surprising that one of today's innovative & talented young directors took a shot at one of literature's great stories, but though this is likely to register disagreement, in truth the martial arts were a distraction rather than an enhancement. Hamlet is full of physical action and sword play, but most of it is an explosive accent, usually with unexpected consequences, the sword play more a means to an end. Though beautiful and thrilling, the martial arts in Scorpion have suffer mission bloat, swelling from a single hasty stab, into a 12 man major engagement on several occasions. You begin wondering when the next big fight scene is, instead of when will Hamlet end his anguished debate and strike for himself and for justice. I would offer Throne of Blood/ Macbeth and Ran/ King Lear, as examples of two Asian adaptations of Shakespeare where the new setting does not distract from the essential dramatic action.

dbborroughs Zhang Ziyi stars in a tale inspired by Hamlet. When the emperor marries his sons lover the son flees into the country. The Emperor is murdered by his brother who has designs on the wife and wants the son dead. Failing to fall victim to his uncles plot, the son returns to the palace and the family's bickering goes into over drive.The look of this film is mind blowing. from the sets, costumes, action sequences, and even the smallest motions of the actors, nothing seems out of place. This is a world that is both real and unreal. This is a film with a high Gee Whiz factor that must be seen in wide screen.Its a work of visual art.Unfortunately this is tough to sit through.I don't think its a bad film, its just one that I wish would get on with things. Many sequences, especially the action ones, seem to go on and on and on (especially since they are all shot in stylized slow motion). At other times things don't seem to have gone on long enough. Some of Zhang Ziyi early scenes left me a little confused as to what he deal was, she seemed more to be an actress trying to find a character instead of a real person on the screen. And while things got better as the film went on I never really bought her in the later scenes simply because of the fumbling early on. Worth a look for those who love on screen opulence or those who can be a bit more forgiving than I can with the pacing.This would make an interesting double feature with Curse of the Golden Flower, another tale of family dysfunction in ancient China