From the director of 2002's Hero comes this fantasy-action blockbuster, an alternate history twist on why China built The Great Wall - and what elite forces were trying to keep out. Stars Oscar-winner Matt Damon, Jing Tian (Special ID), Willem Dafoe (The Grand Budapest Hotel), and Andy Lau (House of Flying Daggers). This version is in the Mandarin language with no subtitles.
Zhang Yimou capably gives ... "The Great Wall" the look and feel of a Hollywood blockbuster, but his signature visual dazzle, his gift for depicting delicate relationships and throbbing passions are trampled by dead-serious epic aspirations.
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Damon is good value, his avuncular charm adding intimacy to what could have been an empty spectacle.
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The whole thing plays out as if it had been thought up by someone who, while watching "Game of Thrones" and smoking a bowl, started riffing on walls, China and production money.
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Simultaneously futuristic and historic, the visual spectacle carries the film, while Zhang manages to include plenty of promised "Chinese elements", including a beautiful shot of traditional sky lanterns at one character's funeral.
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The Great Wall plays like The Last Samurai crossed with Jurassic Park, The Two Towers, Reign of Fire and one of those episodes of Thrones...
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If you were entertained by the trailers then it's a safe bet you'll enjoy this as a Sunday afternoon movie. Just don't expect too much.
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The Great Wall is easily the least interesting and involving blockbuster of the respective careers of both its director and star.
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There are plenty of fun CGI monster-skewering scenes, but a clunky plot, rigid script and equally stiff acting make this a crumbling disappointment, if not quite a disaster.
Full reviewWe aren’t aware of any way to watch The Great Wall (Mandarin Version) in New Zealand. If we’ve got that wrong, please contact us.
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