catocasio

I don't know who is rating this film low in any capacity; this film is excellent. If I have any sticking points, it's perhaps that Ahua should be the bookending opening and closing narrator, but that's really semantics. The film is beautifully shot--the cinematography alone is worth seeing, and the technical achievement tremendous. If only it had been released in IMAX here, as it was shot! Then add the compelling narrative between the outsider brothers of Abi and Adang and their obstinate relationship, and the film is sumptuous. The supporting cast as well, Ahua et al, all of them have spectacular character arcs. I would be remiss, however, if I failed to mention the striking lead of Zhu Yilong, for in anyone else's hands, the primal character of Abi would have read as boorish, but with Zhu's skillful prowess, he is elevated to mythic, as powerful, unknowable, vengeful and beautiful as the sea itself. I will be returning for multiple viewings.

As a lover of thrillers, suspense, and mind puzzles in general, I usually see the surprises coming. It was an extreme pleasure and delight to find that this film kept me guessing, kept me rapt with attention, and made the experience thrilling from start to finish.

A note regarding the casting, which was stellar: Zhu Yilong is an actor with tremendous range who I would watch do anything, anytime, under any condition, and his development as He Fei is mesmerizing, and Ni Ni as lawyer Chen Mai, who had not been on my radar previously, subtly guiles you as she gets pulled into her client's case.

This is absolutely the definition of summer blockbuster and I'll be seeing it again.

I cannot recommend this wuxia show enough. This is a wonderful adaption of the danmei novel 'Faraway Wanderers' by Priest and it captures the soul of the novel. The script is amazing, the cinematography so good it's painterly, the chemistry between the leads is so charged, I cannot recall a more breathtaking coupling in the history of cinema, and I'm including hetero cinema in here as well. Zhang Zhehan as Zhou Zishu and Gong Jun as Wen Kexing understand their characters to their primal core and I could watch them endlessly.

The only pity is censorship and the shortened ending (please look up ep 37), but this isn't the cast or crew's fault. I could write a dissertation on the importance of this show for genderqueer individuals, but if you're queer, you know. If only all shows were as gay as this. My favorite show of all time.