【电影简介】

明朝万历年间，刚刚被推举为武当派新任掌门的卓一航（黄晓明饰）奉命带红丸入京进贡，沿途偶遇魔教妖女练霓裳（范冰冰饰），二人从不打不相识到情难自禁坠入爱河，并在练霓裳所驻扎的明月寨中互许终身。不久，锦衣卫攻入明月寨，指出练霓裳就是杀死川陕总督卓仲廉的凶手，卓一航为查明真相只身前往京城。不久后却传来他归顺朝廷并另娶娇妻的消息，练霓裳悲愤交集，一夜间黑发尽数变白。

【音频文本】

If you decide to watch Chinese wuxia fantasy film "The White Haired Witch of Lunar Kingdom" or Baifa Monü Zhuan, make sure you've read the original novel by Liang Yusheng, otherwise you'll have to use your imagination to sail through the film's problematic storyline.

Liang Yusheng is one of the three most important wuxia-story writers in China. His 1957 novel Baifa Monü Zhuan tells of the romance between a young swordsman Zhuo Yihang and his lover Lian Nichang. Set near the end of the Ming Dynasty, the story also depicts an ailing empire plagued by internal corruption and Manchurian invasion. Director Jacob Cheung's film adaptation has failed to reconcile the subplots, and as a result the narrative develops like a deserted bonsai, with wild grass shooting at various directions.

The most obvious strain of runaway storyline is the love story. A few inventive alterations notwithstanding, it seems the director is utterly incapable of romantic thinking. His way of showing the beginning of affections is to have two beautiful actor and actress gazing into each other's eyes while spinning in midairand slow motion. His ultimate weapon is actor Huang Xiaoming's perfectly symmetric face and Fan Bingbing'swhitewashed one. They serve as silent but eloquent accusations against anyone who dares to doubt their sincerity. Obviously people with good looks belong together, if not then there are some serious problems withthe story.

A second subplot is the court intrigue. The director devotes considerable screen time to the depiction of a eunuch who usurps imperial power to prosecute upright political adversaries. Our hero Zhuo Yihang is oneof his victims, so naturally we expect some major bloodshed before the closing credits. But before he has time to deliver on his promise of revenge, some emergency at the nation's border demands our attention, and our hero is summoned to save the day.

It is in the latter half of the film that we finally see the title character take the central stage. That's when both leading characters show abrupt changes in their personalities. The previously strong and confident hero Zhuo Yihang suddenly becomes as feeble as a lamb, while the loving Lian Nichang simply goes berserk. The character inconsistency suggests the filmmakers have placed their attention elsewhere, although no one can tell exactly where.

Perhaps the only commendable part of this film is the post production. There are plenty of computer generated visual spectacles to show off the lunar kingdom. The splendor looks artificial, but is impressive nonetheless.

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