Beautiful to look at but oddly lacks punch

Rating: 7/10 (8 April 2013)

I agree with Richard Finch here. Here is a visually beautiful film that obviously required talent to bring to the screen. Much money went into the lavish and beautiful sets, even that of a cave dweller who probably has more beautiful things than most people do in urban America. The cinema photographer also did a wonderful job filming a China a lot of Chinese people probably don't ever get to see.
So, what is wrong with the film? Unfortunately, the characters really aren't all that deep. It's a pretty formulaic story and a familiar one as well. Unrequited love that isn't actually spoken of much until it's too late.
The fight sequences, though beautiful are so far fetched they are distracting and pull us out of the story. I kept thinking of Kill Bill and how it just packs a punch, hits you right in the gut and it just all works. We also can really relate to the characters in Kill Bill and they've got grit!
Here, a lot just seems sort of tepid. Not a bad film by any means but nothing super spectacular either.