The Promise (Wu Ji)

by Stefan Halley

Director Chen needs to put the computer back in its box and stick with what he knows best.

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After a rather tumultuous history, The Weinstein Co dumped The Promise right before it’s one week run last December.  Warner Independent Pictures picked it up and has finally decided to release Chen Kaige’s epic fantasy The Promise (Wu Ji) in a 104-minute shorted version instead of the original 121-minute Asian version.  Or I should say thankfully they released The Promise in a shortened version.  The director of the excellent Farewell My Concubine and Temptress Moon has picked up the CGI gauntlet and made one mess of movie. 

Apparently state of the art in China isn’t the same as in the States.  Director Kaige’s other films were beautiful, epic poems put to film.  He has forgone all of that and has created a bad Stephen Chow rip-off.  The Promise wants to be the next epic fantasy that shows the West how brilliant and beautiful Chinese films can be.  It fails miserably on that level.  The CGI looks cheap and what you find in average direct to video children’s DVD. 

Fans expecting to find the next Hero or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon will be sorely disappointed.  Fantasy nerds, however, will probably enjoy this immensely.

Although vast in scope, The Promise is surprisingly simple focusing on the love triangle between a woman, and the three men who want her for different reasons.  When a hungry orphan girl encounters a goddess she is offered a chance to have all the beauty, riches and power she wants but all of her relationships with men will eventually end in ruin.  Of course the little girl takes the deal. 

Many years later, the little girl has grown into a woman named Quingcheng (Cecilia Cheung).  She is the concubine to the emperor.  When the emperor’s castle is over taken by the vicious Wuhuan (Nicholas Tse), it’s up to General Guangming (Hiroyuki Sanada) to save his emperor.  On his way to save the king, the General is wounded and he asks his slave Kunlun (Dong-Kun Jang) to take his armor and save the king.  Told only that the king will be the one without a sword, Kunlun races to the rescue.  Upon arrival he discovers the emperor attacking Quingcheng.  He quickly kills the emperor and runs off with the girl.  This of course causes all sorts of mistaken identity.

Kunlun eventually finds out he is from the “Land of Snow” which makes him run incredibly fast.  He is not alone, the assassin Snow Wolf (Liu Ye) is also from the same land and they are the last of their people.  For the rest of the movie, Quingcheng thinks she’s in love with the General who saved her.  Kunlun is trying to find his past as well as fight the urges he has for Quingcheng.  Wuhuan wants to kill everyone and Snow Wolf walks around looking sad.

The movie bounces from one fight sequence to another tied together with the loosest of plot threads and bits of sad computer graphics.  You are definitely watching a fantasy film here and the director wants you to know it.  Unlike Crouching Tiger or Hero, all the effects look over the top and cheesy.  The actor’s do a fine job especially Dong-Kun Jang and Nicholas Tse.  Tse’s Wuhuan is cold and patient.  Two attributes that make him seem equally cunning and deadly. 

There are moments when all the parts work together to create an entertaining film.  Sadly, there aren’t many of them.  Director Chen needs to put the computer back in its box and stick with what he knows best.