firstly, the cgi is amazing. everything looks so much better here, it really looks like what i imagined it to be in the novel. the costumes were very eh, some of them looked okay while some of them were very over the top. i think the acting was good, although liu yifei portray bai qian as more of a drunk here, i think that it actually suits her character more haha. yang yang did a good job (but i may be saying that as i am biased)
the music is very fitting with the show, matches the mood. the only two things i really hated was
1. the ending
2. the transition between scenes.
the ending was a mess. that is all.
the editing between scenes was choppy, not smooth at all.
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This review may contain spoilers
Sooo... yes I did compare it to the drama. How could I not? I’ve already finished the show so there is no way I could not compare them.The story was definitely rushed as a lot of things are explained later or in a weird flashback that lasts for around 4 minutes. When watching it, I found it amazing how they condensed 4 episodes into 10 minutes for the movie. I originally thought that they would cut some information (such as Mo Yuan and everything before that) but nooo. They just had to cram everything into the movie. And I mean everything (except for a couple small things).
I saw this from another review and I completely agree-- if a person had not watched the show before, it would be complicated and confusing to understand. For someone like me, who has completed the show, it would be easier. When I was watching the movie I always wondered where I was, I'd figure it out and then things would make sense. I suppose this is why I'm rating it higher than it should probably be.
The acting was fine, it was more of the casting that was my problem. I wasn’t a huge fan of actors portrayal of Bai Qian and Ye Hua. If anything I believe it was their looks that was the problem. They looked too young, considering they are supposed to be thousands of years old (Ik it works differently but still) you’d think that they would look a bit older. I’d especially highlight Bai Qian, 1. She’s older. 2. Her personality at the time the film takes place in was this strong woman who likes drinking, a lot. She also as this attitude of not taking crap from anyone. I could not see Crystal Liu as this woman. I fully believe this is due to the fact that she looks perfect for a role as a high school student in a romance drama. Not her fault ofc, I just would've preferred a different casting decision.
Not to mean that I wasn’t entertained. It was actually an interesting movie to watch. Would I recommend it? No. Rewatch it? No. But I didn’t think it was bad. That's why I gave it a 7 (a 7 for a movie is average in my books).
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Thank GOD i watch the drama version first if not i will completely confuse with the story and everything in the movie. Yeah of course 60 ep drama compress to just 2 hour movie make sense for the story flaws... But still at least make it a little bit understandable or something....
Too much fantasy in my opinion when they describe the heaven and the place where bai qian (BQ) live.
Story: just skip this movie and watch the drama instead
Acting/cast: nothing too special, but yeah liu yi fei as BQ is more beautiful than yang mi in drama version. But for YH, I think mark chao still more suitable than yang yang
Song: not too love it.
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One time watch for me ....
PROS:◇The acting
◇The chemistry
◇Music
◇The kingdoms
◇Did enjoy the foreshadowing
CONS:
◇The CGI was bad through out the whole film.
◇Certian choices made by characters ?
◇I was a little lost with the plot at times & felt rushed
The Folklore went over my head sense I am not familiar with it our The target audience. I will educate myself for future films, books & series.
Definitely will checkout more to understand the stories & will also look into more projects by these actors.
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How to make a horrible movie from a beautiful drama
How to turn a 58 episodes drama to 1 hr. 40 min movie?I was curious that's why I watched it, and the answer I found is: "Let's skip 29 episodes and start from ep30 and make all what happend before as hasty flashbacks that give you no emotion, then let's ruin the most satisfiying scene of FL's revenge, and we can just leave the guy she've been trying to revive for 70.000 years frozen there who cares, let's turn a phoenix god to a peacock, and make everything goes so fast, who cares about new viewers understanding of the story? people who watched the drama will understand what scenes we are referring to. The ending? Do we actually have to give it a clear ending? All what matter is bringing a beautiful FL and handsome ML and let's make sure that they look gorgeous in evey scene that will be enough."
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Qualitatively terrible, but I don't regret it
Movie is qualitatively one of the worst ones I have watched, but I don't hate it. Also, surprisingly, I don't regret watching it. I went in knowing absolutely nothing about the story.First of all, horrible, horrible writing and editing. The way the story is told is very choppy and jumpy, and it feels like you need to know about the story before watching it. Even if I knew about the story though, the way the scenes are put together and the way they end so abruptly...terrible. The first half was difficult to get through, and I took a pause.
I think the second half is more watchable because there is more action. The movie gets better after that fight with the monster. Also, as the backstory is revealed (albeit still in very choppy ways), the leads develop chemistry-ish. I think I was able to convince myself through sheer willpower and the pretty.
CG is okay since I've seen worse. Everything is very bright colored and fairy tale-esque. I may have seen some of the worst costumes and makeup ever in a production in this movie though lol
Oh, but wtf was the ending? Was there supposed to be a second movie? Also, what was up with the frozen master guy?
Overall, consider watching if you are fan of the leads (not a must) and may be curious about the drama.
Is it worth watching for Yang Yang? I think it was for me.
Does he cry very prettily? Yes.
Has he improved since Love O2O? I think he has a bit in here. He goes from robot to robot that cries pretty.
Bonus: great kiss scenes (rewatch just for those)
If anything, this movie has got me interested in trying out the drama. (Looks wise I prefer Yang Yang, but the drama version definitely has the better actors. Also, this story is more suited for longer format production - drama or multiple movies.)
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Positive:
The visuals were admittedly nice, particularly the scenery and CGI. The music was fine.
Negative:
I had trouble understanding what was going on even before the skipping, and the film felt like it was trying too hard to condense a complicated story into an oversimplified movie-sized one. What I could get of the story (even based on my friend's description of the drama) seemed like a really cliche marysue love story.
The actors were not good at all - I don't like Crystal Liu to begin with and her acting seemed particularly one-note here, and she had no chemistry with the awkward male lead. They also weren't helped by the bad writing, as the change of heart seemed really abrupt.
If you really love the drama, I suspect there's at least some chance you'll like the film if just for additional content for an IP you enjoy (no judgment, I do that all the time), but there's also some chance it'll disappoint you. My friend wasn't very impressed and told me the drama was much better. If you haven't seen the drama but you like cheesy romance stories that will make you get out the tissues, you might like this one and at least it's nice to look at. But if you're like me and have no connection to the original AND dislike cheesy romances, there's not much there that will be worth your time.
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I love the plot so I am considering trying the book novel itself. People might get confusion when they watch it and it is understandable. It will actually take you more or less half the movie duration to actually get the plot... When I realized what the plot really is, I have liked it. I particularly find it interesting and rich in potential. Too bad the reception and overall film creation did not give justice on the beauty of it.
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This review may contain spoilers
Beautiful Cinematography, Confusing Plot If You Have Not Seen The Series
Positive: Yang Yang and Liu Yifei made a beautiful couple. Who wouldn't want a handsome god like Yang Yang and an immortal fairy like Liu Yifei. Perfect casting! The cinematography was breathtaking, the sceneries and colors were beautiful. Love the sets, the graphics and visuals.Negative: The ending was confusing, and there are choppy scenes. If you watched this movie first, like I did, before watching the drama, you would be confused. I was very confused.
OST: Beautiful! Love it more than the series! Heart-breaking songs.
After watching the drama, I actually have a higher appreciation of the movie, as I understood the storyline. Now I was able to focus on Yang Yang's and Liu Yifei's characters, and see the passion in their interaction and the emotions in their tragedies. I feel the director did a good job showcasing the mood, hate and love of the characters.
I actually like watching this movie more than the series. LOL. Somehow I have a deeper connection with the movie than the series. Perhaps because the movie focused on the story and passions of Yehua and Bai Qian, while the series had many characters and wasteful scenes that I would rather skip. Plus I am not a fan of Yang Mi, but love Liu Yifei. I like both Mark Zhao and Yang Yang.
My only complaint for this movie is the ending could have been done better. Overall, I have rewatched it many times compared to the series and still feel the emotions and tearful from their love story. Wish the ending was more satisfactory.
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I am not very familiar with the source material, either the web novel or drama. I watched some of the drama but only enough to know it wasn't for me.
The production design of this movie, specifically in terms of practical sets and costumes was pretty solid. The decision to put every actor and actress in miles of chiffon is one I agree with. From what I've read this is a director who is best known as a cinematographer and I think that carries through in terms of direction.
Where the movie falls apart for me is in terms of plot and narrative.
Without a Wikipedia plot summary, I'm not sure I could've followed along with this movie. There is a lot of information crammed into 2 hours, which while admirable is perhaps not advisable. These characters have lived thousands of years worth of plot relevant suffering and giving us a cliff notes version of those years is a good way to give your audience narrative whiplash.
The overall performances are fine.The rest of the movie is, in a word fine. l have never seen a more beautiful movie that I did not care about.
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For those who know the book or watched the series, they can make some connections, but those who don't, see just a bunch of disconnected scenes. Obviously, it is not possible to present all the details of a book in a series, still less, in a film. The screenwriter of a film has to prioritize the best parts of the book, however, he must maintain a sequence that synthesizes the logic of the plot. The screenwriter chose random scenes and hindered the understanding of the plot.
The director started by making a mistake in choosing the female lead, as the actress has no facial expression and her voice is just the reading of a text without any feeling. He chose a sequence of scenes for editing that made the film nonsensical. The special effects are a roller coaster ride, some good and some bordering on 'special defects'.
The performances are poor. Yang Yang was all smiles and charm, but he had no one to play with. There was not the slightest chemistry between him and the female lead, so, as much as he had emotions expressed in his face, the scene was not round, as there was no cooperation from the other party.
The costumes were well crafted and pleasing to the eye.
The soundtrack chosen was well below expectations.
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