Hua Qian Gu (2024)

Good acting in a rather mediocre screenplay

I should mention that I have watched the drama before watching the movie. Even though it's been a while, it definitely helped me understand the plot. And this is where the major fault of the movie comes in, in my opinion. While trying to include many of the major plotlines and best-known scenes, the connections between these scenes feel really rushed and under-explained. Basically, the makers have tried to condense a 58-episode drama into a 1.5h movie. I think, if I didn't know the rough plotline, I wouldn't have been able to follow what's happening. If they had made the movie longer, it would really have helped.

In contrast to what I read in some of the comments the acting by Chen Duling, Li Chengbin and Mao Zijun is good, though. Considering the material they had to work with it's really impressive actually. In fact, I prefered Chen Duling's Xiao Gu to Zhao Liying's (even though she's doing a great job), because her Xiao Gu was not as over-the-top girly innocent (you know what I mean) as Chinese dramas will sometimes have it. I also liked that they left one scene in that was censored in the 2015 version, even though it feels like the script doesn't really explain what's going on.

CGI isn't great and the entire plot feels rushed and some scenes disconnected, but the cast really saved the show. So, in my opinon, it's still a movie worth watching but it won't change your life. I'm gonna look for more dramas with the lead actors, though.

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A Visually Striking Film with Untapped Potential

If this had been a drama like the original story, I would have dropped it. But because it was a movie, I found it easier to take in and digest. I initially gave it a chance because it stars Chen Duling, and I thought the visuals were beautiful. Some of the scenes between Chen Duling and Mao Zijun were exquisite, and I would have loved to see their storyline—and his backstory—further explored. I found them to be the most interesting aspect of the film.

However, everything else fell short for me. Strangely, even though it was only an hour-and-a-half feature, the execution and pacing felt off. The narrative was choppy and didn’t flow smoothly, which made it feel underdeveloped despite its potential.

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