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Guo Jing Ming’s ambitious tribute to Tsui Hark: How did it turn out?
Having watched it fully and then rewatched this more than six months after it finished airing, I suggest this method to balance utmost enjoyment alongside addressing any quibbles: The first is to absorb at least twenty episodes of what unfolds with no expectations while revelling in the cinematography, intricate embellished costumes, gorgeous BGMs and lush sets accompanying an interesting group of humans and demons, while the second is utilising patience for at least twenty episodes even when noticing any plotholes, characterisation issues, and details clashing with each other within the first four episodes and beyond.
Tsui Hark’s movies and certain fundamental concepts (1993 Green Snake and 1983 Zu Warriors From The Magic Mountain) have clearly impacted this drama. At 27:21 for two seconds of episode 30, a certain visual is literally inspired by the final scene of the movie Green Snake. Karma, debt, and consequences are inevitable and unavoidable, given the two movies being referenced in homage to define this world of demons and humans.
Despite the burdens and responsibilities each individual carries, there is humour and camaraderie amongst the team. As the story progresses with each new demon the team meets across twenty episodes, a sense of inevitability is accompanied by hope that goodness will prevail and the team will overcome every challenge.
Drawing on the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Guo Jing Ming (GJM)’s efforts and dedication to exploring emotional ties and repairing relationships between humans and demons are as laudable as his attention to utilising that particular source to create the world of FoF. His flaws pertaining to self-indulgences for certain characters and sub-stories result in the opposite effect, thereby marring what could have been a unique timeless drama of humans and demons as friends, enemies and more.
These combined results will keep you eager to continue after 10 episodes, or dropping it before you finish episode 6. Wordplay in mandarin is hilarious. Wordplay in the bonus episode is anything but hilarious. Fight scene choreography is mostly enjoyable, some fights downright spell-binding such as in episode 8 being heartrending and gorgeous, but at times not lethal or urgent enough and hence unable to convey necessary impact such as parts of the final battle. Over-usage of music for some scenes was unnecessary. Silence would have deepened the emotional impact of certain scenes. Filters for flashbacks were inconsistent. That inconsistency is not GJM's biggest issue for this drama.
For the original story, four writers including GJM were involved. For the directors, three directors including GJM were involved. Six people were involved in the screenwriting. The final decisions can be attributed to GJM. After considering all this while watching, please go with the flow and make your own decisions. As to how two Tsui Hark movies defined certain fundamentals and details for this drama pertaining to karma and debts and inevitability (or the casting choices plus script choices and issues with the storyline): I do not want to include spoilers in this review, and only in a comment -> https://kisskh.at/755301-the-story-of-mystics#comment-22919316
Tsui Hark’s movies and certain fundamental concepts (1993 Green Snake and 1983 Zu Warriors From The Magic Mountain) have clearly impacted this drama. At 27:21 for two seconds of episode 30, a certain visual is literally inspired by the final scene of the movie Green Snake. Karma, debt, and consequences are inevitable and unavoidable, given the two movies being referenced in homage to define this world of demons and humans.
Despite the burdens and responsibilities each individual carries, there is humour and camaraderie amongst the team. As the story progresses with each new demon the team meets across twenty episodes, a sense of inevitability is accompanied by hope that goodness will prevail and the team will overcome every challenge.
Drawing on the Classic of Mountains and Seas, Guo Jing Ming (GJM)’s efforts and dedication to exploring emotional ties and repairing relationships between humans and demons are as laudable as his attention to utilising that particular source to create the world of FoF. His flaws pertaining to self-indulgences for certain characters and sub-stories result in the opposite effect, thereby marring what could have been a unique timeless drama of humans and demons as friends, enemies and more.
These combined results will keep you eager to continue after 10 episodes, or dropping it before you finish episode 6. Wordplay in mandarin is hilarious. Wordplay in the bonus episode is anything but hilarious. Fight scene choreography is mostly enjoyable, some fights downright spell-binding such as in episode 8 being heartrending and gorgeous, but at times not lethal or urgent enough and hence unable to convey necessary impact such as parts of the final battle. Over-usage of music for some scenes was unnecessary. Silence would have deepened the emotional impact of certain scenes. Filters for flashbacks were inconsistent. That inconsistency is not GJM's biggest issue for this drama.
For the original story, four writers including GJM were involved. For the directors, three directors including GJM were involved. Six people were involved in the screenwriting. The final decisions can be attributed to GJM. After considering all this while watching, please go with the flow and make your own decisions. As to how two Tsui Hark movies defined certain fundamentals and details for this drama pertaining to karma and debts and inevitability (or the casting choices plus script choices and issues with the storyline): I do not want to include spoilers in this review, and only in a comment -> https://kisskh.at/755301-the-story-of-mystics#comment-22919316
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