whoissilmoy

I’m not sure if this is appropriate, but I came across a comprehensive review by user bali53 on Viki that resonates with me. I posted it below in quotes and thank bali53 for being so articulate. I especially appreciate your observations about their "strong mental and emotional bond" and "teasing", "understood each other", "steadfast love", and that their scenes were "realistic". And yes, they edited out too much from the romantic scenes, especially the bathtub scene. This movie is such a gem.

“Wonderland of Love is a great romance drama set in a historical period. The drama is an adaptation of the novel written by Fei Wo Si Cun, the pen name of the popular Chinese writer Ai Jingjing, original creator of “Good Bye, My Princess”. Wonderland of Love is really a masterpiece with a fantastic cast that masterfully brought their characters to life. This drama has a solid plot with great entertainment value, there are great action scenes, aesthetically pleasing cinematography, well placed sounds that adds depth and realism to the drama as well as a beautiful OST that helps convey the emotions of the actors and their actions. The leading couple, Xu Kai (as Li Ni / Shiqi Lang) and Jing Tian (as Cui Lin / A Ying) are a force to be reckoned with. Their characters are equally supplemented with artful intelligence and strategic schemes, great combat skills, strong mental and emotional bond, and a fantastic chemistry. Their playful and friendly exchange of teasing remarks, the way that they understood each other, and their steadfast love was delivered beautifully throughout the drama. The drama would not have been as great if it was not also that the supporting cast (friends and antagonists) was phenomenal. If there is one thing to complain, for romance lovers, is that the leading’s couple romantic scenes takes always ended up with distant camera shots and angles. Still, Xu Kai and Jing Tian manage to deliver some heartbreaking and heart fluttering scenes that made the intensity of their love realistic. Overall, this drama is extraordinary, enjoy it!"

the fact that Douban rating for ALP is only 5.4 shows that it cannot be taken seriously. ALP is a very moving movie. The entire cast is awesome but most of all, Xue Kai and Zhou Dongyu performed so well together and gave life to their characters. They are both charismatic and expressive actors. Xu Kai had a more youthful fuller face back then which I believe is much more expressive than his slim down face today. Both of them have amazing expressions especially in their eyes. For this kind of movie, their expressions are a must to have for the movie to move the audience. Xu Kai performed well along such a top tier actress as Zhou Dongyu. She is an amazing actress. Xu Kai really pulled off three different characters in the same movie. The entire cast made this movie a timeless love story of not just the main leads, but also other couples in the story is also very moving. I love the scenery, the pale colors fit the gentle soft mood of the movie for me, the music is very lovely, and the special effects are well done.

I was watching an old video of Xu Kai eating street food on streets of Hong Kong, laughing and speaking Cantonese to food vendor. He must be around 23. I thought what a waste of natural beauty and charm that he wasn't discovered as a child actor.

The acting quality is top tier. I just happened to come across the movie and was instantly mesmerized by the acting. The actress is very beautiful. I looked her up and learned she was one of the four Dan actresses same time as Cecilia Lu, another beautiful and amazing top tier actress whom I never saw before until AJTL, and another one instantly was taken by her and looked her up and found she was one of the four Dan actresses. These women beauty and acting stands out. The male lead, Chen Kun is a great actor. There is just all-around great acting in this movie.

this actor gives off a different vibe

I came across this actor in wrong carriage, right groom and was impressed by his charm and acting. He had so much charisma in that movie, it made the movie fun to watch.

Royal Feast is way way underrated. In WOL, people were commenting that the supporting casts were not multi-dimensional enough, or some of the characters were crazy or stupid but don't listen to that because WOL has a different aim for the audience to enjoy - it's light-hearted and part comedy and focus is on ml and fl conflicts; so, I started to think about what the person said, and Royal Feast came to mind, so here I am. Royal Feast does have a tinge of light humor but no comedy. It's a rather serious, matured ml and fl. The movie is not heavy at all, but serious enough, and follows a real prince in Ming dynasty (19 or 20 yrs old?). All the characters are highly intelligent, complex, intriguing, and all go through a transformation, and are as multi-dimensional as you can get, which is partly why it took me a while to grasp the schemes (maybe they cut some episodes out?). As you watch, you really have no idea what will happen next. IT keeps you interested. You feel for each character and there are so many of them. If the food scenes are too much, just fast forward it. Xu Kai acting in Royal Feast is masterful. Every emotion in every scene is perfectly captured by his subtle expressions. He even captures the characters mannerisms so well, it's really amazing to me to watch. Every time, I think of Zhu Zhanji, I can feel his deep love for Yao Zajin, so many sweet, tender, charming, and emotional scenes and serious conversations between them. Zhu Zhanji's conversations with his consort the second female lead is quite moving too, especially the scene where he tells her his true feelings and asked are you the one to be by my side and then the other scene where he and her are having a spat. In every one of his movies, Xu Kai portray the characters really well. I haven't' watched this movie for months; otherwise, I would write about the temperamental Zhu Zhanji I saw through Xu Kai interpretation. I feel like I really know Zhu Zhanji well. Xu Kai does not overact; his acting is natural, subtle and expressive, which is why I like this actor.

Xu Kai loves costume dramas because he likes physical activities. He says he loves horse riding and fighting. The actress in Yanxi Palace and Royal Feast, said in an interview that she was surprised how fast Xu Kai improved on his fighting skills in a year. Jing Tian said that she was surprised that on the set, they showed them how to do some moves, and Xu Kai learned it instantly. Also, his work on Snow Eagle Lord, the director expectation for Xu Kai was to do the fighting scenes by himself while others he would use special effects and stunts. But due to all the editing, unfortunately, it didn't' really showcase all his efforts. Xu Kai is not a professional at horse riding, martial arts, archery, etc. (probably never had any lessons as a kid) he only does it while on movie set, but he puts in extra efforts because he enjoys it, and because he can leverage his strengths to bring more to his audience.

well Jing Tian did say in interview, it hurt her hands trying to control those horses. For me, the fake horse is not important. Now I think about it, the western movies I grew up watching must have some fake horse riding too because of how Xu Kai looked in the fake horse riding, it reminded me of an old western movie. That's why I didn't realized it was fake. The way he rode it looked exactly like the way I remembered in the western movie, and it was also done for the intro. I thought Oh wow, Xu Kai rides it exactly like that western movie I used to watch. Wow he's so good, just like the cowboy shows. I had no idea perhaps the western movie also used fake horse riding too.

every Chinese costume drama people survive impossible injuries and have medicine or antidote ready to heal them, or they just come back to life somehow. the details are not to be dwelled on because it's a way to move the story along. I used to think Chinese dramas are ridiculous movies, watching people fly everywhere, and get stab all the time and survive, but now that I watch them, I realized, these are done for impact and not to be taken seriously. I just go along with it, and if done well, I enjoy it. I'm just watching to enjoy the story and the acting.

the climax and turning point of the story is ep 30/31

Their conflicts cause a lot of emotional distress in their relationship. The important thing is that they always reconcile to rebuild the trust because there is an unbreakable bond between them that can withstand any conflict. You will see that if you watch all the way to the end.
In a movie, no conflict, no fun. In real life, most couples don't experience real conflicts until after they get marry, then they end up divorce.

Cui Lin has a very strong personality and is very competitive person. She grew up like a boy among men, competing with army of tough male warriors. Her father said she is more capable than a thousand men. She is supposed to be just like her father, the great fierce general Cui Yi - like father like daughter. It must have been very lonely for her to suffer like that - her constant injuries she can't let a guy see them. She had no mother or sister around growing up, to help her or soften her up. Since she is not as physically as strong as men, she has to be resourceful, smarter, cunning, develop instincts and intuition, and other means to overcome men, but still maintain her honor (she would never betray Li Ni army). She is a person who puts up a wall around herself, does not let her guard down, and let people see her vulnerabilities, and she doesn't trust people. She's had plenty of practice her whole life pretending to be a man.
Cui Lin is not perfect. When it comes to the people who matter the most to her in life, she doesn't seem to know how to deal with her emotions. Perhaps it is the way she grew up without a mother. When we see her emotionally distraught, we see no matter how tough her exterior is, she can command an army but when it comes to matters of the heart, inside she can be a mess. No one is immune to a breakdown.

LCF is a sad character. His life growing up is anything but normal. Cui Lin was literally his life. Without her, he feels he will stop living. She is his "breath of life", his lifeline.

How many episodes would you like to explore all the characters dimensions? Each character serves a purpose. We don't need to know everything about every character. Then the complaint will be the movie has too many episodes and drags. However, you might be right that LCF is too one dimensional, marked only by his weakness and madness and not another trait to make him more interesting, but that was intended, he is not the main focus of the movie; but you want a different kind of story involving LCF.

LCF did not manipulate the two princes. It was mutual. The second brother wanted to eliminate Li Ni too. It wasn't' like he outsmarted anyone. He dangled a carrot in front of them and the brother foolishly took it due to his greedy ambition.

Don't make fun of the lovable bandits just because they are poor, lowly people with no education. The movie portrayed them as kindhearted, fierce, loyal, and brave fighters who are homeless, victims of war.

I don't know what you mean by LCF can take over armies? He is the commander of the Cui army, of course, his army would obey his orders, and Sun Jing would collaborate with him to defeat Li Ni's army.

Li Ni father and sons were portrayed as mediocre, foolish, and incompetent, that fits the narrative of the story about the Li royal family, but Li Ni is exceptional.

Most of the other main villains were scheming and clever and play the long game, even mysterious., kind of like in real life, you never know who your real enemy is. You think the person is nice to you, but they have hidden agendas.

The movie is mainly focused on ml and fl conflicts. LCF character purpose was to create conflict and chaos for twists and turns in the story. Even though he is a key character, somehow, I never focused on him much. I never felt the movie was about him anyway.

Does anyone understand the psyche of a madman?

LCF was an orphan. The movie showed him as a young boy 8 yrs.? running scared for his life and ran into Cui Lin same age, also running scared for her life. He saves her life that night. General Cui adopts him out of kindness, as a friend for his daughter, and also, he serves an important purpose that I don't want to spoil. LCF and Cui Lin grew up and did everything together. They were inseparable. He fell in love with her. He had no identify of his own (literally). Cui Lin was his "breath of life". Even Cui Lin father thought LCF might make a good husband for her someday. So LCF has these emotions for Cui Lin bottled up forever. Cui Lin loves him so much as a brother. He is unable to distinguish and thinks Cui Lin loves him the same way he loves her. He always believed that one day he and Cui Lin would marry and be together forever. Then one day, LI Ni shows up and his world is turned upside down. He has always been sicklying and weak, both mentally and physically. He panics at the thought of losing Cui Lin and becomes desperate to get rid of Li Ni. Without Cui Lin, he has no identify of his own, no purpose in life anymore.

Is that not motivation enough? There are real life stories of love triangles that ends up tragic.

I need to rewatch the movie again since it took me over 7 weeks to watch. But I thought that Jeshio enemies gave him a drug to make him strong. Thats why he went from weak to strong. Why is that not believable? Every other Chinese drama has God like or miraculous powerful drugs and poison to use.

there are plenty of dumb, stupid, incompetent rulers in history. they just don't make movies about them nor talk about them. The actor portrayed Li Ni father really well, brought to life a bumbling, simple-minded, foolish, cowardly, pathetic man whose insignificant existence is meaningless, yet he had such a huge impact on an exceptional son he can never understand, and who would make the greatest contribution to the empire.

The purpose of Li Ni's father and two brothers' characters showcased how mediocre and incompetent the Li family was and became the crux of the movie or the conflict to find a competent ruler; hence, they all got wiped out by rebellion, also used to highlight the exceptionalism of Li Ni.

I'm really looking forward to this drama more than Best Choice because of the tension between Han Ting and Ji Xing. Xu Kai had nothing in common with Yang Hua; yet he did a great job with it. He also has nothing in common with Han Ting, I can't wait to see how he portrays him. XK soft, gentle voice fit Yang Hua perfectly; so, it will be interesting how he uses his voice for Han Ting. This is only his second time using his own voice. Also, will be watching for XK mannerisms portraying Han Ting. Xu Kai is meticulous when it comes to imitating this character's manners. All the best to Xu Kai. Don't give AX the opportunity to pick on you.

in the old days before CGI existed, Hollywood had massive budgets and could hire thousands and thousands of extras. But I doubt WOL has that kind of budget and time. The film usually has to finish shooting 40 episodes in 3 to 4 months.