That said, it is an intriguing story which, despite its sometimes ambling pace, manages to catch the attention. One-time Hong Kong action star Chow Yun-Fat is excellent as the cruel emperor who has fallen out of love with his wife and is having her slowly poisoned. The Empress is played in deadpan fashion by Gong Li, a former muse and lover of the director, reunited on film with him after an absence of many years and a steady element of the movie. There is a lot of story to get through, including a relationship between the Empress and her husband’s son by his first wife and the same son having a dalliance with a doctor’s daughter who, unbeknown to him, is also the daughter of his real mother. Meanwhile, the Empress is planning rebellion using the chrysanthemum flower as a symbol. The rebellion finally takes off with thousands of warriors battling each other and some Ninja-styled fighters flying down on ropes brandishing sickles. It’s exciting stuff, if often too reliant on computerised images, and does push the story forward. There are, of course, the usual scenes involving fighters doing impossible twists in the air but not too often to prove annoying. Despite all the glamour and battles, the film does depend on its study of human relationships within a family, and it is here that it succeeds well thanks to the pitch-perfect performances. Gong Li is observed in extreme close-up several times and never falters, emotions obviously taking place beneath her beautiful poker face, while Chow Yun-Fat is a perfectly flawed villain. philkey@dailypost.co.uk | 
