This might sound like another chapter in the rpg section of this blog, but behold – it is not *smile*.
Battle of Kingdoms, also known as Muk Gong is a wonderful, film based on an old legend, located in the heart of Asia.
As for the storyline, it’s around 400 BC in China, and the lands are divided – at war. The nations Zhao and Yan march against each other and in the middle there is the small kingdom Liang…
This film is about treachery and treason, about tactics and quite a nice display of martial arts, it’s a little about the terror of war and the mistakes in life. Main actor Andy Lau gives a very sympathetic Ge Li and contributes a large part to give this movie a bit more of – everything.
As you can imagine it is quite hard to pack an epic story of war, an incredible battle of wits between strategical masterminds into a bit more than 2 hours (~130minutes)…
Still, it is more than just a few minutes of action and inspires emotions of disgust for treason and treachery, pity for unfulfilled love, hate for immediate injustice, passion and compassion for a few congenial characters that twist and turn within normal bounderies.
For the roleplaying gamers, it is an incredible resource for game masters and players alike – get yourself inspired by daredevil characters, watch a prince overcome his pride (though your first impression will probably be “eeks” when you see his behaviour) – and enjoy a movie that is meant to remember.
My personal rating is 4.5 of 5 points for a good mixture of action, tragedy a great storyline behind the scenes and congenial and genial actors and characters. Enjoy!