This is the first mainland China war epic that I've watched and I can say it left very mixed feelings. On one hand, Assembly, or 集結 號, or Jí Jié Hào, which means something like Assembly Bugle Call, is a very honest portrayal of a Chinese Civil War with its sheer and awfully realistic brutality. The very realism is then quickly becoming sickening with all those snots, saliva, guts, blood, wounds and deaths galore. On the other hand, the film quickly runs off its initial steam and glides into a sentimental, very politically correct patriotic saga of a brave officer doing valiant things. This intake of patriotism actually spoils a very potential hit and makes it a sickly sweet propaganda flick. Mind you, actors are excellent, especially Zhang Hanyu and Yuan Wenkang, battle scenes are enormous and thrilling, which is no wonder since it was cut by Korean filmmakers who know their trade. The dialog is often hammy and openly silly, thus deleting all the good potential. This is a very curious hothcpotch of a film that may be seen once, but since it sinks under its own weight, better be watched and then discarded
