Detective Dee: Mystery of the Phantom Flame (2010)
"Di Renjie zhi tongtian diguo" (original title)

An exiled detective is recruited to solve a series of mysterious deaths that threaten to delay the inauguration of Empress Wu.

Director:

Hark Tsui

Writers:

Chia-lu Chang (screenplay), Kuo-fu Chen,

Stars:

Tony Leung Ka Fai, Chao Deng, Carina Lau

6 wins & 12 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Tony Leung Ka Fai	...	Shatuo Zhong
Chao Deng	...	Pei Donglai
Carina Lau	...	Empress Wu Zetian
Bingbing Li	...	Shangguan Jing'er (as Li Bing Bing)
Andy Lau	...	Detective Dee
Jean-Michel Casanova	...	General Aspar (as Michel)
Sos Haroyan	...	Assistant to Umayyad Ambassador
Jialin Zhao	...	Interpreter
Yan Qin	...	Jia Yi
Jinshan Liu	...	Xue Yong
Aaron Shang	...	Shaizi
Deshun Wang	...	Xiazi Ling
Mickey He	...	Prison Officer (as Shenming He)
Lu Yao	...	Li Xiao
Yanming Jiang	...	Undertaker

Storyline

In 689 A.D., the Empress Wu Zetian is building a 66 m high statue of Buddha for her inauguration as the first empress of China under the objections and conspiracy of the other clans. When the engineer responsible for the construction mysteriously dies by spontaneous combustion, the superstitious workers are afraid since the man removed the good luck charms from the main pillar. There is an investigation of Pei Donglai and another investigator that also dies after withdrawing the amulets. Empress Wu assigns her loyal assistant Shangguan Jing'er to release the exiled Detective Dee from his imprisonment to investigate with Donglai and Jing'er the mystery of the deaths. They ride in a mystic and epic adventure to unravel the mystery.

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Plot Keywords:

empress | detective | conspiracy | loyal assistant | china | 

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Genres:

Action | Adventure | Crime | Drama | Mystery

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated PG-13 for violence, disturbing images and some sexuality.

Details

Official Sites:

Official site [cn] Official site [jp]

Country:

China Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin Spanish

Release Date:

30 September 2010 (China)

Also Known As:

Detective Dee: Mystery of the Phantom Flame

Filming Locations:

Beijing, China

Box Office

Budget:

$13,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend:

$81,262 (USA) (23 September 2011)

Gross:

$262,636 (USA) (23 September 2011)

Company Credits

Production Co:

China Film Co-Production Corporation, Huayi Brothers Media, Huayi Brothers

Technical Specs

Runtime:

123 min

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Did You Know?

Trivia

One of the sculptures was a 80-meter bust of Empress Wu Zetian, a key element of the film that cost $12 million to design and decorate. During production, reporters were invited to enter the bust's interior, which included a 12 meter tall circular platform. Outside of the platform hung red and white drapes that were full of scriptures.

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Goofs

General Asper, the Umayyad Ambassador, speaks modern day Spanish, a language that did not yet exist as such at the end of the 7th century CE.

User Reviews

A Solid Story With Gorgeous Cinematography From Tsui Hark

This is a visually sumptuous and stunning-looking film by Tsui Hark who has directed or produced some of the classic Hong action films of the last 25 years. The Hark films I've seen, which often have great fight sequences, are hit and miss in terms of the cohesiveness of the stories, though when they work the films can be fabulous (Peking Opera Blues, the Once Upon A Time In China, series, etc.)

This period film has an interesting mystery at its heart with lots of red herrings and twists. The story follows Detective Dee as he's brought out of his political imprisonment to investigate a series of murders during the lead-up to the coronation of the first female Emperor. There some plot inconsistencies and problems, but they're small. The lead actors are all very good, including Andy Lau, Bingbing Li, Carina Lau, and Chao Deng. All in all, it's a compelling film not overloaded with action-for-the-sake-of-action that looks at an interesting period in China's history.