The Emperor and the Assassin (1998)

In pre-unified China, the King of Qin sends his concubine to a rival kingdom to produce an assassin for a political plot, but as the king's cruelty mounts she finds her loyalty faltering.

Director:

Kaige Chen

Writers:

Kaige Chen, Peigong Wang

Stars:

Gong Li, Fengyi Zhang, Zhou Sun

7 wins & 11 nominations.

Cast

Credited cast:
Gong Li	...	Lady Zhao
Fengyi Zhang	...	Jing Ke the assassin
Zhou Sun	...	Dan, Prince of Yan
Xiaohe Lü	...	General Fan Yuqi
Zhiwen Wang	...	Marquis Changxin
Kaige Chen	...	Lu Buwei Prime Minister
Yongfei Gu	...	Queen Mother
Benshan Zhao	...	Gao Jianli
Haifeng Ding	...	Qin Wuyang
Changjiang Pan	...	Prison Official
Xun Zhou	...	Blind Girl
Xuejian Li	...	Ying Zheng King of Qin First Emperor
Rest of cast listed alphabetically:
Xu Chu	...	10 State warrior
Dong Han	...	Qin cart driver
Bing Lin	...	10 State warrior

Storyline

In the 3rd Century BC, Ying Zheng, heir to the Kingdom of Qin, seeks to dominate the remaining six Chinese kingdoms. Ying's strategy is to seem invincible. Ying sends his concubine Zhao to the Han Kingdom as a spy, to enlist an assassin he can conquer. Zhao persuades Jing Ke, but falls in love.

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Plot Keywords:

political plot | cruelty | loyalty | spy | heir to the throne | 

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Genres:

Drama | History | Romance

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Motion Picture Rating (MPAA)

Rated R for violence

Did You Know?

Trivia

Tu Juhua created the blueprints and drawings for the reconstruction of the ancient cities of Qin, Yan, Zhao and Han. He also provided the plans for both the Xianyang palace and Handan castle.

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Alternate Versions

Kaige Chen's preferred cut ran 168 minutes. Following pressure from his producers and the U.S. distributor, he prepared a very different 162-minute cut that subsequently became the standard version of the film. The 168-minute cut was only released in Japan and has a more linear narrative, as opposed to the five-chapter structure used in the shorter version.

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Connections

Featured in At the Movies: Instinct/The Loss of Sexual Innocence/Limbo (1999)

User Reviews

A compelling epic

This three-hour Chinese epic, set in 220 B.C., may ultimately amount to a familiar theme of an Emperor's idealistic dream of peace through unification mutating into corrupted isolation, and there's nothing inherently challenging about the film, but it's a compelling narrative, crammed with intrigue and passion and betrayal and epic events told in vivid strokes. Even for those not drawn to such historical spectacles for their own sake, it's an astonishing feast for the eyes: the scene depicting the coup attempt of the Marquis is one of the most staggering evocations of physical space and grandeur in memory, and the battle scenes are memorable both in their scope and their immediacy. The title sums up the film's use of compelling contrasts - huge plainland vistas set against intimate horrors; the noblest of motives set against the most degraded; hope turning to dust. If you've never seen a three-hour Chinese epic, this wouldn't be a bad place to start.

Details

Official Sites:

Sony - synopsis, cast and credits etc Sony Classics Release Info

Country:

China Japan France

Language:

Mandarin

Release Date:

14 November 1998 (Japan)

Also Known As:

The Emperor and the Assassin

Box Office

Budget:

$15,000,000 (estimated)

Opening Weekend USA:

$47,295, 19 December 1999

Gross USA:

$1,267,239

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$1,267,239

Company Credits

Production Co:

Shin Corporation, Le Studio Canal+, New Wave Company

Technical Specs

Runtime:

162 min

Sound Mix:

DTS DTS-Stereo Dolby Digital

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1