The Sorcerer & The White Snake (2011/aka The
Emperor & The White Snake/Magnolia/Magnet Blu-ray)
Picture:
A Sound: B+ Extras: A Film: B+
Jet Li is
an exorcist monk, ridding the world of evil demons and spirits, following the
mantra that mankind and the supernatural could never co-exist, but when a man
falls in love with a millennium old White Snake (changed into a beautiful woman
unbeknownst to him), the monk vows to show her true colors and separate them. This monk and the White Snake go into a
series of supernatural battles, the monk believes he is saving the man from
tragedy and misfortune, and the White Snake fighting to prove her love to the
man is genuine.
Based on
the ancient Chinese legend of The White Serpent, The Sorcerer & The White Snake (2011) is a modern, updated with
a lot more martial arts and CG special effects. Jet Li plays an absolutist
monk, after battling and imprisoning so many demons, he believes all supernatural
spirits are evil and prey on man; they are tricksters and play pranks on humans
for amusement. While in general he isn't
wrong, but like all rules there are the exceptions. In this case it is the monk who is the cause
tragedy. While the White Snake only
wants to live in peace with the man she loves, she doesn't harm anyone, but
then has to fight the monk just to prove her love is real. In the end there could of been a lot less
collateral damage if the monk just let them be, and (as usual) in order for an
immortal to prove their love to a human, they usually have to give up their
immortality or powers.
Is it a
wonder that Jet Li will never get out of martial arts filming industry? This is a supernatural fantasy with over the
top CGI special effects, including vampires, fox demons seductresses, and cute
talking animals. It follows the ancient
Chinese legends that if a creature lives a thousand years they get magical
powers and can take a human form, but for the rest of the movie was purely Hollywood and added on
for eye candy.
Li does
more marital arts than even he apparently expected to do, but this is one of
his best films of late and the 1080p 2.35 X 1 digital High Definition image was
shot on 35mm Kodak film in the Super 35mm format. The result is a great-looking Blu-ray, while
the DTS-HD MA (Master Audio) 5.1 sound mix keeps up with all the action and is
well-recorded. Extras include a Behind
the Scenes featurette with Jet Li, stunts and laughs, visual effects, character
and setting production, and trailers.
- Ricky Chiang
