Di Renjie zhi tongtian diguo or Detective Dee and the mystery of the phantom flame is a Chinese fantasy movie that takes place during the Zhou Dynasty when the first and only Chinese empress Wu Zetian started her reign. The cold, cruel and somewhat megalomaniac woman that wants to rule on her own accord and who killed several potential enemies in the past is now menaced days before her crowning. After the mysterious death of two people during the construction of a giant Buddha statue in front of the emperor's residence, she asks the Chaplain, a sort of state preceptor who speaks through a magical deer, for help. He gives her the advice to recruit the banned Detective Dee who had openly accused the empress for having possibly killed her late husband and who was one of the leading persons in a growing revolution eight years ago. Even before Detective Dee can be contacted, a group of assassins tries to kill him and another prisoner but they ultimately fail. Intrigued by the strange murders and the will to make peace with his past, Detective Dee soon discovers that black magic seems to be the cause of the deaths. Accompanied by the empress' charming but mysterious attendant and an albinistic officer in the penal system, Detective Dee has to put the pieces of the puzzle together before the crowning of the empress takes place and soon discovers a well organized conspiracy with the goal to kill the empress.This movie has a historic background that is though not developed in a profound way. The film rather focuses on fantastic elements around black magic, a few mild suspension moments and a couple of artistic action choreographies done by some of the best experts of several outstanding Hongkong action movies of the late eighties and early nineties. This film though wastes a little bit of potential on here as it turns out to be too diversified to truly convince in any of the genres it touches and as it lacks of a few more developed cultural and historical bits and pieces that would make the final result more authentic.Apart of the action choreographies, a true highlight are definitely the buildings, costumes and masquerades in the movie that were created in a very precise and professional way as it often happens to be in contemporary Chinese movies. On the other side, the special effects are less impressive and often to artificially flavoured so that they destroy the movie's certain kind of magic a few times. That's where Hollywood is still slightly ahead of modern Asian cinema.While the story of this movie definitely has a few good points and a couple of small twists as well, there are still some negative factors. One never really gets to know why the two persons in the beginning of the movie really had to die instead of killing the empress in an unexpected way during her crowning. The movie also has a few anachronisms such as way too modern ships in the harbour and the diplomat in the beginning of the film whose identity and role remains strangely unresolved. These flaws are pardonable if you take this movie as a fictional film only.In the end, you get an entertaining fantasy movie with a solidly suspenseful story, well done choreographies and stunning costumes. The movie though has no truly innovating elements, surprising moments or touching scenes. It has without a doubt a certain kind of magic after all but it is sometimes too professionally done to touch the people. This movie is rather ordinary in comparison to what the gifted director Tsui Hark has done in the past but it's still one of the more entertaining Asian movies from 2010. After all, I guess I would only recommend this film to long time fans of Asian cinema as well as of stunning costumes and artistic choreographies. I would go for a loan instead of an immediate purchase as the film is surely entertaining but nothing outstanding enough to be a worthy addition to a film collection of an Asian cinema maniac.

I'm sorry, but I really don't get on with the films of Tsui Hark. I see them as an example of style over substance, and try as I might to enjoy them, it rarely happens. Hark's style is something I'm not a fan of: he makes superficial, speedy-paced movies that look great but lack depth and substance. DETECTIVE DEE, a film about a detective investigating bizarre cases of spontaneous human combustion in ancient China, is a case in point.The film does have some good points. A Chinese murder mystery/action adventure is a new one on me, and there's a kind of fresh and inventive spin to it that keeps you watching. The visuals, despite being created by some sometimes cheesy CGI, are admittedly impressive, with the Buddhist version of the Statue of Liberty looming large in the story. The cast is also strong.But something's missing, and that's the viewer's involvement in the storyline. I never felt engaged or caught up in what was going on, and the eventual solving of the mystery was nothing but a silly disappointment. Indeed, the film descends into silliness on more than one occasion; don't go looking for realism, whatever you do. Watching this, I'm reminded of why I don't get on with Hong Kong's lavish, wirework-infused costume fantasies of the 1990s. Give me down-to-earth realism any day.Despite headlining the cast, Andy Lau feels missing in action for much of this film. Viewers are led through the mystery by his detective, but we never learn much about him and characterisation is nil. The albino warrior, played by Chao Deng, is a much more interesting character, as is Tony Leung Ka Fei's master builder. The female roles also feel a bit underwritten to me. Sammo's listed as action director, but the action is brief and doesn't make any impact whatsoever. It's certainly not the finest hour for anyone involved.

Detective Dee is a real fun and solid movie with breath-taking cinematography from Tsui Hark, a pretty legendary filmmaker from Hong Kong.It's is a bizarre martial arts fantasy mystery film (yes). The story is both taken from historical China and derived from a novel series (series, so look for sequels). It's a frequently zany mystery with tons of twists that might have your head spinning...or you might just be completely lost. Go with that feeling and expect it.The story follows Detective Dee (Andy Lau) as he's brought out of imprisonment to investigate a series of murders during the lead-up to the coronation of the first female Empress of China (played by Carina Lau). The movie feels almost like a flurry of ridiculous events, which is pretty great and really different from anything that's coming out of Hollywood these days. To enjoy this movie, go in with an open mind and remember...it's in subtitles.

It had been a while since I had seen a Tsui Hark movie. I now feel remiss in not better keeping up with his career.Detective Dee is fantastic! The visuals are stunning. The sweeping, epic scenery and the HUGE set pieces transported me fully into the era of the Tang Dynasty. I was impressed by the CGI, often having trouble distinguishing where the real, physical parts of the set ended and the computer generated world began. The cinematography is superb.The story was complex but still digestible. The filmmakers threw up enough red herrings to keep me guessing while making it believable that Detective Dee could solve the case without huge leaps in logic.I found Andy Lau's performance effective, but was particularly impressed by Carina Lau who played Empress Wu. Her performance was both subtle and powerful. She was mesmerizing anytime she was on screen.As for the fight scenes, well... wow. I mean, really, WOW! The complexity of the final fight between Dee and the person he figures out committed the crime made fight scenes in the Bourne series look like child's play. Seriously. Now, there was wire work - I know some people really dislike that stuff in Kung Fu style movies, but it really worked in this setting. I hope people will give this one a chance. I really thought Detective Dee was fantastic!