All the King's Men

A rather disappointing film from King Hu. I've been enjoying his later work, so I was quite hopeful when I sat down to watch this film. I didn't really expect a somewhat lengthy and rowdy mix of drama and farce set in the imperial court, but that's exactly what this is. And it turns out that's not really Hu's strong point.

The emperor is quite ill and his treatment isn't really working out for him. They're suspecting that the medicine he's been getting isn't doing much for his illness. Luckily he has heard of a famed doctor who lives in a nearby kingdom, but getting to him will prove a lot harder than imagined.

The premise is simple, but the actual story is pretty complex, with characters having to jump through plenty of hoops to get everything done. It's also quite lively and loud, which usually doesn't work in favor of Chinese comedies. The cinematography is decent enough, but the comedy is poor and the film started to drag during the second half.