Sunday, December 20, 2009

ARTIST DATE: THE EMPEROR & THE ASSASSIN

-The stories of HERO, and CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER combined:

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In the 3rd Century BC, Ying Zheng, heir to the Kingdom of Qin, seeks to dominate the remaining six Chinese kingdoms. Ying sends his concubine Zhao (Gong Li) to the Kingdom of Yan as a spy, to enlist a Yan assassin to attempt to kill Ying. The assassination attempt is to be used as a basis to start war with the Yan. Zhao persuades Yan assassin Jing Ke, to perform the assassination. However, Zhao falls in love with Jing Ke, and after witnessing the aftermath of Ying's bloody massacre of the children in her home state, the Kingdom of Zhao, takes allegiance with the Yan and helps them try to kill Ying. The assassination attempt fails, but Ying is disgraced as none of his associates attempt to stop the assassin and he is forced to kill Jing himself. Ying's disgrace is completed when Zhao, Ying's former love, comes back to Qin only to take the dead body of Jing Ke back with her to Yan so as to give him a proper burial.

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The Emperor and the Assassin won the Technical Grand Prize at the 1999 Cannes Film Festival and was in competition for the Palme d'Or. Zhao Fei was awarded the 1999 Golden Rooster Award for Best Cinematography.

Release date(s):
People's Republic of China October 8, 1998
United States December 17, 1999
United Kingdom July 21, 2000

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