Sporting the largest budget for a Mainland production ever, The Banquet is simply a delight to look at. There are a few CGI-enhanced scenes, but most of the splendor was created with good old fashioned elbow sweat, through huge sets and sumptuous costumes. It was truly refreshing to see an "epic" film that actually looked the part.

Though it's not an action movie by any stretch of the imagination, The Banquet also sports some impressive fight scenes, which are helmed by Yuen Woo-Ping. Though Yuen's work in this type of film is getting to be a bit cookie-cutter (a lot of slow-motion shots of flowy robes), the scenes here are well put together. This particular reviewer also appreciated the fact that there was a good amount of blood. Nothing gives a little punch to a sword fight like spurts of claret.

Acting-wise, The Banquet also handles itself well. What was really nice about it is that all of the main actors managed to create characters that were neither truly good nor truly evil. Far too many Chinese period dramas attempt to pin characterization on broad cariacture, and fail miserably in the process. I wouldn't say any of the acting was award-winning, but at least none of it made me cringe -- even Daniel Wu's first attempt at a Mandarin lead role.

But what really solidifies The Banquet is the screenplay and direction. Even though most people out there know the basic story of "Hamlet" (and thus the big twist at the end), The Banquet portrays the story in such a way that even one of the oldest endings in literature seems new and fresh. It's a bit hard to describe in print, but director Feng Xiaogang knows the perfect amount of information to give to the viewer, always keeping them interested in what will happen next without dumbing down thigns too much.

Though The Banquet doesn't really present anything that hasn't been shown before, and suffers a bit from over-length, it's still an extremely solid costume/period drama that should please most fans of Chinese cinema.

Against this background of internal turmoil and external threat lives a legendary queen. As beautiful as she is young, and as limber as she is smart, Empress Wan (Ziyi Zhang) can launch a thousand ships with her charm and fight a hundred soldiers with her sword. But something is lacking in her life. Unfulfilled in her royal boudoir, she harbors forbidden desires for her stepson Prince Wu Luan (Daniel Wu), an introverted and melancholic young man four months her senior, who shies away from the palace to indulge in the ancient art of music and dance.

When the Emperor dies all of a sudden and his virile younger brother Li (Ge You) takes over the throne, Wan shocks everyone by agreeing to marry Li, convinced that this is the only way to protect Wu Luan while sealing her own position in the court. But Li is no fool, however infatuated he might be with his sister-in-law, he only pretends to buy into her scheme to consummate his lust. Oblivious to Wan, he has dispatched his guards to kill his nephew.

Already devastated by his father's death and stunned by his stepmother's impending wedding with his uncle, Wu Luan is pushed to the end of his tether when he realizes his own life is being threatened. After warding off the assassination attempt in a ferocious fight scene, he determines to return to the palace and revenge himself by killing his uncle, whom he believes has murdered his father.

No sooner has Wu Luan returned to the palace than he finds himself inextricably trapped in a double love triangle: on the one hand, there is Wan, on the other, Qing Nu (Zhou Xun), the daughter of the conniving Grand Marshall. As pure as snow, Qing Nu is head over heels in love with Wu Luan, and she is ready to sacrifice her life for him.

When Emperor Li proclaims that a big banquet will be held for his ministers, Wu Luan realizes it is the time to strike. Meanwhile, Empress Wan and the Grand Marshall also have their own plans to hatch...