curse of the golden flower

I just saw this movie. I was very impressed visually. Anyone who appreciates impressionism, and could imagine it animated with a psychedelic chinese palate would enjoy the first 2/3 of the movie. Zhang Yi Mou is a painter, and his composition and use of color are always amazing. Although the last third is also visually stunning, I would only recommend it to fans of over the top tragedy and wholesale slaughter. It's pretty bloody and pretty much everyone dies. Chinese people really seem to enjoy tragedy. Like Hero, I sometimes feel like the martial arts is thrown in to attract viewers, but it doesn't seem like Zhang cares very much, other than as an excuse to use more color and set up another tableau.