Friday, October 7, 2011

The Sorcerer and the White Snake 白蛇傳說

According to legend, there lived a horde of goblins and monsters in the depths of the primeval forest. Among these evil spirits were two snakes, one white and one green, loitering in the mountains, leading a carefree life.

One day, a young herbalist Xu Xian (Raymond Lam) came to the mountains and accidentally fell into a lake. White Snake (Eva Huang), in the incarnation of a beautiful lady, the form she acquired after a thousand years of practice and cultivation, came to his rescue. White Snake’s passion for this young man could not be contained, and with the help of Green Snake (Charlene Choi), she ventured into the human world and got married to Xu Xian.

Not long after their marriage, a strange disease started plaguing their town. As a physician, Xu Xian was very anxious. In order to help her husband, White Snake was willing to use up most of her supernatural power to concoct medicine for the disease, undermining her body and her vital energy.

Fa Hai (Jet Li), a sorcerer from Jinshan Temple, whose mission was to travel the world to subdue demons and slay monsters, arrived in time to save the town from the plague. But at the same time, from the medicine provided by Xu Xian, the sorcerer detected a touch of evil.

Then came Dragon Boat Festival when Chinese families drink wine to drive away evil spirits. In celebration, Xu Xian made White Snake drink some wine, and she immediately turned into a big white snake. Meanwhile Fa Hai came to the house in order to subdue White Snake. In confusion, Xu Xian used the sacred sword given to him by Fa Hai and wounded the large white python. White Snake escaped with serious injury.

Xu Xian was grief-stricken and tried to make remedy by risking his life to obtain a potent medicinal herb for his wife. Xu Xian got the herb but during the course was possessed by demons. In order to save him, Fa hai kept him in Jinshan Temple.

After taking the herbal dose, White Snake regained her strength and power and rushed to Jinshan Temple for her husband. She was overcome with rage after the failure to enter the Temple. In extreme frenzy, she summoned up a flood over the Temple causing a catastrophe.

Trailer

Starring: Jet Li, Shengyi Huang, Charlene Choi, Raymond Lam, Wu Jiang
Directed by: Siu-Tung Ching
Genres: Science Fiction/Fantasy, Action and Adaptation
Running Time: 1 hr 43 mins
MPAA Rating: PG (Some Frightening Scenes)
IMDb Users Rating: 6.4/10 (71 votes)
My Rating: &&&&

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