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James Marsh

3/5 stars
A visually ravishing blend of palace intrigue and knockabout humour, Full River Red sees celebrated filmmaker Zhang Yimou return to the elaborate assassination attempts of his 2002 international smash hit Hero and the courtroom antics of 2019’s Shadow.
Shen Teng and Jackson Yee lead a starry ensemble cast in what has already proved a significant box office hit with audiences in mainland China since its debut during the Lunar New Year holiday.
Set in the 12th century during China’s Song dynasty (960–1279), Zhang’s frenetically paced mystery unfolds entirely behind the towering gates of the Song prime minister’s fortified estate.


When he discovers that a visiting Jin delegate has been murdered under his roof, Qin Hui (Lei Jiayin) tasks Sun Jun (Yee), the newly appointed commander of his battalion, with tracking down a missing letter which he was supposed to deliver to the Emperor.
Given two hours to complete his task, Sun Jun enlists new recruit Zhang Da (Shen) to assist him, on pain of death.
As the minutes tick by, this mismatched pair of amateur sleuths navigate the palace’s labyrinthine alleyways and tiers of bureaucratic hierarchy, only to uncover a plot far more sinister that could impact the fate of the nation.
One Second: Zhang Yimou’s engrossing love letter to cinema
Shen and Yee make for an entertaining double act, as their uneasy alliance frequently falters under the pressure of their seemingly imminent execution.
Notable obstacles in their path are Zhang Yi’s slippery palace chancellor, as well as the enigmatic Zither (Wang Jiayi), a dancer who has been drawn unwittingly into the maelstrom.
Playing out in something approaching real time, the film struggles to maintain a consistent and engaging pace, hindered by its stop-start narrative and unwieldy runtime.

The film’s beautiful production design and elaborate costumes are complemented by Han Hong’s invasive yet propulsive score.
His cacophony of clattering percussion and raucous chanting extends beyond mere musical accompaniment, contributing sonorous punctuation during the film’s interludes of broad physical comedy.
While the film’s lavish technical merits are indisputable, as are Zhang’s efforts to reimagine a 1,000-year-old story as a contemporary holiday crowd pleaser, the true measure of the film’s success rests on where audiences stand on the sentiment enshrined in Yue Fei’s legendary, eponymous poem.
As the words of Full River Red echo around the palace walls during the film’s dramatic climax, this will represent for some a stirring declaration of unifying nationalism.

For others, however, it offers little more than a sentimental display of histrionic breast-beating that tempers an otherwise engrossing mystery.
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Full River Red movie review: Zhang Yimou blends palace mystery with comedy in historical drama inspired by Chinese general Yue Fei’s patriotic poem

Jackson Yee (left) and Shen Teng as Sun Jun and Zhang Da in a still from Full River Red (Category IIB, Mandarin), directed by Zhang Yimou.

Wang Jiayi (right) as Zither in a still from Full River Red.

Jackson Yee as Sun Jun in a still from Full River Red.

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Fan Bingbing in a still from Green Night.

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Wilang Lalin (centre) and Lin Ting-li (left) in a still from Gaga (category IIA, Mandarin, Tayal, English), directed by Laha Medow. Kagaw Piling co-stars.

Kagaw Piling in a still from Gaga.

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Stephy Tang as psychiatrist Dr Tsui in a still from Shadows (category IIB, Cantonese), directed by Glenn Chan Chi-man and co-starring Philip Keung and Tse Kwan-ho.

Tse Kwan-ho as Dr Yan in a still from Shadows.

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Huang Yao (left) and Xin Baiqing in a still from The Shadowless Tower, with the eponymous tower in the background.

Xin Baiqing (left) and Tian Zhuangzhuang in a still from The Shadowless Tower.

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Full River Red sees an unlikely duo team up in a deadly race to track down a missing letter within the confines of a Chinese Song dynasty palace
While a visually ravishing blend of palace intrigue and knockabout humour, it struggles with inconsistent pacing, hindered as it is by its stop-start narrative


Zhang Yimou’s Full River Red blends palace mystery with comedy in a historical drama inspired by Chinese general Yue Fei’s patriotic poem.


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An assessment or critique of a service, product or creative endeavour.  Film reviews, restaurant reviews, reviews of art exhibitions. (Eg. Crazy Rich Asians: an important film, yes, but a good one?)


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Review | Full River Red movie review: Zhang Yimou blends palace mystery with comedy in historical drama inspired by Chinese general Yue Fei’s patriotic poem