![]() They will however encounter unexpected adversaries in the form of a team of foreign mercenaries led by Captain Ning (Ma Sichun), under orders by a mysterious backer Hendrix (Vanni Corbellini) who wants the Empress’ secret for himself.Īs much as Lee invests much of the first act developing Lu Han and Jing Boran’s respective characters – the former still traumatized by an incident in his childhood years where he came face to face with a man in a golden mask and the latter as an ageless monk who saved his number from Hendrix’s attack on his temple some fifty years ago – there is little in either that is compelling enough for us to recognize them as no more than stock types or for that matter regard the movie as more than a special-effects laden spectacle. ![]() At the point Wu Xie unearths the key, the countdown is set to end eight days later and by the time he and his Third Uncle assemble a team of strongmen that includes Jing Boran’s Zhang Qiling, it is mere hours before the planets align and the Snake Empress wakes from her slumber. Just as Jet Li’s Dragon Emperor in the last film of ‘The Mummy’ trilogy, Sherawat’s Snake Empress thirsts for immortality, and has preserved herself, her lover King Xiang (Sammy Hung) and his armies for the past 2000 years in order to return and conquer the world through might and sorcery. Ignoring the warnings of his Third Uncle (Wang Jingchun), Wu Xie follows the trail hinted at by an ancient clockwork key he finds while stumbling around The Widow’s Tomb, which leads to an underground city of labyrinthine passage-ways and booby traps that turns out to be no less than the legendary tomb of the Snake Empress (Mallika Sherawat). Oh yes, we’re not sure if Lu Han (aka China’s ‘Star Wars’ ambassador) had researched Brendan Fraser’s Rick O’Connell to prepare for his role as Wu Xie, but he sure channels much of the same attitude. Like ‘The Mummy’, the protagonist here is a young budding tomb explorer with an irrepressible sense of curiosity and optimism. Bearing many glaring similarities to the last film in ‘The Mummy’ trilogy, this big-screen version adapted by the author of the Internet novel on which it is based – who goes by the moniker Uncle Three - is like its inspirational predecessor loud, overblown and often utterly nonsensical, even as its compendium of extravagant action sequences does offer mildly diverting fun. If you need further proof that China’s filmmakers are chasing after Hollywood’s former glories, then the latest CGI-laden modern-day fantasy adventure ‘Time Raiders’ is the perfect specimen. With the help of his grandfather Zhang Qiling‘s (Jing Boran) notes and his team, Wu Xie sets out to find the lost treasures as well as the people responsible for the extermination of his family. While he delves into his family trade he finds lost treasures of the Warring States as well as the answers to the tragedies of his family’s past. Synopsis: This fantasy-adventure film tells the tale of Wu Xie (Luhan) who is an antique shop owner with a family history of tomb raiders. ![]() Cast: Lu Han, Jing Boran, Ma Sichun, Wang Jingchun, Zhang Boyu, Mallika Sherawat
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