Voxitype
Good films always raise compelling questions, whether the format is fiction or documentary fact.
AshUnow
This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.
Sammy-Jo Cervantes
There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.
Alistair Olson
After playing with our expectations, this turns out to be a very different sort of film.
OllieSuave-007
Saw this movie on a plane and while it was OK to pass the time with, the film as a whole was pretty bad. The humor was poorly done with unfunny jokes and unfunny slapstick stuff. While the action was pretty intense in some parts, particular the fight between the monks' disciples with the White Bone Spirit, it was too heavy on the CGI.The monk Tang Sanzang was portrayed like a clueless clown and the three disciples, Monkey King, Pigsy and Sandy, acted pretty useless for the most part. There was too much arguing and bickering among one another, particularly between Tang Sanzang and the Monkey King.It was hard to believe that the great Hark Tsui directed this movie, but not surprised that funnyman Stephen Chao produced. He really should just stick to acting, as I honestly think his talents are better used on stage.Grade D-
erudemu
Being a huge fan of the first movie (it's still in my top 5), i was waiting to see this for a long time. I was unhappy about changing whole cast but after seeing the movie, i understand that was the minor problem.Since this movie is a sequel, we have right to compare it with first movie. You know what, there is nothing to compare. This one is awful. Casting, acting, even scenario are all bad. So disappointing. I gave first movie 10 stars but this movie is not even close to earn 2 stars. Only 1 star for Shu Qi.This must be the worst job of Stephen Chow.
subxerogravity
Journey To The West bored me, the same way that Monkey King 2 bored me. I'm starting to think that maybe the monkey king is not my thing (Although, DragonBall has to be some sort of adaption to the character do to a big likeness between the two (Same way Marvel's Thor is similar but does not full mimic the Norse mythology).Maybe unlike anime, I can't watch these movies with subtitles . As an American use to Hollywood Blockbusters when I see an actor alone on a screen interacting with characters that were made in a computer, I'm expecting a lot more action adventure to my Fantasy, but all I got here was talk. This may have not been that bad but I feel that the comedy did not translate well with subtitles. Having to read and look at the visuals did not work this time.Plus the anime style cartoonery did not translate well to live action. Some of the visual gags timing was fine, but it really did not click. I appreciate the attempt but I just thought it was stupid in the long run.Like with Monkey King 2, my favorite part of this film was the lone epic action scene at the end of the movie that was big and the reason that anyone would buy a ticket to see it in 3D. Although it's not worth the ticket cause that one scene does not make this movie. I've seen films that one part can make the whole movie but The Demons Strike Back is not complex enough for that. It starts slow continues slow and then ends epic but that greatness does not make up for all the slowness.The visual effects are OK but not good enough for a picture to bore me with them. Very standard an unimpressive (Except for the 3D spectacular that ends the film).Maybe my knowledge (Or lack of) the Monkey King is steering my judgement, maybe I'm expecting too much from a Chinese Blockbuster (My favorite part was at the end credits when the filmmakers did a bit that confirms that this movie is the Chinese version of the Blockbuster), but this latest adaption of Journey To The West is not doing it for me at all. Maybe I need to see if they do an English dub that might translate better, and change my mine.http://cinemagardens.com/
Cornelia_vanderbilt
I have been looking forward to this movie for years because I'm a huge fan of both Stephen Chow and Tsui Hark and it didn't disappoint! The nonsensical comedy is very Stephen Chow and the plot is engaging, my friends and I spent the whole time laughing. No one can write a good comedic sequence like Stephen Chow. Tsui Hark's half of the contribution can be seen in the special effects and action, the effects are pretty good although not perfect. The cinematography for this is amazing, there were a lot of beautiful shots. I wanted the original cast from the first movie to return but the new cast didn't disappoint. The monk in particularly was very funny. I rate this a 10 because it's everything I wanted from both of them. It certainly delivered!