Famous tomb explorer Hu Bayi, Wang Kaixuan and Hu's fiancée Shirley Yang decided to retire to Manhattan. After a supposedly split of the team, Wang Kaixuan was pulled into a deal to locate the ancient tomb of a Mongolian princess. The team is lured back to their original vocation by a mysterious, businesswoman/cult leader Ying Caihong who wants them to find the ancient tomb of a Mongolian princess. They eventually learn that what she really wants is to possess a famed artifact known as the Equinox Flower that allegedly has the power to raise the dead. In 1988, the three Mojin(tomb raider), Hu Bayi, Wang Kaixuan, and Shirley Yang, retires and relocates to New York. While Bayi and Shirley have become romantically involved and Kaixuan feels that the great Mojin deserve more than the financial despair they've faced in the States, the trio are pulled back into a grave-robbing game in Inner Mongolia, China, to explore the reason behind the death of Ding Sitian, who was Bayi and Kaixuan's first love died back in 1969. Fighting a hopping ghostly entity in action comedy flair is an old trend in Chinese cinema, mostly dealing with silly version of vampire. As the visual technology advances this kind of premise resurfaces recently, the closest comparison would be The Mummy with oriental atmosphere. Mojin might seem too flamboyant or slow at first, rightfully so since the blend of horror and action only shows its effectiveness later on.<br/><br/>Story follows a reluctant adventurer Hu Bayi (Chen Kun) as he is drawn to a mystery from 20 years ago. The pacing is unfortunately sluggish at first act, relying heavily on slapstick comedy for a bit too long. This kind of loud banter is used frequently in Chinese comedy, or even in Korean or Japanese flicks, but the outlandish approach may not resonate too well for audience from the west. It's admittedly a niche flavor and culture-oriented taste. Furthermore, the drama factor simply shines towards the end.<br/><br/>After it sets the tone, it gets increasingly better. By incorporating few mythological embellishments and creepy characters, it even manages to be unexpectedly eerie beyond the original cheesy nature. Action and effect fare much better. There is a polished visual here, though it's not the level of high tier animation and it needs the help of artistic design to create appealing set pieces, especially since it dabbles mostly on barren terrains.<br/><br/>Credit must go to Shu Qi as the love interest Shirley. She looks very gorgeous, donning the popular Lara Croft visage and it's nice to have such character when raiding long lost tomb. The action also comes to fruition on second half as story shifts from silliness to tight narrative and eye-catching sequences. Humor works better as well, breaking away from the stand-up comedy and presenting a couple of nice gags even when the pace becomes faster.<br/><br/>The movie's later parts are better than the rest, more so considering it's a fairly long movie with considerable build-up. However, when all the pieces fit together Mojin - The Lost Legend is an adequately fascinating adventure. This movie is adapted by the novel of the same name. If you think some plot is ridiculous, it is because you know nothing about Chinese culture and history. What happened in 20 years ago in the movie is on the background of the Great Cultural Revolution. Lots of people were brainwashed so that they didn't respect the Chinese traditional stuff and destroyed the historical sites at that time. You can google this history if you are interested in. Besides, Grave Robbery is a mysterious profession with long history in China. Anyway, It is a good way to learn about the unique Chinese culture and history that I cannot explain in a few words through figuring out what you cannot understand. <br/><br/>It is an excellent movie! The plot is thrilling but hilarious! All the actors are professional! Unfortunately, it is difficult to translate everything accurately! The charismatic performers — who include Angelababy as a woman at the center of a past love triangle with the two male leads — are engaging from start to finish.
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