This feature film
tells an epic story of adventure in the desert of China’s remote west during
the Tang Dynasty. Commandant Li becomes a wanted criminal when he refuses to
kill some captured civilians. Japanese envoy Sir Laixi is sent to the far west
to get Li, dead or alive. The two duels, but it ends in a draw and they agree
to fight again later at the imperial capital of Chang’an. Before they get that
chance, they encounter a camel train escorting priceless Buddhist relics across
the desert. Powerful local villain An tries to steal the relics for himself,
forcing Li and Laixi to forget their rivalry and fight side by side to protect
the precious cargo as it is transported to the emperor.
Duration: 110
minutes
Director: He Ping
Director of
photography: Zhao Fei
Starring: Jiang
Wen, Nakai Kiichi, Wang Xueqi and Zhao Wei
Produced by the
Xi’an Film Studio Corp, Huayi Brothers & Taihe Film Investment Co., Ltd,
and Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia Ltd.
Subtitled by
Center of International Cultural Exchange
Presented by the
Bureau for External Cultural Relations,
Ministry of
Culture, P.R. China