Director Andrew Lau’s semi-serious yet schlocky Category III picture about the last empress of China is an involving, though unbelievable melodrama. Sweet, innocent Yu-Lan (Chingmy Yau) rises to the top of the food chain (Empress Dowager) by learning the art of sex, using it to her advantage, and then being a bitch to everyone who helped her along the way (including Emperor Yu Rong-Guang and his wife Valerie Chow). Helping her is Prince Kung (Tony Leung Ka-Fai), who shares true lust with Yu-Lan for years and years.

Thanks to HK storytelling, all of this historical dramatization seems like high soap opera rather than high art. Hanging the fate of a country on incidents like getting your cat boiled really doesn’t ring true; Yu-Lan’s loss of innocence is more sensationalized than serialized. Add that to the "sex training" sequences and you're looking at The Last Emperor crossed with Sex & Zen. Seriously though, the film isn't as fetid as your usual Category III, and Chingmy Yau turns in a better-than-usual performance. (Kozo 1996)

image courtesy of Mei Ah Laser Disc Co., Ltd.