Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons (2014)

Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

One of my all time favorites.

Don't listen to the Hype. It's awful

Let me be very fair here, this is not the best movie in my opinion. But, this movie is fun, it has purpose and is very enjoyable to watch.

The Chinese film, Journey to the West is based off the book Journey to the West. This film is said to be a kind of intro to the book. It is an action packed love story, with several twists and turns. The main character, Xuanzang, is a young Buddhist monk who is a sought out hero. At the beginning of the movie, he tries to save the people of a small wooden town from a demon. He faces rejection, but never stopped fighting for the people who turned their backs to him. He returns to his master and tells him that maybe he is not the chosen one, but his master says that he is. Xuanzang's master tells him to use a book of nursery rhymes to fight his battles. Xuanzang's goal is to become the greatest demon hunter there is. On his journey, he faces many battles with other demons and demon hunters who are all fighting for the same goal. At the end of the film, Xuanzang faces the hardest battle of his life. He experiences pain, loss, and heartbreak. These three casualties, motivate him to beat his greatest enemy and reach enlightenment.

The very unique film, Journey to the West, directed and filmed by Stephen Chow, was one of the weirdest and most quirky films I have ever seen. This film had a ton of cultural references that may have been difficult for some of us viewers to understand because the Chinese culture and traditions are so much different than ours here in the United States. This very much included the different forms of comedy presented in the film. Although wacky, I somehow liked the film for all the action and adrenaline it contained. I would recommend this film to anyone who enjoys Chinese culture, or mythological beings and magic.

You need to see this movie! I just caught this on one of our public TV channels, and absolutely LOVED it! From the same Chinese legend that the TV series Monkey was based on, this movie tells the lead in story as to how the disparate group lead by Tripitaka came to be.Gorgeous pictures, great CGI and effects, and laugh out loud comedy. The performances are great...the lead character is adorable (I know, that sounds inane, but it's the only way to describe him) and the demon hunter who !s forever saving him is such a great, strong, female character. Their relationship is a bit of a role reversal of the usual Western cinema tradition. And the Monkey King.....just a delight.For fans of the TV show, this is the ultimate back story, though it doesn't matter if you've never seen it. Journey To the West is a great stand alone film, but if you are a 50 something Monkey tragic (as I clearly am) it's a really special treat!

I have to say that the positive reviews here are baffling to me. Perhaps Chow has succeeded in attracting audience from the West, but he's certainly losing long time Chinese fans like me.A Chinese Odyssey, a two-part movie back in 1994/1995 was arguably Chow's best work as an actor. Knowing that this is a prequel to that series I came in with great expectations. Yet after finishing the movie it left me pretty disappointed, to say the least.Script: The love between the two main characters are forced and unreal. I also don't see a strong theme throughout the movie - the Chinese Odyssey explores the tension between love and responsibility, and portrays that brilliantly (in both a funny and touchy way) throughout the series. This one? I am not so sure.I understand that Chow as a director does not intend to make humorous movies - this is clear when he was making the transition to being a director, e.g. King of Comedy. Yet back in those old movies he was still able to come up catchy/really funny lines which created a strong contrast of the underlying, sad theme. This one - it really is not funny.CGI/Acting: To me the CGI is pretty neat, and the acting is done quite nicely. Kudos to Bo Huang for an excellent portrayal of the Monkey King. But again, personally the script/storyline is far more important than the CGI.