The Banquet

Inside a glittering empire, Crown Prince Wu Luan bears a quiet ache after losing the woman he loves to the man who also happens to be his father. Wan becomes empress through marriage, a union that fractures the prince's hopes and ripples through court life. When a brutal act against the throne unsettles the palace, Wu Luan steps into a perilous world where loyalties blur and power clings to those who wield it. Personal longing collides with duty as schemes tighten and rivals circle. The result is a lush, danger filled tale about desire and vengeance played out in candlelit halls, where love and ambition pull people toward impossible choices. The intrigue plays out in candlelit corridors and shadowed stairwells.

Released in 2006 and directed by Feng Xiaogang, The Banquet is a lavish period drama loosely inspired by Shakespeare's Hamlet, featuring Zhang Ziyi, Ge You, Daniel Wu and Zhou Xun in a palace saga that blends sets and intimate moments.

Critics applauded the film for its visual scale and action, even as a dense plot challenges patience. The drama weighs desire against duty, loyalty against ambition, and asks how power can reshape a person under pressure, leaving audiences to ponder choices made in the name of love and duty everywhere.

The Banquet stands out for its artful blend of fantasy and historical grandeur, building a template for later Chinese epics that mix romance, politics, and martial spectacle. Its lush production design and high profile cast helped elevate expectations for period fantasy, influencing costume and pacing in later works worldwide audiences.

Box office figures for The Banquet are not widely publicized, making it hard to gauge its commercial reach. The film nonetheless drew attention in prestige markets and festival audiences, signaling strong interest in Feng Xiaogang's shift toward grand mythic storytelling.