16th century Chinese novel Fengshen Yanyi (Investiture of the Gods) is the inspiration for a number of adaptions in Chinese entertainment. Adaptations in written forms, television programs, and, of course, cinema. Sometimes it’s in individual portions, such as with studio Light Chaser Animation with their recent films New Gods: Nezha Reborn (2021) and New Gods: Yang Jian (2023); or, in the case of filmmaker Wuershan (The Butcher, the Chef and the Swordsman), the entire novel as the film trilogy Creation of the Gods, which begins with the 2023 release Kingdom of Storms. After a brief U.S. release in both standard and IMAX formats, Well Go USA brings Kingdom of Storms home on physical and digital formats. Fans of Kingdom of Storms be advised that we are also offered a guided tour through the making of the film, examining four distinct challenges the filmmakers addressed/overcame to create this Chinese epic.
If you’d like to learn about Kingdom of Storms in a spoiler-free capacity, head over to the initial theatrical release review.
A scene from CREATION OF THE GODS I: KINGDOM OF STORMS. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
During the Shang Dynasty, Lord Yin Shou’s (Kris Phillips) leads his army against rebels seeking to overthrow his father. During the battle, the once imprisoned nine-tailed-fox is freed, taking possession of the deceased body of Su Daji (Narana Erdyneeva), the daughter of the rebel leader, who uses her new form to get close to Lord Yin Shou and manipulate him into murdering his father in order to assume control of the throne. Doing so, however, set a great curse upon the land, which causes the Supreme One of Heaven to send a trio of emissaries led by Jiang Ziya (Huang Bo) to give Yin Shou the Fengshen Bang, a scroll that only the King of All Realms can use to clear the curse from the land and save his people. But with treachery afoot and there being multiple individuals who desire to possess the Fengshen Bang, alliances will form, fall, and reform in an effort to dispel the curse, right wrongs, and seek to bring peace back to the land.
L-R: Kris Phillips as Yin Shou and Naran as Su Daji in CREATION OF THE GODS I: KINGDOM OF STORMS. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Though the origin for the Creation of the Gods series is centuries old, it bears a universal theme as it explores the complexity of parent/child relationships. Here, alliances are forged and broken based entirely on this specific factor. Room is made for the nine-tailed-fox to begin its ruinous influence on the Shang Dynasty simply because Su Daji opted to kill herself rather than make herself a weapon to be used against her father or to endure punishment for her father’s rebellion. The breach of loyalty is what kicks everything off for the film and it only grows worse from there. Not just because we learn of Shou’s army consisting of hostage-sons, the children of the dukes of the land handed over to create a chain of connection between each land noble and the king, but also a quick means to dispense emotional punishment to the nobles should they find reason for rebellion. Plots and allegations stir the monarchy upon the dispensation of the rebellion and the arrival of the now-possessed Su Daji, manipulating Shou into killing his father and first-born brother so as to ascend the throne with haste. An act which immediately makes Shou paranoid of his own son, Yin Jiao (Chen Muchi), seeing him as a threat to maintaining his newly-acquired throne and member of the hostage-son army Ji Fa (Yu Shi), whose father, the Duke of the West ji Chang (Li Xue Jian), is viewed as part of a new rebellion against Shou. It’s a little on the nose in the storytelling how Yin Jiao is punished despite his clear fealty to his father and ji Fa’s survival given his devotion to his true father and the land (vs. to the crown). It’s this push-pull emotional dynamic that grounds a legendary tale involving demons, giants, and magic so that the audience isn’t just going on a ride of mythic proportions, they become invested in the believable human emotions that create the stakes.
A scene from CREATION OF THE GODS I: KINGDOM OF STORMS. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Much to the delight of this reviewer, the U.S. home release of Kingdom of Storms includes four featurettes which invite audiences behind the scenes on the making of Kingdom of Storms. In approximately 30 minutes, Wuershan and his crew walk audiences through the categories of “The Makeup,” “Art Design,” “Special Effects,” and “Onset Lighting.” This isn’t just a montage of sped up footage or a brief mention by the Creation of the Gods team, we get a minimum of five-minutes per featurette as we’re shown things like the trials that went into making the makeup for the giants or how Bo’s father directed the look of Jiang Ziya post-immortality. For the art design, we’re shown portions of some of the art and literature across several dynasties, as well as the hand-craftsmanship that went into several of the sets. Whereas audiences are likely to acknowledge that Lei Zhenzi (Swanson Han) is a VFX constructed character, as are other beings or obstacles, the VFX featurette highlights a lot of the small things that audiences won’t notice. For the filmmaking nerds, this segment also offers insight into the lengths Wuershan went to access tech previously unused or tapped to make Kingdom of Storms as impressive as possible. This includes spending a week with Andy Serkis (War for the Planet of the Apes; The Lord of the Rings) in order to better understand how to improve their motion capture approach. With the lighting feature, audiences get to learn not just how Wuershan sought to utilize natural lighting as much as possible, but also about a first-of-its-kind blue screen apparatus using construction equipment that even Denis Villeneuve may want to take note of ahead of production on his third Dune outing. This only teases a few of things that these featurettes inform on, and it really is a treasure trove for fans of this film and cinephiles in general.
Center: Huang Bo as Jiang Ziya in CREATION OF THE GODS I: KINGDOM OF STORMS. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
Additionally, this edition includes two language tracks (Mandarin and English), each in DTS HDMA 5.1 and stereo, as well as subtitle options for English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, and French; as well as a Kingdom of Storms trailer and three trailers for other Well Go USA releases. As far as the video and audio elements, Well Go USA once again delivers an on-disc presentation that doesn’t disappoint. Given the beauty of the cinematography and art design for the film, one can only hope that the U.S. is offered a 4K UHD edition of the full trilogy when the series is complete.
A scene from CREATION OF THE GODS I: KINGDOM OF STORMS. Photo courtesy of Well Go USA.
At the time of this publishing, release dates for Creations of the Gods II: Demonic Confrontation and Creation of the Gods III: Creation Under Heaven are not yet available. If we’re lucky, seeing as all three films were shot at one time, it’ll follow a year gap between releases and nothing much longer. If that occurs, another hope follows that each release will include similar bonus materials so that audiences are able to get a closer look at the craftsmanship within each frame. It takes far more than a good script, a director with vision, and a cast of actors to bring a film to life, you need a whole host of artisans working within multiple disciplines to produce something that enthralls audiences. Having the opportunity to see all the behind-the-scenes work that goes into creating this trilogy is not only a treat for audiences, but a way to honor those below the line on a set.
Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms Special Features:
- Four (4) Behind the Scenes Featurettes – “The Makeup,” “Art Design,” “Special Effects,” “Onset Lighting”
- English Language
- One (1) Trailer
- Three (3) Well Go USA Preview Trailers
Available on Blu-ray, DVD, and digital May 28th, 2024.
For more information, head to the official Well Go USA Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms webpage.
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Categories: Films To Watch, Home Release, Recommendation
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