This is one of those movies, where you go "Huh?" for a number of reasons.
For one, the storytelling structure is unusual, if you go in uninformed it is a bit of a trip, making you wonder where it is going and what it is trying to say.
As a European with no introduction to Chinese legends, it is so whimsical and random. If you Wikipedia it and then watch it again, it makes more sense, but not much? And yet I was fully charmed by the story and the acting. I am sure, if I spend more time doing research, there are many easter eggs for mythology fans.
Maybe it is a bit like watching a theatre show without having read the source material. You get emotional, and you don't know why either.