only good thing was the cgi visuals

This movie is inherently a bunch romance elements unravelling among a hurdle of insane traps and trials on the way through the tomb.

Production Value:
I must say the set design and background and lighting (it was great being able to see the characters despite being in a cave) was so well done. I've seen other tomb raiding produced in 2022 but it does not compare. The production value is very aesthetically pleasing to the eye.

The creatures and monsters in this film was done very well. From the design to the execution is very cool. Although they might not be something we see in reality, it does not look out of place.

The cutting and costume changes between Hubayi and shirley kind of makes me mad. They dont match up and are all over the place - ruins the chronological flow for me. Voice dubbing was a bit off for me especially for shirley, they need to work on the sound editing so things line up.

Characters:
Everyone seems to know how to be athletic and have super human jumping and be able to dodge deadly fast arrows or falling spike traps. Why was their six people in the cast, there was definitely no need for the ling long girl - just to be wang kaixuan's love interest. Who is she and why is she relevant? And the speed lore dumping from Shirley TT I'll just say in the grand scheme of things it feels too rushed and not incorporated well.

Acting
Everyone looks to young for their roles lol. Not a big concern but especially for the professor, he's supposed to be old based from other drama adaptations. Everyone I reckon did okay, the problem was the material they were given to work with. Some lines just felt useless in the grand scheme of things, others could be expanded and reworked in a way that better served the story telling. It really felt like dialogue - screaming - dialogue type of story to me.

Music + Rewatch:
I dont have any qualms about the music, wasn't part of my focus. Super super low rewatch value. This movie was sort of a waste of time, not engaging, and prolly a common opinion; dont try to squeeze a lot of content that needs time to build within a short movie.

I'd only recommend watching this if you want to see cool cgi and sfx.

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No tomb-digging, just literally an expanded storyline about the downfalls of the mc

ISTG THIS IS THE PREQUEL TO CITT IM REQUESTING AN EDIT TF NOWWWW
So i randomly search the grave robbing tag and came across this movie released in 2024? I can not find info about it being part of Candle in the tomb from iQiyi, and other irrelevant websites. BUT I KID YOU NOT

1:24:47 provides the famous phrase that unites each Candle in the Tomb story "鬼吹灯“, 6:17 mentions his grandson is Hu bayi, along with his best friend Wag kaixuan 6:27.

So i'm taking it upon myself to add the related titles.

STORY
honestly this story was confusing at time, started out with a horror set out of rats coexisting as humanoids but like never explained that storyline apart from oh there is a precious smart rat passed down generations that watches over you like a guardian angel....? The story remincines over Hu Bayi's grandpa in his younger years, where he is framed, cheated, and basically experiences supernatural horrors that lead him towards death's hands.

Basically the story synopsis on MDL gives you the entire plot of the movie.

The frustrating thing is. the movie literally gives you 5 mins about the MC character development... what? exactly, its not really a worth film to watch. there is some superstitions that are played with buts that what 4/5 of the story is. Yea the story dives into/sets up a little romance storyline but is quickly extinguished and moves back to all the bad misfortunes the mc deals with lol

The only good thing would prolly be the ending where the legacy passes onto Hubayi through the famous phrase "Ghost blows candles".

ACTING/MUSIC
Okay i guess, not super wow thats life changing acting but also not super super poor. The music is dramatic when it needs to be.

Its a subpar story nothing really special, kind of a waste of time, nothing valuable really attracts me. The mini horror supernatural phenomemons are somewhat interesting but are all undermined as they never really tie into a major storyline that gives them important meaning + plus they were all hallucinations.

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lol its a 'dont drink and drive' propaganda movie

AGAIN, this is NOT a comedy. It is a movie about learning morals, kind of like a meaningful life's message story. It does have its tiny giggles here and there but it is more ,,, philosophical in a way?

The story revisits six key figures that all have something to do with late night driving and their own specific struggles. Li bo who is the one uniting factor somehow crosses paths with them and helps them gain the post-nut clarity conscience to continue with their life and change their course of life to steer away from regrets. This story I would recommend those who relate to moody late night drives, as their is a tale for you in each scenario.

All stories and characters hold interesting arcs, which help reveals to us bit by bit his character, background and all which ties the story together in a neat way. And it does so with a specific cinematic sequence and sound to resonate the beginning of a new story.

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Wow what a mind boggle

To what I initially thought would be a boring crime story, ended up being quite a thrilling and well tied together story.

This would not be considered a comedy, as it focuses more on the dramatical aspect of the crime scene. It does have its few little comedic moments which relieves tension from the mystery unravelling at hand.

As you watch, more elements are added, and perspectives shown. The reveal in the end was quite the shocker. The actor Lao Li does a brilliant job acting, especially considering his character who's will to live is motivated by his son.

It's hard to not say much, definitely at the beginning it was kind of slow and you wonder what was the point of it all, but at the end all characters are explored and made sense as to why their fate's met in this one room.

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Its a good watch if you want a horror comedy that you dont have to think too hard about

First of all, the movie starts off at an okay pace and quickly picks up the mysterious part of the plot when they enter the cave. I won't spoil everything but its a very fast paced sort of story telling in the series of illusions that come into play to deter the group from finding the antidote. I didn't get bored by any of the events, it was very interesting and you couldnt really look away from the situation as you are suddenly thrust into a normal looking place out of no ware and you have to but wonder what is happening. All the mystery scenes being played out gre into an element of horror but there were mild comedic relief here or there to ease tension and it didnt seem too much.

I came into this movie after watching the series that covered up to volume 7. The drama version in my opinion had a really unfocused approach and i was often bored by the lack of events. However, this movie -- i havent watched the Tomb of the Weasel 2021 which should also be relatively the same story plot points covered ( https://mydramalist.com/716295-candle-in-the-tomb-the-weasel-grave ). I watched it without sub because i dont have a subscription for iQiyi.

Bit of a spoiler alert!

----------[I would say the ending was a very interesting reference to the middle scene where they couldnt tell apart who is who anymore. It was a very nice open ended ending I'd say, simply cuz when i was watching the raw I couldnt understand the explanations super well only the colloquial stuff.]------------------

Welcome back to spoiler free!

I didnt pay attenion much to the music, but when the horror and high anticipation scenes come on. The music was able to bring you into the sphere and immerse you in.
For the acting, there's nothing really notable, my only problem was why did they cast a younger looking man into the role of the hunter uncle? It doesnt look too out of place but it bothered me.

I would totally rewatch this, in HD quality and preferably with english subtitles so i can get more out o the analysis scenes Hu Ba yi throws at the audience.

Thanks for listening. This is my first review which is honeslty more of a rant.

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