Looking at the poster, the first thing I noticed was the absence of actors like Fan Bingbing and Yang Mi, and halfway through I remembered Li Ziting's neon lights, which was a bit disappointing. It didn't really affect me, though. At the beginning, I felt that Wang Duo's painted face looked a bit round and lacked some flavor, but later, from different angles, it looked much better. Surprisingly, the best performances were from Yi Yang Qian Xi and Wang Jun Kai, which fit their characters quite well.
There were quite a few points to critique.
After watching the entire film, the biggest critique is: although everyone is a mage, the battles still rely entirely on hand-to-hand combat. It wasn't until the later appearance of Xiu Chuan Di Zang and the apostles that there was a hint of a soul technique battle, which was quite enjoyable. It seems that magical battles are too demanding in terms of imagination and budget, making it a bit of a helpless choice.
Additionally, the overall medieval European style made me feel somewhat uncomfortable. A bit of "East-West" fusion would have been nice.
There were some logical issues; the emotional shifts felt a bit abrupt, which weakened the sense of immersion. For instance, several people were "wanted," yet they could meet at Tian Shu You Hua's mansion, which feels unbelievable even in real society, let alone in a world where gods are fighting. The Silver Priest's lack of even this basic intelligence is hard to accept. At another point, when everyone was discussing whether Qi Ling could go with Yin Chen, the initially serious atmosphere was reasonable since going meant a life-or-death situation. However, after getting Lian Quan and Yin Chen's agreement, Qi Ling's reaction was like a child getting permission to go to an amusement park, suddenly becoming mischievous, which changed the atmosphere in a strange way. Moreover, in the level design, only Yin Chen and Qi Ling's talents could give Yin Chen a chance in the final level. If Qi Ling wasn't allowed to go, Yin Chen would really have no way out.
Another point is that the characters' expressions were indeed a bit lacking, affecting the viewing experience, but I mentally prepared for this and managed to cope. When the actors didn't need expressions, a close-up shot showed an improvement in image quality, and seeing Fan Ge's stubble was quite satisfying.
One more point is that to cater to the audience, some plot points were explained through flashbacks, but it didn't feel good. For example, it was explained that only after the Duke's death could the master and apprentice become stronger, and for Qi Ling, his hair would turn white. Then Qi Ling's hair changed, but this could have been shown through the main plot; this part was really not hard for the audience to understand.
It's worth acknowledging that some minor adjustments to the original work were reasonable.
For instance, in the original work, the ambiguous feelings of the apostles towards the Duke could be uncomfortable to understand, but in this film, the emphasis was on the protective nature of that emotion, which was a significant improvement for me.
Less literary drama and more fighting scenes is a good direction; I don't really enjoy watching their dramatic performances, haha.
It's really tough for the nostalgia fans; the entire viewing process was sustained by the desire to see Gilgamesh, and when I finally saw Gilgamesh's four-element limit, I really wanted to jump up. However, judging by the current situation, it seems that Director Guo will have a hard time raising funds for the next project. Please give an opportunity for a sequel; I still want to see Gilgamesh.
Speaking of Gilgamesh, I had this feeling while reading the novel that the characters' abilities were constantly "inflating." For example, in the tavern, some soul masters were almost invincible in front of commoners, but when the Duke and his apprentice appeared, ordinary soul masters became mere Muggles, gradually inflating until the various Dukes were almost invincible, and then characters from Fengyuan appeared, becoming even stronger. It seems that this is the only way to capture the readers' interest; I wonder how the novel or movie will handle this later. After Gilgamesh wreaks havoc, how will the plot progress? I'll leave this as a question mark for now.