The film begins with Confucius as an old man, thinking back. Then we see him in his early 50s, being promoted from Mayor to Minister for Law in his home state of Lu. He is confronted with ethical issues after saving a slave-boy who was due to be buried alive with his former master who has just died. There are a lot of complex politics and war, ending with Confucius being rejected and becoming a wandering scholar. After many hardships and losses, he is invited back as an old man. We see him finally preparing the Spring and Autumn Annals, expecting that this book will determine his future influence.
Cast
Chow Yun-fat as Confucius or Kong Qiu, also known by the honorary title Zhong Ni.
sang the theme song for the film. Her "soothing and ethereal voice" was considered appropriate for the lofty spirit of the song, "Solitary Orchid", which is based on an ancient work by Han Yu. Wong, a Buddhist, stated that she recorded the song "for Confucius" as his writings still provide the answers to modern questions.
Controversies
Choice of actors
After the project was announced, the reaction in China was decidedly mixed. As the film is made in Mandarin, many expressed concern that Chow, a native of Cantonese-speaking Hong Kong, would lack the requisite Mandarin-speaking skills to portray the revered philosopher. Others were concerned that Chow, a veteran of action and Kung Fu-cinema, would turn Confucius into a "kung-fu hero." Such concerns were only exacerbated after mainland star Pu Cunxin criticized Hu Mei's script as containing inappropriate levels of action and romance for a film based on Confucius' life. In his review of the movie, Perry Lam of Muse has criticized Chow for being 'the least likely actor to play the title role.'
Kong Jian lawsuit
In December 2009, more controversy arose when a claimed-direct descendant of Confucius brought suit against the film-makers. After seeing the film's trailer, the descendant, Kong Jian, sought to have several scenes deleted from the release of the film and objecting to the intimations that Confucius was romantically attracted to the concubine, Nanzi.
Screening
During the film's launch in China, the Hollywood blockbusterAvatar was reportedly going to be pulled from nearly 1,600 2-D screens across China, to benefit the wide release of this film. Instead, Avatar showings continued in the fewer, but more popular 900 3-D screens throughout China, which generated over 64% of the film's total ticket sales in China. The Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily speculated that the Chinese authorities were worried Avatar had seized the market share from domestic films and noted that many of the vacant cinema slots would be replaced by Confucius, and the film would be "drawing unwanted attention to the sensitive issue" concerning forced evictions of Chinese homes. However, China's State Administration of Radio, Film and Television responded by stating it was a "commercial decision", and because the "box office performance of the 2D version has not been great." However, due to low attendance for Confucius, and high demand for Avatar, the Chinese government reversed their decision, and allowed Avatar to remain on some 2-D screens in China. This choice appeared to be at least partly based on the financial performance of the two films, with Avatar grossing nearly 2.5 times more money per day.
DVD release
On 4 October 2010, DVD was released in Cine Asia at the UK in Region 2.
