I've always had kind of a love hate relationship with Chinese historical BLs. Some are genuinely excellent, but then there are others that cram in so much plot that keeping track of all the layers of betrayal and scheming gets exhausting, and I end up checking out mentally. Part of the issue is also just how much content is out there in this space, so something really has to stand out to keep me hooked. In this case, the production value is genuinely impressive, top tier stuff, but story wise, I just couldn't bring myself to actually care about these characters. There's a ton of political scheming and backstage manipulation running throughout. Somewhere in the middle of all that chaos, a hostage ends up falling for his own Prince Charming. The show runs eight episodes, each around 50 to 60 minutes long. After spending three years guarding the border, Fifth Prince Yin Qi gets called back to the capital because of a secret letter, only to end up walking straight into a deadly...
Daniel, 29 year old, is a very successful and charming TV host. But suddenly he starts getting panic attacks when he is out jogging and what it feels like getting into depression.The experience is as if he has claustrophobia in a large public space. Daniel is gay and is very very private person , so we don't know what's happening to him. Enter Alexander, a young 18 year old teem who flirts with Daniel at a club and then eventually shows up at his home one night. Slowly, despite Daniel's reluctance, Alexander spends more and more time with Daniel, cooking, showering, having lot of sex, walking around, talking about things etc. Alexander tries best to convince Daniel to confront his past to deal with his anxiety and eventually Daniel does talk about his past. We get know that Daniel's parents died in a car accident while he was throwing tantrums because his sister caught him with another boy when he was very young. Having now confronted his past demons, He is staring to get better but on one of their shopping expeditions, Alexander is run over by a car and the one person who Daniel started to fall in love with dies. But in a mysterious scene we see that Alexander never existed. So who was he really?
The subject of the film is very interesting and it could have made a stronger statement had it been shorter and crispier. There are a lot of silent scenes and lot of scenes where Alexander and Daniel are just hanging and talking. I understand the director's need for those but they really test the patience of viewers. The two men run off to this lake where they can swim for the rest of the day; repeat and rinse for what seems like forever. This and some rather motivational talks from Alexander (for his age) to Daniel goes on and on in the film. My take from he film is that Alexander never existed. He was a figment of imagination of Daniel. Alexander was really a younger self of Daniel when he was more carefree and low key. He then gave up his entire life for career and dealing with past demons that those demons have now caught up with him and he needs a way out. But, hey I could be completely wrong but then from multiple scenes where we see similarities between Alexander and Daniel, this is the only logical explanation. As actors Daniel is not only extremely hot, with that perfect round ass, but also acts well. He conveys the troubles of his character rather well. In contrast, Alexander, who is also extremely good looking, just doesn't look convincing giving all that shrink mumbo-jumbo about life. Also he looks way too much like Brent Corrigan. It just doesn't fit the character. This film tries so hard to be deeper and more intellectual than it actually is, but having said that it could still be a guilty pleasure for eyes. Also a quick word for the jarring and loud background music. At some places the piano pieces are so loud that it even takes over the dialogues. (5/10)
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