After touring through four Chinese cities, director Feng Xiaogang’s high profile movie "The Banquet" finally made its grand debut in Beijing on September 9th. The highly anticipated film has already proved highly controversial. Critics and reporters laughed out loud during all the wrong scenes when the Banquet premiered in Guangzhou. Some even walked out during an awkward scene. But the film received a far more positive response when it screened in Hangzhou, Xiian and Shenyang. So what did the people of Beijing react? And how has the mixed reception affected the director and cast? "The Banquet" sparked a range of reactions from the audience when it premiered in the capital city. Some greeted the scenes with applause, while others snickered all the way through. Some said the movie has everything you could hope from a blockbuster, as well as big stars. Others panned the script, saying the traditional language sounded comical and unnatural. When asked about the mixed reception the film has received, Director Feng Xiaogang says: "I am quite confident about this movie because I have a good understanding of audiences. " The media have by-and-large panned the traditional language used in The Banquet. But the director stood by his script. "The lines of the movie written by Shen Heyu are quite good. People who criticize the lines could not possibly be more familiar with traditional Chinese than Shen." "The Banquet" is a loose adaptation of "Hamlet" that depicts an empire in chaos. The main characters
