In a word , Excellent.

I bought it because everyone says it's one of the best ever. I enjoyed it, but I don't go in for these melodramatic historic pieces. (I'm not a huge fan of the Once Upon A Time In China trilogy, either.)

It's very well done, and well-acted (Sally Yeh hits all targets), but can you handle Brigitte Lin in drag again? I couldn't. I even watched it a second time to see if it just took getting used to, but still nothing ultra. Guess I'm just shallow.

Man, Brigitte goes through so much in this movie that you can't help but feel pity for her character, esp. with salt poured over her wounds. Ouch!