There are so many films from China in recent years which take us back into more recent history - after such a spate of films about the military history of China in the various kingdoms in previous millennia.

Empire of Silver goes back only a century or more. It opens in the provinces with a voiceover narrative from a descendant of the protagonists who reminisces from the 20th century vantage point and elaborates what he sees as the final achievement of his family, a family of bankers.

As with the other films, the audience will feel that they have been immersed in this Chinese world, the action, the colour, the dangers, the costumes, the disparity between the poor and the rich.

Western audiences not familiar with the events will need to pay attention since the film often moves rapidly, passing sometimes over a year or more at a time. We have to try to work out who is who in the family, especially when the narrative goes into flashback.

Read the rest of this review at CathNews.com