Before the hype surrounding Zhan Yimou’s new blockbuster could fade, another big-budget film, the Twin Effect Two, has just been released on the mainland.  Producers claim that the film will net 200 million yuan at the mainland box-office; where they came up with the figure nobody knows.

Big advertising and promotional budgets are nothing new on the mainland, and although the film will have a tough time repeating the success of the House of Flying Daggers,  the whole cast of Twin Effect Two spent a week traveling between Hong Kong, Beijing and Shanghai to promote the film. Their plans seem to have paid off, and the film has taken about ten million yuan in its first week.

But it’s definitely too early to celebrate. The recent experience of the House of the Flying Daggers has taught many Chinese cinema-goers a lesson: don’t believe the hype!

The 80 million Hong Kong dollar self-described Asian answer to the Lord of the Rings comes complete with empresses, women traffickers busy trading male slaves, and male prostitutes. But the film feels less like an epic and more of a comedy, and the enchanting images and gorgeous fighting scenes can’t disguise its thin plot and dodgy performances.

Critics are describing the film as a teen romantic-drama and the film tells the story of an empress who usurps the throne and sends out assassins to kill those next in line. Two young craftsmen mistakenly become the target and a female human trafficker also has her eyes on the two. Their adventure is interwoven with betrayal, true love and sumptuously choreographed fight scenes.

The cast is made up of teen idols, including the popular duo the Twins, Edison Chen and Wilson Chan. It’s also the on-screen debut of  Jaycee Chan, Jackie Chan’s only son. More established Hong Kong stars Donnie Yen, Jackie Chan and Tony Leung all took minor parts in the film, and seem happy to give background support to the young stars in waiting.

The film was produced by Hong Kong’s well known Emperor’s Entertainment Group, and is the sequel to Twin Effect which was a box-office success in Hong Kong last year but was panned by the critics.