ISLAMABAD The war movie 'On the Tai Hang Mountain was screened here Sunday - the second day of the Chinese Film Festival in connection with the Chinese Cultural Week at the Pakistan National Council of the Arts (PNCA). Directed by three creative minds Chen Jian, Shen Dong and Wei Lian, the 117-minute movie is written by Lu Zhuguo while the main cast of the film includes Wang Wufu (as Zhu De), Lu Qi (as Deng Xiaoping), Li Shusheng and Xu Guangming. 'On the Tai Hang Mountain was released in 2005 with subtitles in English. It was produced by the August First Film Studio that is said to be associated with the Peoples Liberation Army. The film won the 25th Golden Rooster Award for Best Picture in 2005. At its best 'On the Mountain of Tai Hang is an epic war film depicting the Chinese Red Armys military defence of the Shanxi province of Tai Hang against Japanese invasion during World War II. The films battle scenes are truly impressive as what appears to be thousands of troops fight over a massive mountainous area. Theres some pretty good camera shots allowing the camera to fly through the air, through the cockpit of a plane and out of the other side, as well as assisting in showing bodies being blown to bits through the air. Some of it is pretty gruesome - but of course this is a war film. The historical story is interesting as the splintered Chinese troops cover the valley and require assistance and back-up from one another against the superior war-power of the invading Japanese armies. At its worst 'On the Mountain of Tai Hang is a piece of Communist propaganda, flaunting its patriotic rhetoric and providing nothing but a negative portrayal of the Japanese. This in its self is of course nothing new or surprising for a war film. Its not like Hollywood films about war always give a balanced view of both sides - they dont - and theres always a lot of Patriotic flag flying in those too. This is not surprising as the troops are inspired and pushed on by Maos ideas, but the need to quote and underline the fact at every opportunity slows the film down and makes it blander than it could have been. Unfortunately the balance between the films politics, plot and historical focus is so out of balance that it makes it difficult to become involved in the story. The central character who narrates and moves the story forward is Commander In Chief Zhu, a man who manages to convince every other General and soldier that his way is correct by quoting Maos words and ideas. This is fine, except us as the viewer do not need to hear this over and over again. The film manages to swing wildly in different directions regarding its visual techniques, and style and although I suspect this is not intentional - possibly due to the films three separate directors - it actually works well for the film.