I like the storyline of this show,it attract me so much

Fresh and Exciting

If the ambition is to provide two hours of instantly forgettable, popcorn-munching escapism, it succeeds.

There are moments that feel comical, some horrific, and some downright inspiring but the tonal shifts hardly matter as the end results come to a film that's perfect for this time.

Some of the best cinemagraphic depiction of combat that I have seen. The movie was in Chinese, making it more realistic; however, the English subtitles were presented very quickly and it was hard to follow the story. The intense action of the film tended to distract you from effectively reading the subtitles. Brian Ghilliotti

This is the first mainland China war epic that I've watched and I can say it left very mixed feelings. On one hand, Assembly, or 集結 號, or Jí Jié Hào, which means something like Assembly Bugle Call, is a very honest portrayal of a Chinese Civil War with its sheer and awfully realistic brutality. The very realism is then quickly becoming sickening with all those snots, saliva, guts, blood, wounds and deaths galore. On the other hand, the film quickly runs off its initial steam and glides into a sentimental, very politically correct patriotic saga of a brave officer doing valiant things. This intake of patriotism actually spoils a very potential hit and makes it a sickly sweet propaganda flick. Mind you, actors are excellent, especially Zhang Hanyu and Yuan Wenkang, battle scenes are enormous and thrilling, which is no wonder since it was cut by Korean filmmakers who know their trade. The dialog is often hammy and openly silly, thus deleting all the good potential. This is a very curious hothcpotch of a film that may be seen once, but since it sinks under its own weight, better be watched and then discarded

Let me first say that this film is in Chinese with subtitles, so if you're not keen on subtitles it's probably best to stop reading now. I should also point out that the story is based on true events stretching from 1948 through to the late 1950's. Given what was going on in that part of the world at the time some people may find it hard to sympathise with the main characters depicted here. Again, if this is the case then it's probably best to stop reading now. So, now that's out of the way, for those that are left, here's a very brief summary (haters of summaries please erase the next paragraph from your memory).We begin in 1948 when China was being ravaged by a civil war. Gu Zidi is the Captain of the Ninth Company of the People's Liberation Army fighting the Nationalist Army. Having fought hard in many battles, severely depleted, they are ordered to defend a position against seemingly impossible odds. Gu is told that he must keep fighting until he hears the Assembly bugle call. They fight bravely but are ultimately overrun without Gu ever hearing the call. His last act is to make sure the bodies of his 47 comrades are hidden from the enemy. Miraculously he survives and goes on to fight in Korea, where he meets Zhao Erdou, a young Colonel who becomes his friend. He is injured and returns to the site of the battle where his command was lost to find his fallen comrades. This proves much harder than he ever imagined it would be. There is much more to tell, but I don't want to give out spoilers, so I'll end my summary here.The battle scenes are really well done; extremely graphic and as well choreographed as any I've seen. The entire film is beautifully shot with some epic scenes depicting the true horror of battle. Great performances all round, but particularly from Hanyu Zhang as Gu Zidi, he really put in a tremendous performance.Now, whether you agree with the politics or not, this film is about the camaraderie of soldiers and about coming to terms with the consequences of war. If you can get past the subtitles its well worth seeing, a truly epic film with some very touching moments. Yes, there are points where you think the politicians got their way, but I hope you can see through that. Over all… Highly recommended.My score: 8.3/10

Besides all the positive reviews about its realistic visual style, the shaky camera and all the "Private Ryan" stuff, it really deserved compliments from Chinese people, while we can see the true differences between Chinese people and Western people in a cultural perspective.I've read some reviews criticizing the Assembly for it being too "western", and has significantly less character development in the entire movie, but to state in short Assembly is a movie purely shot from the angle of Captain Gu, who is the main man in the movie. It is very unusual to portray any war from an individual perspective for Chinese, even not in recent years. However, once someone wants to try it, it will come out with some side effects bound with Chinese culture. 1, Captain Gu's character is very "north-Chinese", which means he takes everything personally and with high dedication. Usually, he takes his men more than brothers. When brothers die, he cares about their bodies and believes they will be reincarnated. This is very typical Chinese man-man relationship in a near-modern china. Plus, the supporting characters are not memorable enough due to the magnitude of this Chinese civil war. China has the largest population in the world, which means one or two lives are not significant. And even the director strives to focus on individuals, such reality still rule the whole story.2, Captain Gu's has a significant pursuit over the comrades' honor they deserved. However if you were Chinese, you would feel the motivations behind this action are strongly related to Chinese beliefs. Gu has strong emotions on his men, but he never accepted the truth that they are all gone. He'd believe they wouldn't rest in peace because the earthly honor unattained. Besides, director Feng Xiaogang apparently deviated from the typical Chinese war movies' atheism tune and communism campaign injected by political needs. This is to note the fact that very few man purely completely accepted atheism, even in a Communism China.Well done. This is a Chinese war movie about the wide gray scale in the war and in China. 2, Captain Gu's