New Promotional Poster for Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame

A new promotional poster for the martial arts film Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame has been released (via /Film); click on the image for a larger version.

A bizarre murder mystery brings together the most powerful woman in China, the soon-to-be-Empress Wu Zetian (played by Carina Lau), and a formerly exiled detective, Dee Renjie (Andy Lau), at the infamous Imperial Palace. Hoping that he will solve the crime before her coronation, Wu appoints Dee Chief Judge of the Empire and implores him to combine his indisputable wisdom with his unparalleled martial arts skills to save the future of her dynasty.

The film is an adaptation of the novel Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame by Lin Qianyu. Detective Dee may be best known to American readers as a character in a series of mysteries by Robert van Gulik that were published during the 1950s and 1960s. Van Gulik "borrowed" the character from an 18th century Chinese detective novel, which itself was based on a real historical figure, Dí Rénjié, who lived during the 8th century and was a celebrated official of the Tang Dynasty.

Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame opened in China and Hong Kong in September 2010 and is scheduled to have a limited run in the US starting on Friday, September 2nd, 2011 in New York and Los Angeles. Showings in other major US cities will follow. See the official website for more details.

Watch the trailer for the film below.