A bit disappointing...
...for a Zhang Yimou film.
There really isn't a single character (except maybe Tian Qing) to like here...they all have major flaws and only Tian Qing and Ju Dou have ANY redeeming qualities whatsoever. The story was interesting, but the characters were completely unsympathetic (not to mention stupid). By the end, you wonder what the point was...I still don't know.
Unfortunately, the beautiful cinematography, that the film supposedly has going for it, was not evident in the least on the R1 disc available...it genuinely looks like a bad copy from a VCR (it even has some moments when tracking on the alleged VCR was visible...what an absolute joke).
Stick with pretty much any other Zhang Yimou film and you'll have a seen a wonderful film...unfortunately, this isn't one of them.