i am just curious as how the empress died in the end, apparently she was stabbed by a flying dagger. but who could have killed her, I suspect it could have been one of the many cocubine..
I TRIED TO STAY AFTER THE CREDIT..hoping they would use the same trick as X-MEN 3..BUT..WELL..
I just watched the movie last night. I don't think it was anything supernatural. Everyone who died looked like they died legitimately. The minister who was exiled to the north was helpless up in the cold, so it was unlikely to be him. However, if you remember back, when the Empress was getting the poison ready (putting on her lipstick, hiding poison in her nail), she called for one of the helpers/maidens to "get the carriage ready". The camera panned over at her a few seconds before and she looked distrubed. Her face showed angst, which indicated that she might be more than just a chamber maid.
At the end when the Emperor/Uncle was about to drink, it showed her from the peripheral view or panned over to her ever so slightly again. It was subtle, but film-makers usually don't give camera time like that and make the actress stand out unless there is a hidden agenda.
I think it was her who killed the Empress. For whom she worked for, I have no clue, but the Empress would have had many enemies for any number of reasons (killing the general, inadvertently killing Ling, banishing the minister, being responsible for the original governor/general's death beating, etc.)
The director, and Daniel Wu, made it clear that they originally had an identifiable person do the killing; but in the end the director decided to leave the killer unidentified in order to make the point that, "What goes around comes around." What you do will eventually come back on you.
That explains it but for me it's too mysterious a way to end a movie. I have the feeling even the director didn't know. That's a weird way to end an epic movie with all it's twists and turns.
"Did you make coffee...? Make it!"--Cheyenne.