The Warlords

Movie Review:

Chinese with English subtitles, isn't an issue here.  Gritty, dark and dirty, this film offers Jet Li's dramatic acting ability as well as some epic battle scenes. The other two "brothers" are played by Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro, the latter almost seeming to be as much window-dressing (not in the traditional sense) as the lone female character played by Jinglei Xu, whom I had not heard of before. At times throughout the movie I found the camera lingered perhaps a little too long in certain places and on occasion the actors seemed to be forced to over-express themselves because of this. Granted, this is sometimes used for added emphasis in difficult and painful situations, however I feel it has been overused here.

The story provides us with several aspects of battle, from destruction, devastation to desolation, and gives a look at the manipulative nature of a war council far removed from the fighting in Imperial China before entering the 20th century. It shows quite effectively how war can strengthen one man's beliefs, twist those of another and ultimately disillusion all but those not on the battlefield or in the physical wake of it. Amidst the battles and the  politicking, there is also the building and ruination of two very different love triangles, rising and ebbing with the tides of war.

I don't think I would be able to sit through the whole movie a second time, unless perhaps it was to watch the battle scenes once more. There were a couple that merited notice, in particular the Jet Li one man army sequence, which is set within one of an even grander scale. 

Gritty, dark, dirty... and sad.  I didn't really like the film as a whole, although parts of it drew me in, it did not hold me nor captivate me, as a movie of this nature should. It did however stimulate my tear ducts on occasion.

I had a feeling about this one, so I had a second movie to watch after it. Review to follow.