The name of John Woo may get people in through the doors for this stately Chinese martial arts adventure: he is credited as producer and also co-director (billed beneath director Su Chao-Pin); the movie stars Michelle Yeoh and features Woo's daughter Angeles as one of the assassins. It has its moments of interest, but the narrative, direction and fight choreography all look a bit samey. Yeoh plays Zeng Jing, a woman who has renounced her former existence as a warrior-assassin and marries a modest messenger, Jian Ah-Sheng (Jung Woo-Sung), who has fallen in love with her. There are some interestingly creepy "plastic surgery" scenes in which the doctors change people's appearance by implanting insects that eat away the facial bone structure from within.
A John Woo-chaperoned, Michelle Yeoh-starring martial arts adventure is a bit run-of-the-mill
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This discussion is now closed for comments but you can still sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion next timeComments (15)
This discussion is now closed for comments but you can still sign in or create your Guardian account to join the discussion next timeAgreed with estarion, I enjoyed this film and have watched it numerous time, as with Hard Target and Broken Arrow. Paycheck was good too, all every enjoyable as a John Woo film should be.
I've really enjoyed Reign of Assassins. Fight sequences were pretty good, but what made the film stand out was an interesting plot, Buddhist philosophy overtones and the complex motivation of all characters. For example, there were no true "villains" in the film and while some characters act appallingly we understand why they act the way they do. If only Hollywood could take their cues from here and introduce a bit more moral ambivalence in their output!
Also, I'm surprised the review shows up now - this film has been released ages ago.