Leofwine_draca
Although it gets off to a shaky start, after the first half an hour 14 Blades acquits itself well as a perfectly serviceable martial arts romp with all the requisite elements, ranging from hard-hitting kung fu action, weapon play and court intrigue to romance, picturesque locations and heroic endeavours. It's all made better than it has any right to be thanks to the presence of martial arts supreme Donnie Yen, who's quickly established himself as my favourite of the modern-day action stars.14 BLADES sees Yen playing the role of a powerful governmental assassin who finds himself betrayed by a dastardly villain and forced to flee for his life while an endless stream of warriors pursue him. Along the way, he must contend with his growing feelings for a female ally, played by the ravishing Zhao Wei, while at the same time battling a superior warrior women played by Kate Tsui. There's a pointless cameo for Sammo Hung and some decent fight action along the way, although it has to be said that the choreography isn't as superior as I'd expect given Yen's involvement. Still, for martial arts fans this is a fun if disposable outing.
thisissubtitledmovies
14 Blades is an epic martial arts drama set against a back drop of love, honour and betrayal. The fate of the Chinese empire rests in the hands of one man, who may have to sacrifice everything in order to defeat a rebellion. The remainder of the cast offer excellent support, and it's especially good to see elder statesman Sammo Hung being cast against type as the bitter, vengeful Prince Quin. My only grumble is that he seems woefully underused, but the run time of 114 minutes is just about perfect.14 Blades is a very good film. Imaginatively made and skilfully performed. Be prepared for an entertaining Eastern thrill ride with an emotional heart and fabulous performances to drive the story through. If a little more care had been made with the script, this could have been incredible, but it still comes highly recommended. SM
john_amend_all
The film started rather promising, but it ended by being a fiasco. The characters and fights look like coming directly from a game like Final Fantasy - with fancy looks, supernatural powers and exotic weapons - but unfortunately out of time and place. While some fights are entertaining and Donnie Yen is good during the short display of kung fu, the most part of the fights consist in a display of CG scenes and wire fu. All that would have been a little entertaining movie to enjoy and forget at the end of the week, but it's culminating with another tragic ending in the purest Asian style (in the same vein of Tiger and Dragon, Hero, etc...)
Harry T. Yung
This genre usually gives rise to somewhat standard expectations, with great action as the top, if not the only, priority. This is particularly so in the case when you have the best, Donnie Yen. And yet, while Yan has never let his loyal followers down, including this time, the climatic duel in this movie is with Kate Tsui (as Tuo Tuo, a deadly Amazon and a daughter of an ambitious warlord), generally recognized as the most promising in the talent department among the crop of young actresses, but not by any stretch of imagination an action star remotely in the league of Yen. Top-notch action direction and earnest effort on the part of the young lady helps, but this is clearly not one of the "exceeds expectation" items in my summary line. But then, almost everything else is.With the proliferation of martial art action movies in recent years, you need to have new selling points to make a movie of this genre stand out. This one has not just one, but a few. The title devise, the 14 blades, is one. As explained at the very beginning (so don't be late), the arsenals of the Jin Yi Wei ("glamorously apparelled guards" - see below) comprises various gadgets stored in a box not unlike one in which you carry roses on Valentine's Day. The content, however, is like something that Batman would have commissioned Q to design (had he been acquainted with the gentleman). Be rest assured that these gadgets have ample opportunities to entertain your throughout the movie. Tuo Tuo's arsenal is another. Her weapon is a crossover of a whip and a blade, and wickedly clever camera work makes sure that she wields it with equally deadly efficiency. True, this is more like the ultra cool poses that Johnny To used for pistols in his classic "The mission" (1999 – "Cheung Fo"), but it's just as fun to watch. But topping even that is her layered silk-like garments that she sheds, right in the middle of a fight, as decoys to distract weapons as she circles her opponents like a whirlwind. And she completes the circle by slipping back into these layers of her garments, by which time the opponent is usually dead with his throat slashed. If that is not exotic, I don't know what is. One further addition of these exotic collections is bandit-turned-Robin-Hood, desert bandit chief Judge's joined curved blades that looks like a propeller and works like a boomerang. You can imagine how highly entertaining it is to watch a duel between any pair of these three (and you'll see them all). By the way, I've got to say this: I'm almost certain that the director wrote to Johnny Depp to borrow his costumes from "Pirates of the Caribbean" for his character Judge.Still on the "hardware" aspects of the movie, the exotic set pieces and desert landscape are something that you may perhaps see in similar movies, but not as meticulously designed and beautifully shot. On the "software" side, there is a serviceable plot, essentially surrounding an imperial seal which will cause tragic bloodsheds if fell into the hands of an ambitious warlord. The middle section of the movie on the chase and hunt, tracking and dodging looks very much like a retro western, and is equally enjoyable.The woe of the Jin Yi Wei is well depicted: imperial effective killing machines recruited from orphans, following orders without any moral qualms. Donnie, whose acting ability is beginning to catch up with his top-notch action skills, portrays such a one, who finds himself in an agonizing dilemma when his conscience is awaken. Lovely Vicki Zhao is perfect as the determined daughter trying to be the son of a father whose business of express delivery of treasured items is declining. The movie takes attentive pain if developing these two main characters and the romance between them. It pays off as a convincing story, with due credit to good acting from Yan and Zhao.All told, this movie offers exciting action, rich details, interesting characters and appealing visuals and, something that I haven't mentioned, excellent sound editing and mixing. Can't remember in my recent cinematic experience of this genre that has quite kept my attention continuously for 2 full hours.
