Ensofter Overrated and overhyped

Acensbart Excellent but underrated film

Spidersecu Don't Believe the Hype

Tayloriona Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

Leofwine_draca Parading as an action flick, this is in fact a mixed-genre outing with a heavy emphasis on romance over the thing most Hong Kong fans will be looking for: the martial arts. Despite being bookended by some fantastic fight scenes, the middle section of this movie is a long, uninteresting romance between two lovers who may be doomed, and the situations they encounter. Throw in some bull about evil angels and you have an extremely slow-paced film with a bare minimum of special effects and too much emphasis on specific comedy which doesn't translate well to the West. Consternation arises at the subtitles, which appear to have been written by a person non-fluent in English and thus don't make a whole lot of sense.Not that the film is worthless, just don't bother with the middle. My recommendation is to fast forward. The opening of the film bodes well, with a mysterious black-clad swordsman entering a futuristic jail and slaughtering dozens of prison guards in the process. Bodies are stabbed, dismembered, and a guy is memorably chopped in half vertically, stolen for BLADE II. Moments later we have yet another battle, this time in a public toilet, which mixes gore, action, and outlandish sequences of impalement and fighting skills to good effect. The next great fight is right at the end of the movie, which includes a scene where a bad guy is trapped inside a mirror and still keeps attacking our hero - just as incredible and crazy as it sounds, and pretty unique with it.The fight sequences are hard-hitting and elaborate, unsurprisingly enhanced by plenty of wire work and various special effects. The last fight sequence involves some muddled scenes of people jumping in and out of each other for no reason and taking drugs to increase their strength like in UNIVERSAL SOLDIER. The fighting is solid and usually impressive. The acting is not so good, with Andy Lau failing to capture the audience's attention as the nondescript hero and Anita Mui falling at the wayside in her attempts at a sympathetic heroine - bring back Joey Wong. Blame can be laid on the script and the direction, which is more interested in technicality and looking flashy than getting performances across. Despite flaws this is good at times but sadly the boredom outweighs the excitement so I am unable to recommend it. Perhaps something has been lost in the translation.

teresateng Saviour of the Soul (1991)This movie is so campy! It's like a 1960's Batman TV-episode plus melodrama and minus the plot. Both have villains using magenta-colored gas while fighting.I almost wish it was just a straight comedy because Andy Lau and Anita Mui were better in their comedic roles than they were playing serious characters. The plot was too ridiculous. The one character that I really liked was the younger sister. She was built up and then forgotten.3/10

MishaD This is the movie that got me hooked on Hong Kong action cinema, so regardless of its faults, I will always have a weak spot for it. Most ingredients are standard HK action fare: wooden acting, some forgetable cantopop song, dubious humor, and a slightly incomprehensible plot. Yet there's also lots of action, and this is where the film really shines. There is swordplay with flexible swords, there are vicious yo-yo's (!), there are silly supernatural villains, and there's a hero whose shirt keeps slipping from his shoulders. This hero is Andy Lau, who lets his charisma do most of the acting. he is supported by Aaron Kwok and Anita Mui (in a semi-funny double role). All in all, it's better-than-average HK fare, that probably will also appeal to non-fans.

Bogey Man I love Anita Mui. That 1963 born beauty began her career as a singer and soon started to act, too. She has the most beautiful eyes and face I've ever seen. If a movie she stars in is pretty mediocre, I will still want to check it out because of Anita. Savior of the Soul is directed by Corey Yuen and David Lai, both are professional directors and have many films on their filmography. Savior of the Soul starts very promisingly with one of the most incredible action scenes I'd ever seen. The start is fantastic, but soon the film turns into usual comedy, but still doesn't forget those effects laden action parts, which along Anita save this film from total failure. The story is very confusing even at Hong Kong standards, so it is no use in trying to describe it. It involves one mean demon named Silver Fox who is trying to kill Anita's character for vengeance and so on. There are many characters and many turns, but that is usually the case in Hong Kong films.The action scenes are incredible and fantastic, as wires are used and camera flows and twists all the time with the flying and fighting characters. If you have seen films like Ching Siu Tung's Heroic Trio (also starring Anita!), you know what to expect from this, as the action scenes are equally great, even though not as plenty as in Heroic Trio. The drama parts in Savior of the Soul are often stupid, and the film tries to be too funny, and fails like Ching Siu Tung's other film, Terra Cotta Warrior, which has great beginning and ending, but stupid and "funny" middle part. Savior of the Soul could have been greater if they had left out those slapstick parts and concentrated more on serious fantasy film making.Savior of the Soul is still very nice film for fans of Hong Kong cinema, and has also many positive things. Never have I seen such a great visuality and cinematic magic anywhere else, than in these Orient movies. Their cinema is so unique, it is even too much for many, and I know many movie fans, that don't like Hong Kong films at all. I think it is mostly because of the lack of imagination and tolerance for something never before seen. Action, horror and fantasy are the genres Orient is almost unbeatable in. There are many great Orient film makers, and internationally known Tsui Hark, John Woo and Ringo Lam are only few, and many great talents are almost unknown for many western viewers.Savior of the Soul is another wonderfully shot and edited fantasy adventure film, but there are too many stupid moments and also little slow moments to fully appreciate the film. Still, as the cinematography and other magic elements are so perfect, I gladly give this 7/10 rating!