Rating: ****
Review Date: 2/19/26
Director: Yuen Woo Ping
Cast: Wu Jing (Jacky Wu), Nicholas Tse, Chen Lijun, Yu Shi, Jet Li,
Tony Leung Ka Fai, Jin Zhang, cameos by Wei Ying Hung, Yu Rong Guang
"Bandits think that I'm an authority. Authorities think that I'm a bandit."
After killing a high-ranking village leader, bounty hunter Dao Ma (Wu Jing) becomes the second most-wanted fugitive in the land. But before he and his adopted seven year-old son can go into hiding, an old friend presses him into service to escort the number one most-wanted fugitive across the desert to safety. The escort is the mysterious leader of the Flower Rebellion, who plays a critical role in liberating the people of China. To further complicate matters, the old master's spirited daughter, Ayuya (Chen Lijun), insists on joining the party, and Master Mo (Tony Leung Ka Fai) has his own reasons for sending her away. This sets into motion a tragedy in which every bounty hunter, bandit, soldier, and government official wants a piece of the prize, and the entire movie is basically just a non-stop string of boss battles.
Director Yuen Woo Ping is in his element here, and the desert locales are simply breathtaking. It's a noble attempt to rekindle the wuxia spirit of the 80s and 90s and a love letter to the genre, and while it's no "Dragon Inn" (1992), "Iron Monkey" (1993), or "Tai-Chi Master" (1994), it does offer a nostalgic return to form. Sadly, the work that was done during the New Wave Of Hong Kong Cinema in the 80s and 90s is an art form that we will never see again. Naturally, it doesn't have a "film look" and the colors are more vibrant and saturated than I generally prefer - especially for a desert setting. This is most noticeable in the virtual set scenes, which is a common problem. That said, even though the film utilizes a lot of digital effects and wirework, Woo Ping tries to keep it as practical and ground-based as possible, which gives the production a more realistic impact than a lot of other modern Asian films that I've seen recently. (Although the sandstorm set piece really goes off the rails)
The cast is enormous and the film is constantly introducing new characters that will ultimately come into conflict with Dao Ma and his friends. The casting is excellent and Wu Jing gives an outstanding performance as the brash and charming, but cynical and world-weary Dao Ma. Being one of the mightiest swordsmen in the land comes with a price, and he suffers an impossible amount of physical abuse. Jet Li and Jin Zhang make early cameos and seeing them fight Wu Jing is a real treat. It's rare to see that much talent on-screen these days, and it was a huge surprise to see Jet Li come out of retirement for this project. Nicholas Tse also makes a charismatic rival and his fight scenes are quite impressive. Unfortunately, while the choreography and execution are superb, the camera work and editing are a bit frustrating, as the camera moves around too much and the cuts are just a little too quick. This is still way beyond anything Hollywood could ever do, but fans of the genre and Woo Ping's older work will definitely feel slightly cheated. However, what the film does extremely well is capture dynamic fight poses, shifty glances, and menacing glares. I don't know how they do it, but the combination of angles and camera movements makes the characters look so freakin' cool that it makes me positively giddy when they start fighting.
As far as the story goes, it's very formulaic and predictable for anyone who has seen a swordplay drama before. You immediately know who the bad guys are and what's going to happen as soon as Dao Ma leaves Moija Village, but it doesn't really matter, because it's just a non-stop series of brutal fight scenes from there on out. The structure really does feel like a video game where you keep fighting a constant stream of increasingly challenging boss characters. By the time the crazy sandstorm scene shows up, I thought that would be the end, but the film goes for at least another thirty minutes, as if that wasn't even a big deal. That said, despite all of the carnage and betrayal, the film does seem to be a little emotionally flat. Not that I'm complaining, because I didn't really want to be crying through the entire film. Another problem with the story is a lack of closure and resolution. Lots of people die and Dao Ma doesn't complete his mission. In fact, he hasn't made any progress at all and is back where he started. He also suffered MASSIVE injuries during the final battle, that would have ruptured a lung, smashed his rib cage, and utterly destroyed his shoulder, yet he seemingly recovers in a matter of days and is ready to set off and face the bandit hordes again. Maybe that's just a continuity error, because the passage of time is a constant point of confusion throughout the film. At one point, a general from what is presumably a far away village is concerned about all of the fighting that's going on, and then he literally shows up at the battle in the next scene, as if it were only a couple minutes away from his home.
While the film is primarily male-centric, Chen Lijun manages to hold her own and gives an impressively fierce performance. Her fight scenes are very good, which is particularly noteworthy because she replaced the former lead actress after the film was already in post-production. Reportedly, the original actress was involved in a college scandal, and the production company decided to reshoot the film without her, delaying the film by a year and adding an extra $230HK million to the production cost. I really wonder what affect, if any, this decision had on ticket sales, and how they justified it. Regardless, I didn't know this going into the film, and the reshoots look seamless. I would have never guessed anything funny was going on, which is a testament to the craftsmanship of the film.
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with "Blades Of The Guardians," despite it feeling somewhat hollow. Perhaps it was me that felt hollow, as the rush of nostalgia left me longing for a time long past. The film ends with a nice credits scene where Yuen Woo Ping says, "We haven't seen martial arts like that in forty years. The future belongs to the young." This really feels like his last hurrah, and the end of an era. Sadly, at 80, he is one of the few remaining masters of the genre who is still alive, and this film is a gift that should not be taken lightly.