The Swordsman

I've have seen so many incarnations/recreations of Korean Joseon history in movies I'm beginning to feel as if I must have been there in some previous life. For some reason they all seem to follow the same plot structure with characters extremely similar.

The usual one lone nice guy against hordes of baddies. Ballpark kill count for our hero is 54.

This movie has some very good sword fighting sequences n some good cinematography but apart from these two, there is nothing more to it.

At times, the film does transport viewers to that era.

The sword fight sequence where our hero is alone fighting with a sword, while the opponents are with guns n far too many is a bit far fetched.

I found the story, some of the characters and their shifting of loyalty, a bit convoluted as i have not read anything in history about such kingdoms.

So the makers shud have at least opted for a full blown action n mayhem route.

Joe Taslim looked menacing though but his footage ain't that big.

Complicated intrigues (not pointed out clearly but made clear by parts of the dialogue without being explained in details or taking away), well over anticipated swordplay, good martial arts, good effects and some emotional parts lying right under the plot and dialogue if you can spot them. The only real drawback is that it takes it one step to far at atleast 1 point possibly 2. Not as much as to derail all sentiment, but enough to be disturbing for those enthralled up til that point. The reading of angles also shows how masters of martial arts (try) work to survive attacks by several oponents. A nice tough is the villain balancing on the borderline to evil rather than being pure evil all the time.

"For me, my daughter is the country and everything in it."- Tae-yul

9/10

Tae Yul, once a great swordsman now injured lives in the mountain with his daughter. As his eyes injury is getting worse, the daughter decides to come down from mountain. Somehow she finds herself in the midst of a political plot and gets abducted. Tae Yul now must fight hordes of swordsman and assassins to save her. With his injuries and his past catching up to him can he save his daughter?

A lot has been jam-packed in the short runtime of the film. Story starts peacefully, we get to see the father and daughter in the mountain living peacefully. When they eventually come down from the mountain we get to see the change in political arena as a group of slave traders from Qing Dynasty stirs trouble in the Ming Dynasty. Initially Tae Yul ignores but all hell breaks loose when the daughter gets abducted. This is where the real fun begins. Violent and bloody fights with swords against dozens of villains. There are some flashbacks that indicates that Tae Yul is not as simple as he seems. There are two badass swordsman which stands in Tae Yul's way. Both the boss fights were great.

The film looks great, loved the cinematography. The fight scenes were great. As the film progresses the fights get more intense. The sword fighting choreography is absolutely outstanding and the action sequences are satisfying. What I really liked is the BGM, they added so much to the mood of the film.

Intense, violent and compact. A very satisfying watch. I am surprised how much the director managed to show in such a short run time. It is a fantastic action film. I loved the main leads silent but deadly demeanor. The fights are very satisfying and almost feels like the man from nowhere but with swords. Recommended.

If the story was better told it could become a classic.

The fights scenes are very good.

The protagonist is moved by duty for his king and daughter. He's an interesting character and built on the tradition of the japanese Zatoichi.