Wächter über Himmel und Erde

Though this is a "heroic epic" telling of the Golden Age of China, director Ping He does an outstanding job of blending depth of character with period- and action-realism within only 115 minutes.

The springboard/wire-fighting is kept to a minimum and is subtly crafted. These are heroes who have skills far beyond the ordinary, and the fighting effects merely convey that without rubbing it in or going over the-top.

Every major character is developed in this story except for the young monk, and you'll understand why at the end. We even spend a little time with Lai Qi's 3 loyal soldiers and their families, getting to understand what they've been doing and what is important to them.

The plot does involve a magical object, but there are only two scenes with associated special-effects, which were as nicely done as any Hollywood CGI. The first time, it is essential to developing the story and our understanding of why these men will fight so hard to protect it. The second time, only to establish its proper role in the epilogue.

There is a hint of a love-story, which I find unnecessary in films like these, but I didn't moan or groan here because it is kept deep in a minor subplot and used primarily to demonstrate that the protagonist is not truly a criminal or a bad man. Not that Ping He doesn't know how to tell a good love story, as he did brilliantly in 1994's "Red Firecracker, Green Firecracker" (Pao Da Shuang Deng). I think he was forced to add it, and simply relegated it to the lowest priority.

I don't understand how someone could like "Jet Li: Hero" or "Crouching Tiger..." better than this film, unless they have little taste for dramatic, action-adventure epics, and must have a perfectly happy-ending every time. I thank thee, Buddha, that Hollywood hasn't taken over the Chinese film-making industry!

Warriors of Heaven and Earth is an interesting film due to the fact that it had so many great elements that just didn't come together. The cast was fine, the setting and backdrop were fine, the outline of the story was interesting, but the ingredients of this picture did not mix.

The problem with the film was timing, budget, and the script.

Excellent Cast including Jiang Wen, Kiichi Nakai, and Vicki Zhao. Beautiful Scenery of the Gobi Desert and the far reaches of China.

The problem was the script. It was clichéd and most of all boring. There was nothing unique, in fact the dialog seemed taken from other films. You have the two guys that are suppose to be opponents who become buddies (aka 48 Hours)who take on an evil warlord and his thugs and defeat them in Battle. The supporting cast (the other warriors) get picked off one by one like (The Magnificent Seven).

Vicki Zhao has a meaningless role in the film. It is pretty much just stand around and look pretty and helpless and do a little narration work while you are at it. If you have Vicki Zhao in a film, you should use her. They made her character as clichéd and one dimensional as possible.

This film can't compare to "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", "Musa", or "House of Flying Daggers". It is what you call a big budget B movie. The fight scenes look uncoordinated as well. After watching the "How the Film was made", I was a little more sympathetic towards the director. The Director Ping He had a daunting task of getting the film made due to weather and the timeline. I think he did not have enough time or money to do this film right. It was just too massive of an undertaking given the time constraints. It looked very rushed and disorganized.

The scenery and the backdrops are breathtaking, actually the highlight of the movie, the script itself was weak. The most memorable moment in the film is the scenery and Vicki Zhao in the bathtub. Now that was some nice scenery too.

Everything that makes for a great Action Adventure film can be found in Warriors of Heaven and Earth.

Chemistry between actors, excellent music, directing and cinematography, and a good story combine with some decent action sequences to make this tale of warriors a memorable one.

Fans of Gladiator, The Four Feathers, or Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

should enjoy this. Solid if understated special effects and and some excellent dramatic moments with a few surprises along the way make Warriors of Heaven and Earth a beautiful experience to behold.

As for Sound if you Can't see it in theatres... at least try to see it with an AC3 or THX/Dolby Surround System the sound and music is worth it!

If 100 is perfection this gets a solid 90.

This movie is the story of an Imperial Agent sent to bring to justice a murderer, his final mission before he is allowed to go home to his family in Japan. The murderer, a former army officer accused of mutiny when he refused to kill a group of women and children. The movie is the tale of their trek across the desert fighting against each other and with each other. The dialog was great, short and delivered impeccably by an incredible cast of characters. It has been a long while since I have seen such thoughtful, dramatic acting. The movie is shot mostly in the desert but it is all done beautifully and with exactly the right tone and feel. I enjoyed the period costumes and the fight scenes were extremely well choreographed. It is seldom that I watch a hollywood movie and come away feeling satisfied, I can only hope that Asia continues to pump out incredible movies like this one and that Hollywood will wise up and stop trying to feed me drivel like the Last Samurai.

This film was a really great surprise.

The characters were a lot of fun without being goofy or two-dimensional, and the story was complicated enough to be interesting without being overwrought and confusing. The locations were beautiful, and the costuming was great, too. The action was practically non-stop -- lots of chases and sword fights. It didn't have any of the hokey mysticism that so often appears in films like this (although there was a lot of acrobatic swordplay), opting instead for a grittier approach (with a notable exception or two).

Definitely worth seeing.