14 Blades

I tried 3 times, but there was no chemistry, the style doesn't appeal to me, and the story didn't involve me...

14 Blades (2010) is a movie I recently rewatched for the first time in a long time on Tubi. The storyline follows a secret service agent during the Ming Dynasty who is sent on a secret mission only to discover he has been betrayed and now his former colleagues are after him. Can he clear his name before his former colleagues kill him?

This movie is directed by Daniel Lee (Three Kingdoms) and stars Donnie Yen (Iron Monkey 2), Wei Zhao (Red Cliff), Sammo Kam-Bo Hung (Knockabout), Chun Wu (My Kingdom) and Kar-Ying Law (From Beijing with Love).

Sammo Hung and Donnie Yen are always awesome and worth watching. Yen was ripped and in terrific shape. The attire, sets and cinematography was very well done. The choreography was inconsistent with some scenes well done and some with too much reliance on wires. The integration of CGI into the weapons was also inconsistent with some scenes working better than others. I will say that I did appreciate the variety of weapons used throughout the film.

Overall this is far from a classic martial arts picture but it is worth a viewing. I would score this a 6/10 and recommend seeing it once.

I'm not talking about the blades, but about the story. It's a shame that the story (as good as it is and it's not bad) is not more fleshed out. Recent movies have shown that there are ways to make the eastern movies attractive (again). Though I am a bit biased, having grown up watching the Shaw Brothers movies, I do think that this could have done with a bit of script writing upgrade.

Of course the Shaw Brothers movies might not stand up to the test of time (or script writing I come to expect these days), but apart from that they had great actors. Donnie Yen holds his stand here and he does a good job. Of course that also means that the action is well shot and choreographed. I'm just saying you might be left with a feeling that there could have been more.

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

Any true fans of kung fu know we watch these films for one reason and one reason only. The action! And this film was no disappointment in that regard whatsoever. The action was never gone for long from the screen, and every sequence was a sight to behold. Of course, a somewhat intelligible story is a good bonus. Guess what, this has that too. In my opinion, this is Donnie Yen's best film since IP Man. Also, unlike IP Man, it has great re-watch ability. This is very highly recommended to any true fans of the genre who want to see some mind blowing unique action, with some incredibly crazy weaponry. 9/10 stars, one of my favorites.