Twilight of the Warriors: Walled In

Finally I can see silver lining in HK movie after all these ten years. This is what a signature movie of HK style should be like. I'm delighted to see a movie that is so "Hong Kong". Old plot is never outdated, it is about how to present in a modern way. The brotherhood of the gangsters were so touching. No MSGs, no grandstanding, no too much focus on the old movie stars - this is just what we, the audience, want.

The Kowloon Walled City is always a mysterious legend to me, I must give credits to the production team for building such a beautiful replica of the city. No matter you like the plot or not, I suggest everyone who like HK culture or miss the old HK to watch this in the theatre.

Only giving it a 6. Maybe a repeat watch and it will become a 7.

Whole movie feels rush and by the time the movie ends it doesnt feel satisfying.

Could be better if the movie have a longer running time or probably split to 2 part. Too many fight scenes but unfortunately no memorable ones. There should be some tense buildup prior to a fight scene think of SPL Donnie vs Wu Jing at the rooftop or Winter soldier elevator fight.

Cinematography and colorful character is wonderfully done. Raymond Lam is convincing as the hero and much better than his role in New Kungfu Cult Master.

The movie need a prequel to explain on the flashback in depth.

I didn't read the book or comic so I watched it without prior knowledge. This movie got really great set pieces remind me of old shops I have visited in Hong Kong when I was little. The set pieces and art directions is top notch and respect to they chosen to film close ups of it all during the end credits.

But story wise it is a run off the mill revenge and triad story, so if you were gonna to expect some interesting story it quite lacks it. Next to that the more interesting stories were happening around the main story, with people working in the walled city and especially the little girl doing all kinds of odd jobs was more interesting then the all the main character combined and also the only character you really feel most for. But also it feels like we are missing a whole prequel movie that was shown in the flashbacks moments, to understand the main story a lot better.

The movie has a lot of over the top action, but also comic characters who are over the top with special moves. But for me the final fight felt it dragged on for too long.

For me for I wished they made another movie with these set pieces, but too bad all of it is long gone as they were filmed several years ago. I would rather watched a less triad involved simple romantic or coming of age stories set in the walled city.

I expected great fight scenes, great backdrop, some over acting, and a bit of fun. I got this.

The beginning was a good setup for the film and drew me in immediately. The main actor was very good.

The first half was actually better than I expected. It was well paced and gave you a good understanding of the character and how he finally felt at home with a new family while also not losing out on some action scenes. Plus, the environment was wonderfully dystopian and looked just what I imagined Kowloon would have been like.

The second half, OH MY, was a whimsical, non-sensical, over-the-top, non-stop fighting fest. It certainly wasn't 'The Raid' standard but it was still a fun watch.

Overall, totally worth a watch.

The sets look absolutely stunning and elaborate, very vivid and rich in detail and you can tell a lot of love and care and nostalgia went into the recreations of Kowloon Walled City. Also a lot of extras. And for sure a lot of money.

This is Jackie Chan on steroids. Kind of. I mean I can see it as the result of decades of evolution of martial arts movies and a deserving heir of that tradition. However I am not necessarily a fan of the genre and my experience with it is extremely limited. Still, the action scenes and the choreographies are excellent, creative and breathtaking even. With the caveat that of course in real life these people would be dead ten times over from the many blows and injuries they sustain. And they keep coming back for more, only to defeat the adversary at the very last minute, when all looked lost. Yes, it's a trope. I suppose fans love it, but it bothers me each time. It bothered me here a lot because the rest of it looked so gritty and raw that I expected some anchor to reality. But no. It only amplifies as the movie unfolds. Up to large old men fighting as if they were in their prime and the absolute offender - spirit power. Yes, that's right. They incorporated some fantasy martial arts/cultivation movies motifs - the most annoying and evil guy in the whole movie, who also sports a mullet and lets out a hysterical laugh way too often, possesses spirit power, meaning that nothing blunt can penetrate his skin. Could be a trick to keep him alive for as long as possible to give the good guys something to do, but was it really necessary? Couldn't they just make him very, very good and very lucky?

The poster could have been sexier. Those four last standing deserved that. Maybe they banked on the star power of the veterans. Again, I am not the target audience for this.