Guillotines

"The Guillotines" is a wu xia movie with a lot of ups and downs. It's certainly interesting for genre fans and better than its reputation but far from being a highlight of the martial arts genre. The movie shows the story of an obsolete secret assassination squad on a dangerous mission whose members face elimination due to the emperor's will to radically revolutionize his empire.

On the negative side, this movie is clearly too long. Especially the first part of the movie where the assassination squad is discovering a remote village outpost has noticeable lengths. Another issue is that many of the characters in this squad lack depth or are represented in a childish way which makes it hard for the viewer to identify with them. Despite being a wu xia movie, the fighting scenes are mostly unspectacular and the special weapon of the assassination squad is clearly underused. A debatable issue is the ending of the movie which surprised me in a negative way. Instead of offering a final battle, the movie suddenly tries to offer a philosophical twist which doesn't fit with the rest of the movie.

On the positive side, the costumes, settings and soundtrack are what you expect of a solid wu xia production. The opening scene is already visually stunning and includes a few nice special effects that aren't overused throughout the movie. Some characters like the Guillotines members Leng and Musen, rebel leader Wolf, agent Haidu and the Qianlong Emperor have some depth and become more and more authentic and interesting as the movie progresses. Instead of focusing on predictable martial arts fights, this movie tries to innovate things by showing us the downsides of modern Western technology. While the ending of the movie feels somewhat disappointing and out of place, one can't deny that it comes as a surprise and is rather original from an objective point of view.

In the end, fans of Chinese action films, period movies and a modern type of wu xia cinema might want to watch this movie once. Those who are expecting a more traditional martial arts film might be disappointed since the movie focuses on fights with cannons, guns and fictional weapons instead of classic daggers or swords. After all, "The Guillotines" is a slightly above average genre flick but nothing more.

I am not really sure why this movie is only rated at 3.9 over 10 points right now, but to myself, this movie opens up new light about what the country wants, may not be for the particular good of the people, but for sure, it will be for the good of the country itself.

And this applies for the king, the emperor, the ruler, or the people at power, or the companies at power, or the companies that make a lot of money and thus can be powerful (think junk food companies, for example).

So this movie does open up new lights for me, to be not so gullible.

The part about the guy hoping to have a small peaceful community, that seems familiar, although I can't recall at the moment which other movie has this. But I certain don't feel it is copy-cat, but is quite original and occurs naturally in the movie.

I would say, don't be swayed by the low score of the movie, but still give it a try and see for yourself.

If you were or are a fan of Shaw Brothers eastern movies, the title itself may seem familiar. And while it has been a while since I saw the Guillotines movie they did back then, there are some throwbacks (visually, story and other wise). Having said that, this is an update and it feels like the CGI was made to explore 3D territory. I only watched it in 2D though so I can't say how good it is in 3D, even though as I said you can tell it might work.

There is violence though and there is massive story and a lot of characters. At times it may feel a bit convoluted. There is a lot to digest and not all might be clear at all times. Still visually this is really more than nicely made and the action/stunt sequences are good. If that is what you care most about you will have a good time. A love for B-movies and hero bloodshed also helps ...

As the summary states, this movie was terrible. It's almost as bad as Choy Lee Fut (2011) but at least this one has some action. But make no mistake, it's bad. The CG is laughable. Dialogue is terrible. None of the characters make you feel for them, which only makes it worse when certain characters are crying for the whole movie. Crybaby assassins?? Almost believable. Seriously, more tears shed than Twilight 2.

Most of the scenes are just ridiculously acted out and shot. They tried to be artistic and emotional but it just comes off as campy. Seemed like it had a decent budget, but a lot went wrong during the production. Who knows.

Anyway, this was just meant to be a warning for those of you who thought to look up a review before spending your hard-earned cash (and time) on a movie. Watch something else. I rarely write these things, mostly as a service to other unsuspecting viewers. This ranks up there with the previously mentioned Choy Lee Fut and Skyline.

Just so you are under no illusion of the lethalness of a flying guillotine, a thrilling opening sequence sees the titular group of assassins under Emperor Qian Long's command using the feared weapon against a gang of rebels known as 'The Herders'. Dispatched from its wielder like a flying wheel, it locks around its target's neck, activating a volley of blades within capable of decapitating a head right off its body. It's not a pretty sight no doubt, but still a perfect precursor for what is lined up.

'The Guillotines' is not a pretty movie; rather, things look perpetually grimy and gloomy- much like the fate of the assassins led by Nala Leng (Ethan Juan). Plucked as orphans from a young age, they know no family but their own fellow comrades in arms. Then despite being the most formidable of the Emperor's soldiers, their status was never made official; lest the throne be accused of resorting to "dirty" methods to get rid of its enemies. And when the Emperor decides it is time for reformation, they are regarded as threats and hunted for dead.

In the hands of a lesser producer, such material might have been just the subject of another run of the mill big-budget period action blockbuster; but with Peter Chan on board, you can be sure that 'The Guillotines' will be so much more. And indeed you will not be disappointed, as Chan assembles some of his best screenwriters – Aubrey Lam ("Perhaps Love", "The Warlords" and "Wu Xia"), Joyce Chan ("Bodyguards and Assassins", "Wu Xia") and Jojo Hui ("The Warlords") – to pen a compelling story on power, leadership and loyalty.

Of the three, it is the last that gets most prominent play – not only are the Guillotines forced to re-evaluate their blind loyalty to the Emperor, their leader Leng is faced with an even bigger dilemma as he is made to choose between the brothers he has fought with and his childhood buddy and Imperial Agent Du (Shawn Yue) with whom he had sworn their allegiance with to the Emperor when they were mere children. Leng and his fellow agent Musen (Li Yuchun) are further challenged when their arch enemy Wolf (Huang Xiaoming) – the leader of the "Herders" – turns out to be much more than just an anarchist.

As bit by bit of each character's background and motivations are revealed, the viewer is challenged to put aside conventional archetypes of hero and villain, good and bad, right and wrong. Even as the movie begins with an action-oriented approach, director Andrew Lau adroitly adopts a much more elegant character-driven narrative towards the second half – and it is indeed an achievement when each character turns out to be more morally complex than we would have expected when we are first introduced to them.

Yet even while maintaining an intimate focus on the characters, Lau doesn't lose sight of the larger context against which the character struggles unfold. At the crux of the turmoil is the Emperor's thirst for power, the need to enslave the Han Chinese perceived to be antagonistic to his authoritarian rule. Then when the Emperor first sends the Guillotines and subsequently a whole regimen of fire-armed soldiers to quell the unrest and demand obedience, the film thrusts into prominence the consequences of a rule by force, even if it is meant to serve a greater purpose of unification. Right until an empathetic speech at the end on the importance of a rule founded on respect, the movie cleverly earns real-world relevance in its lessons on reform and revolution – especially given the recent leadership transition in Mainland China.

Such lofty ambitions rest on the shoulders of a young and fresh cast – thankfully, each perform at least adequately according to the demands of their respective roles. Up and coming Mainland actor Huang brings an appropriately rebellious yet grounded touch to Wolf; while Juan and Yue are well paired with each other as the "brothers" whose friendship is tested by their supposed unwavering loyalty to the Emperor. Li, who also sings the theme song, is surprisingly affecting as one of the Guillotines forced to re-assess everything she knows when she is taken hostage by Wolf. And with Peter Chan's assistance no doubt, the movie gets a nice boost from veteran actors Jimmy Wang Yu and King Shih-Chieh, who shine in their bit roles as the leader of the Guillotines and commander of the border Army respectively.

Compared to the excellent drama at play, the inevitable action sequences choreographed by veteran Lee Tat-Chiu seem to be merely perfunctory. Only two sequences – the first described at the start of this review and the second when Wolf's men conduct a daring ambush in broad daylight to rescue him – see the famed 'flying guillotine' deployed in its full glory, with the rest consisting mostly of some of the biggest explosions you've seen in Chinese cinema. That's not to say they aren't well done, but the most absorbing parts of the movie still belong to the character drama.

Considering the troubled production history behind the film – conceived first as a remake of the classic Shaw Brothers' film 'Master of the Flying Guillotine' and then losing first choice Teddy Chan as director – it's to both producer Peter Chan and director Andrew Lau's credit that the film is this outstanding. Deftly balancing complex character-driven drama with gripping action, Lau delivers one of his best and most challenging films since 'Infernal Affairs' – with Peter Chan proving once again that his Midas touch in films (whether as a producer or director) is still very much alive. Even though the Guillotines only lived as myth and were never officially recognised, this movie will go down as one of the finest examples of Chinese cinema this year.