Les trois frères

Brotherhood of Blades is a very entertaining wu xia movie. It combines dynamic martial arts and sword fights with historical costumes and settings and a dramatic dose of suspense in form of complex conspiracies. The greatest thing about the movie is that its outcome is quite unpredictable. Until the final fifteen minutes, it's not exactly clear who is friend and who is foe. This is a welcome change to Hollywood films featuring a lone wolf protagonist who fights his corrupted superiors. Until the final scene, it remains a mystery who is going to survive or not. Once again, this is a great change from Hollywood movies featuring a protagonist who is going to survive against all odds. This film will keep you on the edge of your seat until its dramatic resolution.

The story revolves around three Imperial Assassins who are charged to eliminate powerful eunuch Wei who has become a nuisance for the young Ming dynasty emperor. However, the leader of the trio decides to spare the eunuch and accepts a bribe instead without telling his colleagues. Back in the capital, the three sworn brothers are both tracked down by the eunuch's numerous followers who want them to take their secret to the grave and by suspicious government officials who realizes something is afoul. As if that weren't enough, they have to face numerous personal challenges. The youngest of the trio has fallen in love with the local pharmacist's daughter, the second assassin wants to buy the freedom of a prostitute who despises him for having participated in killing her family and the oldest assassin is tricked into getting promoted to be under constant surveillance. The trio decides it must flee the capital city in order to save their lives but their enemies give everything to try to prevent their escape.

Aside the fascinating story, the movie convinces with a gloomy and tense atmosphere that brings the dying Ming dynasty back to life. The emotional acting performances are very solid and show three overall sympathetic protagonists with strong moral compasses but quite a few personal weaknesses as well which makes them dynamic and round characters. The fight choreographies are intense and not as exaggerated as one is used to from numerous other wu xia movies. This approach suits the film's more authentic tone.

Brotherhood of Blades might not reinvent the genre but is one of the very best movies of its kind in recent memory. Especially the plot is truly intriguing while the film's atmosphere, settings, acting and choreographies are other positive elements. The movie became such an unexpected success that it spun off a prequel released three years later. If you like Asian cinema, you can't go wrong with Brotherhood of Blades.

This is one of the best Chinese period movie by far. The tale has enough plot twists to hold the audience's interest, the action is not too CGI wirefu, the persistent theme of brotherhood in Woo's movie is well-executed, the acting is low key and believable. Can't understand the low ratings, except perhaps there's disappointment in anticipating more choreographed action.

The tale of corruption, ruthlessness and court intrigues sets the backdrop for the historic fall of the Ming Dynasty to the Manchurian Qing Dynasty. The chaos, killings, double betrayals, etc. characterize the perils of a realm in decay, and the ascend of an external threat. The movie is stronger for not shying away from the portrayal and in offering an uncomfortable end.

For once, the plot, characters and the historic backdrop actually held my interest more than the swordplay. For this I awarded a higher rating to mitigate the down votes from those expecting a wuxia blood splattered wirefu action and were disappointed to see mediocre bladework.

I am beginning to find myself as a fan of wuxia films. They are proving to be entertaining and the storylines do keep you involved. Thoroughly enjoyed the Brotherhood.

Well acted, scripted and directed, there's nothing to not like about this film.

With the betrayal and corruption theme, Brotherhood of the Blades resembles a gangster movie set in modern era, though the choice on making it with martial art effect was a sound one. It delivers the story with different perspectives of the main characters equally, as well as admirable action sequences. Nonetheless, it is bogged down by a couple of unrealistic characterizations. There are several subplots which are simply hard to relate to, especially when these characters act in such excessively theatrical manner.

Story revolves around three brothers who work as elite officers, occasionally moonlighting as assassins. Despite the dangerous line of work, they are still troubled by various issues, mostly pertaining money. When a chance to gain riches comes, with life-threatening conspiracy behind it, they must decide how to deal with the precarious situation. The film is at its best when it depicts the three leads continuously.

Each of them has their own problem, their actions have further consequences that affect the others. This results in a mild wit battle against the villain, though it's not fully realized. Acting for the leading role is good, these brothers are sympathetic and easy to cheer for, mainly since everyone else is completely corrupt. Unfortunately, this shared spotlight doesn't always work. At some points the subplots are reaching too far and the acting performance suffer from it.

Supporting characters like the courtesan occasionally acts in blank stare or unidentifiable emotion. Others seem like they are shoehorned to bolster the cast or vilified just for the sake of creating unlikeable personas. Not only that, these on-screen characters also make awful decisions. For a movie with a lot tension and drama, these moments feel forced and exhausting to watch.

Choreography is still great, a boon for martial art movie. The action moves fluidly and precisely. I personally like how the film is very confident on how it uses terrains or weapons for the spectacle. Brotherhood of Blades could've been better if it had used more restraint on a couple of its subplots, nevertheless the mix of crime drama and stylish martial art will entertain the fans of this genre.