Bodyguards & Assassins

I had been looking forward to seeing this movie as the advertising had billed it as something of a period epic, something along the lines of a Hong Kong "Gangs of New York".

I have to say that the sets and reconstruction of 1906 Hong Kong were very good, but there were some occasions where the matte backgrounds didn't quite gel with the foreground.

The story on the whole was very good, with the key characters either learning or demonstrating the link between sacrifice and revolution. However I think this movie loses effectiveness by trying to do too much.

For a film such as this which tries to be a historical epic, the wire-fu stunts look incredibly out of place. It would have been far more effective to keep the stunts grounded in reality. The wire-fu stunts work well in films such as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Hero where there is an element of fantasy to the whole story. For a story that is purportedly a historical account all it serves to do is remind the viewer that he is watching a movie, not real events.

I also found the inclusion of Mengke Bateer off-putting. A seven-foot Chinese in 1906 Hong Kong doesn't seem very believable to me. I suspect that he was put there to get a few cheap jokes, as the character would have been just as believable as a six-foot well-built person.

These may seem like minor issues, but for me they detracted from what could have been a truly excellent film.

I had the pleasure (but discomfort) of watching this on the plane from Taipei to Bangkok and have never been so engrossed in an in-flight movie. It was heartbreaking and exciting and, although perhaps slightly out of place, the action sequences were excellent. The acting was great and this may well be my favorite film so far this year. I am unaware as to how accurate the story is but I would bet it is much closer to reality than most "Based on a True Story"-type films. Another reviewer said they were expecting a Hong Kong "Gangs of New York" and I think it does fall somewhere near this but I would rewatch this film 100 times before watching "Gangs" again... this is mostly due to Cameron Diaz's atrocious performance. I hope this film receives a subtitled release on DVD as I will definitely want to add it to my collection.

First of all, I'm not familiar with Chinese history, so I wouldn't say anything about its historical bases. Still, this movie worth the time with no doubt. No matter where you live.

Powerful, logical and heartbreaking. I say powerful because we got a well painted picture about the main characters in the first half. Yes, the movie does not only focus on the high profile action scenes and blood. That's one of its strengths. The audience - this time it's me - had enough time to acquaint the persons and like them. For this reason losing some of them is a heartbreaking effect in the second half. I think it's not a spoiler. Anyone can guess it who has seen the trailer. The acting is OK (some actors were great, especially Xueqi Wang) but my opinion is that the script and the director have done this movie for that it is. I really enjoyed that the movie has avoid to use mindless clichés, like ultimate fight of good vs. evil. The main bad character had also deep conviction that he has been doing the right thing for his country/highness. As it is so, for me, he was authentic in his role.

Now there's only one word has to be explained - logical. Unfortunately I can't do it without revealing some moments from the story, so I leave it to you. Find it out yourself. If you like heroic tales, you should love it.

I hope this movie will be released on DVD in my country, too.

This is NOT Hollywood type Kick-Ass. This is NOT an Arty House of Daggeers.

This is a historical drama with some neat kung-fu thrown in. Beautiful to look at. From the elegance of the costumes to the dirty streets in the ghetto.

Bodyguards and Assassins has charm, tragedy, drama, loyalty, respect, ignorance and more going for it. Slightly long but thoroughly enjoyable.

I was unaware of this part of Chinas history (boy do the English come off bad yet again) and I'm glad I watched it.

The film was well made, and Hong Kong was restored to be very real at that time, and the characterization was also very full. The role of Sun Wen is the most innovative, almost all indirect description, but every stroke is in place. There were two times when tears almost fell down. They were all the roles played by Nicholas Tse. The simple and single-minded man really moved me most.