The Assassins

THE ASSASSINS should be a good film, but it isn't. It's an expensive, expansive Chinese historical drama, featuring the great Chow Yun-Fat in a role which must be a given for him: he's playing the ruthless general Cao Cao, a guy who engaged in and won plenty of battles in the famous Three Kingdoms period. And yet the film chooses a moment at the end of his life to tell a sluggish and rather dull story of a love triangle and hidden romance.

The film looks lavish, for sure, and Yun-Fat gives a solid turn as always. The costumes and sets bring to mind the sumptuous nature of Zhang Yimou's CURSE OF THE GOLDEN FLOWER, but there the similarities end. The problem is that THE ASSASSINS isn't really about assassins at all, because these characters achieve very little in the storyline. The main character, played by Liu Yi Fei, is completely dull and goes around moping and crying all the while as she falls in love with Yun-Fat's character. Come the end you realise she's made no impact to the storyline and could easily have been excised with no ill effect.

In a bid to counter all this sentimentality, the film-makers throw in a handful of decent action sequences in which the heroic general fends off various attacks by his rivals, including the Emperor. These moments mean that the film isn't bad as a whole, but it's a far cry from what it could have been with a script re-write. There are also some ludicrous scenes which drag it down, such as the one where a horse happily jumps off a cliff.

Over the years Chow Yun-Fat has transitioned from his signature John Woo style gun toting action films to these period style epics. He has always brought a presence with him to every role that delivers something special. His latest film The Assassins continues with these period pieces to attempt to deliver something new.

The Assassins follows the Three Kingdoms period of Chinese history and focuses on the warlord Cao Cao in his old age and the relationship between him and his son, while planning to take the throne and avoid assassins. Visually this movie, much like the others that come from this film market, is beautiful to look at. The performances are all great, with Chow Yun-Fat in top form, but nothing that really stands out to take this film to the next level. With the focus of these young people being trained as assassins and the amount of corruption showcased in this film, you would expect a decent amount of action, but sadly that's not the case. Everything from the box art, the synopsis, and the look screams action, but is a bit misleading. This movie focuses more on the political side of things and the family drama leaving a fairly uneventful film. It's not boring or anything just tends to creep along with little to nothing really happening. There are a couple of characters that are rather annoying, but it's hard to tell if it is the actor's performance of the dubbed voice.

This isn't a horrible movie; it just didn't deliver much as a whole. If you go into it ready for a dialogue driven political drama then you will not be disappointed, but just know that it does get a bit convoluted at times. Fans of Chow Yun-Fat will want to give it a view as he is the best part of this whole film.

Not content to be left out of the 'Three Kingdoms' after falling out from what became the phenomenal success of 'Red Cliff', Chow Yun-Fat returns to the era to play Cao Cao. Often cast too simplistically in most adaptations as the power-hungry villain whom noble strategists Zhou Yu and Zhuge Liang as well as nobler warriors Lu Bei and Guan Yu plot to overthrow, co-screenwriter/ director Zhao Lin Shan's 'The Assassins' thankfully does not resort to the same narrative conventions.

Instead, Zhao paints a much more intricate portrait of the astute warlord in telling a very specific story of his planned assassination by various factions on a night when the four elemental stars align. That phenomenon signals, according to an ancient prophecy, the dawn of a new dynasty, and Cao Cao's enemies have seized upon that sign to coordinate an attack on him within the imposing structure of his known as the 'Bronze Sparrow Tower'. The titular tower of the movie's Chinese name, that lofty structure is despised by his enemies as a symbol of his ego as well as his thirst for power.

And to the reigning Emperor Xian (Alec Su), it is also a frustrating reminder of how his minister Cao Cao's authority has grown, relegating his monarchy even more ineffectual as the latter grows increasingly popular amongst the people. Xian will be one of those who take advantage of that purported opportune time to hatch a plot to kill Cao Cao, even though Cao Cao snatches the element of surprise from him by inviting him to a hunting game on that very day.

A popular Chinese saying goes something like this – 'a wary heart is critical', and Cao Cao's wariness is all the more heightened following an earlier assassination plot by the empress (Annie Yi) and her father, a powerful Han official named Fu Wan (Ni Dahong) – of which his very son, Cao Pi (Terry Chiu) was even complicit to. Yet perhaps the most eminent danger to Cao Cao's life is Lingju (Liu Yifei), whom Cao Cao takes in as his lover. Not only were her parents slain by Cao Cao when she was young, the fair beauty was also subsequently trained under imprisonment with but one mission to kill Cao Cao.

Besides bringing out the softer aspects of Cao Cao during their private interactions together, Lingju also serves as the narrator of the movie, adding the element of a tragic love story in the midst of the palace intrigue. Her only wish is to run away with Mu Shun (Tamaki Hiroshi), a fellow assassin like her who has infiltrated Cao Cao's army – though you can pretty much guess how their fates will end up. Instead of distracting from the main plot, their romance lends a surprisingly human touch, illustrating with poignancy the price of vengeance on something as pure and beautiful as love itself.

Zhao exhibits the same flair throughout the film, and even though a plethora of supporting characters are at play, their motivations for plotting against Cao Cao never left ambiguous. Particularly well played out is the very first elaborate assassination depicted in the film – of which Fu Wan is mastermind – both in how Cao Cao confronts the perpetrators in front of Emperor Xian as well as how he subsequently deals with the betrayal by his very own flesh and blood, Cao Pi. Bear with the slow pacing at the start as Zhao develops the intertwining plot threads, and you'll appreciate the genius in Zhao's plotting later on. For a first-time filmmaker too, Zhao is a master at tension and suspense, keeping his audience at the edge of their seats as Cao Cao's life hangs in the balance.

The same can be said of Chow Yun Fat's peerless performance. This is without a doubt his best in recent memory, surpassing that in which he played Confucius if we might add, with the veteran clearly relishing one of his meatiest roles of late. Yes, Chow clearly understands the demands and complexities of his character, conveying conviction, intellect and even empathy at different points. This is Cao Cao in his twilight years, who remains firmly a believer in his mission of unification but who has come to recognise the bloodshed and strife it has brought, and is therefore no longer the tyrant he may have been in his younger days. Chow is sheer magnetism in the role, and it is, we dare say, one of the best performances we have seen this year.

Next to Chow, the other actors unfortunately pale in comparison. Worthy of mention however is Liu Yifei, who in the span of a few years, has come to hold her own nicely as an actress worth her weight. The role calls for her to be the symbol of humanity, and she registers a tender and heartfelt performance as her character grows to understand and even respect Cao Cao more over the course of the film. Evocative too are Yee Chung Man's costume and production design, as well as Shigeru Umebayashi's score, combining to accentuate the film's alternately tense and tragic mood.

Indeed, at a time when every new period war epic tries to outdo the last with grander spectacle, Zhao should be applauded for adopting essentially a character-driven approach to the material. There is depth and deftness to the storytelling, especially how he slowly reverses his audience's preconceptions of Cao Cao and casts the oft-misunderstood character in an entirely different light. But of course, the movie wouldn't be what it is were it not for Chow Yun-Fat's commanding performance, which even without grand battle sequences turns this period thriller into an epic in its own right.

Not really bad but certainly not good either and very generic. Confusing story and quite cheesy dialogues and slow motion action scenes. Costumes and armors are very nice, but it does not make a great film.

If you enjoy the Chinese period epic drama for the battle and martial arts, then "The Assassins" (aka "Tong que tai") is not something for you. But if you enjoy the period dramas for the deeper storytelling then you will definitely enjoy this movie.

For me, it was a growing difficulty to sit through this movie, because I enjoy the epics with mass battles, which hardly wasn't in this particular movie. "The Assassins" is driven by its storyline and its brilliant performances put on by an impressive cast.

Speaking of the cast, then Chow Yun Fat really did shine well in this movie, and it is great to see him in the period drama genre movies. But also Yifei Liu stood out in this movie as she does in just about everything she stars in.

The sets, wardrobes and props were amazing for the movie. I really did enjoy the garments and armors shown and used in "The Assassins". There were so many details and fine touches everywhere.

Although a bit too slow-paced for my liking, there still is something astounding to be said about this movie.