very mixed feelings

Rating: 6/10 (23 September 2004)

First of all I read several reviewers on this one and I think they really overrated this film. The movie obviously is a Crouching Tiger ripoff, in terms of style and action. I'd say it has much better visuals than Crouching tiger, but it pales in comparison when it comes to plot. There were many amazing visuals in this film (did I say that already? Well, it's because there really isn't much else). I found the story overly melodramatic, even laughably at times. The movie jumped into another long martial arts "ballet" way too many times. It reminded me of a musical, where the actors break into song 10 times too many and you find yourself actually bored by it at some point. Overall I walked out of this film liking it more than not, because of the exceptional filming, cinematography, sense of style, and visuals. Don't expect anything else.