The Warrior's Way movie review (2010)

The Warrior's Way (2010)

Brief review: Although in itself "Warrior's Way" is an Eastern movie made for Western tastes, first-time Korean director Sngmoo Lee struggles to find the balance between those two cultures, and as a result, his martial arts/western/fantasy hybrid fails to deliver a satisfying story. Also, for a film called "Warrior's Way", the movie doesn't provide enough action to justify its title. With the exception of the fast-paced opening sequence and the action-heavy final act, "Warrior's Way" is more of a romantic movie rather than a true martial arts flick. The fights themselves are nicely-choreographed and the wire-work is passable, but the action scenes are either shot in slow-motion or too fast to follow. However, in terms of visuals the film succeeds vastly, despite some cheesy CGI work, as it has some truly spectacular settings, and a vivid, almost artsy cinematography that pleases the eye. Korean star Jang Dong-gun plays the lead character Yang, and although his martial arts skills are undoubtedly impressive, he turns in an unbelievably dull and uncharismatic performance. Kate Bosworth definitely has the looks, but her acting abilities are rather questionable. Unsurprisingly, the great Geoffrey Rush steals the show as the cool drunkard, Ron.

Overall summary: Aside from some truly gorgeous settings, colorful cinematography and a few thrillingly-choreographed and nicely-shot action sequences, "Warrior's Way" is a poorly-acted, joyless misfire, that barely lives up to its promising title. Nice try, Sngmoo Lee!