Platicsco Good story, Not enough for a whole film

Curapedi I cannot think of one single thing that I would change about this film. The acting is incomparable, the directing deft, and the writing poignantly brilliant.

Juana what a terribly boring film. I'm sorry but this is absolutely not deserving of best picture and will be forgotten quickly. Entertaining and engaging cinema? No. Nothing performances with flat faces and mistaking silence for subtlety.

Janis One of the most extraordinary films you will see this year. Take that as you want.

kimkim1945 This is one of the best movies I've seen--I can watch it time and time again without getting bored. It gives a very nice depiction of Korean culture and history that I enjoy, but I know for a fact that many others can't understand many of the situations and problems that appear because of the cultural factor as well as other small details.1. The reviewer was unsure as to how the brother and sister's family became traitors. If you pay attention early on in the movie, you learn that the children's father was framed for treason against the king. If the father is a traitor, his wife, children, and even servants are guilty of the same crimes by default. The movie even goes on to explain that the king had betrayed his country and that he didn't care for his faithful subjects: in other words, he abandoned a faithful subject like the children's father. 2. The reviewer claimed that the brother looked too old to play the part. Well, the child actor as well as character in the movie would have been anywhere from 15 to 18 years old, based on the fact that he still wore his hair in a long braid down his back. Therefore it would make sense that 13 years after the prologue, the brother is well past his twenties and looking older than one might expect. He actually isn't young. 3. How did the brother know about the tiger and why did it only attack the villains? The scene prior to the appearance of the tiger shows that the brother sensed the tiger's presence. Having spent his life honing his senses in the woods and living near a tiger trap (tiger trap = tigers nearby) as shown in the early scenes, it's not a surprise that he could sense the animal's presence. As for the tiger only attacking the Chinese...story purposes. Also, the villains kill it before it can turn around to attack the brother. 4. The reviewer wondered how the brother pulled the arrow out of his own heart and then was able to accurately shoot. With this kind of logic, how would anyone expect wars to be won? The brother was running on adrenaline and desperation to save his sister. Damaging the heart in that way does not result in immediate death. He still had time before the heart finally stopped beating. 5. The reviewer thought that it was harsh of the brother to burn the Manchu Prince and that he didn't deserve such a horrific death. We can't forget that the prince invaded a country while butchering innumerable people and raping a different prisoner every night (this is implied in at least two scenes). Yes, as the reviewer said, he didn't do anything to the sister, but he intended to rape her and attempted to kill her after doing the same to many others before her. 6. The reviewer thinks that it was "too easy" for the brother to find and rescue his sister and overcome the fierce looking soldiers. Um. But untrained American soldiers won the Revolutionary War against highly trained British militia, did they not? Again, the brother had lived his life honing his skills. He was far from untrained and it's far from improbable that he could overtake a few "fierce looking soldiers." In addition, there is cultural meaning behind the whole chase itself. The brother had made a promise to his father to protect his younger sister, acting like her father. The promise itself is what drove him to such great lengths in order to save her. Without that immense determination to keep that promise and honor his father, he would not have had the means to do what he did. The chase was far from easy and the movie is clear proof of that. 7. Finally, the reviewer disliked the movie because of the "endless supply of arrows. In case no one else notices during the movie, the brother is constantly retrieving used arrows, fixing them, turning old arrows into new ones, and making new ones altogether. There are whole scenes dedicated to showing the reason behind the "endless supply."

dixxjamm This practically blows a lot of the Hollywood historical action flicks of the last 20 years out of the water, Robin Hood and Apocalypto certainly come to mind. If this trend continues, we may turn to Asian productions if we want celluloid action in the future. They managed to get passed the star-hero martial artists action vehicles like Jet Li and Jackie Chan (which were, with few exceptions, unwatchable) and chose to emphasize simplicity and heart, rather than star-power. And it works. Too bad about some cheesiness and clichés which they don't seem to be able to shake off and the fact that the humor element is...well...Asian (I don't identify with it) because it really exceeds most HW action flicks. Not to mention that it probably costs much less to make one of these. Probably Rusell Crowe's and Bruce Willis' fees for one of their blockbusters would cover it....

Gambitt War of the Arrows is a somewhat mediocre entry into the swollen ranks of Asian action-adventure war epics. In Arrows, a disgraced Korean archer must rescue his sister and brother in law from ruthless invaders from the North. The odds are ugly, and he may have to go Braveheart to prevail.Arrows is entertaining, but shamelessly cliché, never bothering to try to explain or apologize for its over the top melodrama. For example, early on in the movie, Manchurian raiders burst in and begin slaughtering villagers left and right. And yet throughout the prolonged attack, most townsfolk are shown still engaged in their day to day business apparently oblivious to the massive army of horsemen stampeding through their town until the very moment they get chopped down. Even the main characters at a wedding, who are depicted as perceiving the attack relatively early on, are still standing around like Christmas trees by the time the enemies actually reach them.And the battles, at least in the first half, are laughably one sided. During the village ambush, the raiders trample every single feeble Korean warrior in their path. The casualties appear to pile up at about a 20 to 1 ratio. Yet later, during an insurrection, those same pathetic Koreans (now unarmed and in a weakened state) are apparently invincible while the Manchurians drop like stormtroopers.The arrow duels are entertaining (but still not all that original). The skirmishes have the feel of a John Woo gun fight. I almost expected the characters to stand off at four feet, each gripping a loaded bow in either hand.One thing I did particularly like was the costume design. In particular, the elite squad of Manchurian death hounds looked fantastic. They appeared to be a mash-up of shao-lin, samurai, ninja, archers-- somehow it all worked and ended up being one of the more memorable aspects of the film.

sunraider War of the Arrows is a story about a young man in hot pursuit of a marauding Manchurian army that has captured and enslaved his sister and her groom on their wedding day in 15th century Korea. Wayward though the young man may be, he's a savant with the bow and arrow and he puts his deadly skills to use as he relentlessly pursues the attackers.Although it doesn't involve the gun battles typically associated with the genre, this film is really more war movie than action flick. The film rarely deviates from the harried cat-and-mouse game between the marauders and the ostensible hero and could mistakenly be seen as taking place in real time. Therein lies one of the film's problems. The chase sequences and flurry of arrows piercing the air are relentless and absorb nearly all the film's running time, leaving little room for plot or character development. This film is all style over substance: it's barbarian Manchurians (the baddies) vs. salt-of-the-earth Koreans (the goodies).We know the Manchurians are the baddies not just because they throw Korean babies down wells but because they're the cool ones, with their brass-studded leather coats, shaved heads or razor-edged mohawks, and general exhibition of badassery. They are lead by a playboy prince who prefers to spend his time ravishing newly captured women in a garish mobile bordello; he leaves the details and actual fighting to his uber-macho uncles and the elite squad of warriors they personally command. But little else is known about them. Is their attack part of an all-out invasion of the Korean peninsula or a quick raid across the border for booty? Why is the pampered prince, who appears to have no military role, even there? Certain early scenes suggest the possibility of a strained relationship between the young prince and his all-warrior business uncles, but it's never explored. There are no strategy sessions between the prince and his commanders or among the uncles and their elite warriors that might flesh out the characters.As for the Koreans, little time is spent preparing us for the mayhem that ensues. At the onset, the hero is a teenager who barely escapes his family's destruction with only his little sister and his father's prized bow and arrows in tow. Flash forward thirteen years and the hero is a wayward fellow with mean archery skills who reluctantly allows his sister's marriage to their benefactor's son to proceed. The relationship between and among these characters is barely explored. There are no tender scenes between brother and sister or the betrothed that make us yearn for reunification after separation and much bloodshed. Ironically, one of the film's best sequences involves the pampered prince attempting to have his way with the pretty sister. Her feistiness and the fact that she speaks his language intrigue him. He likens seducing her to tanning a tiger's hide, as her roughness will become supple under his handiwork. The brief battle of wills between these two characters, and the mild sexual tension elicited, provide a much-needed break from the pure action-oriented sequences that predominate. Unfortunately, the prince is killed-off far too soon and the rescue of the girl half-way through the film leaves the finale somewhat anti-climatic. The final confrontation may be dramatic by virtue of the manner in which the arrow battle is executed but, emotionally, it falls flat.The failure to adequately develop the plot isn't the only flaw with this movie. While the cast is for the most part good, the lead male is woefully miscast. Aside from possessing superior archery skills, there's little to distinguish the hero from the other household staff who are caught up in the mayhem. Quite simply, he lacks the charisma and screen presence to carry this film, which is propelled almost exclusively by the baddies. They possess the macho physicality and exhibit the serious badass 'tude required for their roles. Although the story compels me to feel something for the hero, I found myself far more interested in the invaders. I enjoyed the film for what it was, but was left emotionally flat-lined at the end because of its flaws.