Dangerous Liaisons

This Chinese and Korean 2012 remake is a marvelously refreshing take on the classic story.  South Korean actor Jang Dong-gun does a superb job of playing the wealthy seducer in cahoots with the wealth socialite played by Cecilia Cheung, to make sport of widow Du Fenyu (played by Zhang Ziyi) and orchestrate the affairs of a budding young couple for the purpose of revenge.  Zhang Ziyi has certainly matured in the range of her acting and handling the complexities of this role, is certainly proof of that. Amidst the great acting performances of a great cast, the other real unique feature of the film, is the very great detailed setting of 1930's Shanghai looking into the lives of the rich prior to the invasion of Japan.  I wouldn't say this version of Dangerous Liaisons had, say the particular punch of the 1988 version with John Malkovich and Glenn Close, but it is a spectacular treat in performance and visuals, that is both sumptuous and sultry to view. I admittedly have a great affinity for Asian period pieces of this caliber and so was looking forward to viewing this film.  No disappointments here, but perhaps what's best about any version of Dangerous Liaisons, is just the obvious brilliant plot, which still stands the test of time.

Lone Survivor

Based on a true account of a four man Navy Seals sent after a Taliban leader, Lone Survivor delivers on all levels.  You've got a great leads in Mark Wahlberg playing Marcus Luttrell and his band of fellow Seals played by Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch, Ben Foster, and Eric Bana who's performance and committment to the film really shows.  With so many films inundated with characters and tales of special forces, it's hard to argue with a depiction from an actual true and incredible account of one man's survival from 2005.  Simultaneously crowd pleasing, visceral action, and heartfelt.

Godzilla

I get the hype over 2014's Godzilla and how it immediately wowed at the box office initially. But after sitting down and watching it on dvd, I just don't get. Yeah, its a lot better than that Matthew Broderick shit from 15 years back, but that ain't hard to do. In this reboot, there are great quality actors in mostly supporting roles. Aaron Taylor-Johnson plays Ford Brody, a Navy Explosive Ordinance Disposal Technician, who's father (Bryan Cranston) has been haunted for 15 years by his work at a nuclear plant run by Dr. Ishiro Serizawa (Ken Wanatabe) that ultimately caused the death of his colleague and wife (Juliette Binoche). The nuclear energy has all this time been feeding a species called the MUTO that seeks to mate with another that it tracks from Asia to the west coast of the U.S also feeding on nuclear energy with Godzilla in tow as their predator and movie protagonist. Well, the elder Brody is quickly killed and so the typical generic action falls to his son, Ford, full of motivation/revenge/military duty for whatever killed his parents, threaten his current family, and ultimately threaten the world. Well, you've got plenty of motivation in the story on paper, but the execution of it all, is the main problem. Taylor Kitsch (Battleship) or Channing Taylor (White House Down) could just have easily been cut and pasted into the lead in this movie and nobody would have known the difference, as the predictable acting, action, and writing is generically the same. Consult the military and watch them run around, show us some not too spectacular special effect, ya di ya di ya, etc. We've seen all this before in the aformentioned movies and quite frankly, we've seen it done better. I didn't even see the point of many of the actions the military as a whole was taking and how it was so coincidentally dependent on one man (Ford Brody) among all those other specially trained military guys, scientist, and technology to be the primary key to leading everyone in the right direction. In fact, this wasn't even a movie primarily about Godzilla. Even the Transformers had more screen time and story relevance than this. And where were the presidents and world leaders in all this? At one point, I was just hoping some transformers or even Pacific Rim robots would just come out of nowhere and kill the monsters to put me out of my misery, because the generic un-urgency of this film was just hard to ignore as easily as it was hard to care about anyone here. As I write, I see there's a Godzilla 2 slated for 2018. If they just have to make another one, I suggest just calling it Godzilla and reboot it better.

Enemy

2013's Enemy starring Jake Gyllenhaal is an interesting psychological thriller about a history teacher (Gyllenhaal) who one day finds his exact look alike in a small part of a local film recommended by a work colleague.  From here, the curiousness of finding his double gradually becomes an obsession that gets out of hand and permeates his life.  Ultimately, this is one of those cleverly written (novelist Jose Saramago and screen adaptation by Javier Gullon) and directed (Denis Villeneuve) films that leaves the audience with enough enjoyable ambiguity to watch over and over with perhaps a deeper understanding or perplexity.  Gyllenhaal's acting subtlety is astonishing to watch here and it's a fresh break for him that mainstream films rarely afford.  In that same unorthodox vein, great affect is made of interior and exterior locations and the cinematography to give a heightened suspense to the story, much as a someone like Hitchcock would have done. 

Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit

I'm a fan of Tom Clancy books and the previous movies, but this new installment that goes back to the origins of Jack Ryan, felt a bit too formulaic.  In fact, Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, The Recruit, the last Jack Ryan movie The Sum Of All Fears,  and several other wanna be spy movies, although having their moments of being watchable, have suffered from the dilemma of making a distinct mark for themselves caught between being originally and more appropriately written for a Cold War era and how to adapt to the post 9/11, low intensity conflict, that the Jason Bourne movies ushered in.  This time around the recruitment of Jack Ryan (Chris Pine) is explored as he eventually faces a Russian financial terrorist (Kenneth Branagh) attempting to economically collapse the United States.  It's a plausible enough plot in these present times, but where director Branagh fails, is at really giving enough adequate time to adequately explore the origins of Ryan. Thankfully, the CIA recruiter is not played in an exaggerated way like Pacino did in The Recruit but rather well done by Kevin Costner.  The cast, including a surprisingly subdued Keira Knightley as the future Mrs. Ryan, aren't really the problem here. Although Branagh's villanous Russian character is a tad bit too cliche, even for now.   It's the the whole pacing of the film that feels rushed, although Branagh does get some credit for showcasing the whole analyst talents of Ryan.  The 2nd half feels generic and rushed and as a whole it can't help but to use the whole camera work, lighting aesthetics, etc., of the Bourne series to try and hopefully resuscitate a dead in the water franchise last fucked up by Ben Affleck and company twelve years ago; which is unfortunate.  There's nothing new in this film and the character of Jack Ryan has not been consistent enough in film since the early 90's, nor as popular or distinguishable as Bond or Bourne. Unfortunately Chris Pine is cut and pasted onto the rather flagging franchise, but neither he, Branagh, or anyone else seemed to be able to raise the bar to step into real distinction and momentum worthy of a sequel.  

Dvd To Get

The Raid 2: Berandal is finally out on dvd and I'm so late realizing it until an hour ago.  But that's ok, I'm  about to head straight for a Target or Best Buy and pick it up.   Not many dvds I buy anymore, but this is certainly an exception.  Might even get this on blueray, too.   Oh shit, it's on now!

Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom

Based on Nelson Mandela's autobiography, Mandela: Long Walk To Freedom is indeed a powerful film that aptly focuses on the the character and spirit of him.  The film is great in scope and ambition, as one might expect.  So there are always going to be things to criticize and oversights made.  What makes this such a standout film beyond the obvious undertaking of the subject matter, is the incredible acting ability of Idris Elba.  I easily compare his performance to be on par with that of Forest Whitaker in The Last King Of Scotland.  Chronicling the early life of Mandela prior to his long stint in prison and on to his election as president, Elba's performance magnificently portrays the complexity that went into forging the latter public image and character most people are aware of.   After a while you actually forget that your looking at Idris as Mandela.  Nevermind the makeup process, the essence of the man is actually radiating from Elba and that's the best kind of acting.  It's hard to undertake such a large movie that could cover a life as Mandela's and the film does fall short in its completeness of that, but the reward of a singular acting performance is certainly realized.

Her

Undoubtedly, this is writer and director Spike Jones best film. Joaquin Phoenix stars as Theodore, a lonely and talented writer of the old school "art" of composing personal letters for people, in a just ever so slightly futuristic world where everyone is even more plugged into their computers.  Now facing a divorce from his estranged wife (Rooney Mara),  he finds reprieve in his new operating system named Samantha (Scarlett Johansson).  This is no Android or Windows system, but a customized system that can seemingly get to know its user and expand its learning in behavior, conversation, empathy, and feeling.  As you may expect, Theodore and Samantha then begin to bond in a way that speaks to the very heart of what we deem as relationships and love.  It is the unexpected evolution of that most unusual relationship and how it applies and redefines universal humanity and all its implications, that is the main thrust of the film.  Her is also a film, that without being overt in science fiction, bridges the gap between the traditional human love story and that of the implied romance in something like the classic Blade Runner between the character Deckart (Harrison Ford) and Rachael (Sean Young).  Perhaps even more obvious, is the look and inevitable evolution of our technologically oriented society and how it will eventually come full circle in clashing with our own flaws, prejudices, and injustices. Even more so, Her explores and goes beyond our own evolution to perhaps give a glimmer into the abyss of what we fear and strive for, the very meaning of life. Phoenix gives a well deserved Oscar nominated performance throughout this truly unique film that has, heart, humor, thoughtful reflection, and universal themes that everyone can take away from.

August: Osage County

If you wanna see Meryl Streep do her "thing" so brilliantly (and rightly nominated for) and an ensemble of top notch actors delightfully bouncing off one another, then August: Osage County is that film to see.  After the death of her husband, cancer stricken Violet Watson (Streep) gathers with her family during mourning and all sorts of family mess and secrets, regrets, and resentments.  But minus the performances which are heartfelt and humorous, which include that of Julia Roberts for a change, the film really goes nowhere in resolution. 

The Counselor

As a legal counsel to a drug cartel, Michael Fassbender quickly finds himself caught up in over his head with among the colorful cast of characters.  The Counselor has the right look, style, cast (Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Cameron Diaz,  Jarvier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, and all the way down to the talented supporting players) and director in Ridley Scott. It is also very intriguing and entertaining with plenty of twist and turns. However, what it lacks is a more defined storyline and script to navigate the sorted world the characters inhabit.  For the first 30 minutes of the film, I was a bit confused as to who was who or what was going on, beyond even what the plot would even call for; which is unfortunate because it takes a bit away from making The Counselor more than what it could have been. Though, I'd quickly watch it again just to see Cameron Diaz's sexy and steely performance. 

Haofeng Xu

Haofeng Xu is one of the writers of The Grandmaster and I really like his style of incorporating authenticity into the spirit of martial art films.  Having just finished watching The Sword Identity and being rather impressed with it, I'm now on the hunt to watch Judge Archer.  

The Wrath Of Vajra

Just prior to the second Word War, Imperial Japan attempts to internally weaken China prior to invasion by re-activating a mercenary cult of fighters called the Hades,  forcefully recruited from childhood from all around Asia and other parts of the world.  An ex member who escaped (Vajra played by real life Shaolin monk and actor Yu Xing) and went elsewhere to find peace at China's Shaolin Temple, seeks to disband the Hades, after the latest group of child recruits in China are kidnapped. The Wrath Of Vajra isn't the greatest martial arts movie, but it's definetely not a bad thing to watch.  What made the movie interesting to watch was the story and historical significance, the international casting of it all, and the pretty decent fight choreography courtesy in part to Sammo Hung.  Not many movies have a pretty balanced mix of rather decent and primarily Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and various Western actors that appropriately fitted the story.  There are many things wrong with the film surely, but in this rant I choose to focus primarily on the opposite, because I like what the filmmakers were trying to do, and they more or less appropriately borrowed ideas from other contemporary good martial art movies in every aspect, including soundtrack. The creative fight training sets with the iron Wing Chun dummies served as a nice precursor to the fights that follow and clearly have influence in the Ip Man movies and the metaphoric fight opening in Hero.  Yu Xing as Vajra though, is clearly one of the main reason the movie works so well.   His authenticity as a real martial artist is undeniable and his debut as a lead actor here is good.  Do take note of the best fight in the film, the real climactic fight before the "climactic" fight. Here, he fights the dark Crazy Monkey boxer, and as incredible as it is to behold, we must also recognize that there is clearly a heavily influenced Ong Bak type of fight choreography and acrobatics at play, that Thai and Indonesian filmmakers have been taking the martial arts genre in fresh directions with in the past decade.  But it's nice to see a rather fresh attempt/try from Chinese filmmakers and the international collaboration and influence that does come thru.

Captain Phillips

Captain Phillips is the real life story of Captain Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) and his men, who in 2009, were hijacked by Somali pirates led by Abduwali Muse (Barkhad Abdi) and eventually saved the U.S. Navy.  It's your typically good cinematic thriller, as you would most certainly expect from director Paul Greengrass.  The real standout, however, were the powerful performances of Hanks and newcomer Abdi, who both conveyed much without the need for dialogue.  Having a nice pace that builds up quite effectively, the best of these moments culminats with the performance of Hanks' character breaking down after the whole ordeal is over.

Cutie And The Boxer

The life of married couple and fellow artists Ushio and Noriko Shinohara is looked at in this 2013 documentary.  This is a really charming film examining their beautiful and tumultuous life together and mirrored art that sustains and supports them both.  Told through their own words, including old video footage from their 40 years together and an a nice film animation of the now rising work of Noriko's alter-ego character Cutie, this documentary is just as much art as it is about chronicling the life of artist. It's a nice and touching view of the marriage of art and real life on so many different levels.

The Raid 2: Berandal

I don't even know where to begin in describing this much anticipated film.  The Raid 2: Berandal picks up directly where the last one began and our hero, policeman Rama (Iko Uwais) now has to go undercover and take down an even more sophisticated network of gangsters, killers, and corrupt policemen.  The mostly good reviews I had already read about prior to seeing it, are absolutely correct. If you like action movies, straight up martial arts films, and even gangster films, you will love this movie. In my mind, it's already an instant classic, seriously.  It's such a serious step up from it's predecessor, in that the story isn't confined to just one area and task to go kicking ass in.  Welsh director, writer, editor Gareth Evans has done some serious ascending on this film from The Raid: Redemption, with a bigger budget, brilliant soundtrack, a sophisticated storyline that equally balances and moves the action along, and the most amazing modern day set pieces, fight choreography, and car chase sequences I've ever seen in a martial arts movie in at least a decade.  Throughout the film, there are so many influences from other classic films that he has amazingly blended. Notably the obvious ones include John Woo's Hard Boiled and Bullet In The Head, Alan Mok's Infernal Affairs trilogy/The Departed, the Korean classic Old Boy, Bruce Lee's Game Of Death, The Bourne Identity series, or any of the best American gangter movie classics.  A special note of even more direct influence are the classic Tony Jaa films of the last decade that with a new found freshness in choreography, kept the martial art film genre alive and well.  A note to fans is that The Raid 3 has been announced with stars Tony Jaa and Iko Uwais starring together.  Can you fuckin' believe that and how fuckin' awesome that would be!?  I can't even begin to fathom how they could even top this movie, because Iko Uwais and Gareth Evans have really taken it to an entirely new level that will be hard to beat.  The Raid 2: Berandal is an awesomeness in aesthetic, over the top, straight up (no wirework chaser), martial arts action that those of us who are fans of the genre, are guaranteed to be thoroughly thoroughly satisfied with.  Rarely has a movie given me this much of a rush.  The Expendables or Die Hard movies are sleepy, compared to this.  Now don't get me wrong, those who like other aspects of action will also equally be impressed.  For example, the car chase sequences in this, have also taken it to a new level that equally best The Bourne Identity milestones.   It's not even just fair to say that they have just amped up the budget, thrown more obvious money, better storyline, soundtrack, and general scale to the film. The martial arts action is the best thing they've improved upon clearly with the fights being longer, more sophisticated and brutal, but also more creatively awesome.  It builds on a scale that leaves the final, brutal, climactic, fight a cinematic masterpiece to behold that is an updated homage to any other film, western or eastern, that came before it.  That fight will be one of the best you've ever had the pleasure of viewing.  Let me not forget to reiterate that the storyline is really a great improvement. There are unexpected surprises and one of those surprises (spoiler alert) for those of you who missed the character Mad Dog from part 1, the actor/martial artist who played him is back again and doing his shit.  Go see this on the big screen if you can. It was a delight for me, having the whole theater to myself, minus 2 other folks.  Needless to say, I will be foaming at the mouth in anticipation of the dvd release. Now my previous review of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, which I clearly like and all, is  already pale in my mind so soon. Bottom line, fuckin' A, two thumbs up, the Shit, whatever, is The Raid 2: Berandal.

Captain America: The Winter Soldier

One of the many great examples of a film series that learned from it's initial film blunder is Captain America: The Winter Soldier.  Let's face it, Captain America: The First Avenger was rather shitty and I'm not really mad at that because for one thing it's rather hard to say the least in going up against more cinematically appealing characters like Iron Man and Thor with the likes of an old school, campy, patriotic good guy like Captain America in an age of modern day, global terrorism threats from all over and within.  I mean how do you sell that, as obviously Captain America is also essential to the culmination of The Avengers storyline? Well, apparently you embrace the obvious struggles and weaknesses of the character and throw him into the modern day drama of the shadow world and modern technology.  It's a smart and almost the only thing one could do.  Well, they didn't do this half heartily, recruiting no less than Robert Redford  (special note of Three Days Of The Condor and Spy Game) to bring an espionage authenticity to the table.  The Captain America of the so called "greatest generation" goes thru the ringer in having everything and everyone that he thought he believed in reveal itself as an illusion or betrayal. The technology and special effects are all still impressive enough, as we saw in The Avengers, but the filmmakers were smart enough to better highlight the low tech, raw fighting skills of Steve Rogers.  Perhaps, they took the obvious lesson from The Bourne Identity movies that even the latest James Bond series had to update and reboot to.  The major thing I didn't like, was that there was inherently too many nods to obvious other movies or movie influences that can sometimes look too much like a generic, fucking copy and paste thing.  That and ironically, the addition of other major characters, seemed to make it a bit less of a Captain America movie, however smart that was or wasn't in detracting from the unique character identity of him.  I enjoyed Scarlett Johansson's Black Widow character development the most, though.  Spoiler alert here.  When it becomes obvious that the S.H.I.E.L.D. organization has been long used as a front for the sinister HYDRA organization and all the revelations and fall out that rapidly ensue, the internal fight within and choosing of sides chaos that followed was a bit extreme, messy, and unrealistically rather tidy in the compunctional explosions to follow. Now I don't watch televisions Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., so maybe I'm missing some understanding to that faction of the story, but the plot seemed a bit too frantic for the outcome.  So at this point in the film, the plot was very eerily interchangeable with the G.I. Joe films.  However, a good summer blockbuster action movie, it certainly is.  Of course, there is the now customary reveal for the next series of Avenger films near the end of the credits with the introduction of two new characters, who seem more in keeping with the X-Men franchise.

Gravity

Sandra Bullock and George Clooney are the medical engineer and NASA astronaut who end up stranded in space.This is truly one of the most incredible movies I've ever had the pleasure to view. The closest comparisons I can make to it have been the recent Robert Redford film, All Is Lost and the Jodie Foster film, Contact. Now Sandra Bullock does do a good job in the film, though its debatable whether it's on the same caliber of a Foster or Redford. But it's certainly a movie that is visually captivating, magnetic, and engaging. The drama of modern day realistic space travel converge with the plight of man. Gravity is a journey on so many levels that is rivetting to view and later think about .

Riddick

2013's Riddick was considerably more enjoyable than it's predecessors, I admit.  It's definetely not the best action movie, but it is interesting enough to view, particularly the first third of the movie that focuses on Riddick (played by Vin Diesel) isolated plight on a treachurous planet.  It's been nearly 15 years since the role originated for Diesel and 10 years since the last installment, so of course, he should have made some headway in his portrayal of the character. Perhaps, that why I like the dialogue free part of the movie.  By the time the rest of the cast enter the film, it quickly deviates into the predictable action mode fare.  Yet the nice aesthetic style of the film, does show that something can be learned from other contemporary action films like the Resident Evil series.

Thor: The Dark World

Well, the trailer certainly looked good and coming off the frenzy of The Avengers is certainly a lot to live up to for the second Thor installment.  This time around, the god of thunder must deal with the threat on his own world from beings awoken who use dark matter energy to destroy the universes of Earth and Asgard that are now coming into orbital alignment after thousands of years. For this to happen, Thor must reluctantly recruit his brother Loki to help. Understanding better what dark matter is, via the recent Cosmos episodes, it's an intriguing plot for sure.  I'm glad we to see Heimdall (played by Idris Elba) in action this time around and the pivotal plot concerning Thor's mother (played by Rene Russo) were nice additions to the series. Add to that, the charismatic and sinister Loki, played so well by Tom Hiddleston, and it sounds like a nice mix.  Turns out, Hiddleston is actually the best part of the movie as the humor with him and the further fleshing out of his complex character, is a relief from the other rather boring plots that take place with the other characters on Earth and Asgard.  But then again, this type of typical earth humor seems to be a bit overwrought and also out of place at times too, given it's coming from a being who's not human. For all it's special and visual effects pomp, Thor: The Dark World is a bit disappointing.  Was the Earth story even really needed given the relationship with Thor and Jane is rather tepid at best?  She seems to only be there to exacerbate the problem and be saved by Thor.  I didn't like the way her character of all people, just happened to stumble into this portal and get transported and infected.  That was just too contrived. In fact, Natalie Portman's role is more akin to to Kristen Stewart's role in the Twilight films.  Minus the increased intrigue and humor of Loki, it's a typical formulaic action film with the world always at stake. Better than most, yet lacking in balance.

Rush

So now I finally see what all the fuss was about Rush.  It's a superb Ron Howard film that chronicles the true life of iconic car racers Niki Lauda (David Bruhl) and James Hunt (Chris Hemsworth) during their competitive years.  Now I don't have much interest in car racing personally, but I quickly discovered that the racing aspect wasn't what the movie was really about.  It was about the approach to life of these two very different men and how they ultimately learned respect for one another.  The movie just has a great story with racing as a backdrop.  It never lags, thanks to the directing and editing.  Hard not to compare it to the classic Chariots Of Fire. 

The Wolverine

This long awaited film is good on many levels, but it's biggest detractor is that its been too long awaited and delayed.  It picks up where 2006's X-Men: The Last Stand left off, which is an inconveniently big shift given the more recent  X Men and Wolverine movies that have gone back to their origins, and can therefore get a bit disorienting.  In this film, Logan reluctantly goes to Japan at the request of a former Japanese soldier he saved in WW2, only to find himself quickly caught up in a treacherous war with ultimately a bit too many shifting alliances and revelations. There's more character exploration of Logan that's good and an intriguing international backdrop with interesting new characters, but the aforementioned problems with an over the top plot, delayed timeline between films, and some overdone cgi sequences, including a finale with too much obvious borrowing from The Transformers movies, diminish The Wolverine considerably to just entertaining. 

The Hunt

Scandinavian movies have been so interestingly good in recent years, and 2012's The Hunt is no exception.  It takes a look at the life of a schoolteacher (played by Mads Mikkelsen) in a small town dealing with the accusation of child molestation towards his student.  The nature of people and what it can morph into is examined.Even beyond the somberness the subject matter would suggest, is the unexpected tense and the masterful, suspenseful heights director Thomas Vinterberg elevates it towards combined with the superb acting of Mikkelsen and the rest of the cast.

2 Guns

Two undercover law enforcement officers of different agencies find themselves at great odds with each other, their respective agencies, a drug cartel, and the CIA. A great cast in Denzel Washington, Mark Wahlberg, Bill Paxton, Edward James Olmos, and others are one of the keys to elevating this movie to extremely fun to watch. Washington and Wahlberg both, of course have enough on-screen charisma and they seem to really be having fun in this action-comedy, Mexican standoff style.  That genuine combination of a cast having fun with comedy and action, is exactly what make 2 Guns enjoyable, as the improbable and excessive twist and turns in the plot aren't exactly its strong suit.

All Is Lost

A man alone tries to survive on his damaged boat in the middle of the ocean. The premise may not sound too exciting, but writer and director J.C. Chandor and a sole cast of Robert Redford really deliver well in this tale of survival and humanity.  I was really impressed at the real acting ability of Redford (hardly a line of dialogue) to portray a man alone trying to hold it together in the vast ocean.  The fact is that the movie not only held my attention for that long, but had me caught up in the character's plight and looking inwards.  Real acting in real quality movie, justify it's recent nominations.  Hard to believe Redford was 77 years old while making this.

Man Of Tai Chi

Keanu Reeves co-stars and makes his directorial debut, in no less than a traditional Hong Kong martial arts film.  It centers around a young tai chi expert (Tiger Hu Chen) who finds himself caught up in the ruthless world of underground fighting.  No surprise here at the premise. I think what really surprised me and perhaps many other fans of the martial arts genre/Reeves himself, was how un-Hollywood in budget or quality the film is.  After all, a union of Keanu Reeves and Hong Kong action, would seem to suggest that to one's expectations.  Well folks, The Matrix it ain't.   Let's just get that out of the way. Again, it's a traditional Hong Kong martial arts film and it suffers from many of the flaws in storyline and script. For a Westerner to debut directing a Chinese martial arts film would be challenging enough.  But to embark upon a film about the application of the elusive and mysterious nature of tai chi application, is quite another thing.  No, it's not the best martial art film or even the first to endeavor into tai chi.  (I have yet to view the Tai Chi Zero movies myself) What the filmmakers do a decent job of, is conveying those concepts inherent in tai chi, onto the screen in an entertaining and meaningful way. There is much heart in the endeavor and it shows. I was pleasantly surprised at this, because my expectations had fallen quite a bit, upon viewing the trailer after being really intrigued and excited like everyone else  at the initial prospect of Keanu and the subject of tai chi.