Hey guys!
Okay it’s time for me to get back to writing you up some reviews. Sorry I had to take some time off for the holidays and getting gifts for people. Hope you all had a great thanksgiving and a even better Christmas. My first review here is of a dvd I got from my Uncle Dave. He knows how much I love a good story and a great movie. This one fills the bill on both counts, you’re going like this one. 
The Empress and the Warriors – A DVD review by Darcy Low
From the back of the DVD. ” In the tradition of Seven Swords comes the action saga of a kingdom locked in a desperate battle survival. Martial arts superstar Donnie Yen (Seven Swords)and Hong Kong film award winners Kelly Chen (Infernal Affairs) and Leon Lai (Seven Swords) team up as sword welding heroes on a quest to united a divided nation and wage a massive war against an invading horde. Created by the celebrated action choreographer and cinematographer behind Jet Li’s Hero and House of the Flying Daggers, An Empress and the Warriors takes epic action to new heights.”
Ummmmm, well that’s all nice and stuff; but really doesn’t tell you the story huh? Guess that’s my job.
When the movie starts out, orphan turned uber General Muyong (Donnie Yen) is leading the charge into battle alongside the King of Yan, while Princess Feier (Kelly Chen) stays behind to tend to the wounded. After the king is wounded, and then later assassinated by his ne’er-do-well nephew Wu Ba (Xiadong Guo), a power vacuum must be filled. The King tells his daughter that Muyong should take up his sword and become king after his death. He feels that his knowledge of war and his kindness for people well help to unite everyone. But after the king dies, Muyong tells the elders it was the king’s wishes that his daughter should become empress, thus throwing her into a mess of things. Muyon promises to train Feier as a warrior, so that she may rule the kingdom. things don’t quite work out as Muyong had planned. Wu Ba is none too pleased about having his power grab ruined by a chick, and being the conniving power hungry jackal that he is, sets assassins upon Feier during her training in the woods. She is wounded but manages to escape with the help of a medicine man, who takes her in and shows her a different way of life. He is like a peasant and lives a simple life, but he is also a dreamer and teaches her a lot about how in order to have a dream come true, it needs someone to dream. (they say it better in the movie, sorry.)There is also a lot more to him than we first learn, but to say more would spoil things. The two fall deeply in love, but the Empress knows she still has to return to her kingdom, the war is still going on and she has to do something. But a lot has happened since she has been gone.
Wu Ba has returned and has taken control of the empire, forcing Muyong into hiding. Can the princess arrive in time to united the remaining people and help regain the throne? How can one girl hope to stand against a trained warrior and his army?
The movie was fantastic, with a lot of sword fighting, intrigue and even a very good love story. I loved when she was in the forest and was healing up, you could tell they were both falling for each other. And At first she acted like a spoiled brat, but her walls came down over time and you could see they truly fell in love.
Muyong was a great character as well, as a orphan growing up, he and the princess became very close and were like brother and sister. I like how they played off each other in the film. But also, as a orphan he had a lot to prove to the elders after the kings death. I think he really did a great job of holding things together as best he could.
I don’t want to spoil anything here, but I will say you will need some tissues. Some parts were very sad.
Over all, if you liked films like Crouching Tiger or House of the Flying Daggers, then you will really like this as well. The acting is very good and so is the plot.
For Parents, there are war scenes so there is some blood, but nothing too bad. There is a love scene as well, but it is done very romantically and nothing is showing. Bare arms and shoulders is all. (And really isn’t that how it should be?) So this movie would be okay to watch and not be worried.
the movie trailer is here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_H2mCqMuo4
Check it out guys, I think you will like it a lot.
Darcy
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