Review: The Warrior's Way

Starring: Dong-gun Jang, Kate Bosworth, & Geoffrey Rush
Directed by: Sngmoo Lee
Language: English
Rating: R
Running Time: 100 minutes

Last week, I saw The Warrior's Way with my mom and we both had no idea who was starring in it beforehand. My mom was even more oblivious to the storyline, so I shortly explained that it had about the same premise as Ninja Assassin...which is close to true.

Yang (played by Dong-gun Jang) is one of the greatest swordsmen in his country and he always wanted to become the strongest swordsman when he was younger. He soon claims this title by killing the last warrior of his enemy clan, but there is one clans member still alive...a baby girl. He prepares himself for the execution of the child, but decides to take her into his care. Unfortunately, this decision comes with serious consequences...his own clan is out to kill him for his treason. So, Yang takes the baby with him to a semi-abandon western town that was occupied by a once great circus in search of an old friend that lives that. Once he arrives he learns that his friend has passed away and takes on his laundry business with the help of a mediocre knife thrower Lynne (played by Kate Bosworth). Later, he learns that this town has an enemy of its own and his clan is waiting to hear the cry of his sword to find him.

My first thought when this movie ended was that the movie was visually stunning. They executed their effects and cinematography very well and I was in awe, even if they overused the slow-motion effect a little too much. Sure, it was violent, the plot line was similar to Ninja Assassin, and the conclusion was a bit predictable, but it was still very enjoyable for both of us. The character relationships and backgrounds could've been developed a little better, but it was different from Ninja Assassin as well as the action sequences. I wish Dong-gun Jang had more lines, but it kinda fits with his character in some ways. I like his Korean accent. In short, I enjoyed this movie very much and it's worth seeing if you enjoy movies like Ninja Assassin or anything with epic sword fights.

Rating: 3.5/5