La battaglia di Hansan

A prequel to ROARING CURRENTS, revealing another naval battle that Admiral Yi engaged in roughly five years before the events of that film. From the outset, HANSAN: RISING DRAGON sails over familiar territory; we get an hour or so of setup and character intrigue before the filmmakers let rip with an extensive battle sequence that occupies the second half of the running time. I found the cast undistinguished this time around - there's no Choi Min-sik to bring gravitas to the proceedings - and the CGI effects are only adequate. However, the concentration on military tactics and spectacle makes this a fun, breezy watch.