The Princess Blade

I've seen the movie only recently, although it appeared in 2001. I hoped to see an entertaining movie, but let me tell you, Princess Blade is nothing compared to Azumi. The "princess" is not very talkative, as you may have noticed... She reminded me of Jean Claude Van Damme, who only stared to make his point, then beat the crap out of the opponents. During the entire movie, I waited to hear at least a confession about what she liked, why was she fighting, who did she love and trust. I waited in vain. Crappy movie. Crappy dialog. Don't watch it unless you want to be bored out of your minds! It's so bad, that in the end I was wondering how I managed not to scream in frustration 1 and a half hour. Approximately. I give a 4/10.

If you are the sort that some action is enough to satisfy you this will be a seven for you. The lead female is very beautiful and athletic however the storyline is bordering on retarded. I would recommend watching this movie just to see the girl swordfight because she's really quite spectacular. However the story is pathetic and the movie can't quite get off the ground because of it. There are some crude heavy handed attempts at character development but they are awkward and sophomoric. The fight scenes are fun but it's obvious the camera tricks were used to cover up the lack of skill of some of the fighters. Yumiko Shaku is a rare gem of a human being, it's a pity her skills and beauty were wasted on this skimpy retarded plot.

Judging by some of the comments in IMDB, I was expecting an action movie - perhaps a dramatic one or a stupid one or a simple one or a comicy one, but essentially an action movie.

Whatever it is that I watched, it certainly didn't feel like a movie. The story is simple and straightforward (even though the prologue tries to make it seem complicated). Take three interest groups: 1) the government 2) the rebels 3) a group of assassins.

Now subtract the first (they never appear in the movie). Then simply let one of the assassins, the princess, become a rogue on a revenge trip. Add in a rebel love-interest with a guilty conscience. And you've got the ingredients.

But they still did not manage to turn it into a story or a movie. Between some random action sequences and some odd visuals trying to be Sci-Fi on a low budget, what you're left with is a feeling of emptiness. The movie just does not feel like a movie, but a weird, incoherent, boring dream.

Avoid.

2/10

Yet another offering from Japanese cinema in which we are treated to briefly exhilarating action sequences punctuating a vague and convoluted plot. Yet even the action never quite delivers. It opens with an impressive assassination, combining clever camera-work with well choreographed well edited moves. Unfortunately, with the exception of a couple of beautiful individual shots, it is a steady decline in quality from this point. The fights become briefer, duller and increasingly difficult to work out what exactly is going on. The plot is generic and the characters utterly two dimensional, while the subplot of the rebel organisation is half hearted. If you want a mindlessly fun, violent flick with big swords, bigger guns, gallons of blood and an absurd plot, rent 'Versus.'

PRINCESS BLADE is a good try, with some good works by the female lead, who is actually quite impressive, perhaps more so because of her size. And yet, the movie isn't overwhelmingly good, with some very spotty sections and a lengthy background story concerning the main male character that manages to bore. Excise the male's story and concentrate just on the fugitive female lead, and PRINCESS BLADE would have seem more focus for it.

As it stands, the film offers a number of exciting sword action, and its anachronistic vibe is nicely done. Although for some reason the filmmakers through in a number of CGI scenes that shows a futuristic landscape.

6 out of 10

(go to www.nixflix.com for a more detailed review of this movie and reviews of other foreign films)