If the thrilling, giant-sized wuxia martial arts fantasy “Blades of the Guardians” were made on a smaller budget, then it might be hailed for its modest B-movie charms. Based on the popular manhwa comic books and featuring a star-festooned ensemble that includes a brief role for Jet Li, “Blades of the Guardians” was clearly built for scale. Luckily, master choreographer turned director Yuen Woo-ping (“True Legend,” “Master Z: Ip Man Legacy”) directed this hulking programmer, which makes a huge difference.
Yuen’s still likely best known to American viewers as the choreographer of the ingenious wire-fu fight scenes from both “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” and “The Matrix.” He’s also recently directed a number of eccentric trend-chasers and spinoffs, and with varying success. “Blades of the Guardians” stands out among his best directorial credits thanks partly to its straight-ahead run-and-fight narrative as well as its focus on playful action, movie-star charisma, and pulpy melodrama.
A busy, but simple enough narrative kicks off right after we meet the smiling desert bandit Dao Ma (Wu Jing), who makes his money by either capturing or extorting various desperate fugitives. Dao soon attracts the wrong kind of attention—local governor Chang Guiren (Li) tries to make Dao an offer he can’t refuse—but breaks loose fast enough to pack his kit and flee with his young ward Xiao Qi (Charles Ju).
Now a wanted fugitive with a steep price on his head, Dao must also escort the rebel leader Zhi Shi Lang (Sun Yizhou) across the Taklamakan Desert as a favor to kindly tribal leader Chief Mo (Tony Leung Ka-fai). Mo’s horse-riding, arrow-shooting daughter Ayuya (Chen Lijun) follows suit, and so does her obnoxious, power-hungry suitor Heyi Xuan (Cisha). Dao’s group flies across the desert on horseback and then stagecoach as they try to beat a host of swordsmen and bounty hunters to the imperial city of Chang’an. They’re also notably pursued by a group of hardened mercenaries led by Di Ting (Nicholas Tse), a stoic ex-soldier who knows Dao from his former days as a member of the Left Valiant Calvary. None of this matters as much as the teasing interplay between swordsmen, as well as the expertly mounted pyrotechnics and wire-fu fight scenes that, by now, Yuen and his team can mount in their sleep.
What sets “Blades of the Guardians” apart is a matter of well-proportioned human drama. The comic book’s source material certainly provided a sturdy enough foundation for snappy, rhythmically paced, and spectacularly well-crafted action scenes. But what’s easier to take for granted can be seen whenever Wu flashes his megawatt smile or unsheathes his blade.
“Blades of the Guardians” is a boisterous, but unhurried action-adventure that never feels sloppy despite its digressive bent. Even the perfunctory confrontations seem consequential thanks to Yuen’s knack for character-driven action. You may not remember Di Ting’s reasons for wanting to settle an old score with Dao, but you’ll still likely get sucked into their climactic sword-fight.
None of this will seem extraordinary unless you’ve seen a few other luxe trend-chasers like “Blades of the Guardians,” including a couple of inessential productions directed by Yuen, like “The Thousand Faces of Dunjia” or “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny.” A superior scenario like “Blades of the Guardians” only works if its themes and characters speak to its filmmakers. Yuen clearly responded to this movie’s well-synthesized mix of cynical fatalism and romantic uplift. That goes a long way in a martial drama where good guys frequently turn out to be for-profit sellouts and cocky loners are inevitably the most selfless and genuine protagonists in a stacked cast that would take George R.R. Martin’s breath away.
A formulaic drama of this scale can still seem impersonal during brief transitional segments, which were obviously covered by second-unit directors. Thankfully, those sequences rarely linger in the mind thanks to Yuen’s habit of treating any given character like they’re the most important thing on-screen. Many lesser filmmakers try and ultimately fail to bring out the best in their cast; others blaze through high-concept action beats and familiar romantic gestures. This movie’s characters may be pure stock, but they all seem sympathetic, and not just when it’s their turn to push the plot along.
Yuen’s characteristic attention to detail shows up throughout, including his stars’ inter-personal chemistry, as well as their snappy banter and thrillingly well-executed fight scenes. Anyone can throw a bunch of cool-sounding ideas into a big budget blender, but only a filmmaker as engaged and experienced as Yuen could make a movie like this seem so commanding and on such a consistent basis. “Blades of the Guardians” starts with a series of energizing set pieces and only really lets up during its watery finale. By that point, you’re either riding on rocket fuel or just not paying close enough attention.
