Code of the Assassins
review by Bobby Blakey
Well Go USA is the premiere distributor for Asian cinema in the US bringing some truly great martial arts epics to audiences. The latest is Code of the Assassins starring William Feng, Jun Hu, Gina Jin, Qingxiang Wang, Ray Lui and Jack Kao from Dragon Blade and 14 Blades director Daniel Lee. Could this be yet another great wuxia film from Well Go USA or will it fail to meet the code?
Code of the Assassins follows an elite young assassin who embarks on his first mission and is quickly ensnared in an intricate plot laid by powerful people pulling strings from the shadows. Upon failing to complete the assignment, he is forced to go on the run—from the government and rival assassin groups alike—as he seeks to unmask the players behind the conspiracy.
I love this genre so much. Even when some of the films are all over the place or make no sense there is such a beauty to the visuals and fight choreography when handled correctly. Thankfully this film is a more cohesive story than a lot of them complete with twists and turns to keep you guessing, but it’s the over the top creative direction that really makes it stand out on its own.
The story is compelling and keeps you invested and guessing as it makes its way through the mystery of betrayal, power and who is behind the Golden Mask. Sure there are times it goes off track a bit, but what movie doesn’t when it’s trying to involve so many characters. Thankfully it never strays too far and brings the audience back in as it makes the big reveals and action pieces.
One of the most brilliant things films like this have done since the 70s is the creative weaponry. Sure it doesn’t always make any logistical sense,
but damn if it isn’t cool to watch. This film takes it to the next level using steampunk like mechanics fused with time piece style inner workings for some stuff that is all kinds of imaginative. Sure you have to buy into the ridiculousness sometimes, but that is part of the fun.
The action is plenty and well-choreographed making full use of the wire work and CGI effects to good results. They even head into some supernatural elements that are fun even it they don’t always fit with the rest of the film. In the end this is a fun, exciting action mystery that brings some good CGI blended with the visual beauty of its surroundings and fight sequences that will no doubt entertain the biggest of action fans.
Decide for yourself and check out Code of the Assassins streaming now on Hi-Yah! and on digital, Blu-ray and DVD on March 28th from Well Go USA.