Review: REIGN OF ASSASSINS Hits Its Mark With Neither Flaw Nor Pretense
Set during the Ming dynasty, Su Chao Pin and co-director John Woo’s Reign of Assassins splashes onto the screen in the epic bravado of mythos, setting up the history of the Bodhi Kung Fu discipline; a fight system and martial philosophy developed by the powerful Indian Buddhist Monk Bodhi, who, as the legend tells it, went on a sacred exodus 800 years ago from India to China. It is said that when Bodhi died, it came to the subject of belief that his remains contained mystical powers, and from there a tradition flourished that whomever held possession of Grandmaster Bodhi’s remains would “rule the martial arts world.” At the start of the narrative, the last person to possess the remains, thief and assassin Xi Yu/Drizzle (Kelly Lin) of the Dark Stone clan, flees her group and disappears. She sees the renowned plastic surgeon Dr. Li (Shih-Chieh Chin) to change her […]
