The film opens with a rather confusing and disorienting chase of two lovers, Tong Ka Po (Zhang Fengyi) and Yiu (Rosamond Kwan), by a huge mob. When morning comes, it seems as if they are saved, but it is not to be; their “escape” boat is suddenly assaulted from the shore and the lovers are dragged out. As the mob surrounds and separates them, they scream out each other’s names, until Tong is stuffed inside a cage and carried away. He ends up in a dark cell where officers of the ruling eunuch (yes, this is the china controlled by eunuchs) sew his eyes shut. For sadists, this will no doubt be an immensely enjoyable experience. To the average person, though, it is an effectively disturbing and realistic sequence that is expertly planned and executed. Now blind to the world, Tong sees only Yiu. Days later, he is positioned in a large open space, tied to a pole, along with other men, also with their eyes sewn shut. The presiding Eunuch appears on a raised platform, joined by an intimidating man who is the Eunuchs number one assassin, and orders that the men’s eyes but cut open. They are provided a brief feast before being ordered to kill off one another, Battle Royale style, until only one is left. While the other prisoners lunge, strangle, and beat each other to death, Tong stays crouched in position, calmly eating his meal. When there are only two left, though, he makes his move. Thinking he has won, he calls up to the Eunuch, but at that moment another competator comes up behind Tong. The Eunuch’s head assassin springs down and, before anyone knows what has happened, kills Tong’s invisible assailant. For his victory, Tong is “awarded” a position as one of the eunuch’s assassins. Years later, Tong has become the most revered of these killers. His wisdom and skill are demonstrated in an assault that he plans. A member of this assault, the young and presumptuous Wong (Max Mok), has a great respect and envy for Tong and his skills, and they quickly become friends. However, during an attack one night where Tong and his men slaughter countless people (including monks and children), he sees Yiu in the crowd. Her face and cry of horror at Tong’s actions cause him to freeze before finishing his assignment and disappearing from Yiu and his team. One day he shows up at Yiu’s house, where she is now married with a young boy, and he tries to bring about change in his life as his Eunuch master puts out an order for his death.

Director Billy Chung’s work on this film is rather irksome. Dazzling at times with its visual flair, the film is overall far too rushed for its own good. Chung seems to favor intensity over patience and, while that works marvelously for the spellbinding swordplay scenes, it causes the film to misfire are being a truly moving and in depth study of its characters, their transformations, and violence as a whole on the world it creates. Still, Chung has an incredible eye for composition and light. The scenes in the desert are, in particular, beautiful. His ADD/MTV nature makes for some really intense fight scenes which, thankfully, avoid the more modern norm of blurring all the action to an indistinguishable mess. Some of the fight scenes are built up with the only slowness the film possesses and feel almost directly ripped from a Japanese samurai film or American western. Also, as mentioned before an early scene where Tong has his eyes sewn shut is particularly effective. I still don’t know how it was filmed, as the needle really appears to go through Tong’s eyelid. Overall, The Assassin is a beautiful, if falted, attempt from a fairly unknown director.

The cast here is pretty well known and attempt to put more into their characters than the limited screenplay allows to be fully explored. Zhang Fengyi, of The Emperor and the Assassin fame, is rather good as the Russel Crowe-esque hero. He’s quiet, except in his moments of torture, but you can see a lot going on beyond the surface. Some have questioned his cast in the film, saying that he isn’t a charismatic enough leading man, but I tend to disagree. While he does, in fact, lack much of any charisma in the role, that’s exactly what it requires here. Tong is a man placed in a position he doesn’t want to be in, but that he can’t easily get out of. The only real emotion that he has time to feel from slaughter to slaughter is pain, and Fengyi has mastered the art of film suffering. Rosamund Kwan has almost nothing to do in her small character, but she brings such intensity to the role that makes me question whether some of the film has been cut out. The rest of the cast has even less to do with their characters, and while Max Mok tries to bring some edginess and style to his character (who we hear mostly in voiceovers) he ends up betrayed by the film’s lack of structure and meatiness.

The Assassin is one of those films that overflow with creative ideas that are well done but simply not explored as much as they could and should be..Sadly, there’s little to be gained or even really appreciated on a second viewing. You may watch the action scenes again, or even some of the better dramatic scenes, but nothing in the film does enough of anything to stay in your mind. You may remember a few fights or shots, but for the most part The Assassin will quickly disappear from your mind. Still, if you’re looking for a creative, beautiful, and brutal swordplay film, The Assassin is a good enough use of your 80 minutes.

Filled with astonishing visuals, breathtaking sceneries, and stunning martial arts choreography that are at once beautiful and brutal, The Assassin is a riveting action saga, and a moving tale of a hardened man in search for his soul and his beloved.

REVIEW:
THE ASSASSIN is a stylish and bloody film featuring some terrific actors, including Zhang Feng-yi (FAREWELL MY CONCUBINE) and Rosamund Kwan in an ambitious yet dizzying story that may leave viewers frustrated at first glance.

This colorful film sports impressive outdoor imagery, menacing sets, and fanciful fights that could have come from Tsui Hark's masterpiece, THE BRIDE WITH WHITE HAIR. The film also earned a category III rating for containing absolutely fiendish graphic violence where huge swords cleave limbs and vicious metal claws tear apart unsuspecting victims. The rapid pace of editing seen throughout the film (more on that later), greatly enhances the first scene where we see Tong engage in his first assignment with his cohorts. As the objectives and assigned positions are described to the assassins, the camera quickly pans through the narrow street, showing each assassin waiting in his hiding spot. Incredibly, one assassin even waits submerged in a nearby body of water covered with ice. Once the battle erupts, the camera deftly slides left down one side of the street, scrolling through the carnage.

While the choreography is pure fantasy, the story's grim tone and the leading actors' somber performances keep the film from leaping completely past the realm of reality. Zhang Feng-yi plays the lead with no emotion and appears appropriately weary at times. His martial counterpart is Wong, played by Max Mok who is less convincing in his role as a ruthless killer. Rosamund Kwan's character, Yiu gets less screen time than she should have considering the character's relationship to Tong.

What the actors cannot help is the story's manic pace and abrupt editing. While modern action films from Hong Kong are well known for their visually high-octane editing, THE ASSASSIN appears to have taken that style to heart with the story's pacing as well. Most scenes appear hurried and the story, which must have taken place over a couple of years is presented in a "Foot Notes" fashion as if the filmmakers were either pressured to keep the film short or significant cuts took place in post-production.

Its unfortunate that the film's story which has potential is marred by poor editing. The actors have little else to do but try and keep up. Against other swordplay films such as THE BLADE and Wong Kar Wai's ASHES OF TIME, that both mixed grim realism with stylish editing, THE ASSASSIN marginally holds its own thanks to the raw intensity of its violence and snatches of inspired cinematography.

THE STORY:
Assassin has a great premise, one of my favorites. A simple country man, Tong Po (Fengyi Zhang of Farewell to my Concubine) falls in love with a girl, Yiu (the always reliable Rosamund Kwan), who he is not allowed to marry. They try to run away together, but they are captured and he is thrown into a jail where his eyes are sewn shut. Before the film hits the ten-minute mark, his eyes are opened only to find himself and some fellow prisoners in a gladiatorial ring where its kill or be killed. This is a ‘survival of the fittest’ contest in which the winner gets to become an assassin for the evil (and of course supremely powerful) Eunuch Ngai. Tong Po wins, of course, and is renamed Tong Chop. Flash forward in time and Tong Chop has now become a deadly, cold killing machine (“I kill because I want to live.”), second in command of the barbaric assassins, and the idol of new young assassin Wong Kau, who Tong Chop takes under his wing. During one nighttime raid, Tong sees his beloved Yui and his past starts creeping back on him, so he defects and hides out with her in her village where she has tragically (for him, anyway) remarried and has a son. But, his old life as a prominent killer is not easily left behind, and both his protégé Wong Kau and the powerful eunuch (“Those who don’t follow me will become my ghosts”) are out for his blood, leading to the final conclusion.

Fengyi Zhang is good, but doesn’t quite have the charisma of an action star lead. I’ve always imagined that Xin Xin Xiong (Once Upon a Time in China 3, The Blade) would have been perfect, someone with the martial skill to appear dangerous, yet have the looks to appear sullen at the same time. Or, it could just be that Fengyi Zhang wears the worst wigs I’ve seen since a 60’s Viking picture...In my opinion, the two best cinematographers in Hong Kong are Christopher Doyle (Happy Together, Chunking Express) and Zhao Fei (Sweet and Lowdown, Raise the Red Lantern), of whom the latter did Assassin (though this is no Woody Allen or Zhang Yimou film, that’s for sure)...The plot moves quite briskly, and the action is pretty gruesome with planty of slow motion shots of decapitations, blood spurting, some heart ripping, and so forth. Very Category III, stuff, for sure.

CONCLUSION:
Its a pretty nice entry into the swordplay action pictures of the early 90’s. I’d say if you look at your DVD collection and see Duel to the Death, The Sword, Bride with White Hair, Stormriders, and maybe Butterfly and Sword and Swordsman 2, then you should definitely give Assassin a try, you most likely will not be disappointed. If you don’t own any of those films, get two or three of them and then give Assassin a chance. Its a good slice of action entertainment...