WAR OF THE ARROWS is an excellent historical action flick with a twist: almost all of the action sequences are centred around bowmen facing off. Now, I've always loved archery when it's depicted in films, so I was delighted to read the premise and watch the trailer for this movie. For me, there's something intrinsically exciting about the look and the skill that goes into wielding a bow efficiently; I'd much rather watch a shoot-out staged with bows and arrows than guns. WAR OF THE ARROWS turns out to be just the film for me.
As usual for the Asian historical epic genre of recent years, the film looks great. Director Han-min Kim crafts a great-looking movie that ably matches the finesse of other recent Korean movies known for their style and substance. The cast are fine, giving their all in emotive turns without ever openly overacting. And the action scenes blow you away time and again.
Okay, I'll admit that the first half-hour is a little shaky. The set-up, although exciting, is followed by a slightly dull "get to know the leads" type scenario which drags a lot. Once the plot begins proper, though, it doesn't let up. There are twists and turns galore, plenty of moments of high drama, and then in the second half of the movie things turn into a virtual re-run of the Mel Gibson epic APOCALYPTO. Think a pared-down narrative, small-scale action – one versus a group – and suspense going through the roof. Yes, it's that good, and even some slightly dodgy CGI doesn't let it down. If only ROBIN HOOD, another recent film about a forest-dwelling archery champion, could have been this good!
