Rating summary

Movie		3.5
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		2.0
Overall		3.5

Reign of Assassins Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov December 18, 2010

Written and directed by Su Chao-Bin, and co-directed and produced by John Woo, "Reign of Assassins" (2010) arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors MegaStar. The supplemental features on the disc include the film's original theatrical trailer and making of featurette. In Mandarin, with optional English, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese subtitles for the main feature. Region-A "locked".

Somewhere in China

The beautiful Drizzle (Kelly Lin, Mad Detective, Sparrow), member of the Dark Stone, a secret society of skillful assassins, obtains a sacred man’s remains, which rumor has it could grant one the power to rule the martial arts universe, and runs away. She is immediately followed by Lei Bin (Shawn Yue, Dragon Tiger Gate), the Magician (Leon Dai, A Chance to Die), and the Wheel King (Xueqi Wang, Warriors of Heaven and Earth), leader of the Dark Stone clan. To avoid certain death, Drizzle gets a new face and becomes Zeng Jing (Michelle Yeoh, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon).

Some years later. Zeng Jing meets a charismatic courier, Jiang A-sheng (Jung Woo-sung, The Good, the Bad, the Weird), and falls madly in love with him. However, her former friends from the Dark Stone, joined by a sadistic young woman (Barbie Hsu, Future X-Cops), suddenly reappear and a fierce battle begins. Eventually, Zeng Jing offers to give them the sacred man’s remains if they agree to let her live a normal life with Jiang A-sheng - but the assassins turn against each other and Zeng Jing is forced to fight for her life.

I am afraid that this is the most complete synopsis I could provide without spoiling Reign of Assassins for you. There are a number of very good twists in it that truly elevate it above most every other similarly-themed film we’ve seen in recent years so it is best that you know as little about them as possible.

Written and directed by Su Chao-Bin, and co-directed and produced by John Woo, Reign of Assassins is a good period piece that blends equal doses of action, drama, and romance. There are numerous strong characters in it, each with a great story. Quite a few of these characters also have some fascinating secrets, which arguably give the film its unique flavor. With other words, the various relationships in Reign of Assassins are as enticing as the well choreographed fights.

The focus of attention is primarily on Drizzle/Zeng Jing’s character transformation. She gets a new face but constantly struggles with old personal demons. The scenes where she ponders whether to follow her heart are amongst the very best in Reign of Assassins.

With the exception of the flashy finale there are no uncomfortably melodramatic scenes. The big character clashes are also handled well, especially during the final third of the film, where various scattered pieces are put together.

The cast is uniformly good. Yeoh is irresistible, charming, and mysterious. Even when she confronts her enemies, she looks elegant. Korean star Woo-sung successfully plays a man whose actions are quite impossible to predict. Wang’s character has a very unusual voice but his kung-fu is deadly. Dai does look like a madman on a mission. Yue and Lin do not get enough time in front of the camera but their contribution to Reign of Assassins is nevertheless invaluable.

The production values are very strong, from Arthur Wong and Wong Wing-Hung’s impressive lensing to Emi Wada’s beautiful costumes to Peter Kam’s epic score.

Note: Earlier this year, Reign of Assassins was screened at the Venice Film Festival.

Reign of Assassins Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 2.35:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080p transfer, Su Chao-Bin's Reign of Assassins arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors MegaStar.

This is a very strong high-definition transfer. Fine object detail is outstanding, clarity excellent, and contrast levels consistent throughout the entire film. The color-scheme does not disappoint either - the broad range of soft blues, yellows, greens, browns, grays, and blacks look wonderful. Edge-enhancement is never an issue of concern; neither is macroblocking. I also did not see any severe compression artifacts to report in this review. Most of the various CGI effects are quite well done, and many are in fact very intelligently used. Lastly, there are no serious stability issues - blown through a digital projector the high-definition transfer conveys outstanding depth and tightness. All in all, MegaStar have put together a very strong package that will likely impress many different viewers. (Note: This is a Region-A "locked" Blu-ray disc. Therefore, you must have a native Region-A or Region-Free PS3 or SA in order to access its content).

Reign of Assassins Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are four audio tracks on this Blu-ray disc: Mandarin Dolby TrueHD 7.1, Mandarin Dolby Digital 5.1, Cantonese Dolby TrueHD 7.1, and Cantonese Dolby Digital 5.1. For the record, MegaStar have provided optional English, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese subtitles for the main feature. When turned on, they appear inside the image frame.

The Mandarin Dolby TrueHD 7.1 is impressive. The bass is potent and punchy, the rear channels very active and very effective, and the high-frequencies not overdone. Predictably, the best surround effects are during the various fight scenes, but a few of the romantic scenes also sound great; there are plenty of nuanced dynamics, and the dialog is always crisp, clean, stable, and easy to follow. Finally, there are no balance issues with Peter Kam's epic score. I also did not detect any annoying pops, cracks, or hissings to report in this review.

Note: Generally speaking, the English translation is good, but every once in awhile the English subtitles would switch rather quickly.

Reign of Assassins Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Trailer - the original theatrical trailer for Reign of Assassins. In Mandarin, with optional English, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese subtitles. (2 min, 1080p).

• Making of - a standard featurette with raw footage from the shooting of the film. In Mandarin, with imposed Traditional Chinese subtitles. (23 min, 480/60i).

Reign of Assassins Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Reign of Assassins is an entertaining wuxia film with some surprisingly strong production values. The Blu-ray disc herein reviewed, courtesy of Hong Kong-based distributors MegaStar, looks and sounds terrific. It is English-friendly but it is Region-A "locked", so keep that in mind if you are residing in a Region-B country. RECOMMENDED.