Too many fans seem to be blown away

Load of rubbish!!

Did you people see the same film I saw?

Go in cold, and you're likely to emerge with your blood boiling. This has to be seen to be believed.

This is the best Clint Eastwood "Spaghetti Western-type" movie ever made, except that it was made in China and Clint had nothing to do with it. If there was a better film made in 2010, I don't know what it is. I'm sure that I missed a ton of allusions and stuff that a Chinese person would catch instantly, but it doesn't matter, because even if I didn't get half of it, the half I got was still over-the-top great. The only real warning I would offer is that mixed in with the action, humor, wit, and clever plot twists there are a few bits of harsh violence, which might not be appropriate for young children. While this is no "chick flick", I think a lot of women would enjoy it too. It's definitely an intelligent movie which is overtly artistic and much more than just a bunch of macho guys spilling blood and blowing things up. Sometimes the subtitles flashed by pretty quickly, but, like Shakespeare, you don't have to get every last bit to really enjoy the production (although this is nothing like Shakespeare, so you don't have to worry about that). How did two plus hours go by so fast? I have no idea. Nuts to Hollywood, these Chinese just totally kicked it.

"Pocky" Zhang is a notorious bandit who robs trains and any other soft target. When a train robbery turns up no loot, a different prize is sought as it does contain a con artist (Tang) who was on his way to Goose Town to pose as their Governor for a while then make off with the taxes. Zhang agrees to spare Tang in exchange for the role and together they head to Goose Town, however once there they discover that the role of Governor is secondary to that of Godfather – a role held by Master Huang.I came to this film having heard that I wouldn't "get it" because it was a Chinese film which was not for the international market. Whether this is the case or not I do not know, but perhaps regardless of nationality, the film only partially worked for me. The plot and the characters weren't an issue for me and I enjoyed the back and forward of the various twists and turns of the story. The action was not quite as good and those coming here for the action suggested by the title will almost certainly be disappointed since it doesn't deliver on that front as much. The comedy aspect is a strange mix and maybe this is the thing that I wouldn't "get" by being from Northern Ireland.At times it is quite playful and witty but then at the same time it is pretty violent . In and of itself, I don't have a problem with this because it can work but in this case I didn't feel like it did as the violence was almost too jarring and too heavy or serious to really be able to be darkly funny in the way needed. The direction is a little bit excessive in the same way – not making its different extremes really work together particularly well, but it does still have some things about it which I enjoyed and mostly the tone of the film is consistent. The winner for me was the performances from the lead actors because they sold their characters better than the material did. Chow overplays it perhaps but he is a good foil for the rather calmer playing from Wen Jiang (who I really liked here). Xiaogang Fen is fun too in support as Tang.Although I am not Chinese, I did still quite enjoy this film even if I didn't think it totally worked. The comedy aspect is odd and the violence doesn't always work with it as it should, although the playful spirit of most of the film combines well with the delivery of Chow and Wen to make it better than it otherwise would have been.

With the current election fever brewing in Singapore, one can't help but to view this through a tinted prism and taken note of the surreal, and perhaps coincidental parallels in this Jiang Wen film about the relentless grab for power and money amongst officials and wannabes, of that fight for moral justice against another hell bent on consolidating ill gotten gains and fending off new entrants to the turf. Jiang Wen doesn't make as many films as he stars in, but here's a Chinese filmmaker with an interesting vision, almost always successfully blending stylish art-house sensibilities and visuals with mass entertainment, bearing the biggest names and featuring the hallmarks of a rich Mandarin language.The incredibly strong story centers around three major characters set in the warring 1920s in China, with Ge You playing Bangde Ma, a man who had unscrupulously bought his position of governorship and is on his way to claim it, having done his sums and understanding the material wealth that comes with holding that position through partnering the rich and the exploitation of the weak. However the train he's travelling in with his wife (Carina Lau) gets hijacked by infamous bandit Pocky Zhang (Jiang Wen) and his band of loyal merry men, who decide to take on Bangde's identity as the incoming Governor of Goose Town, while keeping the real Bangde Ma by their side as a councilor for his political savvy. But standing in their way is the local godfather and real seat of power Wang (Chow Yun-Fat) and his gang, which obviously sets a showdown between the two camps.And I'm not kidding you when I say there are parallels drawn here with our sunny little island, since the introductory shot of Goose Town made it seem like an island that Bangde Ma and Pocky Zhang had to cross into, before confronted with by a wily, scheming political incumbent determined to hold onto his turf and not yield it without a fight. Like politicians, they plot and counterplot against each other's schemes, with deep mistrust all round even when smiling at each other during a round table discussion. Those amongst the elites horde most of the wealth of the town, and it is not until Pocky Zhang had a change in heart and strategy of wealth distribution and moral justice did he find it within himself and his lean, mean team to inch toward power in his fight for the little man. Though of course it's pretty clear still who's being manipulated for someone's objective.As a film, Let the Bullets Fly is sheer spectacle for its action sequences, lush cinematography, and comically awkward CG at times, with some scenes being deliberately and extremely over the top. But that's part of the fun, as the narrative is kept tight with nary a wasted scene, and what would be one of the best parts of the film is the rapid fire dialogue exchange between characters. Black humour is rampant as well to make this very close to a laugh a minute affair through its wickedness, though I have to admit at times things do get lost in translation, especially when required to read between the lines of what's said when the characters try to outdo one another, or in attempts to understand their opponents, through many twists and turns.Stellar performances from the leads make this a must watch as well. Jiang Wen has this air of gravitas associated with his presence, and he makes for a believable bandit who found the moral courage to turn his life, and that of his followers, around to fight the good fight against Chow's Wang. Chow Yun Fat redeems himself from his really cringeworthy foray into Hollywood with dubious roles in films like Dragonball Evolution, and his performance here in dual roles as Wang and his body double, reminds us why Chow is top of the class when he gets his act together in the right charismatic role. Ge You himself is no pushover, although his character gets the least screen time. Still, when all three share the same frame or scene, the mood is nothing short of electrifying, as they banter and feed off one another's energy.And Jiang Wen also assembled a credible ensemble support group with the likes of Carina Lau, Hu Jun in yet another cameo as a make pretend Pocky Zhang, Chen Kun as a cocky young upstart in Wang's camp, and even Feng Xiaogang making a cameo in the beginning of the film trying to suck up to Bangde Ma. You can label it a satire, or an action comedy, but one thing's for sure, this Chinese film showcases just what their industry is capable off in pulling something quirky, offbeat and yet entertaining for the masses. Jiang Wen continues to expand his filmography in a slow but assured pace, and hopefully we can get to see another one of his films soon. Highly recommended as one of the best this year, and I'm really tempted to get the DVD in order to watch this battle of wits all over again.

Comedy action film that is currently (rightly) devouring the Asian box office. I had a chance to see it in Chinese (which I don't understand)with no translation into English, but decided to give it ago since I had heard such great things about it.It's got Chow Yun Fat in a wickedly funny role as one of three gangsters who are playing games with each other. I couldn't follow the details I just know that it has some great action and the jokes are funny even when you don't understand Chinese because the cast sells it.For the most part it's not goofy humor, but you still laugh simple because the rhythms of the jokes is there.I watched the film glued to the screen for much of the first hour, but then I realized that as good as it was there was too much I didn't know and I found I was torn between sticking to the end or waiting until the film appears in English either on DVD or in the movies.This is a super film no matter how you slice it.See this movie if you get a chance.(I should mention that while there is plenty of action- and blood- the film isn't a nonstop shoot out as the title might suggest.)