MovieChat Forums > 47 Ronin (2013) Discussion > Dull movie..

Dull movie..

posted 11 years ago by laplante-co-672-297856
2 replies | jump to latest

What happened with this movie? I was familiar with the tale and was looking forward to an action/drama. What I got was an epic fantasy... which I would have been okay with it had it been any good. At best it could be described as mediocre.
Part of it is Keanu Reeves. From what I've read he's a nice guy and all, but he has zero charisma on screen. No sparks at all between him and the love interest.
The female villain didn't seem nearly menacing enough. Giving your evil witch a weird blue eye like some sort of feudal Japanese Bond villain isn't enough to make them an entertaining baddie.
Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa -- normally excellent in his roles -- looked constipated throughout. That silly hat tied up under his chin made him look like an old cranky bald baby.
The fight/battles scenes were competent but not outstanding. One wasted opportunity was that giant samurai dude. I was waiting for some epic battle with him and it never happens.
The dialogue was painfully clunky at times. The first ten minutes or so of dialogue by the female love interest in her breathy, little-girl voice were excruciating to hear.
Good special effects and sets though.
There were whiffs of other movies such as Lord of the Rings, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Last Samurai but somehow it just didn't gel into anything exciting here.

[–] Tyler-A-Arse 11 years ago

What happened with this movie? I was familiar with the tale and was looking forward to an action/drama. What I got was an epic fantasy... which I would have been okay with it had it been any good. At best it could be described as mediocre.

Did you no see the trailer before you saw it? Whether you knew the story or not, it was clearly a fantasy movie from seeing the trailer.

Part of it is Keanu Reeves. From what I've read he's a nice guy and all, but he has zero charisma on screen. No sparks at all between him and the love interest.

For real, huh. His on screen presence is really weak. But I do think he was better in the film than other. His (flat) acting seemed to fit the character.

The female villain didn't seem nearly menacing enough. Giving your evil witch a weird blue eye like some sort of feudal Japanese Bond villain isn't enough to make them an entertaining baddie.

She wasn't suppose to be menacing. She was the sneaky clever type. She manipulated Lord Kira from behind the scenes and let [him[/i be the menacing villian.

Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa -- normally excellent in his roles -- looked constipated throughout. That silly hat tied up under his chin made him look like an old cranky bald baby.

Again. That's the character. The Shogun is grim, serious and command the ultimate respect. Surely you didn't want him to come in smiling, did you?

The fight/battles scenes were competent but not outstanding. One wasted opportunity was that giant samurai dude. I was waiting for some epic battle with him and it never happens.

Yes. A truly wasted opportunity. I was wanting to know what the hell he was. Was he a man? A monster? A demon under the witch's command?

[–] Bobby_vs_Satan 10 years ago

Couldn't agree more. I think if the actor's had been able to speak Japanese it would have helped with the feeling and emotion of the dialog. I was expecting a CGI crap fest (from the trailer) and was pleasantly surprised it was more a standard period movie per se with some fantasy elements. Even though it was a nice looking movie (except for the harsh look of some of the interior shots…Gotta love digital), the non fantasy elements were devoid of emotion and drama and the fantasy elements were too threadbare and underwhelming to elevate it. Not as bad as I was expecting but still a misfire.

Plus, I don't need a ton of blood to like a Samurai movie but this movie was sanitized beyond belief. It had no visceral quality and if anything had no "edge" to the blade.