Not Bad in the Straight-To-Video Realm

I'm not a fan of Hayden Christensen. I used to really like Nicholas Cage. I just happen to like sword and sand epic movies. While this movie might not be epic, it does have some nice fight scenes and the overall plot is well written. Its just the wooden acting of Christensen and the hammy acting of Cage(although he is more subdued here) drag it down.

Christensen's Jacob is a former Crusader who tired of the bloodshed and moved to the Far East where he becomes an opium addict. He encounters a young, deposed prince and the prince's older sister who are on the run from their bloodthirsty brother. Jacob reluctantly helps them and the movie is basically a journey across China looking for generals still loyal to the prince. Cage is Jacob's former mentor and leaves him because he, too, has grown weary of the bloodshed. Only to reappear later in the Far East as a bandit leader.

The plot is fun, the young prince and princess are interesting characters (although they could have been fleshed out better), and the sword fights are well staged. There is nothing here that hasn't been done before, but if you like these sort of pictures, you will be pleased.

I got the feeling there was a lot of movie that got left out during the production meetings. The relationship between Jacob and Gallain is weak. They are supposed to be friends but there is almost no chemistry between them. The story of the young prince and princess could have been beefed up more to make their journey more impactful. There is also a psychological subplot about why Jacob left the Crusades that could have been used as an allegory of current day issues with war and battle. However, it was just used as a weak plot device and not as a deep story-telling tool. Even the opium addiction is poorly handled as one minute he is addicted and then he isn't. Why bother with it?

I know Cage ius doing it for the money and Christensen is doing anything he can to erase everyone's memory of his disastrous try at Anakin Skywalker, but this movie is not going to help either of them. Sadly, any two other actors could have played the roles as they don't really bring anything to the table. Its the settings, the story, and the supporting actors who actually provide the most interest in the movie.

My memory foam pillow says it can't remember my face. I can tell its lying.