Review of War of the Arrows (2011) by Caesar M — 06 Jun 2012

Often time movies are over looked by the general public or just go under their radars for several reasons. War of the Arrows is a hidden masterpiece of epic proportion that should not be missed.

War of the Arrow tells the story Nam Yi who's branded as a traitor and is the best archer in Korea going up against the Qing Dynasty to save his sister Ja In. The story truly delivers on thrills, suspense, action, and it never loses your attention. The movie main focus is getting the audience to care about Nam Yi and his action and less about the historical context of the movie. While some will be disappointed about the lack of historical context, it'll easily be over looked as War of the Arrows has one of the best buildup in an epic in recent years. Not only will you see a lot great drama, but you'll see a lot action whether its Nam Yi evading his pursuers through a dangerous forest or the invasion of Nam Yi hometown. Now with any epic the climax is the most important part for any epic, the climax in War of the Arrows is a bit of a disappointment, but that's only because the buildup was so damn good. Story wise the movie provides drama, romance, action, and excitement better than most big budget blockbusters.

In South Korea, War of the Arrow was both a critical success winning several awards and had the best office success of 2011 in Korea. Its achievements in South Korea are well deserved for having great actors and delivering outstanding performances. The same praised can be given to the movie action sequences. While the primary weapons are bows & arrows with the snipping bits easily the most tense in the movie, it does include some hand to hand combat as well as sword combat. The sound effects adds tension to the snipping bits, just hearing an arrow whistling through the air is a breath of fresh air compared to most epics. The cinematography is very fast and effective with a phenomenal direction always holding your attention. War of the Arrows has great production values and you won't ever see a movie like this from Hollywood.

War of the Arrows is a modern classic and while not everyone will be as enthusiastic about the movie as me, it's certainly worth your time. With an exhilarating story on a huge scope and great production values War of the Arrows provides an experience that should not be missed.