Plot: Whilst searching for black powder, a couple of European mercenaries get caught up in a war between the Chinese Army and a horde of monstrous creatures along The Great Wall of China.

This is something that I don't do that often, and that is going into a film that I expect to be not that good.

Then despite how I choose my films, why do it? Well, I'm going in hoping for a good time and most importantly for great visuals. This is because it is being directed by Yimou Zhang, who is probably the most famous Chinese directors. I have loved his imagery in some of his best films such as Hero and House Of Flying Daggers.

I was going into this expecting that it was not going to be good. That was mainly due to the story as how it was being marketed. However, I was hoping for amazing breath-taking visuals. I could just tell by the trailers, that it could be sub-par entertainment for a mainstream crowd. That is exactly what it was.

While it does have a big budget to work with. Sadly, it does not that amount to much. The first act moves along well, which included a pretty cool battle scene that reminded me of 'Ran' and 'The Lord Of The Rings: The Two Towers' and 'The Hobbit: The Battle Of The Five Armies'. Seeing that develop gave me hope that I could have a good time.
But while the action was still pleasing to the eye, the plot was slowly breaking up. By the time the finale came around, it did not feel that satisfying and got a bit ridiculous at times. I ended up not really caring by the end of it.

The performances were not that great. I was disappointed by Matt Damon. For someone that has such a big draw, you would expect him to be an integral part. For me, Damon felt wasted and just there to be the face to sell the film. He did not seem to show anything that made me feel that they needed someone of Damon's calibre to contribute. In the end he just felt boring and bland and I think he was just there for a pay cheque. The same goes for Pedro Pascal and Willem Dafoe. I honestly have no idea why Dafoe was in this. I don't have much criticism for Pascal as he has little experience in the movie industry as his success is television based. So I am glad that he is part of a film like this as I saw great potential in him from the Game Of Thrones TV series, and he could do well within movies.
The assortment of Asian actors were pretty solid and very committed to there work. It was great to see Andy Lau as I have liked him in anything that I have seen with him in it. Tian Jing was the best performance, she did a good job and it seems I will be seeing her more often as she is now involved with bigger projects.

Sadly there is some fairly strong negatives to comment on. The script is not good at all to be brutally honest. It did get me smirking on the odd occasion. But the over-amount of basic exposition and simplified speech really dumbed it down.
I was struggling to see what the film was focusing on the most. You would think it would be Damon's character as he is the big draw. But after seeing the film, I have no idea.
There was cheesiness and it was a bit too much for my liking, especially in the second half.

What this film has got going for it is the exciting battle scenes, the pretty good imagery and use of colour, the commitment of the Chinese actors and its extras and the impressive costume and set designs.
The score by the always great Ramin Djawadi was solid and romping enough to elevate the scenes well.
I'm glad that there was a lot of Chinese speech as I was expecting for everyone to talk English as films with subtitles usually don't fare well with the general audience.
As for the CGI, a lot of it was sadly noticeable, cartoony at times and not convincing for the most part. But I liked the amount of practical effects that were used, especially in the first battle sequence.

In the end it's just sub-par and recycled entertainment that seem to attract the majority of general cinema audiences again and again. After a solid first act, the rest just grinds down to something that I ended up not caring. It's spectacle, and very little story and character development.
It was a shame as I know how good Zhang has been. I think this is seen more of his way into mainstream cinema.
You should definitely check out Yimou Zhang's others works as the imagery is beautiful and the stories are really well told. If he can make one that is being marketed to a wider audience with the same quality of better work, then he could be someone that people would flock to see for high-quality entertainment.

For a film that needs to disband your disbelief, you can obviously let some things go. But not fundamental things to make a film entertaining. I love my fantasy and I am sucker for anything no matter how outrageous. But like everyone else, I have my limits. A bad script, not good enough performances, characters with next to no depth and an unsure message made not care for much by the end of it.

I have to mention that there is some controversy about this film being 'white-washed' as Damon was the star in a film about the Great Wall of China. I can safely say that the film explains why he, Pascal and Defoe's characters are here and it works perfectly fine. To be honest, the massive amount of Asian actors steal the show for me. Their commitment was strong and noticeable and our seen as the heroes of the film.

I really hope this film helps the Chinese market move forward and be a big part of the western world's film calendar. I have seen some of their best work and I know how good they can be.

Rating: 6/10