Matino

AKA: Bodyguards and Assassins
Year:2009
Directed: Teddy Chan
Genre: Action, Drama, History
Runtime: 131 min.
Country:China, Hong Kong
Language:Mandarin
Subtitles:Chinese
IMDb : http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1403130/
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Cast:
Donnie Yen, Leon Lai, Xueqi Wang, Tony Leung Ka Fai, Nicholas Tse

Impressive action sequences and a cast of memorable characters breathe life into Teddy Chen’s Bodyguards and Assassins, a Chinese blockbuster set in 1905 Hong Kong.
With major Asian stars appearing in virtually every significant role, Bodyguards has no single protagonist. However the standout performance is clearly given by veteran actor Wang Xueqi (Forever Enthralled) as the tycoon, whose innate sense of humanity gradually overcomes his reluctance to get involved.
Genre fans in the West may at first be disconcerted by the almost complete lack of fighting sequences in the film’s first half, but the final hour is wall-to-wall action. Particularly impressive is a standoff between Donnie Yen’s gambler and an assassin played by Vietnamese kickboxing champion Cung Le. Indeed, the acrobatic energy of the scene makes a subsequent confrontation involving Leon Lai seem flaccid by comparison.
The $23 million production was shot within a massive set of 1905 Hong Kong built outside Shanghai that significantly contributes to the film’s spectacle. Technical credits across the board are strong, including cinematography by Arthur Wong (Warlords) and production design by Kenneth Mak (Fearless). The score, by Chan Kwong Ming and Peter Kam, though lacking unity, ups the energy in the latter half.
Bodyguards and Assassins is the first project from Cinema Popular, a joint venture by Hong Kong based director Peter Chan Ho-sun (Warlords) and Beijing producer/director Huang Jianxin (The Founding of a Republic) to produce films targeted at the mainland Chinese market.


Synopsis/Plot:
"Bodyguards and Assassins" tells the story of a group of bodyguards protecting Sun Yat-sen (1866-1925) from assassins in 1905 Hong Kong.