Russian Roulette

Reporting from the motherland, WSN's own Mikhail L. Skoptsov braved the Moscow International Film Festival to see three new Asian films.

Of the three Asian movies I saw at the 32nd Moscow International Film Festival, I liked only one. The biggest violator was the South Korean historical melodrama "Enlightenment Film" by Park Dong Hoon. Spanning three generations of a Korean family, it gives a detailed depiction of life in the '40s, '60s and '80s, but is hampered by a pretentious, poorly written script that begs to be taken as insightful.

Teddy Chan's "Bodyguards and Assassins" was another disappointment. The plot concerns the events leading up to the Chinese Revolution, which abolished the imperial rule of the Qing Dynasty. In 1905 Hong Kong, a ragtag group of rebels protect Sun Wei, a man who they believe represents the future of their nation. With a big budget and an ensemble cast, including stars Donnie Yen, Nicholas Tse and Tony Leung Ka-Fai, "Bodyguards and Assassins" has all the makings of a great movie.

On paper, at least. Sadly, it's a big, dumb Hollywood summer blockbuster in disguise, with over-stylized, over-edited action scenes, weak, one-dimensional characters that constantly rehash plot information and a relentless pace. All this truly surprises me given that the film has won so many accolades, including Best Film and Best Director at the Hong Kong Film Awards.

But the festival had some positive surprises too, especially Tian Zhuangzhuang's "The Warrior and the Wolf," a picture with very little dialogue and a lot of beautiful, visual storytelling. The plot doesn't follow traditional narrative conventions. It begins as an examination of General Zhang (Tou Chung-hua) and his recruit Lu (Joe Odagiri), two members of the Chinese army that constantly battle barbarian hordes across Asia. But the film's historical concerns slowly give way to myth and fantasy; as it reaches the end of the second act, it mainly focuses on the relationship between Lu and a captured barbarian woman (Maggie Q) who may have a supernatural affliction.

There's so much to admire here, from the lighting and the landscape cinematography to the grim and gritty battle scenes. The film constantly emphasizes the battle between man and nature, savagery and civilization, yet it never panders to the viewer's expectations. There really is no rational explanation for some of the surreal and downright creepy events that take place.

"The Warrior and the Wolf" will repel a lot of viewers. At the screening I attended, audience members walked out, especially during the picture's middle part, which depicts several sex scenes between Lu and his prisoner. Many laughed when they saw the rather fake-looking CGI wolves, which detract from the film's serious tone. Yet despite such flaws, "The Warrior and the Wolf" was the kind of movie that one doesn't see much anymore — a high-budget art film that challenges audience expectations and invites individual interpretation.

Mikhail L. Skoptsov is a staff writer.