• Aug 18
• Action epic WHITE VENGEANCE: DVD review
• Posted by Deljhp - 18/08/12 at 02:02 PM

Director: Daniel Lee. Review: Adam Wing.

Daniel Lee’s best-known work before 2008 was Jet Li’s dated – yet brilliant – action adventure Black Mask. Since then he has made quite the niche for himself in the period action epic sub-genre. Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon was his first star-studded effort, and even though it will never be considered a classic, there’s a lot to recommend beyond the presence of Andy Lau and Maggie Q. What it does do it does very well, albeit in a solid, unspectacular, commercial kind of way. 14 Blades is the better picture, but then again, that might be down to my love of all things Donnie. Vicki Zhao, Donnie Yen and the former Miss Hong Kong sporting a metal whip – what it lacks in substance and depth, it makes up for in eye candy and action.

A great man once sang, “A little less conversation, a little more action please”. I doubt very much he had White Vengeance in mind when he sang it, but the Elvis hit did run through my mind occasionally during Daniel Lee’s overly talky action drama. I have to be honest here – period action epics are beginning to bore me. They seem to be cropping up all over the place, in fact I’m pretty sure if I had to partake in a history of China exam I would score top marks, albeit from a highly dramatised filmmakers perspective. Having said that, it would take a really special movie to impress me these days. That or the presence of Donnie Yen, and somewhat disappointingly, the shirtless wonder doesn’t make an appearance in this one...Continue reading review.

White Vengeance trailer