Taiwanese screenwriter and director Su Chao Bin wrote this Ming Dynasty wuxia drama primarily for Michelle Yeoh to star in. According to Su and producer Terence Chang, the approach was to do a story in the style of Gu Long's wuxia, populated with multiple characters plus a touch of suspense and mystery. Producer John Woo's input is mainly as an adviser, but he did direct one action scene which featured his daughter and thereby also credited as co-director. Su won the Best Director award for his effort at the 17th Hong Kong Film Critics Society Awards.
The story starts off with an interesting animated prologue detailing the arrival of Monk Bodhi from India some eight hundred years ago. He spent his early years preaching in the Palace and then retired to Mt Jinhua where he trained and became a kung fu expert with extraordinary power. After his death, rumor has it that whoever gets hold of his mummified corpse will gain unlimited power and rule the martial arts world which thereby resulted in his remains becoming sought after. In no time at all, the quest to own Bodhi's precious remains has begins and many battles among the grave raiders soon follow, throwing the martial arts community in chaos.
Upon hearing that Minster Zhang owns one half of Bodhi's remains, the Dark Stone, a guild of assassins led by The Wheel King (Wang Xue Qi), promptly pays him a visit and wipes out his whole family. However, Drizzle (Kelly Lin), one of the assassins, takes off with the remains among all the chaos and disappears. Fast forward a few years and after a face surgery later, she reappears as Zeng Jing (Michelle Yeoh) in the Capital and sets up a small fabrics stall. While there, she also meets a humble local courier, Jiang An Sheng (South Korean actor Jung Woo-sung) and eventually marries him hoping to enjoy a normal life.
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Meanwhile, besides keeping a watchful eye on the whereabouts of Drizzle, the members of the Dark Stone never stop hunting for Bodhi's remains. Unfortunately caught up in a bank robbery one day and in order to fend off the robbers, she has to use her signature Water Shedding Sword technique and thus expose her true identity and location. Upon receiving the information, the Black Stone members promptly arrive in town determined to settle the old score with her.
At heart a screenwriter, director Su's “Silk” (2007) is quite similar to “Reign of Assassins”. Both movies are rich in character building and full of intrigue right down to the muted colors and dark visuals. Besides, there is always the blend of horror and comedy which is typical in Su's work. Furthermore, his action sequences, designed by Stephen Tung Wei are a stylish mix of quick cuts, slow downs and speed ups which fit in nicely. There is the use of wire work but not too heavily overemphasized and therefore helps to make the resulting action sequences being more down to earth and realistic. Tung seems to favor using medium close-ups for his fight scenes which are fluid and full of tension.
After her disastrous turn in 2002's “The Touch” and the disappointing “Silver Hawk” (2004), Michelle Yeoh manages to make a wonderful return to form with this production, and her elegance is put to great use since her appearance in Ang Lee's “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” (2000). Although she is much older in this production and seems like a mismatch in her romantic role opposite the younger Jung Woo-sung, their pairing still works relatively well thanks to the capable Su. Since Jung has to portray Ah Sheng as a humble and naive character, his performance might seem to be the weakest because of that.
Interestingly, the supporting characters also play an important part in telling the story and each one gets a chance to shine. The dependable Mainland veteran Wang Xue Qi plays their aging leader The Wheel King, a ruthless character with a dark secret. Kelly Lin is memorable and believable in a brief role as Drizzle, the assassin who wields a flexible sword which bends accordingly to strike at her victims. Recruited as her replacement, Turquoise (Barbie Hsu) is a sensual but vicious sociopath who loves men and money. Shawn Yue turns up as Lei Bin, a thoughtful family man and the assassin who uses needles as weapons. Elsewhere, Leon Dai plays the arrogant Magician, the group's older killer who uses magic and trickery to kill.
Simply put, “Reign of Assassins” is a very entertaining and well put together old-school wuxia drama and love story packaged into a more modern look that feels fresh. It is full of colorful and intriguing characters and shows that Yeoh is still as accomplished and graceful martial artist and actress as ever who commands the screen. Judging by the storyline, the visuals and character development, this production is definitely the work of Su Chao Bin even with the contribution from producer Woo.
