I made the mistake of watching John Woo's Hard Boiled before another of his films that was released under the Dragon Dynasty DVD label a couple weeks back, Last Hurrah for Chivalry. There might have been a time when this sword-slashing period piece might have been cool, but now is not that time. I didn't even make it through the entire film.Last Hurrah for Chivalry is about two swordsmen who become pawns in a plot much larger than they first imagined, but I didn't get far enough to see the resolution of the manipulation. It's not that I watched this movie and thought it was bad; it just looked and felt dated like many old Asian films do, and didn't capture my attention. The audio and video didn't line up properly, a big pet peeve of mine, and the sets, while elaborate, just don't look that realistic.
The action is good and well choreographed, but once again just looks outdated. There is no intensity to the scenes, and it seems as though the actors are missing by a foot with every swing.
Fans of old Asian action movies and John Woo flicks should take pleasure in Last Hurrah for Chivalry's Special Collector's Edition DVD release (which features several interviews, a featurette and a commentary - not by Woo, however), but us non-diehards need something a little newer.
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