Memories of the Sword (2015)

Terrible acting, screenplay and direction.

I like movies that are aware of what they are selling... without [any] greater aspirations than to make people laugh and that's it.

This is a coming of age storyline that you've seen in one form or another for decades. It takes a truly unique voice to make yet another one worth watching.

The film may be flawed, but its message is not.

Far from it, it's look alike in the way it's set, but this movie gets its own soul.it's not a story, it's poetry about Love, betrayal and vengeance.Byung-Hun Lee is perfect playing a man consumed by greed who rise from nobody to one of the most powerful lords in the area, killing everyone who stand against him. Do-Yeon Jeon play his love and the mother who raises her girl to be the hand of justice. Go-Eun Kim is the One,raised to kill the 2 persons who betrayed and killed her parents. all are magnificent in their roles.it won't go as attended for all of them, but, you must see it by yourself, I insist, you won't be disappointed.

While the Goryo Dynasty in the medieval Korea, three warriors named Deok-ki, Poong-chun and Seol-rang have led a riot against the king and his foreign allies from Kitan, China. But Deok-ki betrays them, which results in the death of Poong-chun. But Seol-rang is able to escape with Seol-hee, Poong-chun's little daughter, and her sword. 18 years later, Seol-rang got blind but she raised and taught Seol-hee very well. Both feel that the time for revenge is right, but Deok-ki is now one of the most powerful men in the country. All of them know, that spilling blood is the only way of redemption. This story is heart touching and lovely full of action

It could be viewed as a Korean take on the great "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" but the movie has enough substance to stand on its own feet. The cinematic qualities are most impressive. Camera work, lighting, colors...it never stops to look beautiful. If the Shakespearean drama in the story doesn't put you away, be sure to not miss this one. Also, do yourself a favor and watch it in the cinema or at least from a blu-ray. The visual feast you will be getting is worth it. Just a warning: It's not an action movie. It's much more drama than action and even when action happens, it's mostly highly stylized. As for the acting, Byung-hun Lee is the memorable person in this. He really shines as the somewhat confused villain. Rest of the cast I'd probably just describe as OK. My movie-loving heart was glad I got to watch this and is looking forward to future Korean epics. :)

In this brand new Korean FLOP, Characters spend way too much time explaining everything they've done and will do but the story is still riddled with holes.Plot: Three master swordsmen (and woman) attempts a coup but fails due to one of the three's betrayal. Years later, the dead partner's surviving daughter vows revenge against the other two. Sounds fun right?Only Byung Hun Lee seems to have his character in control and other actors are merely copying superior Chinese actors in this genre. The plot wants Lee's character be the villain of the piece, but the actor's charisma and the story itself makes him look like the hero. It's hard to root for the two female leads when they are well below their usual performance with characters who I assume are half-insane.The "twist" which sets up the final action just reveals to us how nuts these two main characters are. I was slapping myself in disbelief at the lengths the screenplay went. The two female characters are so selfish and so absorbed in their own sense of righteousness that they forgot to take a step back and look what they've done themselves.If you are going to have characters fly, why can't you have fun with some aerial combat? Why is it always artsy shots that's cool to look at but ultimately makes no sense? How does one simply teleport around locations just because plot wants them there? It's all style but no content. Another thing is that it is painfully obvious that the lead actress has no skill in stunt actions. Her scenes are always edited frantically that you have no idea of geographical aspect of the action occurring. One exception is the extended hallway fight scene that's obviously placed there as a gimmick.With a plot that makes you expect Kill Bill set in ancient Korea (complete with snowy showdown), this is a serious disappointment. Usually Korean audiences love terrible domestic films but this one flopped. Perhaps it is due to bad publicity Byung Hun Lee is getting these days. Or maybe the public finally got it right: this is a lame film.