One reason I look forward to weekends excitedly is that I usually have a set of films lined up to watch. This particular CineTV Twitter Prompt inspired me to write a review of a captivating action fantasy adventure animated movie I watched on Sunday.
I had watched L. O. R. D: Legend Of Ravaging Dynasties (2016), being the first film in this franchise, sometime last year and hurriedly searched for the sequel which should have been released but was not due to political reasons. Imagine my excitement when I heard the sequel was just released.
The L.O.R.D franchise is a Chinese computer animated action adventure fused with fantasy, written and directed by Guo Jingming. It is a tale of seven epic warriors called dukes, empowered by soul masters, hidden behind glass screens, to protect the Odin Mainland.
The first film focused on an orphan, inn boy named Qi Ling who is trained to become the disciple of Yin Chen, Duke 7 (played by Kris Wu). This training came at a tumultuous time when orders were given by one of the soul masters, Silver Priest, leading to a battle of soul powers between the dukes.
The end of this battle became a revelation for Yin Chen, duke 7 as he discovered that his master (former duke 7) was alive in a prison. The sequel focused on the adventure of searching for this imprisoned duke 7 and the reason behind it.
My Review
Apart from Yin Chen (duke 7) played by the handsome Kris Wu, hehe, one character I admired in this franchise is Lady Nox (duke 4). She was a mean villain in the first part but her cause changed in the sequel when she undertook the mission to expose the Silver Priest's misuse of power.
This franchise is captivating so far with violent fighting scenes that pump adrenaline. I enjoyed both films and commend the animation works, though the animation of the sequel is improved. The characters seemed real and life-like.
However, I had issues with the film plot. The plot is obscure and has lots of loopholes that leave even the most brilliant minds with questions while average minds would simply be confused.
After watching the sequel, I had more questions, the main one being: what is the ultimate goal of this action fantasy franchise? I mean, the soul masters empowered the dukes and punished those who would be curious to reveal their true identity but to what end?? Why would Yin Chen go blindly after his supposedly dead master to save him from a prison riddled in a time loop, thanks to Zillah, the time duke?
Well, I don't mean to give spoilers here or discourage viewers but I hope Guo Jingming will answer these questions and more in the next part. I'll say Guo Jingming has a creative imagination but the scenes of the sequel were not logically arranged. The addition of flashbacks in the latter part of the film to explain some of the riddles only served to confuse me more.
I understand this film has a novel and probably reading it might shed more light. L.O.R.D is a fantastic franchise with a great plot in my opinion but the director has more work to do to relay this message to viewers.
I recommend this film to all action fantasy lovers. You will enjoy it! Has anyone watched this franchise? What's your take on it?
Thank you for visiting my blog.
What a concise review! I can't wait to watch. Thanks fam👌
It must be a good one.
It is. Thanks!
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Most books are almost always better than their film counterparts.
Time to test this bad boy out.
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Exactly! Maybe when I read the book, it should give me a clearer picture and answer some of the questions I have about this film.
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Thanks! Yes this is sool, giving out the Pimp! 😄
Yes I like reading books, so much more interesting with one's own imagination in play... LoL.
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Looks very much like Lord of the Rings; you getting that vibe too?
Hi Kemmyb, how's it goin?
Hehe, they do share some similarities. Especially about some unseen power behind the scene, like the dark lord Sauron in LOTR, moving the dukes around like puppets on a string! 😄
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Sounds awesome!
Oh, it is! I recommend you watch it. I appreciate your visit. ☺️
Thank you for bringing thos movie to our attention; I for one will definitely be checking it out.
You were curated by the
Ah, thanks a lot @darthwolf for your lovely comment. You should totally watch this franchise. You will love it! ☺️
Just some fun facts and interesting tidbits (please don't let them change your mood on watching it):
Oh, wow. This is enlightening! I did not know this film was slammed by the Chinese community. No wonder the sequel release was halted for some years.
I now understand why he eventually released the sequel via online streaming. Indeed GJM has a distinct craft and he's doing great. The Yin-Yang Master: Dream of Eternity is on my next weekend watch list! ☺️
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I am pretty sure every country has their own "OMG this is garbage" film making banks somewhere else. Taste is ultimately different across the globe. Also, some tropes that are overused in one cinema culture can be fresh to a different audience. Like I have seen people here (I am from Malaysia) absolutely love some "5.0 in IMDB", typical hollywood formulaic movies.
For instance, a lot of C-Dramas available on the various Youtube channels of Chinese streaming companies aren't that well-received inside China but had incredible amount of praises on the Youtube comments and high score on sites like MyDramaList.
It's why I believe that international release is smart for entertainment industries everywhere but not many are doing it aggressively. I have always credited the the success of S. Korea entertainment industry in the 2010s to their willingness to share their entertainment products to the world. Meanwhile, China and Japan have a more passive, "stick to our own country" strategy that just hurt their growth and international reputation IMO.
The situation with the sequel was more complicated. They had to re-do some parts of the film due to Fan Bingbing. It's funny and sad that there are so many talents in this series getting banned or potentially banned by the China's entertainment industry. China has a very strict protocol on this and will ban anyone with criminal records, no matter how small, or any star with records of some unlawful or unethical activities. A ban like this means that they cannot be shown on any entertainment product. New films and etc have to take the character out and all the old things said talents are in had to be taken down from the internet streaming platforms.
They had to re-do the animation on the sequel cuz FBB was banned and they had to completely remove her part from it. FBB was banned like a few months before the theatrical release of the sequel and there's not enough time to remake the CGs so they are forced to cancel the whole theatrical release.
It's not the worst decision though. Online streaming is the go-to platform for drama and movie consumption in Mainland China and the sequel is pay-to-watch. It's pretty much digital theatrical release so I am sure the investors still earn back a decent amount of money despite the failed theatrical release.
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Thank you for a great review. I need to see if I can find these movies anywhere. Thanks for sharing,