Plot Details: This opinion reveals major details about the movie's plot.

Although not directed by Zhang Yimou, the 2007 "Warlords" (Tau ming chong), codirected by Peter Chan (Perhaps Love) and Wai Man Yip (Sixty Million Dollar Man), probably owes its funding to the success of "Hero" and "House of the Flying Daggers." It stars the hero of "Hero," Jet Li, and the antagonists of "House," (Andy Lau and Kaneshiro Takeshi; Kaneshiro also starred in Chan's "Perhaps Love"), that is, a mainland China superstar, a Hong Kong superstar, and a Taiwanese(-Japanese) superstar. All that's missing is Zhang Ziyi.

"Warlords" is as grim as "Hero," lacking the bits of bandiage between Lau and Kaneshiro in "House." There is a woman loved by two of the blood brothers leading troops against the Taiping rebels. Well, Lian (Xu Jinglei, who starred in and directed "Letter from an Unknown Woman" and "Dreams May Come") is loved by General Pang Qingyun (Li) whom she nourished after he was the sole survivor of a massacre of imperial troops. She is the woman (wife?) of Zhao Er-Hu (Lau) who does not show signs of loving her, though he takes her fidelity and subservience to him for granted.

The Woman is going to come between the sworn brothers, and the third one, Zhang Wen-Xiang (Kaneshiro) will try to avert the disasters of the male alliance being broken. Being a Chinese movie, I knew from even before the three men swore eternal fealty to each other that Zhang would fail. Chinese love story movies, especially historical ones, end tragically, so only the details were in question for me (so I don't consider myself guilty of plot spoiling).

There are some big-time battle scenes (that do not obviously depend on CGI as those in "Hero" did). The middle of the movie involves trenches that intentionally call to mind those from Europe during the First World War. Chan is a big fan of "All Quiet on the Western Front," and the trenches outside Suzhou are an homage to Lewis Milestone's 1930 classic movie. (An homage to its final fatal reach for a flower was cut.)

Of course, the Manchu (Q'ing dynasty) officials are using the rural bandits turned soldiers and the risen phoenix of General Pang and will discard him and them once the Taiping rebels have been put down and Nanjing reconquered. (This is about as surprising as the love triangle ending badly for everyone.)

The battle scenes and the two massacres are epic, though I thought the most interesting fights involved Jet Li parrying attacks by Kaneshiro Takeshi. The first one occurs in a town in which Gen. Pang is a beggar, wearing general boots. Zhang attacks and is impressed by Pang's skills in hand-to-hand combat and takes him back to meet Zhao, the commander of the local group. After swearing brotherhood, the three attack an imperial convoy, and later enlist in the imperial army and take the Taiping rebel strongholds (Suzhou, Nanjing).

Pang and Zhao have a falling-out over Pang breaking the agreement Zhao has made for the surrender of Suzhou, but there is no Li/Lau fight. There is another Kaneshiro attacking Li (Zhang/Pang) fight reminiscent of the Kaneshiro/Li one in the snow at the end of "House of Flying Daggers."

Jet Li won some acting awards for playing Gen. Pang in 50-something makeup. Li is not much of a romantic leading man. Kaneshiro is more the lover type and another Lau/Kaneshiro romantic rivalry would probably have worked better. And/or giving Xu Jinglei a character to play rather than a cipher in the romantic algebra to come between Li and Lau.

Both Gen. Pang and Zhao Er-Hu seek to improve the lot of ordinary subjects of the Dowager Empress, but after saving the civilian residents of Nanjing from being massacred cannot cooperate. That is, they work together in a military context, but not in ruling a province. Especially with each wanting the same woman...

I regard "Warlords" as an anti-epic without being antiwar in the tradition of "All Quiet on the Western Front." The action scenes are impressive and the three actors playing disparate sworn brothers are also impressive. The love story is weak, which is surprising given Chan's filmography. The Woman as a destructive force to sacralized Male Bonds is a very tired and trite concept. I'd give the movie 3.5 stars. Being enamored by Kaneshiro Takeshi and having come to appreciate what a fine actor Andy Lau is, I'm rounding up. I'd definitely recommend "House of Flying Daggers" (, "Infernal Affairs," "Chunking Express," and other movies with Lau or Kaneshiro) over "Warlords."


©2009, Stephen O. Murray


Since I liked the individual fights the most and the involved kung-fu champion Jet Li, this war movie fits within the broadly bounded Everybody Was Kung Fu Fighting writeoff hosted by talyseon.

Recommended: Yes

Viewing Format: DVD