Yamada: Samurai of Ayothaya

Just because a heroic saga is based in history doesn't mean it's going to be interesting. The narrative of a severely injured Japanese warrior being healed in body and spirit by the kind and wise residents of a Thai village is slow and tedious for a Muay Thai action flick. If you're looking for lots of soothing flutes, pastoral visuals and calm voice-overs of basic moralizing, you'll find plenty. For those less patient, there's still a big payoff. There is a smattering of one-on-one training bouts that are high on style and energy. In the latter half we are treated to two mass fight sequences replete with all the swordplay and hand combat one might hope for. The penultimate battle in daylight by a river is among the most exciting, bloody, superbly choreographed of its kind in all of Asian martial arts fare, vintage and current. My rating of 6 is a split between 4 for the excessive amount of calm setup, and 9 for the too-sparse, yet glorious, action.