OK, I'll agree that this is a good-looking film. While the film is trying to imitate an American Western, it is distinctly a HK film in style and in the way that it is filmed. The comparison to ASHES OF TIME is appropriate because the action scenes are blatant rip-offs of the swordfighting in ASHES, including the blurry, cut-frame depictions of Chow Yun-Fat's manic swordplay. I think the director was so concerned with Chow "looking good" that he forgot to give him any lines or even a character. He relied so heavily on Chow's reputation as an actor that he simply didn't bother to develop his part. The plot is so completely disjointed that there is not one character that the audience can sympathize with. While the director did an excellent job filming the story, he didn't put any thought into developing it. All of the characters are complete strangers to the audience. In my opinion, Chow Yun-Fat's "last Hong Kong film" is also his worst. A true disappointment.

[Reviewed by Rebecca Herbster]