As the gentleman pirate Sir Hugh, regularly referred to as The Captain by the other well-dressed buccaneers, Price keeps the others in line and in fear with his familiar menacingly deep voice and trademark sinister glower - his face showered with just the right amount of shadows to make his nose pointier than usual as he hollers commands with distinct articulation in every word to sound especially threatening. Price, of course, because, as usual, he delivers a captivating performance as a man who rules over a large group of bearded men with an iron fist. The wait for Chinese films that can combine Sixth-Generation character study with state-approved high production budgets continues.Screen legend and icon of horror Vincent Price stars as the leader of a bizarre cult of human immortals in 'War-Gods of the Deep,' a particularly fascinating piece of fantasy schlock not often mentioned in Price's impressive and somewhat intimidating film canon. Alas, God of War stands as more a film of spectacle than substance, and while enjoyable at times may not linger in the memory. It's also far more watchable and authentic than this year's mess, The Great Wall. God of War is the sort of film the Politburo loves to see, a spectacular and historic representation of an ascendant China. The highlight is when Qi faces off against a miner in order to secure his service, in a sequence that comes closest to any social subtext in the film.
The film makes a success of its martial arts sequences, hand to hand combat deftly interwoven with the clashing of armies. A minor point is that the definition of the Japanese army is 'pirates', which makes me wish there had been a little bit more plundering and naval warfare. Even in the heat of battle, director Gordon Chan can focus on visual flourishes as tiny as the twist of a spear. Gunpowder (a Chinese invention) explodes across the screen.
The film opens with a visceral attempt to lift a siege, and every battle henceforth is an escalation. Where the film really stands out is not in character development but in its set-pieces.
While at first her subplot feels as if it is going through the motions to justify a female lead, as the film progresses and she becomes more integral she is a joy to watch, asserting herself both against her husband and the Japanese invaders. The most enjoyment I had with any of the characters was Lady Qi (Regina Wan). Great effort is made to mourn characters thinly established. The audience never really feels his irritation at the Chinese higher command, nor at the sacrifices he and his men must make for victory. An early element of the plot is a Japanese general imprisoned on the Chinese mainland this isn't followed up on as the plot progresses. God of War is attentive to a fault when it comes to historical authenticity, a middle section bloated by talk of an internal Chinese politics that never impacts the narrative at large. The respect of the filmmakers passes down to the leads, the rivalry of Qi and Commander Kumasawa (Yasuaki Kurata) reminiscent of Jack Aubrey (Russell Crowe) and his French adversary in Master and Commander. What could have been outright propaganda, rapacious Japanese against the noble Chinese, is actually a somewhat layered film with established characters and motives on both sides of the fight. After his previous success against such 'pirates', it befalls the renowned General Qi (Wenzhuo Zhao) to finish the siege and purge this great force from China for good. A Japanese invasion force made up of trained samurai and bloodthirsty mercenaries have taken the Chinese coastal town of Cengang. Unfortunately, God of War has similar pitfalls to other films of this genre and blockbuster Chinese films in general a distinct lack of human engagement. Fortunately, they come together to pull off some of the most impressive battle sequences seen this decade. There are no less than six production company intros before God of War has even begun, giving an idea of the amount of money and co-operation necessary to make this film possible.
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