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03/26/09
The Princess Blade (2003)
58 %
Tomatometer
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Reviews Counted: 26
Fresh: 15
Rotten:11
Average Rating: 6/10
Consensus: The action is fast and tightly choreographed, but The Princess Blade never draws its disparate elements into a compelling movie.
Theatrical Release:Aug 8, 2003 Limited
Synopsis: Model and rising pop star Yumiko Shaku stars as Princess Yuki in this thrilling Japanese martial arts actioner based on comic-book characters created by Kazuo Koike and Kazuo Kamimura. Yuki is the... [More]
Starring: Yumiko Shaku, Hideaki Ito, Shiro Sano, Yoichi Numata
Director: Shinsuke Sato
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Reviews for The Princess Blade
Top CriticA fine remake of "Lady Snowblood," with Donnie Yen fight choreograpy to boot
10/22/05
the film's opening action sequence is the first of several that are likely to have you thumbing the backscan button because they look so damn cool (and are so damn fast).
02/21/04
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02/02/04
Action directors take note: This is how it’s done.
10/05/03
Sato seems to be trying to make several different movies at once, and none of them comes through strongly enough to carry the film.
09/25/03
[Yumiko Shaku] doesn't project the confidence or menace that the role requires. Trying to pass her off as a stone-cold assassin is like casting Britney Spears as Marie Curie -- it just doesn't jibe.
09/20/03
Top CriticA brooding atmosphere -- which is critic-speak for 'everybody wears black, and the whole thing was lighted with a single 40-watt bulb' -- permeates this dystopian thriller.
09/19/03
It has stylish fighting, but the story doesn't live up to the talent of the fight choreographer.
09/19/03
Its corny streak brings the movie too close to cut-rate Chinese Opera epics than should be allowed.
08/22/03
Top CriticGreat movie, mediocre script.
08/22/03
Top CriticThe cast, in its quiet, iconic way, is superb.
08/22/03
Top CriticBy turns violent and brooding, it's stronger on style than on substance, but genre fans might find it at least sporadically amusing.
08/17/03
The beautiful, elegant swordfights are filmed clearly and poetically, and even the down-time between battles doesn't drag too badly.
08/15/03
The Princess Blade would have been better off forgetting the love story and concentrating on the kick-ass action.
08/08/03
Top CriticHas all the makings of a cult film.
08/08/03
Top CriticA stylish Japanese effort adapted from a popular manga that blends the thematic substance of a Toho Samurai epic with the quicksilver visceral assault of a Shaw Brothers Wuxia swordsman saga.
08/08/03
The Princess Blade boasts some of the most dazzling fight choreography in recent memory.
08/08/03
Adventurous viewers will find this unusual genre hybrid an intriguing experience.
08/07/03
Not quite good enough to jump out of the pack of Asian swordplay movies but is too well crafted to sink into utter anonymity.
08/07/03
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