SUPERIOR WARFIGHTING

The soldiering superiority of the ancient technologically advanced combatant

 

ROMAN MANNERS OF WAR

THE BYZANTINE IMPERIAL ARMY

WESTERN MAN and THE DRAGON BLADE

There is very little “historical” about this film. And they have obviously Chinese-filmed up and heavily stylized (and cheapened) the armor and many of the weapons. Meaning even less historicity.

Nevertheless, when I was in college one of the first plays I ever wrote was called Western Man. It was about a Greek Christian who had served his enlistment in the Roman Army in North Africa and Syria and decided to travel East along the Silk Road with some of his fellow Greeks as a merchant and wanderer. Eventually he ends up in Western China and settles and marries there, where, because of invasion (being a Christian he hopes the latter part of his life will be peaceful and almost monastic) he must train the surrounding village in Roman fighting tactics at the same time many of them wish to learn about Christianity.

In the resulting warfare his wife his killed and he decides to return West with his infant son, only to make it as far as Samarkand where he ends up becoming the chief merchant and wealthiest man in the city (shy of the rulers).

For that reason alone I am intrigued by the premise of this film and wonder if the film might actually have a shot at being good. I’d like to think it possible anyway.

The Trailer for Dragon Blade, Starring Jackie Chan and John Cusack

adrien brody Dragon Blade jackie chang john cusack By Silas Lesnick ON December 26, 2014 Although the Chinese production is not yet set for an official release domestically, the historical epic Dragon Blade will open on February 18, 2015 in China in regular, 3D and IMAX 3D theaters. The film has now debuted a first trailer, via Check Magazine, and you can check it out for yourself in the player below! Directed by Daniel Lee (14 Blade, Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon), Dragon Blade stars Jackie Chan (Rush Hour, 1911), John Cusack (Being John Malkovich, High Fidelity), Adrien Brody (The Darjeeling Limited, Splice), Peng Lin (Little Big Soldier, The Viral Factor), Si Won Choi (“Athena: Goddess of War,” “Extravagant Challenge”) and Sharni Vinson (You’re Next, Bait). Chan also produces Dragon Blade alongside Susanna Tsang. Set in China during the Han dynasty (206-220 AD), Dragon Blade follows Huo An (Chan), an official framed and enslaved for a crime he didn’t commit. Soon thereafter, however, he meets Roman soldier in Cusack’s Lucius and the pair begin to form an unlikely alliance. We’ve also updated our Dragon Blade gallery with quite a few stills from the new film and with character posters featuring Chan, Brody, Cusack and many more. Check them all out in the gallery viewer at the bottom of this page.   1 of 16