It's not very often a martial arts movie comes out with strong fight scenes and even stronger acting. Brotherhood of the Blades boasted a quietly competent cast who elevated this movie above standard wuxia fare.

Three Imperial Assassins and sworn brothers, though skilled with their swords had to face down death and deception from various factions. The always troublesome eunuch (this time after he was deposed) who shows up in numerous martial arts movies, once again instigated double-crossing schemes, this time imperiling the three loyal assassins.

Chang Chen led the three sworn brothers. His character, Shen Lian, though loyal to his brothers and emperor, was morally ambiguous. Willing to do whatever the situation called for, he set into motion a sword that would hang over all three of the assassins' heads.

The three hearty friends all harbored a need for money. Shen Lian wished to free a courtesan but lacked the power and money to do so. Wang Qian Yuan, as Lu Jian Xing, longed for promotion, only lacking the amount of money needed for bribing officials. Li Dong Xue as Jin Yi Chuan, the third assassin and the youngest, loved a doctor's daughter and had secrets of his own. The eunuch's waning power and wealth still proved perilous and tempting. The loyal allies had no safe quarter with the emperor and his officials. Blades aimed at them from nearly every quarter, even longtime allies proved treacherous.

The fight choreography was quite good, less reliant on wires and Olympic level gymnastics. The fights were fast, brutal, and bloody. They stretched reality in a few scenes, but so do most action movies. If I have one quibble, it's that the action scenes went on too long and were overused. As the story felt thin, perhaps it distracted from the lack of a more complex plot and character development.

The cinematography though dark and dreary fit the mood of the film. Often monochromatic, the shots worked perfectly for the bloody fight scenes. The costumes and sets were well done, befitting the time period. Brotherhood of Blades was stunning to watch without being overdone.

Chang Chen gave a mesmerizing performance, filling in gaps the script lacked. The supporting actors were all strong even though many of their characters were thinly drawn.

Brotherhood of the Blades battered away at the characters through intrigue and loss. Dark and intense, this film balanced its three main characters on the edge of a knife in the midst of hungry wolves. And set this viewer on the edge of her seat wondering who, if any, of the Brotherhood would survive.