A Better Jianghu

Story: Shen Fang (Pan Binlong) is a scholar who has set his mind on fighting corruption within the government and doing everything better than his colleagues. Soon enough, though, he witnesses a town being destroyed in the chaotic turmoil of politics. He escapes as the sole survivor, but not before all the perpetrators have been slaughtered. Consequently, rumors soon spread throughout the Jianghu — the world of heroes and martial arts masters — that Shen Fang is a hero who protects the innocent. In reality, a swordsman named Luo Han (Jiang Zhengyu) saved Shen's life. The swordsman soon went on his way, and the resistance fighter Sanniang (Xi Wang) took Shen in, as he is determined to help her fight the corrupt government. Yet Commander Yuan Hanting (Andy On) gets his hands on Shen Fang, leading him to confess that the stories about him are lies and that Luo Han is the real hero. Shen is forced to take a group of soldiers to track down Luo Han, who recently stole massive amounts of silver from the government. They eventually find him in a tavern. Due to a storm, a multitude of characters are gathered there, including several swordsmen of the Jianghu. The tavern's proprietor is Sanniang — it seems she and Shen Fang have been hatching a plan for quite some time, which they are now putting into action...

Review: With films in the wuxia genre, you sometimes have to accept the fact that delivering an engaging story is a priority relegated somewhere to the very bottom of the list. Occasionally, there is an attempt to drum up a little complexity through countless factions and family ties revealed in plot twists, but ultimately, you just have to settle for the fights and hopefully a nice atmosphere as the sole strengths. Yuen Woo-Ping recently proved with "Blades of the Guardians" that this, combined with some visual splendor, can certainly be enough. Of course, no one can expect the streaming service iQIYI to shell out a similar budget. Rest assured, though, that the sets and costumes all look great, lending this wuxia flick a genuine premium feel. The fights are also quite impressive, but strictly speaking, they aren't the main focus here; rather, the story takes center stage. This becomes evident simply from the fact that the film is not told linearly. Instead, it is divided into chapters that jump back and forth in time, thrillingly unraveling the true background piece by piece.

The film starts off rather slowly, immediately indicating that it places more value on world-building and character backgrounds. It is actually not that easy to find an entry point. It instantly becomes clear that Shen Fang is no wuxia hero at all, yet you have to be a bit patient until you understand his intentions and goals. Only when the silver theft takes center stage can you slowly piece everything together, and once the events shift to the tavern, "A Better Jianghu" also gains a somewhat denser atmosphere. From that point on, it also becomes apparent that a heist movie is woven into the narrative. Various factions want to double-cross each other, and figuring out who is ultimately the smartest can prove difficult for the audience, simply because you have to keep track of so many different characters. At this stage, a little patience pays off. With every chapter, it becomes clearer exactly what was being planned in the background and why certain events are taking place. This can generate a surprising amount of depth, but it also creates a problem that shouldn't be underestimated.

The supporting actors are forced to convey an impression of exactly who they are portraying in a very short amount of time. This mostly works quite well; even the somewhat flat villain is played charismatically enough by Andy On ("Blind War"). The film's weakness, though, is that the individuals still remain mere sketches. As a result, a lot of things fail to live up to their potential. Shen Fang and Sanniang also share an interesting relationship that could have been explored more closely. Because this opportunity is missed, this aspect of the story cannot achieve the necessary emotional depth. Besides them, there is the actual hero in the form of a classic swordsman, even though his sword isn't very classic. We actually learn absolutely nothing about him; he remains a largely blank page. The intention behind this is obvious and is even directly articulated as a question: Isn't Shen Fang the real hero, even if he cannot wield a sword? What does it even mean to be a hero? Regarding these specific questions, though, I would have wished for more substance. It feels as though the stage is perfectly set, but then not much happens.

The chapter structure is another weakness. While I usually appreciate it when a story isn't told linearly, it initially makes it difficult to get into the film. Adding to that is the fact that "A Better Jianghu" is based on a novel by Xiao Duan and has been heavily condensed, which naturally makes it quite a bit harder to do justice to every aspect. Similarly, the director has to answer for why he allocated a mere 97 minutes for his film. Granted, this prevents any pacing issues, but there would have been plenty of room for a few finer details so the characters could have felt a bit more fleshed out. Director Liu Wenpu already delivered a solid Wuxia flick with "The Butcher's Blade". Here, everything looks a bit more polished and prettier. It is also pleasing that the fights are well distributed throughout the film and generally serve a purpose. Only the finale feels a bit like they desperately needed to squeeze in one last fight. Instead of going this route, the confrontation with Andy On on the ship should have been expanded further.

The fights can undoubtedly be a lot of fun. They did dial up the speed here, but thanks to CGI (and AI), it frequently seems as if not everything is moving faster, just individual people or movements. A few lighting effects when weapons clash and similar visual tricks make the attacks feel significantly more epic, almost like in an anime — and without looking cheap. What does look cheap, on the other hand, is the CGI blood and certain sets, like the ship, which doesn't seem to move at all on the water. Simulating the effects of a rocking sea on a ship was probably too costly. Now and then, the film can also get quite violent. All in all, I was satisfied with how the foundation of every wuxia flick — the fights — where dealt with, I simply would have wished for a few more. And that also influences my rating: anyone expecting a classic wuxia story will miss the typical pacing a bit here. Instead, you get somewhat of a heist-style thriller, which is why "A Better Jianghu" never gets boring. If that sounds up your alley, you will find a quite interesting entry into the genre here.

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