Best movie of this year hands down!

Boring

This story has more twists and turns than a second-rate soap opera.

At first rather annoying in its heavy emphasis on reenactments, this movie ultimately proves fascinating, simply because the complicated, highly dramatic tale it tells still almost defies belief.

And this refers to the fact that almost nobody from the cast and crew of this film is still working prolifically in their respective fields. This includes especially writer and director Johannes Jaeger, who made this 100-minute movies based on a short film he wrote earlier in his career. This includes lead actor Mathis Landwehr as well, who is clearly a casting decision in terms of looks over talent. There were a couple situations in here when he was bearable and that was thanks to the supporting actress being even less talented. However, as bad as the acting in here may be, it has nothing on the abysmal writing, especially the dialogs. Good lord, a disaster from start to finish. Completely unfunny, unrealistic comments paired with the actors inability to deliver them convincingly easily makes this one of the worst films of the 21st century. The writing in terms of story wasn't good at all either, but it seemed like a revelation compared to the dialogs. There's better dialogs in porn no doubt about it. The story is very generic. Martial arts student has his master killed and he takes revenge on the one who did it. While doing so, he recovers a priceless book and falls in love with his buddy's sister. The music is a catastrophe as well, mix of hip hop and techno, which fits the tale only in terms of quality, but never in terms of contents. Horrible horrible film and I can only shake my head at other reviewers here who called this a hidden gem. Are you kidding me??? This does not even have German soap opera level. Stay far far away.

A post-apocalypse martial arts movie made by Germans? Well, that combination sounded quite intriguing to me when I found a copy of this movie at a video store in my city. And I was happy upon watching the movie to find out it was decent entertainment overall. Though made with a very small budget, the movie does boast some good special effects and production design. The martial arts experts showcased in the movie definitely show they are experts at martial arts, and while they are not great actors, they are adequate. The movie also keeps moving at a fairly brisk pace, so there are no boring parts. Still, I will admit that the movie could have been better. The cinematography is really ugly, for one thing. Maybe they were trying for a unique look, but the colors are really unattractive. Also, the script could have used some work, seeing how many of the characters and plot turns are very familiar to those well versed in modern B movies. And while the fights are generally good, there are some moments when I wish they didn't cut to different angles so frequently. Don't get me wrong, I did find the movie entertaining. However, I would advise potential viewers to not have their expectations be very high. If you are willing to accept some big flaws and see the movie as a labor of love, the better chance there is of you enjoying it.

Paying homage to the post apocalyptic genre with echoes of stories like Fist of the North Star, Cyborg and the Postman this movie is infused with adrenalin, enthusiasm, rage, excitement, and action. It has a huge heart and the fact that it was made on a limited budget is testament to the skill and passion of those involved. They say that first time features made with limited financial support will have failings somewhere around Lighting, Script, Score and CGI. I am pleased to say that the piece is effectively lit even when filmed in cavernous tunnels. I rather like the CGI; it's obvious of course, but it offers a unique visual vista and blends well with the other outdoor scenes. The script, well, I watched the movie in German with English subtitles and found that the characters, although very familiar, (the hero falls somewhere between Kenshiro and Robin Hood) were comfortable rather than caricature. When the lead was doing voice over to convey his thoughts it really worked well for me, there was something about the sound of his voice that gave what I was reading some resonance. I thought the score generally worked well. I have some difficulty in accepting techno music in any setting; thankfully for me, its unwelcome intrusion was brief. I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the fight choreography and the stunt work. In addition to all this, some of the cinematography was extremely effective, especially the two wonderful sweeping shots on top of the building during the final showdown. I won't pretend that the story is anything new but it is carried off with such bare faced enthusiasm and more than a little respect for the genre that I can't help but like it. I tracked this down from the makers own website. I'm glad to say that I was happy to pay the few euros for such a great product.

This movie was set up after two successful short movies called Kampfansage. With a film budget of just 300.000 Euro and about 30 days too short this movie came in incredibly good. The market for German produced martial arts is virtually nil and this could be seen as a mile stone. Although It'll most probably not appear in German cinemas (except the Fantasy Filmfest 2005) it was shown with great success at a film festival in Shanghai and will be marketed in China.The movie plays in the latter 2040's in a war tattered Germany. Europe and most probably the rest of the world has fallen into utter chaos after long years of fighting. Technology has vanished and the rise of martial arts has begun. An Evil ruler tried to conquer all of Germany and kill the present martial arts masters there. but was killed at the hands of the last remaining master. his children bosco and cleo now carry on his legacy and bring down the last master and his last disciple or so they thought...what will ensue now is a mix of nicely done battles and sometimes humor as well. Jaeger manages to mix it together despite lacking time and resources to shoot scenes the way they are shot in Asia or USA.I'm giving it a 9 out of 10 for sheer innovation and fun value. I'll buy the DVD as soon as it hits the shelves...