What other movie gives you placid scenes of babbling brooks & dragonflies ...then WHACK! someone gets their head blown off ...then ahhh, tranquil mountaintop trees ...then WHACK! someone throws a pig carcass all over the dining room ...then ahh, pretty caterpillar on a leaf... etc, etc, etc.This movie is unique, that's for sure. I thoroughly enjoyed it.The story presents the bipolar life of a gangster's son. Raised on violence but with a strong inner "goodness", he is torn between two incompatible worlds. His father is a ruthless criminal who, in his spare time, hunts wild boar as if they'd insulted his mama. His sister (mother figure) is a level-headed, sensitive person who, in her spare time, rescues dogs & kittens from the streets. Eventually our hero hooks up with a bunch of diaper-wearing, drum-beating freaks on a mountaintop, and that's when things start to happen. I told you this movie is unique.Some parts are delightfully predictable--almost borderline sappy--but there are some clever plot twists as well. Really, though, this movie shouldn't be watched for its plot. It's about the spiritual journey we all face in life, whether or not we hook up with drum-beating freaks. The drums represent a primitive connection with oneself. The drums represent discipline & a return to sanity when we're bogged down with "too much mind". As the opening narration indicates, the first sound we ever hear is that of a drumbeat (the rhythm of our mother's heart), and this forges deep connection with our spirit. There are some very interesting thoughts presented on the subject, and while I was initially skeptical about how smacking a tom-tom could relate to a person's soul, I was gradually mystified and eventually convinced that there's something worth pondering.If you're starting to doze off, don't worry. A few brutal murders, dismembered body parts & pig carcasses ought to wake you up again. This contrasts sharply against the serene mountaintop and calm disposition (not to mention vegetarian meals) of the zen drummers where the kid finds temporary refuge. One reviewer said that the contrast makes the film schizophrenic, and it certainly does, but in a deliberate way. It did strike me as a bit disjoint, though. I was expecting a film with slower pacing to allow us to digest it, but this flick comes at you pretty fast. As a result sometimes it feels like we're getting two halves of two different movies rather than an integrated whole. To me, this film could've easily been an hour longer, but I supposed 113 mins is pretty long for most audiences already.The music is very nice, with a soundtrack performed by the great young cellist Trey Lee. And of course there's the fantastic performance of the "U Theatre" drummers (who play themselves in the film).Overall, I'd say this film is like a blend of "The Karate Kid" & "Scarface" with a dash of "The Bird People of China". Similar films are: the Korean buddhist/gangster flick "Bittersweet Life", Takeshi Kitano's Japanese masterpiece "Fireworks" and an obscure but very enjoyable Vietnamese flick called "Buffalo Boy". All worth checking out.

Chinese film starring the son of Jackie Chan. The film concerns the young hot headed son of a triad leader who gets caught in bed with the mistress of another leader. shipped off to the rural parts of Taiwan he falls in with a community of drummers who reluctantly take him in.Nice to look at with some nice rhythmic drumming I'm at a loss to know if I full enjoyed the film since the copy I had folded back on itself and at some point the film counter stopped and the movie began to repeat sections. Its something with the authoring of the disc- but it made for a very surreal experience. I liked what I saw but for me the problem was that the film runs almost two hours and its too long for the story its telling (so much so it seems to drift off on tangents at times.) Worth a look once- not something I'm likely to watch again- I've tossed the flukey DVD and I'm unlikely to pick up another copy.

This is about 60% of a great film. Jaycee Chan plays a drummer in a band who beds down a gangster's girlfriend, only to be found out. Sid (Mr. Chan) has a father (Tony Leung Ka Fei) who is also a gangster and the other gangster wants revenge, specifically Sid's hands chopped off. Sid flees to the mountains of Taiwan, whereupon he stumbles across a group of zen drummers. He is captivated by them and looks to join him. They take him in and make him go through rigorous training to prove himself. Herein lies the problem in this movie. Its not a fatal one: This film should have stayed with the zen drummers. Instead we get more of the gangster goings on in Hong Kong. The parts shot in Taiwan (its beautiful countryside, and the cinematography is great) make up a very good film. Although she doesn't do enough, the so pretty Lee Sin-Je (also known as Angelica Lee in other films) is part of this. Her beautiful piercing dark eyes are always welcome (an aside: see "The Eye" with her as the star, not the horrible Jessica Alba remake), but I wanted more reaction from her. She's a very good actress and looks beautiful, especially when she smiles. There is a bit too much of the gangster stuff going on, it drags the film a bit. However, its still worth watching for the zen drummers and Jaycee Chan is a fairly good actor. Recommended, just could have been a great film.

Anything with drums, and I am there. The beats of drums in any music always appeal to me (no prizes for guessing I'm a drum and bass fan), because I suppose it's fairly easy to express your mood to beats, and this expression can be done through anything that gives you that satisfying clang, and more so when you need to vent frustrations out in a relatively safe manner by hitting out at something inanimate, without personal injury of course.And I like it too as it doesn't come across in a threatening manner to those who want to pick up the instrument. I mean, there are no complicated chords, complex notes, intimidating keys or confusing hand eye leg coordination that calls for dexterity. What it has essentially is a pulled canvas, a set of drumsticks, and calls for strength, intensity and endurance as you express the beats of any rhythm within you.The Drummer is the latest movie to premiere from Hong Kong, written and directed by Kenneth Bi, starring Jaycee Chan, Tony "The Lover" Leung and Li Sinjie. Jaycee has been particularly busy this latter half of the year, with 3 releases (including this one), from action in Invisible Target, to art-house drama in Where The Sun Rises, and now a movie about Zen Drummers. Somehow I find that he possesses this charming quality that comes across as easy going, a little naive, but yet having no lack of serious acting chops when the time calls for it. With the few films of his that I've seen (save for the forgettable debut efforts like the Twins Effect), I'm quite impressed and would definitely be in the queue for more in future to see how he would mature into the different roles that come along his way.In The Drummer, Jaycee plays Sid in the titular role, and somewhat a departure from his earlier characters, at least initially. A pompous prick who drums for his rock band, he gets into the pants of a mistress of a triad boss (Kenneth Tsang), and without saying gets himself into deep trouble. In trying to shield his son, Dad (Tony Leung, in yet another typical hot headed gangland leader role we're familiar with from the Election movies) sends him packing to a rural part of Taiwan to weather the expected storm of triad displeasure, and in this exile, Sid comes across the training grounds of the Zen Drummers.It's a basic story about the coming of age of an impatient youth, as he tries hard to gain acceptance to drum for the Drummers, who are of course, in no need for any impetuous hothead. And you know the drill from here, where there's a clash of cultures and philosophies pertaining to drumming, and in teaching him the ways of their own, we get plenty of "wax on wax off" moments, as virtues like patience, discipline, hard work, perseverance, you-name-it-the-movie's-got-it get imparted and appreciated by the newbie, transforming before your eyes from selfish individual, to a valuable team player.For the most parts, the movie develops at a rather predictable manner with near clichéd sub plots, but the appeal of the characters made it quite enjoyable to sit through, despite its run time of almost 2 hours split between dramatic moments, and those embodying Zen like teachings and quiet, contemplative pieces. I thought that the movie, like the virtue it's imparting, requires patience in order to savor the goods of a delightful performance, as typical stories of such nature you'd come to expect - the big fight, the finale dance, that rewarding end performance. However, to my slight disappointment, The Drummer didn't deliver w hen it really should. Instead the editing interrupted and intruded on proceedings, and what could have been worth a ticket to witness, felt like spare change.The romance bit also fell short, and somehow was junked from developing further as the narrative decide to switch gears and focus on father and son instead. Hence, Lin Sinjie's role as Hong Dou became a little sidetracked midway. Which was a pity, given that the potential for some good old fashioned romance didn't make the grade. But what I found really jarring, was the decision to reintroduce triad moments in the last act. Again typical in wanting to provide closure, but done not too subtly that it sticks out like a sore thumb.All in all, it's still a gorgeous looking film with good acting from the leads, and not to mention the professional performances by U-Theatre, the real Zen Drummers who come alive when they're behind their set of drums. Make sure you watch this in a theatre with a booming sound system. If you haven't had enough of the mesmerizing, hypnotic beats, then head on down to the official website and ensure you got your speakers turned on. And check out the production blog too while you're at it!