HIT OR MISS? | 'The Great Wall' Film Review
'The Great Wall' tells the story of European mercenaries searching for black powder, who become embroiled in the defence of the Great Wall of China against a horde of monstrous creatures. Sounds exciting, right?
Not so much.
It’s a shame that entertainment reports covering ‘The Great Wall’ before the film’s release misconstrued the storyline. Due to the two main cast members’ (Matt Damon and Willem Dafoe) Caucasian status, and Pedro Pascal’s Latino roots, the film - set in medieval China – was heavily accused of whitewashing, inevitably detracting attention away from the premise of the movie.
Though not perfect, it is hardly as bad as critics depicted it to be, and doesn’t hold as much of a ‘white saviour complex’ as potential viewers may think; however, there is a recognisable whiff of it in the air.
Director Yimou Zhang commented that Damon’s role was not one that was created for a Chinese actor in the first place, and fought back at critics for attacking the film without prior knowledge of the casting process. The Chinese-American production helmed by legendary Chinese director Zhang (whose most recognisable works can be found in the visually stunning and action packed films ‘Hero’ and ‘House of Flying Daggers’) is the most expensive film ever shot entirely in China, and holds a budget of USD$135 million. Unfortunately, compared to his previous work, ‘The Great Wall’ is hardly a creative piece of innovation, though it is untrue to suggest that there is nothing redeemable about the film.
Visually it is on point and very appealing to the eye; this shouldn’t be much of a surprise, with two Oscar nominated cinematographers behind the camera in Stuart Dryburg (’The Piano’; ’The Secret Life of Walter Mitty’) and Xiaoding Zhao (’House of Flying Daggers’; ‘Curse of the Golden Flower’). The cinematographers blend their distinct styles remarkably in this cinematic piece – a rare treat for modern viewers.
Combine this element with a beautiful set design and vibrant costume choices, and the visual style of the film isn’t something that can be ignored. In fact, this makes the action sequences incredibly engaging and entertaining enough to watch in their entirety. Though no matter how aesthetically pleasing, it is nothing without a story. Six writers (yes, you read that right) were involved in the scriptwriting of ‘The Great Wall’, and each of those individuals responsible for films like ‘World War Z’, the ‘Bourne’ franchise, and ‘The Last Samurai’ - which arguably faced severe Hollywood-isation, and must raise a flag in relation to the development of ‘The Great Wall’.
With six writers and one script, the audience is privy to a somewhat messy script. There’s no depth to the story and the characters don’t seem compelling or relatable; viewers want to care about these one-dimension characters, but they lack substance, making this impossible. Even with the plethora of American, Chinese, and Latin American cast, and all the effort that went into the production of the film behind the camera, it really seems a sheer waste of talent.
And whatever Damon’s accent was supposed to be, it definitely wasn’t Irish. Or American. In the end, it was just plain confusing, as it drifted between his native accent and something else entirely.
Besides its outstanding cinematography, the only reason viewers may be attracted to this film is to ignore its poor reviews completely and judge it for themselves.
Pascal provides some excellent humour throughout, though Damon just plays Damon and brings nothing spectacular to the film.
‘The Great Wall’ was released in cinemas across Australia 16th February 2017, and the UK on the 17th.
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