Last Knights (2015)

Director: Kazuaki Kiriya
Starring: Clive Owen, Morgan Freeman, Aksel Hennie

Synopsis:
The chief retainer of a disgraced lord succumbs to drunken despair while his comrades seek revenge.

Impressions:
Not everyone is that enthusiastic about this film, but I found it a clever take on the story of the 47 Ronin. (In some ways, I would argue that it's a better 47 Ronin story than 47 Ronin.) By setting the story in an unspecified time and place, they could plausibly have this diverse a cast, though some people who think the story's supposed to be historically grounded have complained. Clive Owen has always managed hold up the lead role in anything I've seen him in and he does that here as well. I also liked Aksel Hennie as the big bad, who's so petty and deranged that he's fun to watch, as well as Tsuyoshi Ihara as the noble Ito and Peyman Moaadi as the Emperor. And you've got Morgan Freeman and Shohreh Aghdashloo as the most noble couple ever. There's some good action and character dynamics. It may not be for everyone, but I liked it well enough and consider it worth seeing at least once.

Rating:
Watch It