Customer Reviews

The Rebel

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

first, i mostly watch only chinese movies (about 99% of the time). so grudgingly i borrowed this movie from my brother to watch when i get bored. it's a good thing i wasn't expecting anything out of it.

about 10 minutes into it, i was riveted. the actions (fight scenes) were very solid and the casts were great! i was just going "wow!" whenever the characters fight. it was that good! everyone fought like they all learned martial arts when they were born which makes those scenes that much more convincing!

pay attention to the lead actress; for such a skinny gal, she sure fought with surprising agility and strength. she really impressed me!

the plot, action and storyline flow nicely together. quality of the film is very evident as the story unfolds - everything looked good. if you are a martial arts fan or just love kung fu or action movies, this will leave you satisfied. the story is fast paced so you won't get a chance to get bored! :D

pick this up (especially the new special release by dragon dynasty) and you'll have a great (action) movie on hand! i know i will!

This movie is fantastic. The incredible martial arts choreography and physical talent of the stars is only one facet of a truly multi-dimensional work. In fact, it is extremely deep, and is as much a dramatic historical tragedy as it is a rousing action film.

Most martial arts movies use historical settings as either an excuse to let the kicks fly, or perhaps as a rallying point for historical and national pride. This movie goes far beyond those flimsy constructs. It deeply probes the colonial nightmare of Vietnam: the humiliation of occupation, the way it tears at every level of the social fabric, from city life, to villages, to institutions, to families, and male-female relationships. The way it corrupts the colonizers and the colonized. And the movie shows the true cost of rebellion: that one must be prepared to sacrifice life as one has known it...and the cost of rebellion will be paid by many more people than the individual who chooses to rebel.

The national pain of Vietnam is given no easy catharsis through rebellious violence, either. Indeed, the message of the movie seems to be that for all the physical power of the characters, nothing could change the inevitable grinding of the logic of colonization and conflict that gripped the country. The acts of rebellion the movie depicts certainly lead to more bloodshed, tragedy, and pain than any kind of triumph. The personal redemption of the hero is won through the blood and suffering of those around him.

For those looking for some great fight scenes (as I was when I put it in my player), it certainly doesn't disapoint. The gritty fights remind me of the choreography of Sammo Hung - but with the added flair of the traditional Vietnamese forms, and the high-flying style of the star, Johnny Nguyen.

The movie also features wonderful period sets, and the lush and beautiful scenery of Vietnam, both of which are characters in and of themselves.

In conclusion, this is an exciting and important film that should appeal to many different audiences, and which provides real insight into both the national identity and historical consciousness of Vietnam, and into the nature and social ramifications of colonization itself.

I first saw this movie at the film festival in LA after overhearing a lot of good reviews from people who saw this film at the previous film festival.

First, you don't really expect anything from the movie made in Vietnam. I've never paid attention to films made in Vietnam. So when I heard that this film was made in Vietnam and it's action movie. I was expecting to be cheap Hong Kong style cinema.

Well, I was wrong.

Good plot. Good story. And fabulous action sequence throughout the movie, including a lot of explosions!

If you like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.... although the story takes place in 1920... you MUST watch this film.

These days I'm more of a skeptic with modern day martial arts releases, as many of them are heavy on guns, light on actual martial arts. The Rebel was a great surprise with a steady stream of fast-paced hand to hand fights, with points for originality in the coreography. The only reason I don't give it 5 stars is that personally I'm not a fan of a lot of editing during a fight scene. I like to watch the fight straight on, too many cuts take me out of the fight, especially since I'm one who likes to watch the techniques closely. It wasn't a huge problem in The Rebel, but a few times was too much for me. Still, there was enough true martial arts all through the film to make it very much worth it! Decent acting, and an actually good story sealed the deal. I'd recommend it to any martial arts fan!

I wasn't expecting much from this movie, but I was intrigued because I haven't seen many Vietnamese movies, and though I enjoy martial arts films I'd never seen a Vietnamese one. Actually, according to Veronica Ngo in her extended interview on the bonus disk, this is the first. But, though it might be the first martial arts film with a Vietnamese director and cast, it ranks with the best that HK has produced. An interesting story, great characters and action, wonderfully executed.

I wanted to see this movie for a couple of reasons, I love action movies and I'm a huge fan of Dustin Nguyen. I remember him from his days on 21 Jumpstreet, opposite Johnny Depp(who I also adore). Dustin has generally always played honorable characters. His role in The Rebel as Sy is breath taking to watch. Nguyen gives the character such charisma, unpredictability and sly wit that you almost forget he's the bad guy. Out of all the actors in this movie, I'd say Dustin Nguyen is by far the most enjoyable to watch. He gives a remarkable performance. Even with salt and pepper hair, Mr Nguyen still makes me melt.

The movie is extremely well written and very well acted. There is other eye candy in the movie:Johnny Nguyen(no relation) who plays Sy's rival and the beautiful Veronica Ngo. This movie was an incredible escape for me from the minute it started untl it ended. Do yourself a favor, buy this one. If you rent it, you'll end up buying it. It's THAT GOOD!

I havent seen that many movies made in Vietnam , BUT The Rebel blew me away !!!! Im a BIG fan of Hong Kong cinema and martial arts movies , I must say that The Rebel is among the best Ive seen this year . The plot is great ,the fight scenes and acting are fabulous . . Cant wait for more from Johnny Nguyen and beautiful Veronica Ngo ( Beside she is a great actress she is a great pop star aswell ) 5 stars for both.SIMPLY AMAZING , enuff said!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 5 big stars

This is an exhilirating and highy entertaining movie. A raging unstoppable river of [...]-kicking. The biggest box-office hit in Vietnamese history and one of the year's most talked-about films. The REBEL is a sweeping martial arts epics set in the 20's French-occupied Vietnam. Johnny Tri Ngujen (the Protector) starts as an elite double agent tasked with taking down his own country's freedom fighters. However, when he meets a beautiful rebel (pop star Veronica Ngo), he rethinks his loyalthy to the oppressive French regime and fights back against his sadistic captain (Dustin Tri Nguyen, TV's 21 Jumped Street). Featuring an acrobatic fighting style rarely seen in the US and an absolutely gripping story, THE REBEL is entertaining mix of martial arts and historical drama. CAVEAT: I looked at the movie over and over again because of its unique martial arts style. An article that Vietnamese martial style (yes it has a name, as Israel martial art also has a name but I forget)is an improvemnent of "Wing Chun" appeared sometime ago in TIME magazine. But, Wing Chun seldom kicks above the belt and in order to maintain balance, acrobatics is largely avoided. Tae Kwon Do, which is 70% kicking has a similar but distinctly different kick. My best bet is that the kicking style of Vietnamese martial art is derived from Savate.The closest I have seen such kicking is from the later part of "Kyokushinkai Karate Complete", a martial arts renowned for its brutality.

I love martial art movies, so naturally I wanted to check this one out. In the end, I was surprised at how involved in the story I had become; the action scenes became bonuses. It's an awesome well rounded movie, which I would definitely recommend to anyone.

Set in French-occupied Vietnam in the 1920's, "The Rebel" tells the story of Vietnamese agent Cuong (Johnny Nguyen, "The Protector") who works for the French, putting out the fires of home-spun rebellion. After a time, his conscience starts eating away at him, which seems to coincide with the capture of the BEAUTIFUL daughter (Thanh Van Ngo) of a rebel leader. He helps her escape, but is he going to assist his fellow countrymen, or does he want her to lead him to her father?

Beautifully filmed on location in Vietnam, the movie's look gives you a feel for how hot and humid it must've been. The film boasts some good, but inconsistent, martial arts. The flick's main bad guy, Sy (Dustin Nguyen, former star of TV's "21 Jump Street"), is cold, multi-dimensional, and well played, but ridiculously indestructible. Especially for this having more "down to earth" fight scenes. It's certainly an interesting movie and I've never seen another one quite like it. This is hopefully the first of many Vietnamese martial arts-historical-romance-dramas. Don't let all the categories intimidate you. In terms of theme, it is similar to, but works better than, "House of Flying Daggers", and with more fights. It is funny to me how capricious love will sometimes refashion one's political stance, regardless of how strong and ingrained it may be. For the record I very much enjoyed watching it and it is recommended for those who want to expand their range of outlook.

I would like to have seen more native martial arts. Johnny Nguyen uses a style called Lien Feng Kwon (invented by his Grandfather), but most of the fights look like a cross between Muay Thai and Wushu. Which is not to say that they're bad: Quite the contrary. It's just that he was a member of the U.S. Wushu team, so it's hard to discern any distinguishable characteristics of the art. Hopefully, this film will at least serve as notice of Johnny Nguyen's abilities. This was a big enough hit in Southeast Asia that we will likely see a lot more of him. I, for one, hope that happens. Thanh Van (Veronica) Ngo also delivers some sweet moves, which is impressive because she is not a martial artist, and her foot was broken during the filming of the final fight.

This version from Dragon Dynasty is in Vietnamese (and some French) with English subtitles, or English dubbed. The 3 leads all speak English, dubbed their own voices, and provide commentary, along with Bey Logan. The special features are what you've come to expect from Dragon Dynasty: A "making of" featurette, lengthy interviews with the 3 leads, and a martial arts demonstration from Johnny Nguyen, which is cool, but far too short. 3.5 to 4, out of 5. Tough to decide. I'll guess you'll just have to see for yourself.

2006