Rating: 
Summary: As close to Dragonball as your gonna get.
Review: I actually liked this movie a great deal. Forget the plot, because it was actually pretty thin and a bit muddled. Forget the martial arts because these were actors not martial artists. And forget about reality, because this is all about fantasy baby. Not the Tolkienesque high fantasy, but an eastern live action anime that would be a great source for inspiration for anybody who plays the White Wolf games set in the Exalted universe. If you are able to allow yourself to drift back to a point in your life in which you could fly again, I think you would definitely enjoy the movie. Stop the sanity was what I told my way to logical girlfriend and sit back and enjoy the show. If you can't, then go watch Driving Ms. Daisy.
Rating: 
Summary: Great story, WEAK special effects
Review: For a movie with such a great story and acting, I can not get past the absolutly ridiculous special effects during the fight sequences. Instead of showing the moves of the actors, the directors place swirls of color all over the place, and the blue screen work is hideous. It appears as if they tried to cram as much special effects as they could. I love high flying wire work, and all facets of fantasy martial arts fighting, but the fight scenes looked like a jumble of color rather than fight scenes. This movie is however worth watching for the wonderful storyline. It is both cool and moving. The acting is also top notch. While the fight scenes come close to ruining this great movie, they don't go that far. I would still recommend this movie to any fan of the genre.
Rating: 
Summary: Oh dear.
Review: When I saw The Storm Riders in the local video shop, I thought I was in for a treat. Well, if I got a treat, it was the kind you hear all about in Hallowe'en urban legends. I think I got the apple with the razor blade inside. Some treat....I was under the decidedly mistaken impression I would be getting a martial arts flick. Sure, I figured there'd be some augmentation with wires and such, but at no point did I expect the parody of a fantasy flick this ended up as. However, even if I had gone in expecting a noncombative fantasy movie, I still would have been disappointed. At no point during this movie was I impressed. I think even the Dungeons and Dragons movie was better fantasy, and you know just how bad that is! The effects are silly (the bad guy kills people with magical soap bubbles), the acting is atrocious, and the storyline is the same hackneyed plot that's been sifting down through schlocky fantasy books/anime for decades. I kept hoping for something terrible to befall the female love interest. I kept hoping for scenes involving tentacles a la The Legend of the Overfiend. This would have been the movie's saving grace, a fall into badness so extreme that it would have achieved the ranks of high comedy. Alas, it was not to be. (...) If you're looking for a good Chinese fantasy movie, do not watch this abomination. Blech! Get Iron Monkey, Once Upon a Time in China, or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon instead.
Rating:
Summary: Good FX , Short Fight scenes
Review: The movie has a good plot and story body. The EFX are wickedly up to date in Kung-fu style cinema but the fight scenes were just to quick. When in a fight scene, i was ready for more but the fight was over within seconds. This movie had style and taste but it could have had longer battle sequences. Not bad Though.
Rating:
Summary: Don't Waste Your Time
Review: In a recent article in Inside Kung Fu, it was stated that most Hong Kong films nowadays are all about guns because so few of the current crop of "stars" have any real martial arts training. Storm Riders is the proof of that statement. Lots of special effects and a few pretty boys standing around looking serious; that's essence of this film. Some women might like it because of all the "pretty boy" types, but there are no real fight scenes and while the special effects are o.k., they're a poor subsitute for the real life martial arts skill that made Hong Kong Cinema great. Sammo Hung is old enough to be the father of the main characters in this film and despite being about 70 pounds overweight he could probably sweep the floor with the Chippendales that Storm Riders centers around. My only consolation in watching this film was that it was a video rental, not a purchase, although I'm sure I heard Bruce Lee rolling over in his grave.
Rating: 
Summary: Hong Kong Fantasy Cinema at its best!
Review: I grew up with HK cinema, but this is at the top - for the comic magazine/swordplay genre. The Stormriders is based on the bestselling comic book by Ma Wing Shan. This DVD (... the Universe DVD) has extraordinary clarity of picture - thanks to Centro Digital Pictures (hint -when you see this company - the picture quality is crystal clear, the color totally lifelike - skin colors (the hardest to come out clear)are vibrant and awesome), and a gorgeous soundtrack in Cantonese and Mandarin. What I like about the Cantonese Soundtrack is that the voices of the individual actors are all so different and distinct, and when you hear the "bad guy" speak, his baritone voice is so commanding. There are also nice sets of removable subtitles in English and Chinese. The incredible attention paid to the technical aspects aside, the story is so entrancing with 3 young men - each so different in personality and physicality, all in love with a young woman who is the daughter of their future enemy. I loved this movie because of the subtlety of the acting, and the visual style of almost every scene such as the heart-stopping beauty of large Chinese characters scrolling down crosswise as a fightscene occurs that is a prophecy - while the soundtrack thunders underneath. Wow! And that's only in the first 15 minutes. The movie races with visuals that you can view again and again, and the 3 actors, Wind, Cloud and Frost each are represented by totally different men - this is what makes the movie so enjoyable. Wind (Nie Feng), played by Ekin Cheng is dressed in black leather (!), is gentle, thoughtful, polite, with long black hair and just happens to be one the top singers in Asia. Then there is Cloud (Bu Jingyen),played by Aaron Kwok - also a top singer in Asia- dressed in various leathers with Blue (!)black wavy hair, who is very tempetuous, physical and moody. Finally, there is Frost and who has reddish brown hair, dressed in brown leather and is sacrificing, calm and loyal. OK, do you get the picture? This is not the traditional swordfight movie, with the traditional heroes, instead these are very modern looking young men running around in fitted leather costumes looking breathtaking. But wait till you see the young woman who was Miss Photogenic Asia and is a native of Canada! She is absolutely cute and adorable. This is a swordplay movie - so the themes of clan loyalty, honor, filial piety, revenge, prophecy, undergirds the movie. The fight scenes are very stylistically displayed and my favorite fight scene is of Wind's father against Shinichi Chiba (yes - he of Japanese cinema fame) in the brilliant green bamboo forest as black and white pictures flash of Wind's mother's eyes meeting her husband's enemy's eyes sealing her husband's fate (got that?). My favorite visual scene is when Kong Ci (the daughter) is flying through the air on Wind's back through the "Sword grave" while fireflies dance around them, and a children's choir sings a childlike song. I also liked the scene as she struggles with her feelings on who she loves, embroidering the character "Feng" -"Wind" on one veil, and then on another veil embrodidering the character "Yun" Cloud. She then places both on her face - one after the other, (guess which veil she puts on her face first) symbolizing her conflicting love for the two of them. I enjoyed the subtlety of the acting - for example - when a very tragic event occurs, Feng/Wind's eyes become red, and a tear quietly drops, and you would not notice it because the focus is on another actor, and yet this occurs in the background (!). I found that immensely immersing. I believe this film will appeal to all those who enjoy exciting visuals and a larger than life story. I'm writing very much from a woman's viewpoint, but the comic sold mostly to young men, so the movie will be enjoyed by both men and women.
Rating:
Summary: Hong Kong Fantasy Cinema at its best!
Review: I grew up with HK cinema, but this is at the top - for the comic magazine/swordplay genre. The Stormriders is based on the bestselling comic book by Ma Wing Shan. This DVD (the one Amazon.com sells - the Universe DVD) has extraordinary clarity of picture - thanks to Centro Digital Pictures (hint -when you see this company - the picture quality is crystal clear, the color totally lifelike - skin colors (the hardest to come out clear)are vibrant and awesome), and a gorgeous soundtrack in Cantonese and Mandarin. What I like about the Cantonese Soundtrack is that the voices of the individual actors are all so different and distinct, and when you hear the "bad guy" speak, his baritone voice is so commanding. There are also nice sets of removable subtitles in English and Chinese. The incredible attention paid to the technical aspects aside, the story is so entrancing with 3 young men - each so different in personality and physicality, all in love with a young woman who is the daughter of their future enemy. I loved this movie because of the subtlety of the acting, and the visual style of almost every scene such as the heart-stopping beauty of large Chinese characters scrolling down crosswise as a fightscene occurs that is a prophecy - while the soundtrack thunders underneath. Wow! And that's only in the first 15 minutes. The movie races with visuals that you can view again and again, and the 3 actors, Wind, Cloud and Frost each are represented by totally different men - this is what makes the movie so enjoyable. Wind (Nie Feng), played by Ekin Cheng is dressed in black leather (!), is gentle, thoughtful, polite, with long black hair and just happens to be one the top singers in Asia. Then there is Cloud (Bu Jingyen),played by Aaron Kwok - also a top singer in Asia- dressed in various leathers with Blue (!)black wavy hair, who is very tempetuous, physical and moody. Finally, there is Frost and who has reddish brown hair, dressed in brown leather and is sacrificing, calm and loyal. OK, do you get the picture? This is not the traditional swordfight movie, with the traditional heroes, instead these are very modern looking young men running around in fitted leather costumes looking breathtaking. But wait till you see the young woman who was Miss Photogenic Asia and is a native of Canada! She is absolutely cute and adorable. This is a swordplay movie - so the themes of clan loyalty, honor, filial piety, revenge, prophecy, undergirds the movie. The fight scenes are very stylistically displayed and my favorite fight scene is of Wind's father against Shinichi Chiba (yes - he of Japanese cinema fame) in the brilliant green bamboo forest as black and white pictures flash of Wind's mother's eyes meeting her husband's enemy's eyes sealing her husband's fate (got that?). My favorite visual scene is when Kong Ci (the daughter) is flying through the air on Wind's back through the "Sword grave" while fireflies dance around them, and a children's choir sings a childlike song. I also liked the scene as she struggles with her feelings on who she loves, embroidering the character "Feng" -"Wind" on one veil, and then on another veil embrodidering the character "Yun" Cloud. She then places both on her face - one after the other, (guess which veil she puts on her face first) symbolizing her conflicting love for the two of them. I believe this film will appeal to all those who enjoy exciting visuals, and because this film has quite a tragic romantic story that appeals.
Rating:
Summary: A thoroughly entertaining movie-----Eye candy for women!
Review: I normally do not watch these type of movies 'cause I usually think they're testosterone-laden. One look at the main stars: Aaron Kwok & Ekin Cheng and I was hooked! I was riveted to the screen! I may be a novice at HK movie viewing but I found the entire movie very entertaining. I want my own DVD!
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful update of original HK black/white tv shows
Review: Those of you who gave low ratings because the film did not resemble "traditional" hong kong kung fu shows obviously are not old enough to remember or have ever seen the original shows in black and white tv. Yes black and white! Storm Riders really brings back memories of those original shows where mythical heros cast supernatural weapons and creatures from their palms that dueled to the death. Back then some poor guy had to paint on the film negatives! In Storm Riders the same story themes are intact. Everything has just been updated with wonderfully overdone computer graphics! Yes some of it does look a bit Xena-like. But American movies still don't have the same timing as Hong Kong movies, even in the use of special effects. I saw this movie originally on VCD and now more recently on DVD and I have to say I enjoyed it even more the second time. I wish that it were in Cantonese so that I can understand it without having to read subtitles. In some ways this film is like Crouching Tiger. Crouching Tiger also carried the same mythical themes as those old b/w shows but for some reason, whereas Storm Riders feels like the original oldies, Crouching Tiger looks like a yuppified StarBucks coffee version of them.
Rating:
Summary: Slow start, sub-standard visual FX, poor fight choreography.
Review: Maybe I was expecting too much from Storm Riders. I expected serious Kung-Fu action, a fast paced story and some killer visual FX. The film is two plus hours but could be cut down to an hour and a half. Like most Kung-Fu films, the first hour is mostly unnecessary exposition, but unlike most Kung-Fu films, we are not treated to any decent fights sequences. When the fights do start to break out they are few and far between, relying more on 'Hercules/Xena' style Special FX than fight choreography. That is not to say that what is there isn't good, it is. It is the closest I have seen to Tekken style live action fighting. Water attacks, force bubbles, drilling a person into the ground, its all there. Unfortunately, the fights only last about 45 seconds. Save your money, rent this one.
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