Dragon Blade

"When the Eagle meets the Dragon"

2015 2h 7m ZH

😐

6.4

MID

★6.4TMDB · 655

AdventureHistoryActionFantasy

Synopsis

Spoiler shield

Huo An, the commander of the Protection Squad of the Western Regions, was framed by evil forces and becomes enslaved. On the other hand, a Roman general escapes to China after rescuing the Prince. The heroic duo meet in the Western Desert and a thrilling story unfolds.

“When the Eagle meets the Dragon”

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Cast

Jackie Chan
Huo Han
John Cusack
Lucius
Adrien Brody
Tiberius
Sharni Vinson
The Queen
Kevin Lee
Roman Soldier
Robert Peoples
Roman Soldier
Tomer Oz
Huo An General
Alfred Hsing
Han Soldier

Credits

Behind the camera

Director: Daniel Lee
Writers: Daniel Lee
Languages: English, Mandarin
Countries: Hong Kong, China

Want more? Switch to Cinephile mode in the header for DP, composer, budget, box office, production companies, keywords, and release history.

Did you know?

Fun facts 🍿

1 / 8

MONEY

Did you know

Mid-budget at $65M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.

MoodPlayr · trivia#01

2 / 8

ERA

Did you know

Released 11 years ago.

MoodPlayr · trivia#02

3 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Mandarin.

MoodPlayr · trivia#03

4 / 8

WORLD

Did you know

International production across 2 countries: Hong Kong, China.

MoodPlayr · trivia#04

5 / 8

DIRECTOR

Did you know

Directed by Daniel Lee, shot by Tony Cheng. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.

MoodPlayr · trivia#05

6 / 8

CAST

Did you know

Jackie Chan and John Cusack and Adrien Brody carry the top of the cast.

MoodPlayr · trivia#06

7 / 8

FACT

Did you know

Marketing tagline: "When the Eagle meets the Dragon".

MoodPlayr · trivia#07

8 / 8

WILD

Did you know

IMDB entry: tt3672840 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

MoodPlayr · trivia#08

Cinephile deep dive

The take

Daniel Lee directs. Tony Cheng behind the camera. Profitable at the box office. Produced in Hong Kong, China. Dialogue in English, Mandarin.

Trivia

Things worth knowing

1Mid-budget at $65M — the now-extinct middle tier of Hollywood.
2Released 11 years ago.
3Dialogue crosses 2 languages: English, Mandarin.
4International production across 2 countries: Hong Kong, China.
5Directed by Daniel Lee, shot by Tony Cheng. Note their partnership — DPs and directors often return to each other across a career.
6Jackie Chan and John Cusack and Adrien Brody carry the top of the cast.
7Marketing tagline: "When the Eagle meets the Dragon".
8IMDB entry: tt3672840 — still the authoritative cross-reference for credits and trivia.

The technical file

Cinematography: Tony Cheng
VFX supervisor: Charles Lee
Sound: Phyllis Cheng
Stunt coordinator: He Jun
Runtime: 127 min · 2h 7m
Aspect ratio (typical): 1.37:1 (Academy)
Status: Released
Budget: $65,000,000
Box office: $121,545,703
Return: 187% of budget
Original language: ZH
Certification (US): R
IMDB: Dragon Blade (2015)

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Daniel Lee

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Community reviews

What people are saying

Wuchak2019-04-27
★ 5/10
East meets West on the Silk Road in this hyperactive action/adventure In 48 BC, a peace-promoting protection squad on the Silk Road in Northwestern China is assigned to construction work at Wild Geese Gate wherein they are assisted by a fugitive legion of Romans led by General Lucius (John Cusack), who befriends the leader of the security company (Jackie Chan). When shady Roman leader Tiberius (Adrien Brody) arrives with an army of 100,000, the other two groups team-up against them. Supposedly inspired by real-life events, "Dragon Blade" (2015) is a Chinese action/adventure that cost $65 million and looks it. The film is top-of-the-line as far as production quality goes (score, cast, costumes, sets, quick editing, locations, etc.). Chan is entertaining as usual while Cusack and Brody surprisingly tower in their roles (I say “surprisingly” because I wouldn’t have imagined them cutting it as Roman commanders in the ancient past). The tone is serious with goofy quick-edited action and a modest amount of humor that’s actually funny. If you happened upon any 2-3 minutes of this film you’d automatically think that it was a very worthy adventure flick. Unfortunately, it’s too manic for its own good. I tried to adapt to its hyper tone and did so until just past the halfway mark when the overkill action style pretty much lost me. I endured to the end, but it was difficult. It seriously needed to slow down and cultivate depth (but at least it tries to at times). “Dragon Blade” lacks the confident poise of the excellent “Mongol: The Rise of Genghis Khan” (2007) and instead shoots for overKILL. Consider the frenzied pace of the 2011 version of “Conan the Barbarian,” but up the ante a couple of notches. That’s this movie. The film runs 2 hours, 7 minutes and was shot in Hengdian and Dunhuang, China, as well as the Gobi Desert. GRADE: C

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