SpuffyWeb Sadly Over-hyped

Reptileenbu Did you people see the same film I saw?

Payno I think this is a new genre that they're all sort of working their way through it and haven't got all the kinks worked out yet but it's a genre that works for me.

Guillelmina The film's masterful storytelling did its job. The message was clear. No need to overdo.

leonblackwood Review: I quite enjoyed this film, mainly because of the crazy lady who told load of lies to stay in the hotel but the action scenes wasn't that great, because of the shoddy camera work. Chow Yun-Fat puts in his usual great performance and the different characters also made it quite enjoyable. Once Chow Yun-Fat's character, The Killer, falls for the lying, cheating and very deceptive girl, the storyline does get a bit weak but the witty storyline and original concept beforehand, was great. Although the movie is full of subtitles, it's still easy to follow and the open ending was sad in one way but intriguing in another. Most of the movie is based around a hotel, with a Western backdrop, so the scale of the movie isn't that big but the ending was still pretty epic. With that aside, everything about this small budget movie worked and I'm slowly becoming a big fan of Chow Yun-Fat. Enjoyable! Round-Up: This was the first movie directed by Ka-Fai Wait, 54, in 1995 and he has gone on to direct 17 more movies for the Oriental market, which I personally haven't heard of. Chow Yun- Fat also wrote this movie with the director, and with the production skills of John Woo, it's not surprising that this project turned out so well. I recommend this movie to people who are into their action/crime/drama/romance/westerns starring Chow Yun-Fat, Cecilia Yip, Ho Chin and Shun Lau. 5/10

Paul Magne Haakonsen Well, this was sort of interesting, but not really in an overly great way. A typical western (cowboy) movie that is mixed with a traditional Chinese setting. It just didn't really come off as something that was particularly good.For a Chow Yun-Fat movie, then I was rather disappointed with this. Sure, he did perform well enough, but the story and the setting of the movie was just not working in his favor. I am sure there are someone out there who find this approach of a Hong Kong movie to be interest. Sure, I will agree that it was unorthodox, but I am not going to agree to it being a good concept.The story in "Peace Hotel" is about 'The Killer' (played by Chow Yun-Fat) who witness his wife being murdered and hellbent on revenge he kills every single person responsible. Then to repent, he builds a hotel, naming it Peace Hotel. This hotel becomes a safe haven for all who come to it, without anyone asking about one's past and will be protected as long as one stays within the confines of the hotel. Then one day a woman in a red dress shows up, claiming to be the long lost wife of the owner of the hotel, and hot on her tail is a gang of ruthless men.I will say that the movie was well enough acted, though at certain times it was a bit forced and over the edge, going just a notch too far in extreme display. And there was some subtle attempts at comedy, which for most parts worked out well enough. And why not throw in a musical act while at it - wait, wait, that's right, there was a musical act in the middle of the movie. That was just too much and made the movie come off as more of a joke than it came off as serious.For a Hong Kong movie, then "Peace Hotel" isn't much of an impressive movie. Even from the moment the DVD menu popped up, I knew it was going to be bad, because it even said "A John Woo production" on that DVD menu. What the... Are you kidding me? It was so lame, and reeked of low budget production.The movie itself actually had a good production value, and had some good camera work to it as well. The action scenes were adequate, but nowhere near anything even remotely close to what you'd expect from a Chow Yun-Fat movie, despite it this being the last Hong Kong movie he made before rocketing off to bigger fame and fortune in Hollywood. If you are a fan of Chow Yun-Fat, then "Peace Hotel" is a good enough watch, but if you are a fan of Hong Kong cinema, then "Peace Hotel" is not really a good addition or choice of entertainment.

morrighan_rising This movie is absolutely gripping from beginning to end. Chow Yun Fat is magnificent as always, Cecilia Yip is appropriately dramatic without being annoying, and the storyline is engaging. The fight scenes are more stylistic than the ultra-violent bloodfests in his Woo films, but they don't lose any impact for the stylism. There are certain images and scenes in this movie that will really stand out when you watch it, and Chow Yun Fat's amazing ability to convey a character's entire past with one silent glare is on full display. The splice scenes at the end, which reference the beginning, are masterfully done and heighten the climax of the movie, keeping a sense of tension throughout the last half hour that does not let you go before the credits roll. I wish the climactic fight scene had not been so blurred and hyper-distorted, but that's because I'm a huge fan of Chow Yun Fat's gun-fu acrobatics and this just wasn't the movie for that. In general, Peace Hotel had more drama and better acting (plus a better script) than I expected, and in many ways is more brutal than one of his Woo films even though Woo's buckets of blood aren't on display here. The brutality is more up-close and personal, and thus it seems to hit harder and stay with you longer. This is definitely one to own if you're a Chow Yun Fat fan.

Brucev-3 When people hear the name Chow yan fat, they associate him with John Woo, of course this is not bad thing. Chow yan fat certainly is the master of heroic bloodshed. But he is foremost a very charismatic and good actor. In Peace Hotel you get an example of very good acting by him. He really carries the movie. The story plays in the wild west of China ( an eastern instead of western, this gives the whole story a very original approach)in which several gangs are at war with each other and where there is one neutral place where everyone is welcome, and where no one will dare to use their weapons. This is because they respect the owner of this " Peace Hotel " (Chow Yan Fat). Everyone believes he is a very notorius killer (the rumour in the movie goes that Chow Yan Fat came to that hotel and killed everyone in sight without remorse and since that event he stayed in the hotel, to maintain the piece. It is a delight to see and find out why Chow Yan Fat did all this and why he stays at this hotel! At first Chow Yan Fat is very sympethatic, but later on you can see that Chow Yan Fat can be a bad motherf###. There is also some very interesting character development from the other actors. The action is brutal and fierce, like it is in real life, so do not expect beautiful filmed action sequences. But do not fear them also, because they fit the story very well.So go watch this movie, if you are ready for a very different HK action movie.