Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale (2012)

73% of critics liked it
(11 reviews)
84% of users liked it
(3,250 ratings)

Wei Te-sheng's epic film Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale reclaims an extraordinary episode from 20thcentury history which is little-known, even in Taiwan. Between 1895 and 1945, the island was a Japanese colony inhabited not only by the majority (Han Chinese Immigrants) but also by the remnants… More Wei Te-sheng's epic film Warriors of the Rainbow: Seediq Bale reclaims an extraordinary episode from 20thcentury history which is little-known, even in Taiwan. Between 1895 and 1945, the island was a Japanese colony inhabited not only by the majority (Han Chinese Immigrants) but also by the remnants of the aboriginal tribes who first settled the mountainous land. In 1930 Mouna Rudo, the leader of the Seediq tribe settled on and around Mount Chilai, forged a coalition with other Seediq tribal leaders and plotted a rebellion against their Japanese colonial masters. The initial uprising took the Japanese by surprise and was almost entirely successful. But the Japanese soon sent in their army to crush the rebellion, using aircraft and poison gas. -- (C) Official Site

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Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 2 hr. 30 min.
Directed By: Te-Sheng Wei
Written By: Te-Sheng Wei
Genres: Drama

In Theaters: Apr 27, 2012 Limited
Studio: Well Go USA Inc.

Critic Reviews

Adam Nayman, Globe and Mail
At times, Warriors sacrifices dramatic nuance for scale, but even its most rousing passages are tempered by a sense of loss.
G. Allen Johnson, San Francisco Chronicle
You can see why Woo, the noted Hong Kong action director, would want to produce it: It fits right in with his "heroic bloodshed" cinematic legacy.
Stephen Holden, New York Times
As the war drags on, "Warriors of the Rainbow" outstays its welcome. I've never seen more severed heads in a film and cared less.
Bruce Demara, Toronto Star
An ambitious, blood-soaked retelling of an uprising by Taiwanese natives against Japanese occupiers.
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times
At 2 1/2 hours, "Warriors" is a bruising, relentless experience, one more tiring than inspiring.
Nick Schager, Village Voice
The film's alternating talky torpor and frantic mayhem makes Warriors feel like it's operating in either fast-forward or slow motion...
Todd Jorgenson, Cinemalogue.com
The film includes some stunning visuals, including a few terrific jungle battle scenes.
Marc Savlov, Austin Chronicle
Given China's ongoing interest in the island and its unknowable future, this historical backstory behind current events is welcome indeed.
Daniel Eagan, Film Journal International
Taiwanese natives battle occupying Japanese forces in a doomed uprising. Exciting if exhausting account of a real-life incident.
Noel Murray, AV Club
At two and a half hours, Warriors Of The Rainbow has the shape of something weightier than the simplified good-vs.-evil movie it actually is.
Michael Nordine, Slant Magazine
There's something to be said about a two-and-a-half-hour war epic that manages to make each of its countless decapitation scenes feel earned, even called for, in the moment.