Review
7 Guardians of the Tomb (Adventure) (2018)
Director: Kimble Rendall
Writers: Gary Hamilton (story), Jonathan Scanlon (story), Kimble Rendall (story),
Paul Staheli (screenplay)
Stars: Bingbing Li, Kellan Lutz, Stef Dawson, Kelsey Grammer
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Buried in the Chinese sands lies a long lost secret, a mystery stumbled upon by Jia’s brother Luke. Who soon after his discovery stops contacting his sister, who grows worried and leads an expedition to the newly discovered ruins.
The group, Luke’s sister Jia, sets out with is quickly struck by all manner of unfortunate events and are confronted by almost supernatural circumstances. As the situation becomes more dire, the true nature of certain members of the expedition shows and the main antagonists might not be the only problem anymore.
If anything, 7 Guardians of the Tomb is a throwback to old school adventure movies; highly reminiscent of Tomb Raider. There’s not a lot that sets it apart from similar films in the genre, but it is apparent they tried to create a unique setting, at least in feel. Even though it markets itself as an adventure movie; horror genre elements are not far around the corner, which is something that not many movies try, even though it can work out quite well. This decision also serves as a good catalyst, setting everything following into motion. Due to the co-production between Australian and Chinese companies, the film plays host to a diverse cast of Asian, American and Australian actors, which was a breath of fresh air even though it was set back by poor acting performances overall. Especially by the more unknown actors. Kelsey Grammar is one of the biggest selling points along with the genre, not only as a familiar face but as a reputable actor as well. It’s clear that without his face on the cover or his performance in the movie, it would have faired a lot worse.
As noted before; the film is a throwback to classic adventure movies, and it shows that the directors have a good understanding of the genre due to: An overarching plot leading to a ruined civilization, all too familiar characters, several story details later on which I won’t spoil.
Is the plot quite obvious? Yes. Are the characters a little too generic? Yes. Does it have its faults? Most definitely. But in the end, it is a solid attempt at an adventure movie, and it manages to keep the viewer engages, wondering what happens next, and as long as it does that… It accomplishes what it’s set out to do, entertain the crowd to a certain extent.
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Verdict
Obvious, Generic and far from Oscar-worthy. But fundamentally just like the adventure movies of old.
5,5
