The Drummer

What more could someone want than to find their true identity and strength. All of the characters, good and bad, are beautifully developed so we can better understand the changes that take place in their personalities. The cinematography is splendid and the actors do a grate job with an involved subject. I've been lucky enough to see two performances of this drumming and felt inspired each time. Inspired to better know my self and to slow down and enjoy the world I live in. I'm glad I got to see how the training and discipline they practice prepares them for the stage.The action in this movie is beautiful but not for the viewer who likes violent fights. It is slow paced, though, so you will need some patience to see how the story unfolds. So this might not be the movie for fans of gangsters killing each other. People do die, but not with the blood and gore of "real" action movies.I was also pleased to see Jackie Chan's son in a film. I thought he did a fine job and look forward to seeing him again.

This film offers a different take on growing up. Sure, many recognizable story elements are in place, but for me, this movie provided many different opportunities to relate, and appreciate, the growth and maturation of the characters.I've watched this several times, a luxury towards film that has diminished over time. As I get older, my days have become more full and my values have changed; to want to watch a movie more than once strikes me as peculiar for a variety of reasons. Thus, I'm a bit reluctant to share details to a new viewer.I will say this, purposefully dancing around details. There's a quality to the film that I can best describe as "authenticity". Yes, dramatic license is taken, and this _is_ a storybook tale, but if you're willing to walk with the film at its own pace, to hold back on assigning expectation or judgment, I think you may find that this movie will touch you.I wish I could have a conversation with each of you that watches this. I cherish this movie in some ways, and sharing a story like this with others is a lot of fun for me.I encourage you to watch this movie, and I hope you enjoy it as I did.

As a 43 year. practitioner of Zen (Chan in China), I was pleased to see a film so thoroughly grounded in Buddhist principles. I wish only that the principle of nonviolence was made more explicit. I also have a slight regret that the Buddhist principles that. underlie this films portrait of a drumming community was also a bit more. explicit. It is. almost as if the director/writer were afraid to name the Buddha and his teachings. But, if the Buddha was lost, he was also found in the portrait of this community and a small Enlightenment that was so important to the film's protagonist and his father.

Really well done. Good storytelling of redemption and power of kindness. Story a bit slow in the first 15 minutes. As soon as the sound of drumming starts, both the main character and YOU, the audience, will be lured into the story. In our modern society dominated by video games of gun-shooting, good to see that there are other ways to take us out of reality. Highly recommended! In think even jaded teenages would find this story intriguing :-)

An Excellent Movie! So artistic especially the contrast between the gangsters reality his father leads in and the Zenic Drumming realm so tranquil, eco-friendly, and even powerful with all physical/martial art elements that requires for a world class drumming team.It has the state of the art realization and in depth.The music in the background through out the whole running time was also exquisite dominated by very profound cello tunes.The ending of the movie was quite proper that he, in illusion, listens to the sound of drums that calls for his participation in a compelling situation of gun-pointing against his friendly uncle who is also the killer of his father.Encountering Jay See Chan, the son of revered Jackie Chan for the 1st time was a thrill of it's kind.His face was so obvious to remind his father.

This movie really grew on me. “Show; don’t tell” is an admonition to all creative writers, and this movie does a superb job of showing Zen at work, without telling it to death. The same is true of the transformation of the main character. Beautifully done and very effective! As others have said, the drummers (a real group, btw) are stunning in every way. The cinematography is, too. A quick warning about the violence: there are violent scenes here, and at first, I was put off by that violence, but as the movie progressed, it became clear why it had to be there. Highly recommended.

I am a professional Japanese taiko player/teacher. Although this was a Chinese movie the philosophy behind the drumming group in the movie is similar to what I learned in my 7 years of studying, performing, and teaching this ancient art form. The story that brought the star to this mountainside group is a little contrived, or maybe not since my knowledge of Chinese gangs is much smaller than what I know about Japan. If the reader is a fan of dynamic, mesmerizing music and is interested in learning the kind of discipline, attitude, respect, and responsibility necessary to actually be a part of this kind of group they will love this movie.

This is a VERY excellent movie. I am conservative in ratings and believe that 5-stars must be reserved for exceptional films. It would be better to use a 10-star system because the subtleties of such a system allows for finer distinctions between very excellent films and films that are quite extraordinary but not exceptional. The cinematography of this film was a exceptional, the acting was very good, but the story was predictable.