Swordsmen

Swordsmen, also known as Wu Xia, is a 2011 film directed by Peter Chan and starring Donnie Yen and Takeshi Kaneshiro.

Liu Jinxi (Donnie Yen) is just a non-notable villager in a small village, but he was able to kill a pair of bandits, one of whom was a very skilled fighter and on the most-wanted list. Detective Xu Baijiu (Takeshi Kaneshiro) is sent to investigate.

Thus begins a martial arts thriller that asks touches on themes of law versus good and destiny versus free will.

Setting, Plot, and Themes

 * Emotions Versus Stoicism: Detective Xu Baijiu falls squarely on the Stoicism side, and he cites his past experiences as a justification. He has even used acupuncture to suppress the emotion of caring and mercy for others when it conflicts with upholding the law. The events of the film challenge this belief.
 * Love At First Sight: How the Lu Jinxi and his wife first met.
 * Sliding Scale of Free Will Versus Fate: A theme debated through the events of the film. For Lu Jinxi, it is whether . For Xu Baijiu, it is how much people choose to be evil and must be held back by law or how much circumstances may conspire to result in evil. These two characters actually sit down once and have a chat about destiny.
 * To Be Lawful or Good:
 * Wuxia: The setting--with small rural tribes and secret martial artists--is effectively this, even though the detective's western clothing is unusual for the genre, and the film is technically set in the early 20th century.
 * Wuxia: The setting--with small rural tribes and secret martial artists--is effectively this, even though the detective's western clothing is unusual for the genre, and the film is technically set in the early 20th century.

Characterization

 * Badass Normal:
 * Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Considering that a random paper mill worker named Lu Jinxi killed a skilled fighter and bandit who was on the most-wanted list, the detective deduces that Jinxi is not what he seems.
 * Good Is Not Nice: Xu Baijiu once released a juvenile offender to foster care, thinking said offender had reformed. The offender proceeded to poison his foster parents and almost Baijiu himself. Since then, he has resolved to not let people off the hook of the law easy, and to keep any instinct of mercy or kindness out of his work.
 * Heel Face Turn: Lu Jinxi, from . And later,.
 * Lawful Anal / Knight Templar: The detective, especially to Lu Jinxi. The Xu Baijiu explicitly states that law is the only source of true justice in the world, but Lu Jinxi has been trying to establish a new life free from his former crimes, through his personal repentance.
 * Old Master: He's practically a Lightning Bruiser, exhibiting excellent offense, defense, and speed.
 * The Don: The Master of the "72 Demons" gang of assassins.

Metacontext

 * Exactly What It Says On the Tin: The movie has a Wuxia setting, as indicated by the Chinese title of the film. Averted, however, with the English title, since the film has relatively few swordsmen.
 * Spiritual Successor: Director Peter Chan cited the 1967 movie One Armed Swordsman as a major inspiration, and he and Donnie Yen decided to indirectly reference that movie in this one.
 * Whole-Plot Reference: largely a remake of.