Assassination

A sensationally entertaining mash-up of historical drama, "Dirty Dozen" style shoot-'em-up, spaghetti Western-flavored flamboyance, and extended action set pieces that suggest a dream-team collaboration of Sergio Leone, John Woo and Steven Spielberg.

Brimming with characters - many in near-identical military garb - and bristling with double crosses, this unnecessarily lengthy homage to resistance chooses breadth over depth at every turn.

Working off a budget of $16 million, filmmaker Choi Dong-hoon keeps the unapologetically mainstream but twisty story moving along engagingly despite some less-than-seamless shifts in time.

For better and worse, South Korean period adventure Assassination is the kind of overstuffed historical mega-production that Hollywood doesn't make anymore.

simply a great action movie.

As strands of storyline feverishly tie themselves up through twists and coincidences, the double and triple crosses fade in impact next to the poise of Choi's all-star cast.

As far as glossy blockbuster craft goes, Assassination is a top-notch package.

Delivers beautifully crafted action sequences, a colorful gallery of characters and far more story than it needs.

Exciting action scenes and stunning visuals, but overlong, somewhat exhausting and overstuffed with too many forgettable characters. Less would have been more.