The story line is all about a young girl named Dina, who is chosen by the Bright Sword to be its owner. Since she is chosen by the Bright Sword, this means that she must defend the animal tribe, the elves, and the humans against the Dark Lord. But before she is able to utilize the Bright Sword to its full capacity, she must find all of the Bright Gems.
I love how unpredictable the story line is. I truly haven't seen a storyline quite like this one, so it intrigued me. I was very impressed by the cinematography of this film. You can tell that this is a high quality production. Although there are some scenes, like the opening of the film where the audio doesn't match the visuals, that aren't as well edited; but there are more scenes such as the slow motion shots that are made with high quality. The costumes are all very unique and well thought out. They suit the story line and the time period. The costumes are very detailed and high quality. The sets and locations are quite beautiful. Most of them are outdoors, in a forest. I love that the sets fit the storyline seamlessly and contribute to the authenticity of the film. The background music is a major part in setting the mood for the various scenes. The sound effects paired with the visual effects add to the realistic look of the film. The music drives the action in the film by building up the tension and creating suspense. The visual effects aren't the best, but they contribute significantly to the film. The special effects are essential to the plot of the story and add to the experience of watching the film.
The actors in this film are amazing. The majority of the talent are children, and they are surprisingly all amazingly competent actors, singers and dancers. I was very impressed with all of the actors in the film. I learned a little bit of Chinese from watching this film, just by hearing some words repeated. The dialogue is in Chinese with English subtitles. My favorite part of the film is whenever Dina is able to show that she is worthy of the Bright Sword.
The message of this film is about unity and peace. The different groups, who were former enemies, need to work together in order to defeat evil. You should know that it shows kids doing risk y things that kids might imitate. There is a lot of fighting in the film as well as the use of weapons.
I give this film 4 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 8 to 18, plus adults. It is a family friendly film that would entertain both children and parents. I believe that this is a film almost anybody would enjoy watching. Reviewed by Jolleen M., KIDS FIRST!
Saving the Earth1 - Devil Rebirth focuses on the human Dina who accidently stumbled upon the Bright Sword - a mystical sword with unfathomable power. Dina comes to know that the Dark Lord, a powerful evil force, has been reborn and seeks to take over the world. Dina receives the advice of an elder on how to defeat the Dark Lord by means of collecting three Bright Gems that bring out the true power of the sword. However, the three gems are separated between the elves, the animals and the humans that all despise each other. The story follows Dian's path as she collects the gems and meets new friends along the way.
This is a film designed for a school-aged audience. The story is entertaining and, even though it happens it rather quickly, it is fun to see how three species that hate each other are forced to work together for the betterment of their continent. However, the audio has some issues. On many occasions, the sounds do resemble the actions closely enough. There are incongruities with the audio when some characters speak.
The entire cast is made up of children, which allows the child viewer the film to put themselves into the scenario. There are also a handful of quirky jokes that children will find funny. For instance, in Dina's first fight she cuts the pants off of her attacker to reveal his "unmanly" underwear. The story flows pretty well. There are a few plot holes, but nothing significant that detracts from the overall storyline. The character development is pretty good. Each main character develops enough that the audience understands their purpose and why they make the choices that they do. The film's original language is Chinese and some phrases get lost in translating to English subtitles. Sometimes they do not make grammatical sense, but they make enough sense that you can figure out what is happening. With regards to vocabulary, the film has simple word choices with the exception of the use of "presumptuous."
The production quality is quite good and the film excels at catching the beauty of nature. However, some scenes are subpar, particularly when editing is required as it is blatantly obvious that an edit was made. For example, in the final battle when the Dark Lord arrives, he is floats into the scene and it is clear that he has been edited into that scene. The costumes are another place with inconsistences. The elves wear rather nice costumes that resemble elves from other films and the humans have rather nice armor. Then, with the animals, some of the costumes consist of the carcass of a dead animal, which is not rally suitable for younger audiences, and others are face paint or animal onesies. With a rather easy plot to follow, the film pieces itself together. If you can overlook the audio mistakes and problematic editing, then the film is rather entertaining for younger audiences.
The film teaches some good lessons of cooperation and acceptance. The three Bright Gems symbolize wisdom, courage and kindness - all traits that are essential in everyday life. Also, the story surrounds three subgroups that despise each other and they learn to work together and appreciate each other. These lessons are important, not only for the plot of the film but for children to learn. The film encourages you to use your wisdom, courage and kindness in everyday life. There are some questionable scenes parents should be aware of. First are the animals wearing "dead carcasses" as their costumes. However, the carcass costumes are clearly made of plastic and the characters don't acknowledge that their costume is a dead animal. There is also a scene where a boy hits a girl so hard that it looks like she coughs up blood, but the fluid that comes out of her is barely visible.
I give this film 3 out of 5 stars and recommend it for ages 8 to 15. Reviewed by Ray R. and team.
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