Once touted as Keanu Reeves’ big return to martial arts action, Samurai tale** 47 Ronin** has instead been busy fighting negative buzz about runaway production schedules, squabbles between director Carl Rinsch and the executives, rising costs and shifting release dates. So it’s almost a surprise to see the first promo posters for the film escape into the world, whether officially or not. Take a look in the gallery below.
Ronin, which features Keanu alongside a mostly Asian cast (including Rinko Kikuchi, Hiroyuki Sanada and Cary-Hiroyuki-Tagawa), finds a band of Samurai warriors in 18th century Japan seeking to avenge their master’s death.
It’s all based on a real account of a group of Ronin (masterless Samurai) who really did undertake such a mission, and it's a story that has been embellished and altered through the years in Japan to become a mainstay of the culture.
The film version adds in various elements, including some more fantastical trappings (witches, giants etc.) and Keanu’s character, who is apparently half-Japanese and half-British.
This is, of course, just the first glimpse. We’ll have to wait and see a trailer to get a real sense of the movie. It's set to arrive across the pond on December 25. But here’s a question to be going on with – are you hopeful for this one?