User Reviews

Just like most indie films, the cover looked enticing. I'm going to start with the downsides, then talk about the better parts.

Right away, one can tell that this was filmed on a 1 CCD MiniDV camera. Almost all the speech is ADR - definitely using an omni-mic on set. The music was clearly done by an amateur in some sound effects program, with a few samples. The ambient noise varies from one shot to the other, creating obvious cuts. One can often tell that multiple "locations" were made from the same room. To computer effects were extremely obvious, and the lack of props and squibs was almost painful. The speech was very uneasy, and the acting was simply poor; I would credit the vocal aspect of this to the ADR. Unfortunately, where there was ADR, it was very poorly lip-sync'd. Shots were carried out far too long, and the camera was much too stationary. Furthermore, anyone who studies martial arts would know that hanging your head un-realistically low while walking around with sun glasses, a trench coat and black sweater on is completely foolish. Not to mention not holstering your gun... though I suppose a martial arts master wouldn't need one, now would he? Through a less technical look... The story was told to you, not shown to you. The plot was very shallow, and each "major" point was rather minor. I would say there was about 15 minutes of actual content.

Now the good parts: They did it without much cash, it got published, and they put effort into it.

I have been having trouble with weight gain, and then I found this film. I now know what eating disorder is. You eat too much then watch Dinner with an Assassin and head for the bathroom. I've been watching it now for a month and I've lost 40 lbs. it's the first movie that I have ever seen that successfully pulls off the "cheap animated cartoon style" with live people!! The actors only move their mouths once for each sentence and they only change positions once each five minutes, even in the fight scenes.

A serious word of caution "DO NOT WATCH THIS MOVIE ON A GOOD TELEVISION" You will start throwing things at it and you might break it. This movie does deserve one big credit. It had a total production budget of less than $100 and it still made it to the rentals!! A sick flick, with a stringy headed chick and an acting hick that pulls a trick on any one silly enough to rent it.

The action choreography of Eric Blaze is way above average for your typical American low-budget movie. Quality martial arts action takes place in the second half of the film and is quite plentiful and varied. All of the screen fighters including John Jet exceed standards. With Jet, dual frying pans become blunt weapons, thrown knives are kicked back at their owner and as many as three attackers are juggled at once through a combination of deflections, slick knife handling and kicks. The main fights see Jet taking on McCullough on the restaurant's roof and Jet battling a samurai sword-wielding Lee. But the best encounter is between Jet and an attacker who shall remain nameless so as not to spoil a plot twist. After being disarmed, the attacker breaks out into what looks like Snake Fist kung fu. This is a terrific and unexpected surprise to see a traditional form where it probably doesn't belong. It's a gamble that pays off thanks to its excellent execution.

Less successfully executed is the gunplay. The hardware and handling of it is fine, but the use of budget CGI effects in place of squibs and other live effects cheapens the look of the scenes they appear in. The throwing knives are also obviously digitally painted in. These are relatively minor gripes, however, that could have been easily resolved with more funding.

Dinner with as Assassin is a fine example of how to turn a modest production into an engaging nail-biter where a simple face-off between assassins becomes significantly more involved. It starts out a little slow, but tight direction and scripting pays off in the end with polished martial arts action and a wicked ending.

See rest of review on http://www.kungfucinema.com