3. 13 Assassins (2010, Japan, UK)
From Legendary director Takashi Miike, who is known for his movies Ichi the Killer and Audition. This is one of his most mainstream movies and one of his best. 13 Assassins follows a simple premise. A small number of skilled warriors have to take on an army. Set in 1844 in Feudal Japan, there is a cruel Lord who is gaining power. 13 samurais team up to take on his army in order to kill him and save Japan. The 13 warriors go to a small town and prepare to take on the Lord's 200 warriors. 13 Assassins is basically set into two parts. The first half is the introduction of the 13 characters and a demonstration of how evil their enemy it is. It allows for individual character building, making the viewer connect with them as they prepare for a suicide mission. The second half is a hour long battle with some great martial arts. The set, which is a Feudal Japanese town is spectacular and full of inventive booby traps. Leading to surprises within the battle and sustaining the action so that it's never boring. The thing is, the premise is so simple and it's been done so many times before, you have to really see this movie to see why it stands out from the rest.