16 years ago the original Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was released. It quickly became one of the greatest martial arts films. Now we have a sequel with none of the creative team behind the original and only one returning cast member.

 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny is a Netflix original movie with none of what made the original so great. The action in this film feels wrong. It is often boring and most likely will not hold your attention for long. The film also focuses too much on the action. While the stunt work should be commended, it does not take away from the fact that the action is uninspired. The original focused on telling a great story. The sequel focuses more on pointless action sequences with a poor narrative. I had little clue as to what was happening 45 minutes into this movie. The choice to film in New Zealand also was an odd choice. Rather than feel like 19th century China, Sword of Destiny feels more like it is in Middle Earth.

There seems to be a lack of care in this film. The acting is mostly stiff and a large amount of action sequences are hurt even more by the lack of effort put in. The original featured action sequences that were original and inventive. Sword of Destiny  does nothing new and reuses the same stunts, but to a less than desired effect. Nothing in this film feels fun.

This is a shorter review because there is very little to say about this movie, and not much of that is good. Simply put, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny is not enjoyable. A movie with the amount of action as this should not be boring and a chore to finish. I almost had to re-watch the film because it is very forgettable. Fans of the original will most likely not enjoy this movie, and neither will casual movie viewers. Sword of Destiny uses the original’s name to try and gain some credibility.

Rating: If you want something to watch on Netlix, watch one of the shows, this is not worth your time.