The Old Way takes the audience into a bleak, rough world where crime is the order of the day and where there is no other way of living other than through brutality. The narrative revolves around Peng Yinan who is a brutal gangster whose only interest is money and his brothers undertake the risky rivers and mountains of the bandits and blood debts. The tone of the film is grim and extreme, as the starkness of the lawless world is highlighted. The plot also effectively mixes ancient vengeances with personal ones and sets the tense atmosphere that keeps you on the edge. The fact that Peng Yinan can foresee vengeance and justice to the point that he is relentless also contributes to the complexity as a character who is stuck between brutal and having a sense of honor.
The action sequences are visceral and visceral, the violent and savage nature of mountain robberies and violent bouts. The performances are rough but Peng Yinan stands out as a threatening but a captivating figure and more importantly, Zhuang Yue is a light amid the darkness in offering a touch of moral dilemma in the faces of anarchy. The pessimistic countryside is further reinforced by the cinematography, which focuses on the harsh, unforgiving nature of the setting that contributes to the violence and desperation of the story. The movement is quite rapid, alternating high action and scenes of emotional interest, especially when it comes to the conflicts that display the internal forces and devotion of the characters.
What spoke most was that the film touched upon the issue of morality in the face of chaos. It pushed me to think about how, in the most inhumane situations, there may turn out to be moments of compassion and honor. The Old Way is a powerful impactful work of a crude, unforgiving revenge story of loyalty and righteousness in an anarchic world. It is a very dirty, sometimes violent movie that leaves you feeling out of place with a feeling of chaos and moral grayness and leaves you left wondering whether or not there is any form of redemption in the world where violence is the only language.
