Kai—an outcast—joins Oishi, the leader of 47 outcast samurai. Together they seek vengeance upon the treacherous overlord who killed their master and banished their kind. To restore honour to their homeland, the warriors embark upon a quest that challenges them with a series of trials that would destroy ordinary warriors.
47 Ronin is admirably devoted to its material, but it's almost tedious to watch.
– David Hiltbrand,
Philadelphia Inquirer,
26 Dec 2013
rotten:
Believe it or not, for all its additions, it's too respectful. You want it to be funnier, crazier.
– Bilge Ebiri,
New York Magazine/Vulture,
26 Dec 2013
fresh:
A singular viewing experience: a multi-colored downer fantasy which combines bursts of imagination with a bleak worldview, resulting in something that rarely feels mainstream.
– Ignatiy Vishnevetsky,
AV Club,
27 Dec 2013
rotten:
The pacing is cloddish and tone unaccountably dour.
– Ben Sachs,
Chicago Reader,
3 Jan 2014
rotten:
There's nothing pretty or exciting about this movie (inexplicably, it's in 3-D), even when all anyone's doing is fighting.