Hero
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Movie Reviews of Hero
Movie Review: A Masterpiece - you will not forget this movie
Summary: 5 Stars
A movie of this complexity really cannot be described without the reviewer sounding like they think they are the next world famous movie critic. Plus, a movie of this calibur is tough to review without becoming too verbose. That being said, I do not fashion myself a movie critic by any means, and I will try to keep my review concise.
Summary? This movie is nothing less than a masterpiece.
I stumbled upon this movie quite accidentially. However, I am certainly glad I did. It is a simple story which is masterfully and flawlessly told. It unfolds before you like a carefully crafted series of chess moves, is very entertaining and engaging, and has a few twists along the way.
A point that must be made is that this is not a "kung-fu" movie. It has action scenes that will please any martial arts fan, but this movie is so much more.
Although I preferred the musical score of Crouching Tiger to Hero (it seemed as if Hero's music was heavily influenced by Crouching Tiger), the score is very enjoyable and perfectly suited to the movie.
What can I say about the other major components? Set design and shooting locations were almost flawless and in most cases absolutely stunning. It struck me that maybe Crouching Tiger's (ok, so I'm a big fan) outdoor lighting (effective use of time of day) may have been more dramatic than Hero, but Hero is still far and away better than virtually any other movie you are likely to have seen.
One of the main things this movie does more than any other movie I can recall was the effective use of color in costume and sets. Whoever thought of this and chose the actual color pallet (sp?) is no less than brilliant. It really is a visually beautiful movie.
This is one of the best movies I've ever seen at any and all levels. It's really not surprising that it's not a Hollywood original. I don't think they make them like this anymore.
Is this Communist propaganda like some have summized? I believe you need to view this film in it's historical perspective. Come on people! What was the set of ideals driving this part of the world during the era of the film? I believe it was one of self-sacrific and honor to the greater good. You don't necessarily have to agree with these principles to enjoy this movie! As a matter of fact, there are a couple of scenes (won't reveal them here) that on a personal level I certainly objected to. However, the characters actions were much like I would assume given their philosophies displayed.
Conclusion? You won't know what you're missing until you watch it. After you watch it, you will be forever glad you did.
Movie Review: Amazing film.. but takes some liberties...
Summary: 5 Stars
At the end of China`s warring states, the Kingdom of Qin is the most ambitious and ruthless of the seven states. Its` King is the target of assassins from all over China. Of all the would be assassins, Broken Sword (Tony Leung Chiu-wai), Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-yuk) and Sky (Donnie Yen) are the most dangerous. When Nameless (Jet Li) kills all three of them, he is offered a chance to meet the King. Nameless explains how he used their personal relationships to expose and attack their weaknesses, but - in a similar scenario to Akira Kurosawa`s Rashomon (1950) the King tells a different version of the same story....There`s no denying a lot of care was put into this film, it is amazingly shot and beautiful to watch (what do you expect when Wong Kar Wai`s cinematographer Chris Doyle is at the helm?). I liked the clever use of the colour scheme (green/red/white/blue) that was used by Zhang Yimou to emphasise different things.
An all star cast was assembled for this film - and everyone performs well in their own ways I think. Tony Leung and Maggie especially are excellent, turning in a performance which draws comparisons with the Wong Kar Wai movie In The Mood For Love (2000). Playing the role of Broken Swords servant Moon, Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, The Road Home) is gorgeous, though her turn perhaps reminded me of Jen Yu in Crouching Tiger too much, as if she`d phoned her performance in. Donnie Yen`s part is sadly also little more than an extended cameo, though his fight in the rain with Nameless (Jet Li) is very impressive.
Of course, comparisons are bound to be drawn between CTHD and this film - Maggie`s/Zhang Ziyi`s forest fight reminded me of the sword duel of the earlier CTHD, as did the balletic walking on water or flying through the air. To top it off, the composer Tan Dun wrote a score for Hero that is not too dissimilar to the one in CTHD (particularly at the beginning and end with the drums and violins).
If I have any complaints at all, I would have liked to have seen more character development and backstory. I also wasn't sure about the way the tyrannical King is portrayed as simply a misunderstood man, ignoring what he was really like in Ancient Chinese history and what he did to his people. This doesn't show the whole picture.
Plot gripes nothwithstanding, bear in mind that what we have here is essentially a Producer`s Cut of the film, assembled by American company Miramax and missing about 20 minutes from Zhang Yimou`s original vision. One can only hope the rumored Extended Edition of the film gets a release on DVD in Hong Kong or the US someday.
Overall though, I think this is an outstanding piece of cinema.
Movie Review: The Making of China
Summary: 5 Stars
"Hero" knocked my socks off. This was a absolutely spectacular piece of filmmaking which completely exceeded my expectations and showed me that the Chinese film industry is finally coming of age. I'm very impressed Mainland China is able to come up with a movie of this calibre. While it is true that some western viewers may not be familiar with the chapter of Chinese history this movie alludes to, the movie is strong enough that it should be able to overcome that handicap. Also viewers should keep in mind that, unlike "Crouching Tiger", this movie was made by Chinese for Chinese. First of all, let me just say that I'm no lover of the communist regime in China, and I'm well aware of Qin Shi Huang's (the first Emperor) cruel rule as a tyrant. However, "Hero" shows us that history is never black and white. It is difficult to catagorise someone like Qin Shihuang as simply evil or good for China, and we just have to accept him as he is.
Visually, "Hero" is perhaps the greatest achievement in mainland Chinese cinema...well, ever! The special effects, locations, scenary, etc. are all up to par with American movies. Zhang Yimou is obviously a director who loves his work, and it shows. Especially prominant is his meticulous use of colour (any who's seen the film will know what I'm talking about), which he embeds throughout the movie with loving care. My favourite scene is when Broken Sword duels with Qing Shihuang in the palace admist a sea of beautiful green drapes; the way the drapes all fall at the end of the scene was just sublime. Of course the swordfighting is as good as you'd expect from this sort of a movie. Jet Li is at his best, and it's obvious that he's much more comfortable as an actor when speaking his native language.
The acting in this movie is generally good, but the standout performance goes to Chen Daoming for his awesome portrayal of Qin Shihuang. Chen handles his multilayered and complex role with skill and creates a "villain" who, at the very least, is unforgettable.
As far as plot goes, I find the movie to have much less in common with "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" than movies like "Gangs of New York". "Crouching Tiger" was all about characters. "Hero" has memorable characters, but this movie is about nothing less than the Making of China. There is no better word than 'epic' to describe this film. More than anything else this movie shows us what China is all about. America was born in the streets (so says "Gangs of NY"), but China was born through the sacrifices, ambiguities, and tragedies of these blood-stained pages in history. I have never been more proud of being Chinese.
Movie Review: Orb in the movie? I think so.
Summary: 5 Stars
Fist of all I would like to say wow! When I watched the film for the first time it was like looking at a beautiful painting for the first time. It felt like pure art and that is exacly what it is. Art. The film is about a warrior who has defeated the three most threatening assassins to his king. In return for his efforts he is awarded money, land but most of all the privlige to sit within ten paces of the king. As the warrior tells the king of how he defeated these three brilliant assassins we go back in time and get a quite stunning visual interpretation of the warriors story. However the king is not convinced of this story as he knows of these assassins and almost lost his life to one of them. What we get now is the story from how the king thinks these events unfolded and this includes the king thinking this warrior has defeated these assassins because he knew he could get close enough to the king to kill him himself. Is the king right? I don't want to give anything away because this was an absolutley incredible experience for me and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. The movie has many layers and unfolds very exquisitey bringing out almost every emotion we have as human beings. Not many films can do that.
Now time for me to explain the tittle of my review. What is an orb? We know they are in the shape of a ball, small and fast moving. They are also sighted in areas that are "haunted" or areas that have a lot of history or/and both. Orbs are not visible to the naked eye and they are either caught on camera and rarley captured on home video. Nobody really knows what an orb is. Some say electricty causes them and some say they are a form of ghost. Either way I have seen a lot of movies and never in my whole life have I seen an orb captured in a motion picture. Untill now.
The first couple of times I did not notice it. But earlier today I watched "Hero" and noticed something in the corner of the screen. I thought nothing of it at first but I wanted to be sure so I skipped back a scene and watched very carefully. If you want to see this orb skip through the movie untill the time passed says exacley 1 hour 26 minutes and 39 seconds. This object which I believe is a orb is visable for exacley one second and it starts off at the top right hand corner of the screen and ends up in the bottom middle of the screen. When the dvd is on pause I suggest you zoom in as much as you can and press the pause button another nineteen times and you can see the path it takes from start to finish. Now that's something you won't find in the special features.
Movie Review: How swift is thy sword! How jaundiced are the Western eyes!
Summary: 5 Stars
Let me tell you why some Americans hate this film. You see, this is a Chinese film. That's right, a film made in that not-a-democracy China. What's worse, it's a communist country, and an Asian one at that! Now most Americans can't read Chinese, can't speak Chinese, know diddly squat about China, and haven't been to China (or anywhere outside of their counties, for that matter). But they will knock anything Chinese! They simply hate China for reasons they don't even understand.
I have lived in the US for 14 years, and I can tell you this: more than 80% of Americans are an uninformed, propaganda-driven herd.
Regardless of the origin of the film, I submit that sacrifice for the greater good is a noble cause in any culture. Yet you see many Americans (and Brits, Aussies) doggedly obsess over the fact that the film is made in a communist country and the message is a communist one. Load of crap. It's only an excuse. Deep down, they hate the film because of their blind hatred for China and disdain for all things Asian. Take, for example, Braveheart, a historically based fiction well-received in the US which extols the heroism of William Wallace. Supposedly Willie fights and dies for Freedom. But does he die for his freedom to go shop at WalMart anytime he desires? No. Willie is a "hero" because his cause is (supposedly) freedom for Scotland. (Of course, his fight doesn't really start until his woman is slain, and he gets into big big trouble with the Brits.) In any case, the theme is sacrifice for the greater good. Americans foam in the mouth praising this film. But if sacrifice for the greater good is communist ideology, isn't it evil?
Hero is not completely historically accurate, but which Hollywood flick is? Hero is simply a story well told, and told with astounding visual beauty. It's great entertainment, and in that respect it's nearly perfect.
PS. For those of you who can't speak Chinese, the English translation in this movie is reasonably good, although some emotion and power of the Chinese language is lost in the process. Certain things simply sound lame when expressed in English (this goes both ways, of course). However, there is a major mis-translation. The two words written by Broken Sword actually means "all under heaven," not "our land." Not even close. But then, it's simply impossible to translate some things faithfully from Chinese into English, without making it sound tacky.