Overall Rating
  Awesome: 34.82%
Worth A Look: 32.14%
Average: 12.5%
Pretty Bad: 15.18%
Total Crap: 5.36%
10 reviews, 52 user ratings
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| House of Flying Daggers |
by Peter Sobczynski
"Far more engaging and entertaining than 'Hero'"
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Although Zhang Yimou’s 2002 martial-arts epic “Hero” was a hit with critics and audiences when it finally appeared on American screens earlier this year, I was not one of its fans. I admired the visual beauty of the film and some of the battle sequences (especially the one in which Jet Li did battle with an avalanche of arrows) were pretty spectacular. However, the arch story structure that Zhang employed, full of flashbacks upon flashbacks-most of which turn out to be lies-and characters constantly revealing themselves to be quite different from how they initially appeared, was so convoluted that I found it impossible to develop any sort of emotional involvement with any of the proceedings. With “House of Flying Daggers”, his latest excursion into the genre of arty kung-fu, he has once again made a visually ravishing film with action scenes thrilling enough to inspire even the most jaded moviegoer. The difference here is that Zhang has employed them in the service of a more direct storyline and the result is a far more engaging and entertaining film.Once again, Zhang tells a story of deception, intrigue, romance, heartbreak and conspiracy set in the days of ancient China. During the waning days of the Tang Dynasty in 859 AD, two police officers, Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and Lao (Andy Lau), learn that Mei (Zhang Ziyi), a beautiful blind showgirl at a local house of ill repute is, in fact, a member of a feared insurgent group out to overthrow the ruling parties. In order to track down the rest of her group, including the never-seen leader who may also be Mei’s father, Jin goes undercover and breaks Mei out of jail in order to return her to the group with Lao following them in hot pursuit. It sounds like a simple plan in theory but there are the inevitable complications. Additional police, who know nothing of the plot Jin and Lao have cooked up, arrive and force Jin to go into battle against them so as not to blow his cover. Before long, it also transpires that Jin is not the only one who isn’t what he seems to be-nearly every character we see has an enormous secret or two. Most importantly, Jin finds himself succumbing to the charms of Mei, an action that will have serious repercussions for all involved.
In other words, the story is at least as complicated as the one in “Hero”. The difference here is that Zhang has employed a cleaner and more direct story structure this time around that allows his tale to have more of an effect on viewers. Unlike “Hero”, we actually develop a vested interest in Mei and Jin and how their various deceits affect each of them. By the end, we care enough about them that when Zhang gets to his wildly melodramatic climax, it contains a genuine emotional impact to go along with the razzle-dazzle. At times, the story does threaten to go out of control (the third act begins to get a little too convoluted for its own good) but there was never a time when I found myself less than fully engaged.Beyond the narrative qualities of the film, what really makes “House of Flying Daggers” soar is the sheer spectacle of the piece. The cinematography by Xiaoding Zhao is so beautiful that it gives Christopher Doyle’s work on “Hero” a run for its money for the title of the year’s most gorgeous-looking film. All of the action scenes are jaw-droppers and three in particular are so amazing that they will go down as instant classics of the genre. One is a extensive fight atop the trees of a bamboo forest that outdoes even the similar battle in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon”. Another is the climactic swordfight in a lovely, snow-covered field that is as intricately choreographed and executed as the finest ballet. The standout scene, however, is the moment early on when Zhang Ziyi plays what is known as the “Echo Game”; to say more wouldn’t begin to do justice to the sequence except to mention that once seen, it will never be forgotten. Of course, ravishing beauty in a Zhang Yimou film is nothing new-with the exception of Terrence Malick, I cannot think of another director working today who is as capable at creating poetry with a Panaflex. The difference here is that for once, Zhang has given his film a heart and brain to go along with its good looks.
link directly to this review at http://www.efilmcritic.com/review.php?movie=10363&reviewer=389
originally posted: 12/17/04 23:24:12
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OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Toronto Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Toronto Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 New York Film Festival. For more in the 2004 New York Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2004 Leeds Film Festival. For more in the 2004 Leeds Film Festival series, click here.
OFFICIAL SELECTION: 2005 Palm Springs Film Festival. For more in the 2005 Palm Springs Film Festival series, click here.
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USA
03-Dec-2004 (PG-13)
DVD: 19-Apr-2005
UK
N/A
Australia
17-Feb-2005
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