1 Visual Treat
"House of Flying Daggers" is visually stunning, making most western films look quite dull & dreary. Zhang Yimou's "Hero" was a modern tragedy, also cinematically breathtaking. Zhang Ziyi who graced "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" & "Hero" does an exquisite job as Mei, taking the character through numerous levels as blind brothel dancer, hardened assassin, and ultimately a girl looking for love. Both beautiful and talented, she is riveting on screen. Takeshi Kaneshiro as the hunk Jin follows her through the woods and numerous battle sequences only to finally fall in love. Andy Lau as Leo, the policeman who assists Jin in his undercover work, also is excellent, particularly as we see how this crime drama evolves into a classic love triangle. The story telling is uniquely Chinese, a bit depressing for Western minds (...) But all actors, the director and breathtaking cinematography make this a stunning visual treat that transcends cultural boundaries. Bravo!
2 Not a 'Hero' quality story but worth a watch
It is completely pounded into the viewer that Kaneshiro's character is a womanizing "Playboy". Then you must convince yourself to drop what you have learned about the character when he falls in love after 3 days with Zhangs character. Other than the character flip-flops and odd twists, this is a beautiful movie. Bottom line: rent this movie and go buy 'Hero'.
3 Formula Chinese martial artz flick
Let's see now, what is the difference between "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," and this film? Anything? I think the Chinese have figured out how to sell films to Western audiences, and they are sticking to a proven formula. I, for one, am of the school that thinks "One is enough," and want to see something a little bit different besides daggers that somersault through the air with the accuracy of heat-seeking missiles. Or warriors boogeying across the tops of bamboo stalks. Or a blind girl whipping the hineys of twenty warriors. Strains the ol' credibility, ya know?
Besides which, the formula Asian plot scenario where BOTH LOVERS DIE AT THE END is getting just a "wee" bit old, ya know?
Tell me that the Chinese reached a 1.2 billion population by having the man and woman die prior to copulation and procreation. Yeah, right. Can you hear Charles Darwin snickering in his crypt?
Still, there are positives to this movie, which I watched to the very end (a compliment). It's very artsy and I like the shots of the countryside. The producer has an eye for what is beautiful. An interesting, if not particularly relevant observation is that the female lead is deficient in melanonin to the extent that she could pass for Caucasian, which gives insight into current Asiatic preferences. This may explain current immigration patterns.
4 "Romeo & Juliet" meets "Kung Fu Theatre"?
What do you get when you cross a slightly hokey Chinese martial arts movie with a tragic love story? You get "House of Flying Daggers." The story is built around three main characters, with the plot loosely sketched as follows. In 9th century China, the Tang Dynasty is rife with corruption and cronyism, all at the expense of the common folk. This gives rise to a secret insurrection called the House of Flying Daggers, whose trademark, not surprisingly, is the use of razor-sharp knives thrown with incredible skill and precision. The Flying Daggers take on essentially a Robin Hood role, i.e., the classic "rob from the rich, give to the poor" scenario.
Understandably, the Imperial government isn't keen on all this, so its forces are unleashed in a concerted effort to quell the insurrection. One of the government "cops" is Jin, who is captain Leo's top man. Government troops recently killed the leader of the Daggers, but a new one has stepped in. Leo wants to know who it is, so he assigns Jin to go undercover to find out. Jin's assignment is Mei, the rapturously beautiful, but blind, daughter of the former leader. Jin's task is to gain Mei's confidence by rescuing her from police custody, feigning sympathy and allegiance to the Daggers, and following her back to their lair with government troops under Leo's command following at a discreet distance.
After battling their way past government troops in a series of increasingly deadly encounters, Mei and Jin finally make their way to the Daggers' hideout. Along the way, the romantic energy begins to build between them (how unpredictable!) Even more unpredictable, though, is a plot twist that exposes the existence of a hitherto unexpected love triangle, which ultimately will cost the life of ... I'm not telling. Watch it for yourself to find out.
Generally speaking this is your typical Chinese martial arts movie, complete with lame dialogue, a thin plot line, and bad dubbing. The fight sequences are very well done in most instances (especially the one with the soldiers in the bamboo forest), but there are several instances where the action is too obviously choreographed. I also wonder whether maybe the costume designer ought to be flogged for overexuberance. On the plus side, the camera work and special effects are top notch, and the skill of the martial artists is obvious (except for the occasional Jet Li-esque use of hidden wires). The ending was a bit corny, but had enough emotional intensity to compensate.
In short, this one is more of a love story in Chinese garb than a true action movie. Still, there's plenty of butt-kicking for the guys to like it, and enough of a chick-flick element for the women, so this actually may have broader appeal than many of its forbears. Try it, you may like it. If not, you're only out a few bucks for the video rental.
5 A martial arts flick with heart
Fresh from the success of Hero, Zhang Yimou and his current muse, Ziyi Zhang, reunited for another breathtaking martial arts epic, complete with some of the most impressive action sequences since Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Like these movies, House of Flying Daggers features a tragic love story at its heart.
As he demonstrated in Hero, Yimou has fantastic eye for period detail and this film is no different with its colourful costumes and intricately detailed sets. The director eschews the heightened, primary colour scheme of Hero for a more naturalistic look with House of Flying Daggers. There is a predominantly earth tone look with warm colours like yellows, reds and browns. It is a nice contrast to the stylized action, which is impressively choreographed.
As he proved with Hero, Yimou's House of Flying Daggers is so much more than a martial arts movie. It is also features characters that we grow to care about which only makes the film's conclusion that much more tragic. This movie is just the right balance of style and substance, something that is very hard to pull of successfully with this kind of movie but so far Yimou is two for two. Hopefully, Zhang will continue to be his cinematic muse and they collaborate on future projects.
There is a subtitled audio commentary by Ziyi Zhang and Zhang Yimou. Yimou tends to dominate, talking about the look of the movie and the choreography of the action. Zhang does talk about all of the practicing she did for the dancing and action sequences. Fortunately, she already had six years of dance training which helped prepare for her intensive role.
"The Making of House of Flying Daggers" is a 45-minute look at how this film came together. This well-made featurette examines various aspects, such as story, themes and interviews with the actors who speak highly of Yimou.
"Creating the Visual Effects" is a brief featurette that shows various scenes as they looked originally and then with the CGI added.
Also included are "Storyboard Comparisons" for six scenes and allow one to watch the storyboards alongside the finished product.
"Costumes Gallery" offers a brief look at drawings of the outfits worn by various characters with the final product.
There is also a "Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery" with many on-the-set and on-location photos.
Finally, there is a music video for the film's theme song, "Lovers," that features footage of Kathleen Battle singing with clips from the movie.
6 Beautiful and well acted with un-needed plot twists
Ziyi Zhang (Crouching Tiger. Hidden Dragon) plays a blind dancer who's associated with a gang called the House of Flying Daggers. She gets captured by soldiers. One soldier (Takeshi Kaneshiro) goes undercover and fakes a rescue. He hopes she will lead him to her gang. He falls for her of course and starts to really put his life on the line for her instead of just faking it.
I wish that was just the whole plot though. Yes this movie looks great and the action scenes are very well done. The romance between Ziyi and Kaneshiro is beautifully done. I don't like how they add a second love interest (Andy Lau) for her in the second act though. He's jealous that she doesn't want him after he put his life into her for 3 years and blah blah blah. I didn't care about their romance or even think the movie needed him. The movie throws in too many plot twists when it didn't need them. It was a great movie the way it started without all that. It becomes too much about betrayal and jealousy. I don't think the love triangle was needed. It almost ruins an otherwise beautiful story. The Kaneshiro/ Andy Lau fight at the end wasn't even needed although yes it is a great fight.
7 Good, but:
There's always something retarded about Asian love stories (seriously, think of one Asian porn-star? ..I thought not). I'm sure there is something lost in the translation too: "Your such a 'Playboy'" didn't seem to fit with ancient China. But that's what this is; a love story with some great fight scenes. The story isn't half bad, I'd see it if you like the fights and special effects, but wouldn't recommend buying it.
8 The "Sound of Music" With Swords
So I walked into a kung-fu movie and a pretentious musical started. Well I can't say that I was surprised, I'm only surprised that I disliked this movie as much as I did. It littered critic's top ten lists across the country and was hailed as an improvement over "Hero" (another movie I didn't care for). There are of course many good things about this film. You cannot deny that it is a very very impressive film to look at. I loved the bright colors and elaborate sets. I also thought that on a few occasions Zhang Yimou's ambitious shots worked. The one in which we follow the arrows through the woods and watch them strike down four combatants simultaneously is my personal favorite. Unfortunately, I do not go to the movie to see sets and it would have to be the most incredible sets ever for me to recommend a film on that merit alone. I like stories and characters, ideas and themes, and in these departments I found this movie to be seriously lacking. This film involves tons of fighting in which you think to yourself nobodies really getting hurt because it looks too graceful. And that's fine, only I had no emotional connection to the characters. I was too caught up in how those four characters struck down by arrows were all lucky enough to be unharmed in the attack. Was it an attempt to make a joke about being so close and yet so far away, or (more likely) was in a simple plot devise to allow these men to be killed off again later in the story? In the end I liked "Hero" better than this movie, but disliked them both. "Hero" had a much better story, it just was swallowed up by its own sap in the last 15 minutes of the film. "House of Flying Daggers" would have nothing to do with plot, and who can blame them? Who would want to try and follow a story when there was so much else going on up on the screen. . .well besides me of course? **1/2
9 Another Fantastic Martial Arts Film by Yimou Zhang
Director Yimou Zhang who wooed audiences with his cinematically breathtaking 2002 film "Hero" did another stupendous job with his 2004 film "The House of Flying Daggers" (a.k.a., "Shi mian mai fu"). Audiences familiar with the films "Hero" (2002) and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" (2000) will no doubt recognize one of this film's main characters being portrayed by the actress Ziyi Zhang. In this film, Ziyi Zhang plays Mei, the seemingly blind daughter of a man who founded the illegal group known as the House of Flying Daggers. Two Chinese soldiers who are attempting to stop the House of Flying Daggers, Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and Leo (Andy Lau), learn about Mei is performing as a dancer at a nearby nightclub of sorts that is being run by a woman named Yee (Dandan Song). Leo orders Jin to go to the club to scrutinize Mei undercover as a customer. He does so, but is then later arrested by Leo (part of their undercover operation) who orders Mei to perform a difficult "echo game" dance for him. She dances flawlessly, but he arrests her and takes her to his headquarters. Jin, still working undercover, helps Mei to escape as his plan with Leo is to let Mei lead them to the House of Flying Daggers. In the countryside, Jin and Mei are hunted initially by Leo and his men, but then a higher-ranking officer sends his own soldiers after the pair and Jin is forced to kill his own fellow soldiers. While fleeing the soldiers, an interesting relationship develops between Mei and Jin as they continue to get closer to the highly elusive House of Flying Daggers. Several excellent plot twists then reveal the full extent of who everyone is and leads to an emotionally powerful ending.
With a combination of excellent cinematography, well-choreographed martial arts, an engaging story and well-acted characters, "The House of Flying Daggers" is indeed a very excellent film. People who enjoyed director Yimon Zhang's interesting use of color in the 2002 film "Hero" will see a similar use of color in this film, but he doesn't use color to convey the same meanings in this film as he did in "Hero". It is also apparent in this film that there have been improvements in the martial arts choreography and special effects that made the various battles far more natural and fluid in appearance. Overall, I rate "The House of Flying Daggers" with 5 out of 5 stars and highly recommend it.
10 Beware the falling bamboo leaves
The only similarity between this movie and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", is the breathtaking choreography of the aerial combat amongst the bamboo trees. Indeed, the best sequences in "House of Flying Daggers" begin with some quietly and gracefully pirouetting bamboo leaves, falling dramatically towards the lush green forest floor.
Totally different from "Hero" plot wise, the vivid use of color, light and fabric ties the two together, bringing Chinese action movies to an artistic level never before seen on a big or small screen.
Ziyi Zhang as Mei, the blind bombshell, illuminates every frame she's in, proving her capability to carry a major movie on her slim shoulders. Her supporting male leads Takeshi Kaneshiro (Jin) and Andy Lau (Leo) have to work double time just to keep up.
Jin and Leo are Government officers, who are trying to track down the elusive underground rebel group of the title. They suspect that Mei, a blind call girl, can lead them to the rebels' hideout, and decide to use the age old plan of deception and seduction. Handsome ladies man Jin gets the plum assignment of gaining Mei's confidence, and from here, the movie turns unexpectedly into a tempestuous love story, the plot twisting this way and that under the power of love.
There are certainly less fight scenes than "Hero", the love scenes are awkward to say the least, and the movie slows considerably in places, but the combination of Ziyi Zhang, the scenic shots and the sword, bamboo and knife play make it an extremely worthwhile way to spend 119 minutes.
Amanda Richards, April 30, 2005
11 House of Flying Daggers
Overall it was a very well done artpiece. The scenes were incredible and the effects were superb. Of course there was magical flight that was incorporated into the movie but it wasn't as flaky as older films because of the fight choreography. From hand to hand to weapons combat every fight scene had it's own element of surprise. And that goes for the storyline as well. The conflict of the movie is pretty interesting and you'll want to know what happens when the story shifts towards the end so check it out!
12 Much better than "Hero"
I was suprised by the short length of time this movie was available in the theatres locally, and the lack of promotion. It never got any TV ads, that I saw, and seemed to have a 1 week run. I decided to order a copy when I saw it was coming out (partly because the little I'd seen looked good and also because of Zhang Ziyi) and was not disapointed, this movie is much better than Hero.
The plot seems to be of some Chinese Government(military/police(?)) people plotting to capture figures in a terrorist group by sending one man undercover to get close to a suspected terrorist member. He ends up falling in love with her and abandoning his cause when it develops that he'll have to kill a lot of his own people to maintain his cover.
I've read here on Amazon about how some Chinese/Asian films are butchered by editing when brought over to the American Market, I've also read a website review in which the writer said this movie was the most beautifully handled movie he'd ever seen. I didn't have any real trouble following the plot (some mysteries were cleared up as the story moved along). If it'd been my job to edit I would remove only one short scene near the end in which Government troops are, I guess, moving in on the Flying Dagger group- that didn't seem to have much point to it. The color looks great, the sound was good, most sets looked good ( one or two small ones might've been a bit cheap)somebody really did a good job here. I noticed in the credits that part of the movie, must've been the fight scene at the end, was filmed in Ukraine, I didn't expect that but had thought that the area did seem large and undeveloped for China. Zhang Ziyi has apparently done a lot of work for an actress her age, she's very good here- Amazon has many of her films.
The movie is Chinese but I noticed that the Computer FX were Australian as was some sound work. The soundtrack composer is Japanese as was the costumer (surprising to me with the Japanese invasion of China in WWII). I was surprised to learn that lead actor Takeshi Kaneshiro (that is a Japanese name isn't it?) is in fact Chinese, one of the few Chinese actors to be big in Japanese action movies (I've seen him in Returner). My worst complaint about the whole DVD is in the "Making of" featurette, if the subtitling is done accurately it sounds like the Chinese government wrote the dialog, everything is "perfect", "best" or words to that effect. When producer Zhang Zimou is talking the subtitling for his dialog is all right, not boastful, preferable to Goverment Guy.
If you like Asian action films, or just like Zhang Ziyi, you should get this DVD- it is a good one.
13 The Good, the Bad and the Ugly...
This movie was all three I believe...good, bad and ugly.
The good.
It had amazing fighting and action stunts. I liked how close she came to death.
If they can fly, whats to say that their daggers can't hit their targets (sometimes repeatedly). And who's to say that someone who appears dead isn't. Other things I can't mention, would ruin the plot.
The images and metaphors, how time flew, seasons change, trees to bamboo, life to death, all very good. A battle with no winners.
The bad.
I longed to see the stalker guy die. I think that this movie seems more like a chapter from a book, than a complete book.
Much of the story line was predictable. Not all of it, or it would have been ugly.
The ugly.
The ending. It was good until you wonder what exactly happened to the house of flying daggers? Will there be a sequel? Was this the end? How pathetic. Distracting us with an eternal battle, only so that we forget about the one we never get to see.
So in closing, I loved this movie, no part of it really sucked, yet it wasn't as great of an ending as I had dreamed.
14 A feast for the eyes but.....
a dull, predictable story with lame dialog.
My wife and I were eagerly anticipating seeing this film since we loved Crouching Tiger and thought Hero was pretty good.
It seemed upon watching the film, however, that the director is focused on beautiful imagery and imaginative use of color and action at the expense of story and dialog. The story was dull with many climaxes and much melodrama (a dead character rises from the snow....and we knew it was coming!). And how many references to "wind" can we hear before the point is made ad nauseum? We went from being amazed at the imagery to rolling our eyes and essentially predicting dialog and plot twists before they happened with about 90% accuracy.
The worst thing though? That the movie, despite the action, etc., was boring.
15 House of Flying Daggers soars over your highest expectations
House of flying Daggers is a beautiful movie full of lush scenes and brilliant colors. It has elements in it that is not often found in so many American movies. Such as the rich hues of clothing, or lush, magical feelings of landscapes and fighting.
Although I didn't find it quite as engrossing as Hero, this movie is just as melodramatic, the ending especially so. And just as in Hero, mostly everyone dies. The love triangle in this film is only a tad different. It being two men who love a woman instead of Hero's man being the revolving factor.
Its interesting how Yimou Zhang can take such basic plots and convert them into such amazing movies. Because if you look at it, Hero and House of flying Daggers are basically movies on human emotions and the choices we make, the outcomes and what could have happened instead.
A great Drama/action movie.
16 Nice DVD but movie was edited
This Region 1 DVD has the best transfer among all other regions but it also has 5 scenes edited for the American audience. Search the internet and you will find the locations of the 5 cuts. The cuts were made in order to avoid a R rating for the movie. Nevertheless, for the best presentation, the region 1 DVD is the one to get.
17 A Good Home Theater Test Disc
Story line aside, this is a good home theater DVD test disc few other movie DVDs can match. One caveat, you should use the Chinese sound track for testing.
The disc contains Chinese, English and French sound tracks and one commentary track. Do not assume the three sound tracks are the same except conversations. The English sound track is the worst of all. Take the acclaimed "Echo Game" scene for example, the English sound track not only is muted in dynamic range but also has very narrow sound frequency range. If one only listen the English sound track, one would think is only a mediocre to average sound track. The French sound track is much better and very close to the Chinese sound track. A very good sound track by itself but compares the Chinese sound track, the sound is less refined in both high and low frequency ends.
Speaking of the "Echo Game", it is the money shot as test disc. Very rarely, one can find a short chapter on any DVD that can test both the sound and image system of a home theater setup. As mentioned before, one should only use the Chinese sound track for testing. The "Echo Game" uses full surround to great extend. Most of the movies only use limited frequency range in the surround speakers in a 5.1 setup. This one uses full frequency range not just the front speakers but also the surround speakers to create the very impressive surround sound effect when beans are hitting the drums from all directions and then drop to the ground. The sleeve hitting the drum part makes use the surround speakers to pin points the drum positions. In the entire scene, the base should be strong and yet crisp. On the subtle side, one should also be able to hear some whisper from the crowd on the second floor. Together with the drum scene, makes a good dynamic range test (the English and French tracks has higher level of whisper background sound make them less a test for dynamic range).
Although I think the overall image is a bit on the soft side, at least it did not suffer from the ghost of over sharpening. Even so, the building, carpet and costumes in the "Echo Game" have more details and shades of color than most movies in one setting. If you have a HDTV, this is a good chapter to test how good your display is. This is in particular if you have a DVD player or PC setup that can up sample the image to 1080i instead of the regular progressive 480p. While I can only see minor improvement of up sampling on "Lord of the Ring", this one is far more significant. In terms of color, there are many saturated color right next to more subdue shades and hues. In a lesser display, either the saturated color will over run or bleeding through the surrounding or the saturation will be muted. The use of a large number of saturated colors also helps to determine the color accuracy of the display (do you see her lip as bright red or orange red?).
The rest of the movie has many great cinematographic scenes and the bamboo forest fight certainly is a great action shoot with great surround sound effect. But if you want a short test for both sound and image, the "Echo Game" is hard to beat and by itself worth the price of the DVD even if you are like me who does not care about the story line.
I wish the DVD has DTS ES sound track but as is the sound quality for the Chinese sound track and to a bit less extend, the French sound track is very well mastered that are far above average. Five stars for the sound and image. Three for the story line.
18 Outstanding in every respect
The scenery (even if some of it is Ukraine), the colour palettes employed for costumes and lighting, the action, the pace of the film, the story istelf and the incomparable Zhaing Ziyi combine to make this film an outstanding acheivement in every respect. This is essentially a love story set inside a political morality tale, and the chemistry between the two protagonists is positively enchanting. When the double-crossing police captain returns to Mei in her most dire straits and and tells her, when she asks him why he returned, that he came back for her, you honestly feel it in your gut. Anyone who has taken some unforgettable plunge, some ultimate leap of faith for the one they love, will feel the delivery of this line. That it all turns out as it does takes the notion of kharma and to task for not having more intelligence.
Who is Nia? Who are the Flying Daggers? Why should it be that the story reaches a set of conclusions that make you want to stand up and shout at the screen? Unlike CROUCHING TIGER, the morals are not as clear cut. All lines are blurred. And that is how most of us live, so while we may not be swinging from bamboo trees, allegorically, we all know what the director is talking about. There is much to contemplate here, especially considering the Chinese mythology surrounding colour.
And Zhaing Ziyi is possibly the most beautiful woman in cinema today, and one of the most powerful actresses ever. Kate Blanchett and Michelle Yeoh seemed to be roled into Ziyi. She has a command of the camera that head-cases like Kidman would kill for. She can appear both as ingenue and as deadly as sin. The echo game that sets the drama in motion is beyond compare to anything in film to this point. There is in every frame with her a sense of mystery, danger, intrigue, intelligence, sexuality and surrender that captures the soul and she moves effortlessly through all the changes and emotional landscapes as naturally as though the story were really hers.
The DVD features a few commentaries, if you like that sort of thing, and a very lame lip-sync by Kathleen Battle. But a film this good doesn't need anything superfluous. In fact, it's as well that the extras are meager, they would only take away from the experience of an incendiary and captivating and soul-wrenching story of love. Of all the films that have come out in this genre, this one may be the best, and very hard to top. But we'll see what Zhaing Ziyi does next....
19 awesome movie
This was such an awesome movie. There really isn't much more I can say that hasn't already been said. However I recommend watching this movie and then watching it again (maybe not in the same day, but I did) with the 3rd english subtitles on. It is actually the Director commentary. It is so awesome. It gives alot of great info. as well as can be funny. It explains alot of the feel of the movie. I liked it because not only did I get the point the director was trying to make, but I got conformation that I did get it. It is also helpful for someone who necessarily isn't all that much into foreign films. However I didn't really think of this as a foreign film. I felt it is just a movie everyone can love and appreciate.
20 Moderately impressive...
Well, actually, for those who missed the Bruce Lee era of movies, this'll be one of your favorites. It, as most of the latest martial arts movies, traverses new territory. We get a glimpse of the artistic and blissful value of martial arts; all the sounds and moments of complete mastery over one's surroundings. Before now the display has been completely physical (Of course, don't believe everything you see). In my opinion, though, after about the 2nd time viewing, it is difficult to pop the disc in without skipping to the action sequences. The notion of it being better than "Hero," though, is relative. I actually think the two have similar appeal. It does have as many tear-inspiring moments as "Crouching Tiger," so definitely for fans. Replay value is only moderate, however. I think this may be due to the fact that the romance aspect of it is a little choppy. If you pause any part of the romantic scenes (which was only to answer the door, I assure), "Jin's" facial expression is contorted to such a degree that would make any audience feel awkward. So, maybe it's that. I mean, what movie is all just fighting? They had to throw a little romance into it.
21 Yimou Zhang makes a film even more beautiful than "Hero"
I think Yimou Zhang has made the two most visually beautiful films I have seen in the past year, with "Ying xiong" ("Hero") and "Shi mian mai fu" ("House of Flying Daggers" but literally translated as "Ambush From Ten Sides"). The common denominator is not the martial arts action couple with the Hong Kong wire work but Zhang's use of rich colors. I know that Akira Kurosawa pained a field of grass gold for a scene that ended up being deleted in "Ran," and for all I know Zhang painted all those bamboo trees green in this 2004 film. But Zhang has been paying attention to color for as long as I have been watching his films, which goes all the way back to 1991's "Da hong deng long gao gao gua" ("Raise the Red Lantern"). The man is an expert at creating scenes of spectacular visual beauty on a motion picture screen and this time he is really into blue and green big time.
This is a movie where you do not really care about the plot beyond its ability to move us from one beautiful set piece to the next. Mei (Zhang Ziyi) is the blind daughter of the former leader of the Flying Daggers, a secret group that is combating the corrupt Tang Dynasty of the 9th century in China. The name comes from the fact that they throw daggers, and there are some daggers that are followed by the camera in this film the same way George Lucas followed the X-fighters in the trench during the attack on the Death Star. Mei is a dancer at the Peony Palace, and Captain Leo (Andy Lau), a local cop, sends his young colleague Captain Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) to investigate the mysterious blind dancer who is suspected of having ties to the Flying Daggers. While you know this is the beginning of a romance, because who could not fall in love with the beautiful and talented Mei, what matters is that we are up to the first spectacular set pieces, the Echo Game, played between Leo and Mei where the blind dancer shows she definitely knows how to play the game (and strike a pose).
The battle in the bamboo forest is the most impressive of these sequences, but I liked the choreographed battle in the field of grass with the two lovers encircled by swordsmen and the part in the final fight where it starts to snow. I understand there are homages in this film, but while I get the link to "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" going back to the bamboo forest scene from "A Touch of Zen" is beyond me because I do not watch too many of these films. But, wow, the ones I have seen make me wonder why I am not watching at least one in a week and the answer is I know in my heart they cannot all be as beautiful as this one. What will Zhang come up with next? We cannot but wait to find out (he is currently filming "Qian li zou dan ji," which literally translates as "Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles" and is apparently about a Japanese father her take his ailing son to China's Yunnan province to learn opera).
Granted, "Shi mian mai fu" has flaws despite its great beauty. The political backdrop of the film seems to matter at the start, what with the emperor being weak and the officials being corrupt and all, but all that really matters is that Mei starts off on the opposite side of Leo and Jin, who best laid plans are going to go astray in ways too tragic for them to forsee. That is because the story is an excuse to get us from one spectacular set piece to the next and the sides exist simply for one lover to cross over to the other. The swordplay is more stylized than I have seen in other films of this genre and seems to involve less wire work as well, which is fine with me, because I would rather see it used selectively as it is here. There is also a song that Mei sings early on where you need to pay attention because it will come back more poignantly later on. The film has an English audio track, but you are obviously advised to go for the sub-titled original audio track because dubbed always sounds dubbed and that means tacky. Gorgeous films do not deserve tacky audio tracks.
22 Rousing Entertainment
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" introduced Ziyi Zhang to the world stage in a big way. Aside from her intoxicating beauty she also displayed consummate skill as an expressive actress and a ballerina's agility in the film's martial arts sequences. In "House of Flying Daggers" her aura of invincibility further blossoms. As Mei, the blind warrior, she commands the screen as well as any actress working today. Director Yimou Zhang has crafted an entertainment like no other I've seen before. Yes, there are stunning exhibitions of martial arts, however, the film also concerns itself with matters of the heart. This results in intricate plot twists that I will not reveal. The film also features gorgeous cinematography as well as breathtaking editing. In the end it's the story that will haunt you. Ziyi Zhang recently changed her name from Zhang Ziyi and is learning English in an effort to break into Western films. Here's hoping that if she does make the successful leap she does not compromise what made her so unique in the films she made in her native tongue.
23 Most fantastic of all
Of the three most well known Wushia movies in the past few years, House of Flying Daggers follows Hero and Crouching Tiger. It also has the most fantasy elements of the three -- not that any of them could possibly be called realism. They are all beautifully filmed and choreographed. One of the real treats in all three is the presence of Zhang Ziyi.
The plot twists and turns in Daggers are a little more surprising than in the previous two. The action begins with the blind dancer, Mei, playing a game called Echo with Captain Leo in order to avoid arrest. She displays amazing skills in the game and in the fight that follows, especially for a blind woman. The officials, led by Leo, suspect Mei is a member of the anti-government group House of Flying Daggers whose leader they had recently assassinated. They hatch a plot to use Mei to lead them to the new leader by breaking her out of jail. Captain Jin will lead the escape, woo and win her love, and have her eating out of his hand. Soon, however, one has to wonder who is leading whom.
In Hero, director Zhang Yimou used color as if it were another character. Color is also important in Daggers, but this time, sound is equally important. Whether this was because of Mei's blindness, where her ears substitute for sight in the fight scenes, it is an interesting addition.
The romance heats up as does the pursuit of Jin and Mei. When "the general" steps in and takes over, things become even more dangerous. After a time, it becomes more and more difficult to tell who is on which side and who loves whom. It is worth watching to find this much out, but hold onto your hankies. All may not end well for everyone.
There are some inconsistencies and possibly some errors in certain details, some of which have been pointed out in earlier reviews. However, if you're a fan of kung fu and Wushia films, don't miss this one.
24 Good movie
This was quite a very good movie and I had anticipated it since I saw it's preview in 2004.
One of the best things I loved about this movie was The Beauty Song (Jia Ren Qu) which was so appropriate for the movie.
The twists in the movie were totally unexpected. And as usual great scenery. The green outfits were so cool.
25 Love or Loyalty
I enjoyed this film very much. Despite the fact that it has Shakespearan feel to it. Remember Romeo and Juliet. Both main characters who meet and fall in love. Despite being on oppostite sides. The plot has a lot of twist and turns. So you will be fully capitivated. The visual effects as well as the costumes are amazing. The question ask throughout" What is more important Love or loyalty"? The question is answered at the end of the movie. Despite the typical ending you will fall in love with the movie anyway.
26 Not as grand as you might think
I really had high hopes for this one, but it fell way short of its predecessors. This movie lacks the sophistication of crouching tiger hidden dragon and the beauty and special effects of Hero. The plot in this movie is poorly written, and the characters never develop, so that we never really associate with them, and end up not caring what happens to them. The special effects were ok, but could have been much better. And it is here that we are first introduced to the `smart' dagger, yes, a dagger that when thrown will not stop till it hits its target, even if it has to bounce a few times and take 90 degree turns!
I guess what this movie lacks more than anything is an ideology running in the background, but instead it tries to concentrate on a love that is nonexistent, the two actors had no chemistry what so ever, and thanks to the stupid twist, in the end we really don't know how loves who, till they start dying for each other. And the ending, well, it's not worth mentioning. Ya it was that bad.
27 True Classic to Buy and Treasure
A ravishingly beautiful tour de force by Yimou Zhang (and also by actress Ziyi Zhang), this film combines an ultra-romantic story line with incredible martial arts sequences. Each fight builds in intensity until you're not sure what will happen. This is the first movie where I literally held my breath, wondering if the hero/heroine would make it out alive. Incredible. The beginning dance piece(the echo game)is also an instant classic. Magnificent.
However, I watched this movie with several young people, and most of them were bored, so age may have a lot to do with how people receive the film. I believe that the movie's complexities and subtleties may best appeal to those over the age of 35, when love and loss become twin themes deeply etched in our memories and dreams. To the young, they are still adventures waiting to happen, and they'd rather get on with it.
28 Beautiful but inconsistent and illogical
Possible spoiler to follow!!!!
I would first note that this movie is beautifully done. The sets, the scenery and the cinematography are all very nice. Certainly visually stunning, as is Zhang Ziyi. The story is another matter.
The first two thirds or so of this movie is quite intricate and interesting and seems to be setting us up for a worthy resolution. The resolution however reveals fatal flaws in logic to say the least. The ending was in general predictable--why do Chinese filmmakers think that killing off lovers is art? A lover dying at the end of a Chinse movie is as predictable as John Wayne killing the bad guys. It's not art to kill off a star crossed lover if everyone sees it coming and certainly not if it makes no sense.
As for the manner of Mei's death, none of the scenes in the movie was more fantastic than her immaculate resurrection. It seems clear to me that the writer just didn't know how to end this thing.
29 A gorgeous-looking Folk Tale.
3.5 stars. There are so many moments in this film that demand a whole-hearted suspension of disbelief that my attention wandered a few times during the course of the story. This is another Martial Arts extravaganza from the same director that brought us "Hero." I enjoyed "Hero," for all its predictability, mainly for the action sequences and colorful scale of the picture. With "House of Flying Daggers" the scale is cut to provide a more intimate storyline with romantic leanings frequently reminiscent of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon." There is even a scene that is practically identical to one in that film where the main actress is going to bathe, and as an act of trust her male companion makes noise so that she knows where he is at all times. In "Crouching Tiger,..." the man sings to let her in on his whereabouts, and in "House of Flying Daggers" the man occasionally taps on his machete making a loud ping. The fact that the actress is the same in both films makes the similarities all the more familiar. The fight choreography, while fun, is utterly fantastic to believe with all the wire-work and unearthly abilities with bows, daggers, etc. But taken as it is, this film is more Folk Tale than History, so the crazy acrobatics are eventually forgivable. By the end of the movie, however, the romance is laid on a little too thickly for my taste (a tragic romance, of course) and the story unravels just in sight of the finish line. The best aspects of this film are the good acting and the absolutely beautiful cinematography and costumes. Director Yimou Zhang's best work remains his dramas such as "Ju Dou" or "To Live." I actually think "To Live" is one of the best foreign films ever made. "House of Flying Daggers" is a good rental, but it is nowhere near the genius of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" nor as epic as "Hero." This is a solid film, just not one I would want to own.
30 Zhang Yimou's 2nd Stunning Foray into Martial Arts Cinema.
"House of Flying Daggers" is director Zhang Yimou's second martial arts film after a decade and a half of character dramas made him one of the most highly regarded directors in the world. As he did in "Hero", Zhang brings his sensibility for human emotion to "House of Flying Daggers", creating a character-driven action film that will appeal to a wide audience. "House of Flying Daggers" takes place in 859 A.D., at the time of a weakening Tang Dynasty. An underground revolutionary faction called the House of Flying Daggers has emerged to hasten the Emperor's demise. Two provincial police captains, Captain Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and Captain Leo (Andy Lau) suspect one of the employees of an upscale brothel, the Peony Pavilion, of being a member of the outlawed House of Flying Daggers. Jin visits the Pavilion as a patron to investigate and is surprised to find that his suspect, Mei (Zhang Ziyi), is blind, stunningly beautiful, and an exquisite dancer. But when Mei attempts to kill Leo, she is arrested. Instead of turning Mei over to higher authorities, The captains cook up a plan for Jin to spring Mei out of prison, gain her confidence, and allow her to lead them to other members of the House of Flying Daggers. Jin is confident that he can seduce Mei and win her trust. Leo is not so sure.
The first 20 minutes of "House of Flying Daggers" are so beautiful that I watched them several times over. Director Zhang Yimou reunited with production designer Huo Tingxiao and costume designer Emi Wada who did such extraordinary work in "Hero". Han Zhong's art direction is especially remarkable in the film's first act. Most of "House of Flying Daggers" takes place outdoors, as Jin and Mei flee the imperial authorities. But the film's most memorable scenes are indoors, at the Peony Pavillion, where the colors and designs of the Tang Dynasty are so captivating that it seems you could reach out and touch them. The audience won't soon forget Zhang Ziyi's dancing among these exquisite sets. But this is a martial arts film, and once things get rolling, there are plenty of sword fights -choreographed by Hong Kong action director Tony Ching Siu-Tung. Zhang Yimou makes it clear that he views fighting as nearly indistinguishable from the dancing, as these fights are stylized and graceful. On the other hand, they are full of passion, since "House of Flying Daggers" is a story of love in the face of war, with the principle characters forming a tragic love triangle.
"House of Flying Daggers" excels in indoor cinematography and is somewhat less impressive outdoors, unlike "Hero", which was spectacular in both. It doesn't have the narrative or thematic complexity of "Hero" either, although "House of Flying Daggers" unfolds to reveal deceptions within deceptions, which seem to be fashionable in most of the world's film industries right now. Because this is a character-driven film whose fight sequences don't pretend to be realistic, I don't know if fans of the martial arts genre will enjoy it. But those qualities will earn "House of Flying Daggers" popularity with viewers who normally avoid martial arts film. In Mandarin with subtitles.
The DVD (Columbia/Tristar 2005): "The Making of House of Flying Daggers" (45 minutes) is a little meandering and too long, but features interviews with director Zhang Yimou, Tony Ching, and the film's stars. Zhang talks about the film's themes. The documentary discusses filming key scenes and ends with the film's premieres in Cannes and Hong Kong. In Mandarin with subtitles. "Creating the Visual Effects" (4 minutes) has no narration but shows the original film for 5 fight scenes, then the computer graphic that was added, then the final sequence. "Storyboard Comparisons" show 6 scenes from the film playing out next to the storyboard for the same scene. "Costumes Gallery" (1 minute) is a slideshow of costume sketches shown next to the final product. "Behind the Scenes Photo Gallery" (3 minutes) is a slideshow of behind-the-scenes snapshots. There is a music video for the song "Lover" performed by Kathleen Battle (4 minutes). The audio commentary by director Zhang Yimou and actress Zhang Ziyi is in Mandarin with subtitles. He discusses his decisions and various aspects of filming and creating the sets, and she talks about her experiences for each scene. The commentary is conversational, but there aren't many lulls. Subtitles and dubbing for the film are available in English and French.
31 Visual Splendor for a Touching Romance
When the neighborhood movie houses seem to have an overwhelming number of martial arts films, both takeoffs on 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' quality and the 'Matrix' clone dalliances, and when the whole concept of mind-boggling flying armed forms threatens to become passˇ, along comes another film by Yimou Zhang and the atmosphere changes.
Zhang fully understands the choreographic possibilities if this genre of films and surpasses his fellow directors with his sensitivity to story. Yes, HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS has more special effects than can be listed here, but FINALLY the special effects embroider a tender love triangle in the year 859 AD at the core of the dissolution of the Tang Dynasty. Mei (Ziyi Zhang) is the daughter of the deceased leader of a dissident group called House of Flying Daggers, and posing as a dancer in the Peony Pavilion, seeks to kill the captain of the Tang army Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro). Under surveillance, both Mei and Jin are captured by loyalist Leo (Andy Lau) and while both escape, imprints of the two men and one woman have been set and the resulting chase leads to much action, fighting, and ultimate entanglement of the three in a tender and pathetic love triangle. How this resolves is the basis for the very supernatural ending.
The story is sound and amazingly credible due to the fine acting by the trio. But the real glories of this symphonic excursion are the lush colors, magnificent costumes, the exquisite choreography of dance and martial arts, and the breathtaking camera work observing the forests and glens in the richest colors of autumn and winter. Simply stated, this film is dazzling and brilliantly conceived and executed.
An additional factor in the film is the musical score by Shigeru Umebayashi interspersed with old Chinese songs played on authentic instruments. On the DVD there is a music video that features Kathleen Battle singing the main song, and while the song and the video are not remarkable, it is a pleasure to see that Kathleen Battle is still singing and, though somewhat older in appearance, still lovely of face and voice. The additional DVD features of the making of the film are far above average, especially Zhang's story of how the unexpected early snow during the shooting encouraged him to utilize this miracle of nature and indeed supply some of the more beautiful scenes in the film. Grady Harp, April 05
32 Better then HERO!!
I thought this was better then HERO. I enjoyed the story more and like HERO, the effects were used only to enhance the mythical story not overwhelm it. At heart this is a love story, with bits a revenge and betrayal mixed in. The production value is outstanding. Great to see this on a good home theater setup as stated by another reviewer. I really look forward to seeing the next Yimou Zhang project.
33 Still in awe from the visual effects
Wow, what a visual masterpiece. When I was watching this DVD on my High Def, I was in awe throughout the film. It is unbelievable, incredible, amazing, etc. My girlfriend and I couldn't follow the plot of the movie for commenting on the scenery. There are no words to explain the experience you get from this DVD on an average Home Theater system, visual and audio-wise. This is a must have for the home movie collection. Don't take my word for it, buy this DVD, and you can thank me later. 4 & 1/2 stars ****'
34 Martial arts should enhance story not otherwise!
But here story gives up it's strength to martial arts, cinematography and special effects... story follow them rather they follow the story...
Firstly I thank the director and the crew for their efforts... this is a good movie that could have become a great movie... this movie is worth owning and worth watching...
But why three stars?
a. The colors are great... cinematography fails to cope-up with story... (some times frame is glorious than the scene context)
b. The physical capabilities of martial arts are good and great... but the earth has rules of nature... (exceptions could defy gravity, that does not mean that gravity does not exist)
c. The character of Mei's is good but in the scenes of physical intimacy and emotion she loses maturity. But the director has used heroines ballet skills very well.
d. Consistency in keeping curiosity some times loses out. But short snippets wake you up.
e. The synchronization of special effects needs to meet the human capabilities. (too much of matrixism is not impressive)
Yet I repeat again this is a good movie to watch when we don't think too much about frames and story.
Enjoy!!!
35 Disappointing
"Better than Crouching Tiger," they said. I couldn't wait.
Eh.
There are a couple of cool action sequences, but in the end you feel there should have been many more. Too much screen time is used to progress the love story, and the pace slackens then to a crawl. You feel as though the main body of the story is missing.
There's a sequence at the beginning, the Echo Game, which is just terribly paced - minutes and minutes of slow-motion cloth-flinging. That was a really bad sign.
The ending seems lazy in terms of choreography. A couple of nifty tricks, but a lot of rolling around in the snow.
In the end, I preferred Crouching Tiger's amazing fights and its plot, leaving aside its overlong romantic excursions.
36 great movie!
This is one of the best chinese martial arts movies I have ever seen and I have seen quite a few. Hard to explain, but the movie has a very desirable "mood" about it which many films of the same type lack. By the way, don't put much weight in what the reviewer below (a Chinese living in US for 20+ years) says. He calls this a "wushia" movie... :D even a 5 year old Chinese child knows that in Mandarin (currently the national language of China) the proper term is WU SHU. Maybe our critical friend has been in the USA too long. Also, he states that "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" is a better representation of the "wushia" genre than "House of Flying Daggers". Everyone knows that most Chinese people really hated "Crouching Tiger". Actually I loved "Crouching Tiger" however, I wouldn't say that it "better represents the wu shu genre"... It is one of the more refined "wire-fu" movies (not very realistic) exclusively devoted to sword (jian) fighting that also encompasses a wide variety of complex situational underlyings. In other words, it's a whole lot more than just a Chinese martial arts movie. If you want to see a movie that "represents the wu shu genre" I would recommend something like the cult classics "Five Fingers of Death" or "Buddhist Fist" or even "The Five Deadly Venoms"... at any rate, you can add "House of Flying Daggers" to your collection of martial arts classics (or soon to be classics)... this one is a winner in every way.
37 It's a great film.....stop crying, you purists!
First of all, too many negative reviewers keep crying by saying "whhhaaaaaaaa whaaaaaaa is isn't realistic"! Jeez, ya think! These type of movies are not about realism, but rather they are about magical stories that deal with love, emotion, war, violence and political ideologies....if you are looking for pure "realism", then you should look elsewhere but if you want a beautiful, engaging, magical tale, then check out this masterpiece of a film. One has to understand Chinese history and mythology and folklore to understand films like "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers", so try picking up a book and read about Chinese history rather than spewing your ignorant comments!
38 "I want to be like the wind"
Gorgeous to look at with its almost operatic sensibilities, The House of Flying Daggers is graceful and romantic and is undoubtedly a real feast for the eye. It hardly matters that the back-story is so convoluted; its main intention is probably just to act as a vehicle for a collection of visually stunning fight sequences. Set in China in 859 A.D., Flying Daggers focuses on the House, a terrorist sect that is intent on taking down the government, and the police inspector Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) who is set to infiltrate them by posing as a traitor.
The Daggers steal from the rich, give to the poor, and they're impossible to tell apart from the rest of the downtrodden populace. Captain Leo (Andy Lau) arranges for his friend Captain Jin to pose as a dissolute playboy and visit the Peony Pavilion, where a blind courtesan named Mei (Zhang Ziyi) is rumored to be a member of the rebels. Mei who may or may not be the daughter of the House's slain leader is placed in prison, but Jin helps her escape and the two set out on the run, pursued by Leo.
Lies, deception and betrayal ensure, as Mei and Jin traverse the beautiful, leaf-strewn picturesque countryside, trying to outwit the government soldiers who remain in hot pursuit. Things are never as they seem, as each character harbors a dreaded secret, but as Mei and Jin get to know one another, they gradually fall in love, and find that their loyalties are tragically divided. The film wisely downplays the historical aspects in favor of a devastating love triangle that gradually develops between Mei, Jin and Leo.
The fight scenes, although they have been supplemented by minimal CGI, are indeed spectacular; but it is the startling use of color that beguiled this viewer. Orange autumn strewn hillsides are juxtaposed with green bamboo grass covered forests. And vibrant reds, blues, and yellows absolutely bathe the screen, giving the film an almost dream-like, surreal fairytale quality.
The best sequence is an early scene in the Peony Pavilion when Mei does a type of acrobatic and balletic court dance. To ascertain if Mei is one of the Daggers, Jin tests her by tossing beans at an encircling ring of drums. She has to match the rhythm by striking the drums with the 10-foot sleeves of her robe, after she's used those sleeves to wield a sword in a fight sequence. It's a beautifully and skillfully crafted ensemble piece of colour, sound and action.
The three leads are all very good, particularly Zhang Ziyi as Mei. She has a serene beauty mixed with a fierce, willful independence, and she does well in her first romantic lead role. However, as the film progresses, and the romantic triangle steadily becomes more focused, the actors tend towards affected behavior, and it all gets a bit much.
The seriousness and emotional integrity of the film gets lost amidst the splendor of the picture-postcard landscape and the Hallmark gift card vistas. The final snowy winter scene where the trio of star-crossed lovers has their final showdown, while eternal, passionate, and iconic, is also kind of silly. Most viewers, when watching this scene will be torn between approbation and stifled laughter, as they wonder how many times a person can actually die. Mike Leonard April 05.
39 a joke?
The only redeeming quality of this movie is the special effects. The story line is laughable and the acting is comical as well. When I sat through the movie in the theater, there was one guy hysterically laughing throughout the whole thing and no one told him to shut up (I'm assuming becuase everyone else agreed with his assessment).
40 Very entertaining
I'm glad this movie came along.
It arrived just in time to save
my expiring interest
in the Neo-"Martial Arts" genre.
I'm a true martial arts fan, but I
generally prefer the movies
where there is more emphasis on fighting
than glitz and glitter.
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was innovative
and exciting when it came along, but the subsequent
remakes and imitations are annoying.
Watching people fly (and dramatically defying the laws
of gravity and common sense) gets tiredsome.
This move offers some of the same elements
but to a lesser degree and it's artistically done.
It offers an engaging story that holds your attention
from start to finish.
It's remarkably colorful and displays very beautiful
lead actors. The fight scenes are incredible.
I really enjoyed this film, and I'm sure most
martial arts film lovers will also.
41 "House Of Flying Daggers" is brilliant!
"House Of Flying Daggers" is brilliant! Visually and emotionally beautifully and well crafted. Zhang Yimou's directing is brilliant. The performances by Ziyi Zhang, Takeshi Kaneshiro, and Andy Lau, are brilliant! This is better than "Hero"! This is just as beautiful and sad! A movie that is an unique romantic film that will stay will you until the very end and a movie that will keep you guess throughout the movie. This is why Hollywood makes movies.
42 Romeo and Juliet with Kung Fu
The title says it all--this is basically Romeo and Juliet with martial arts action. It's a love story between two warriors caught on opposite sides of a battle between a corrupt government and a rebel group (the "House of Flying Daggers"). It starts out slow, but gets better as it goes.
PROs:
+ Fight scenes are well-coreographed and exciting
+ Beautifully shot
+ Well-scripted
+ Overall plot is good, with a cool twist about an hour into the film
+ No "annoying comic relief guy" that plagues so many martial arts films
CONs:
- Starts out slow--you won't see any action scenes until 15-20 minutes into the film
- Relies heavily on CGI sequences (especially for the flying daggers--the way they curve through the air and around obstacles to hit their target no matter what made me roll my eyes)
- Lovemaking scenes look forced and unnatural
Bottom line: Rent before you buy. Decent, but not as good as "Hero" or "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". In reality, I'd like to give it 3.5 stars, but unfortunately that's not an option.
43 Gorgeous film
I thought this was absolutely one of the best movies I saw last year. Yes, the ending is abrupt and somewhat disappointing but it still beats a lot of the dreck that's out there.
As for another reviewer's slam against U.S. marketing for switching the order of Ms. Zhang's name, I read in an interview that she changed her name herself (on the advice of her publicist) since she wants to infiltrate Western cinema. The American marketers did not make that decision for her, especially considering they left Zhang Yimou's name alone. (For the record, I don't work in U.S. movie marketing or know anyone who does)
44 Stunning and Melodramatic
The movie looks beautiful. Some of the scenes are extremely creative: the "Echo" game/dance sequence and the bamboo forest battle are stunning. Ziyi Zhang is stunning as well. The costumes and colors are a visual feast. The complexity of the plot is amazing as well. The movie has plot holes, but it does tie a lot together.
The movie has several problems. It is melodramatic. The characters are too tragic and almost unbelievable. Ziyi Zhang's clothes get ripped so many times in the throes of passion; it is almost funny. The biggest problem I have with the movie is that it focuses too much on the love story conflicts at the end and does not resolve the bigger conflicts.
I enjoyed the movie. In spots, it soared and at other times, I rolled my eyes. I kept comparing this movie to "Hero." "Hero" to me was a slightly better movie. I enjoyed the love relationships better in Flying Daggers, but the nobility of Hero redeemed the movie for me. Flying Daggers ended weakly. However, both movies were far better than your typical Hollywood fare.
45 Great movie,but not worth the UMD price.
This is a beautiful movie,but at $30 it's highly overpriced.
Sony is insane if they think people are going to shell out $30 for a UMD film.
46 What?!! Not DEAD yet?!
I bought this DVD with much anticipation, although I had read some of the negative reviews. Ultimately, I have to agree with those reviews. There are just too many problems with this movie.
The plot of this movie is overly convoluted and has this big hole at the end. As mentioned by another reviewer, Anita Mui (costar with Jackie Chan in "Rumble in the Bronx") died of cancer right before filming for the movie and was supposed to have played Nia, the leader of the House of Flying Daggers. Zhang Yimou re-wrote the script rather than re-cast the part and so Nia never appears in the movie, and the final denouement between the House of Flying Daggers and the government soldiers is only hinted at in the movie.
With this movie, the cross-pollination of Chinese martial arts and Western CGI special effects comes full circle. The fusion of film cultures, which first showed up in "Matrix", is used extensively in this Chinese film. In fact, most of the fight scenes, with the extensive use of "bullet time" (flying daggers and spears and arrows replacing bullets) resemble Matrix more than they do traditional Chinese martial arts movies.
For fans of Zhang Ziyi (and yes, despite the awful U.S. marketing for the theatrical release, that's the way it should be written, standard Chinese fashion, family name first), there is a lot of bodice ripping in this complex love triangle, but ultimately, her appearance in this film is also disappointing.
Zhang Ziyi is at her best and most beautiful when smiling or looking sad or frightened. In this movie, for some reason, her face takes on mostly the look of a frozen mask. Maybe this was the only way she could play the role of a blind girl carrying some deeply hidden secrets. If so, perhaps the role was more complex than she was able to carry out. The other look that she gives a lot in this movie is this angry look, and unfortunately, she can look pretty scary when she does that look, a hint that behind this pretty girl lies somebody who could turn into venomous assassin. Overall, this movie ranks in my estimation as one of the lesser efforts of Zhang Ziyi - by comparison, she was just breathtaking in "Road Home", and much better (despite smaller roles) in "Crouching Tiger" and "Hero".
In his previous movies, Zhang Yimou made brilliant use of color and the countryside as backdrops. Here, the background Ukrainian forests are rather nondescript, and do not match the intensity or beauty of the countryside seen in his previous works such as "Road Home" or "Hero". Also, as mentioned by others, the sudden shift from these northern forests to the tropical bamboo forests is jarring and illogical.
The love scenes are not filmed very well. There's just too much of this visual impression of a large man lying on top of a petite woman, crushing her. The love triangle between the characters of Mei, Jin, and Leo never has much of an emotional impact. Andy Lau probably does the best at trying to express the frustration of love forsaken. Zhang Ziyi and Takeshi Kaneshiro just don't seem to ever connect or have much chemistry.
The ending with the prolonged multiple dying/revival of one character was just too much. What?!! Not DEAD yet?! - was what my oldest daughter cried out during this scene.
And that's about all you can say at the end of this disappointing movie.
47 Sharp images
Zhang Yimou's romantic martial-arts adventure gets the eye-popping presentation it deserves via Sony's high-def transfer. Video (2.35:1) and audio (5.1) appear flawless -- reference-quality work. Images in the jewel-like brothel scene could pass for HDTV.
Extras include a classy storyboard-to-screen comparison of six scenes, a decent but rah-rah making-of featurette (in Chinese, subtitled) and a costume gallery. A visual effects sampler from Animal Logic doesn't add much.
Zhang and his lead actress, Ziyi Zhang, who plays the blind heroine, pair up for a subtitled commentary. The conversation flows easily; they don't seem to be talking for an audience's sake but to each other. Zhang Yimou says he "wished for an art film with action elements." The director of "Hero," made in tandem with this film, insists that "good fight choreography will also communicate feeling and character." The three main characters strike him as "very lonely."
48 understand the genre
I saw this film in LA before the general release and enjoyed it. I plan on adding it to my collection. You can't judge the movie by 'american eyes and sensibilities'. If you understand the genre and enjoyed 'Hero' -(much less visible wire work than Hero) - I recommend this film. Also look into a french film called, 'Brotherhood of the Wolf'.
49 artistic
A movie that is loaded with visual aids. But what visual aids they are. THe acting wasn't the best and the storyline was thin. But it is still a good movie overall.
50 Disappointing and lacking soul
While I greatly enjoy stylized action films (Hero, CTHD and the Killer come to mind) this film was so caught up in showing aesthetic sensibility that it loses emotional power. There are some fun scenes - the drum scene in the beginning, but ultimately the weak plot, weak motivation and somewhat banal action sequences undermine the pleasure from the few moments of creativity. My wife and I saw Hero the day after seeing this and both of us enjoyed that much more.
51 Bought the Import DVD last year....
This one was great...
Zhang Yimou, coming off "Hero", his most internationally acclaimed and successful film to date, now brings us another martial arts epic set in ancient China. "House of Flying Daggers" stars Andy Lau ("Infernal Affairs") and Takeshi Kaneshiro ("Returner") as Leo and Jin, respectively, two Imperial underlings ordered to bring down a rebel group called the House of Flying Daggers. The empire is on the verge of collapse, and the Daggers are helping to move things along. Not surprisingly, the Powers That Be are a tad ticked.
52 BRILLIANT, EYE-POPPING EPIC
HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS (Sony) is a surrealistic dream and the best new-to DVD film so far this year (as of 1 April '05).
Lush, eye-popping and mesmerizing are woefully inadequate words to describe this widely reviewed and praised Chinese film.
Set in 859 AD during a corrupt period of the Tang Dynasty, two government officers search for an underground rebellion calling themselves House of Flying Daggers. Their only chance to find the rebels is a blind women named Mei.
Space does not permit a description of the twisty and always surprising love triangle that's interweaved against the political complications, betrayals and epic action. Far superior to "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Hero." "House of Flying Daggers" delivers all the universally relatable elements that western viewers want in Asian films.
The extraordinary cinematography by Xiaoding Zhao must be seen to be believed. Extras include dense commentary from director Zhang Yimou and actor Ziyi Zhang, a better than average making-of featurette, a peek at visual effects, storyboard and more.
Don't miss this one.
53 Colorful "Daggers"
Color, texture and movement dominate director Yimou Zhang's "House of Flying Daggers" a fascinating martial arts/action adventure film in the mold of "Hero". In the year 859 AD Two government officers Jin and Leo (Takeshi Kaneshiro and Andy Lau) search for an underground rebellion calling themselves House of Flying Daggers. Posing as an escort for the deceptively quiet but deadly Mei (Ziyi Zhang) a blind woman who is affiliated with the group, Jin travels through the forests as savivor and guide. After she's imprisoned Leo has Jin travel with her in hopes of uncovering the lair of the rebels. All is not tranquil, however, as soldiers make Jin's own soldiers attack them when escaping. The two become romantically involved as they travel together complicating their situation even more. Featuring marvelous swordplay and fight sequences, "House of Flying Daggers" focuses more on the narrative action story at the core of the film more so than "Hero". Borrowing from the Wushia genre of Chinese martial arts films, "House of Flying Daggers" features some strong performances and the direction is taunt throughout. While the script could be better developed, the visual flair of director Zhang saves the day much as it did for "Hero".
Featuring a stunning transfer, "House of Flying Daggers" looks positively sumptuous almost like a moving feast of color and motion. The rich, vibrant colors of the original theatrical release are accurately captured in this high definition transfer of the film. The 5.1 mix captures every bit of motion from the film and places the audience smack dab in the middle of the action.
We get a number of interesting featurettes. "The Making of House of Flying Daggers" provides a neat glimpse from conception to final production. "Creating the Visual Effects" looks at some of the outrageous stunts that are performed in the film and the wire work. "Storyboard Comparisons" provides an A-B comparison to key sequences in the film. The "Costumes Gallery" focuses on the beautifully designed gowns and outfits. There's also a "Behind-the-Scenes Photo Gallery" and Columbia-Tristar previews. The video for the theme song "Lovers" is also provided as well.
Since the director doesn't speak all that much English, his commentary track is provided as a text commentary throughout the film. Actually, this unique approach works better as you're able to watch the movie in English or Chinese and watch the commentary whenever you want. Ziyi Zhang also does her commentary in text format. It's a passable commentary track focusing more on the production side of things. It can make it a bit confusing when both the director and Zhang make comments.
A marvelously colorful Wushia style martial arts film, "House of Flying Daggers" has all the motion and color that made "Hero" so memorable. While the story itself is fairly simple, the stunts and martial arts on display will distract viewers from this flaw. It's a well performed minor classic portrayed with vibrant, bright colors and stunning cinematography by Xiaoding Zhao.
54 Sumptuous thrills
I suppose the comparisons to the other big (in America) martial arts films are inevitable, but don't let others' preferences for HERO and CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON prevent you from enjoying this film. At the very least, it is visually magnificent (as are all of Zhang Yimou's films, all the way back to JU DOU, and one of my favorites, RAISE THE RED LANTERN).
The greens of the bamboo forest, the white of the snow, the sepia of the fields, and the mixture of the dance/drum scene are gorgeous and will keep your eyes glued to the screen.
Ziyi Zhang gives another seemingly simple but powerful performance.
The martial arts scenes are incredible. It's neverending amazement of what the human body is capable.
The music is intoxicating.
The close up shots of weapons are as thrilling as a ride on a roller coaster. Seriously!
The amalgamation of these qualities lead to sheer pleasure.
(The only problem, and it is overrided by all the positives, was that the movie seemed to be about 15-20 minutes too long. The ending is the slowest part and the last fight seemed unnecessary.)
I highly recommend it, especially if you like films for the joy and delight of moviewatching.
55 Wow!
Wow! There sure are a lot of reviews about this movie which hasn't even arrived in the US yet. I saw this movie on DVD while I was in Hong Kong in October of 2003.
The Movie Studios must tell the cast and crew... "Don't forget to go to Amazon and give our movie a good rating."
I have seen several customer reviews this past year that start out with a line about how "this movie is OK considering all the bad movies hollywood puts out each year."
If your into the genre its a good way to kill an hour and half, that's about it. No where near as good as "Hero".
56 Dissapointing
I'm a big fan of the genre; Crouching Tiger blew me away, and Hero had a place in my heart the first time I saw it. So it was with great anticipation and high hopes that I saw this movie.
I was sorely dissapointed. The use of vivid colors complimented the story in Hero. In Flying Daggers, the colors were the story. The plot was backseat to visual effects. I literally got a headache from the swift and ridiculous twists that read more like a soap opera.
57 A Flying Masterpiece, A Beautiful Love Story.
Zhang Yimou's HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS is the much-awaited follow up to his highly acclaimed movie "HERO". The following DVD review is based on the 2-Disk presentatation with English subtitles released in Asia in 2004. However, since the initial US release of April 2005 appears to be a single disk, I will focus my review on Disk 1 of the above package namely the movie itself.
I saw Daggers prior to "Hero" so this was my first experience of an Asian movie in quite some time, and my opinions are from a westerner's viewpoint looking in as it were. I am not an expert on martial arts but I can understand some of the negative reviews from those expecting another "Hero". "House of Flying Daggers" is a triangle love story; it is not a fully blown martial arts movie. There are scenes of martial arts but this film is no "Hero".
When I first viewed "House of Flying Daggers" I was completely blown away by its amazing visuals. People have been impressed by Christopher Doyle's cinematography in "Hero", but Xiading Zhou who also worked on same, raises the bar as cameraman on "House of Flying Daggers". He delivers some incredible footage that in my view puts "Hero" in the shade. In fact this movie is a far superior film to "Hero" in every department. For one, the script is a big improvement over the previous film, and it's obvious a lot of work went into it because it shows. The story is full of twists and turns that will keep you guessing throughout the movie. Secondly, there are some breathtaking set pieces, which I will go into in more detail later.
The film centers around three characters played by Andy Lau, Takeshi Kaneshiro, and Zhang Ziyi. Lau and Kaneshiro play two government captains namely Leo and Jin. While Ziyi is a blind dancer called Mei, whom Leo suspects is the daughter of the former rebel leader of the House of Flying Daggers. She is also a specialist with the dagger as we later discover in the movie. This is 859AD, and we are told of a corrupt government in decline the Tang Dynasty. Director Zhang Yimou wisely avoids the temptation of developing the film into a blockbuster like "Hero", and largely focuses on the relationship of the three leads.
Captain's Leo and Jin hatch a plan to infiltrate the Peony Pavilion where Mei (Zhang Ziyi) works as a dancer. Jin pretends he is a lone warrior known as Wind, and arrives at the Pavilion to try and tease out Mei. Unfortunately Jin causes a commotion when he tries to make love to Mei, and is duly arrested by Leo as part of his plan. He also decides to arrest Mei, but concedes he would release her if she agreed to play the echo game with him. This involves throwing pebbles at a large circle of pedestal drums, with the blind percipient identifying the correct sequence by tapping same with an extended dress scarf.
This drum segment featuring Zhang Ziyi took twenty days to shoot, and is one of the most astonishing combinations of sound and vision that I have seen since Sergio Leone's cemetery masterpiece in "The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly". While Mei initially agrees to play the echo game, she astounds everyone by using this diversion as a tool to try and take Leo's life. Leo suppresses Mei and has her thrown in jail. Seeing this as an opportunity, Leo arranges a prison break with Jin acting as her accomplice. The plan, with Jin operating as Mei's escort, it was hoped she would lead them to the underground movement known as the House of Flying Daggers.
Thus the journey of both Mei and Jin (Wind) begins. To consolidate the charade, Leo orchestrates a number of fake ambushes. However, his plan comes unstuck when the General of the region takes over his duties, and orders his army to attack them without informing his soldiers that Jin is undercover. What follows are a number of mesmerizing set pieces with the bamboo forest escapade been one of the standouts.
I fully accept the various complaints about continuity problems with the forests and other anomalies in "Daggers". However it should be noted that movies are never about the nail been straight, but do require extensive use of an element on the right side of the brain known as the imagination.
As Mei and Jin continue their escape they gradually realize there is a mutual attraction between them, but Jin senses Mei is somewhat reserved in this newfound relationship. Though he cannot understand her reasons, he is nonetheless determined to win her heart.
There's a beautiful scene shot in the Ukraine, where Jin in cavalry poise, seizes some flowers for Mei while riding horse back. The blending of this scene, with the movie's extremely catchy theme music, delivers a genuine emotional sucker punch. It shows a poignant side that I was not expecting from a film of this type. Too often we in the west look upon Asian films as rather impassive, but this movie shows our eastern friends share the same feelings as the rest of us, and in this case puts many Hollywood films to shame.
I won't attempt to divulge any more of the storyline, except to say; do pay attention to Leo's (Andy Lau) dialogue in the second half of the movie, as there is a neat little twist in the final minute which is extremely clever. It goes without saying that Zhang Ziyi looks good in Daggers, though I've always felt eastern women have an unfair advantage over everybody else; they seem more beautiful. If you enjoy tales of mystery and romance this is a must see DVD, in fact it's probably one of the best love stories I have ever seen.
58 House of crouching heroes.....
One has to ask, do the daggers come with a radar? I swear, I thought one of them was making a beeping sound, when it turned around... oddly enough the Last Samurai in Top gun came to mind????
I have a theory... there are two planes to reality in theatre. The first plane of reality, is one which directors trample over all the time... e.g. Grossly encountered coincidences, 920 degree somersaults, or even James Bond jumping from one plane to another. These miraculous feats are somewhat expected in your big bang movie.
BUT then there is the second plane of reality, which by all means (if a machine from the future hasnt come back, or we're not living inside a software) is theatre's point of relativity... Beyond this plane lies... swordsman walking on water, hillsides snow capped before your 2 minute noodles are done, or dare I say daggers that can take a tea break before piercing their foe.
Its a line that I hate watching directors piss on. And when they do, it makes me cringe... and I lose my focus... and the experience goes bad. House of Flying Daggers really walks that fine line... when laws of Physics as we know it are spat on...
The CG effects become apparent, and the invisible rope, isnt so invisible anymore.
Secondly, Im getting tired of these overblown love affairs, when conflict between ambition and love sweeps everything off its feet, literally. Its been done to death by the director. The storylines are somewhat always the same.
As a Kung Fu flick, the action scene at times are the most dazzling I've encountered... almost MANGA like. Its absolutely beautiful at its finest moments, specially the Bamboo scene. Reminds me of the late great Ninja Scroll animation.
However, at its core, comparitvely, the hand to hand fighting is badly choreographed... this is most evident at the end, when the two men wreslte each other like two kids in a playground.
Jin's drunken behaviour is something to be embarrassed about, not because of the rowdiness but his acting was awful.
Despite my ramblings, there is plenty here to be happy about, and nevertheless a pleasant step outside the realms of hollywood... hence 4 out of 5 stars. Do go and watch.
59 Holy crap!
I have seen this film many times and it has never once failed to move me. I leave the experience feeling emotionally fullfilled. The story is compelling, the visuals are stunning, the music is absolutely wonderful, and I believe that this is one of the best movies I have ever seen. If you haven't yet seen it, you're definitely missing out. You won't be dissapointed.
60 The best film seen
I want to recommend everyone to see this film. It has love, action, friendship and lots more in it and it's so beautiful that it makes you want to see it over and over again. I think its the best movie Zhang Yimou has done.
I highly recommend it.
Dolores
61 Beautifully acted, filmed martial arts epic
I must say I cringe at all the comments saying how the storyline wasn't "believable" and the characters weren't three dimensional. This is a martial arts epic, and for anyone who's seen enough of these films, the code of behavior is purely stylized, kind of like in a Western. It's not Method acting. These are characters within a certain genre, and they are expected to behave and speak in a certain way. (You cant very well have a Western hero who's a chatty metrosexual Cathy.)
Within the confines of the genre, I thought "House of Flying Daggers" was gorgeously filmed, and actually had much more depth and feeling than most of these films. Zhang Zimou is of course famous for his beautiful cinematography, and this is no exception. The film's very beginning, in which Mei dances with her silk sashes, is itself a visual feast.
The acting is also excellent. Zhang Ziyi is one of the most beautiful women onscreen today. Girlish yet stunningly sensual, the camera (and audience) fixates on the every curl of her beautiful mouth. I'd have to go back to Hitchcock to think of a screen goddess filmed as lovingly. As Mei the blind courtesan, she projects the right mix of unattainability and vulnerability. She also has terrific screen chemistry with Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro). The scene in which Jin cuts flowers for her in a field may be the most romantic thing I've seen onscreen in a long time, made even more so by the rigid chivalry that defines the characters.
The character of Leo (Andy Lau) is less well-defined and compelling, and Lau is so stolid that unfortunately the love triangle between Leo, Jin, and Mei fails to take off. After all, it is very clear where the "real love" is.
As for the storyline, it's a typical martial arts storyline, in which a beautiful woman is secretly a skilled fighter, and the men who love her must fight to the death. There's also the usual double-identities and double-crossing. The "third act" is perhaps too filled with twists and quick identity revelations. But mostly this is a movie of mood and visuals, and if you go into the movie thinking, "Oh that's not realistic!" you'll ruin the whole experience. Just sit back, and watch Jin leer at Mei bathing. You too will be overwhelmed by the beauty of it all.
62 House of Flying Baloney
Yes the cinematography and costumes are gorgeous, and the actors, especially the usually wonderful Ziyi Zhang, manage to deliver nuanced, touching performances. But they do so under the weight of a ridiculous, cliched, non-sensical storyline that ruins what is otherwise a visually stunning film. There are the hopelessly romantic who will allow themselves to be swept away by the beautiful surfeit of this movie, but anyone with the sensibility to require mature, credible drama will cringe as the cliches and unbelievable (and pointless) plot twists accumulate. Most of the double-crosses and startling revelations that occur towards the end are meaningless and overwhelming, and by then you just don't care. The story logic withers under the scrutiny of anyone who cares to recall what took place 45 minutes earlier. It seems the director filmed without knowing the dramatic convolutions that would eventually take place. The motivation of the heroine, and thus the romantic essence of the film, is invalidated as a result, wasting Ziyi Zhang's otherwise commendable performance. And that is the only real tragedy here (and what a hottie she is - I don't want to let that go without saying).
Flying Daggers starts slow and never manages to find its pace or involve the audience. By the end, House achieves a self-involved silliness. Everything is overdone, from the opening echo-dance, which is wonderfully inventive but way too long, to the conclusion's macho duel-to-the-death-for-the-girl's-love that we've seen so often before. Yimou demonstrates no self-restraint, perhaps overconfident as a result of Hero's success. The martial arts sequences in Hero are fantastic and dreamlike, balletic and straining credibility but ultimately satisfying. Whereas Hero neatly achieves a balance between realism and fantasy, Flying Daggers proceeds well-beyond the incredible into the ridiculous, and suspension-of-disbelief cannot nearly compensate. If only the film's producers had invested as much time in crafting a credible story as in the production, this could have been a wonderful film. It had so much potential, making the disappointment of Flying Daggers all-the-more bitter.
Instead of this overwrought, self-indulgent melodrama, see Hero (which I place among my two favorite films of 2004). Or go back and rewatch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - still the best film of this genre ever made, and one of the best of all time.
63 WOW
I just read one of these reviews that said it was boring and ridiculous.I don't know what movie they saw but, it wasn't the same one I did. This was an incredible movie, I had seen Hero and loved it, the scenery in this is breat taking and the story line is fantastic.This is yet another classic for my DVD collection.
64 GREAT MOVIE,JUST LIKE THE "HERO"
I really liked this movie, just like "HERO" I saw and loved it, great seen, marshal art, and jaw dropping seens and action, I definitely BUY it on DVD, Just I did with "HERO" the movie was in this gender well made also. I guess both platinum movies to have in my DVD collection. & Yours.
65 Nice scenery, silly story
This is an overrated film in my view. The scenery and cinematography is excellent, but the storyline is apalling. The dancing scene from ZiYi becomes boring. The fightings are overdone with special fx. The last scene with endless death of ZiYi is ridiculous.
66 Immaculate Conception
It's very rare to have a foreign art movie featured in a mainstream cinema chain. Likely, I sensed a minor revolution. First, "Hero" and now, "House of Flying Daggers". Action speaks louder than words and it's marvellous to see an art movie such as this cross into the main stream, akin to Shania Twain crossing the country channel into the pop channel. Personally, I find this movie and "Hero" achingly beautiful and yet, this movie moves me in a way that the previous offering couldn't achieve. Everyone should be familiar about the story outline by now and what made this movie truly outstanding is Zhang Yimou's concentration into the triangular relationship between three main characters. This is a movie that needs to be savoured slowly on the big screen. What moves me even more would be its understated elegance and subtlety and the life metaphors that are reflected through scenes filled with cornucopia of colour. This is by no mean a mere Chinese movie but an Asian movie that involves team from Japan, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan and so forth. One can't help but noticing the end credit dedicating to the newly deceased Anita Mui, who was supposed to play the leader of the House of Flying Daggers. One could only imagine how different this movie's dynamic would be if she's featured instead of simply these three characters. Choreography of fighting scenes is more toned down in this instance. More CGI, more brute force but less wirework has become cliche in Asian movie offering nowadays. Whilst this movie's setting is bygone time, its love storyline is very contemporary aka complicated and immersing in gray areas due to circumstances. A movie that deserves better and a movie that's unfortunately snubbed by Oscars (a mere one nomination) this time around. A very well-done love epic and a movie that deserves to be watched on the big screen. Highly recommended. For those movie geeks, English title is very different from Chinese title, which means "Ten Sides Ambush". Perhaps, it refers to the hole that the main characters that they dug themselves into and their inability to get out of it when they got stuck too deep in the mud. In another words, slim chance of "survival" whatever that "survival" implied.
67 Flying deep into my heart.
With visuals adorned by nature's beauty and a story as passionate as the human spirit, time will give House of Flying Daggers the great appreciation it deserves.
I just saw the movie last night after purchasing the soundtrack, out of curiosity, the week before. (I, finally, went to get the one for Hero and saw the one for this nearby.) I became familiar with the music first, and then I surfed the Web for movie reviews and viewer commentary. Unfortunately, I encountered many negative interpretations of the film's story, action, acting, direction etc. After seeing the movie, I realized that the same elements which were criticized in this film were celebrated when presented within more "conventional" productions.
As wisely pointed out by a reviewer on another website, the tale is from the Tragic tradition of storytelling. Similarly, the exquisitely choreographed action sequences and the breathtaking cinematography are based in artistry - not reality. Although the plot - which wasn't that logic-defying (especially, when compared to those of Star Wars and The Matrix) - revolved around issues that may feel foreign to some, the drama's emotional core resonated with the most fundamental human longings.: The need for a life of freedom and the yearning for love without fear.
68 House of flying daggers soars
This is a great great movie! The fight scenes are lyrical, mythical and yet somewhat grounded in reality. Although I am a fan of all Yimou's work, both "Hero" and "House of Flying Daggers" were so completely amazing that I watch the dvds at home over and over. I enjoy that these works are both so artistic that in parts that could be gory or sexual in nature, it is merely suggested in an artistic manner and not gratuitous or disgusting. Some people are disgruntled at the "wire fu" of these movies, but I enjoy the mythical other-wordly element. I, too, am a martial artist, but find the flying and such to be stunning. If you are a fan of "crouching tiger" "hero" "iron monkey" or any other Hong Kong swordplay Fantasy/cinema this movie is definately for you. It also has a cloak of romance enveloping the plot and is done very well, but very tragically. This is a movie that you would not be wasting money on at the theater...go see it!
69 Give Me More
First, CTHD got me turned on to the latest in Asian film, and Zhang Ziyi has since become my all time favorite up and coming starlet. She delivers in this one as well.
House Of Flying Daggers is a beautiful film, bringing back the romanticism in movies that's been missing from Hollywood. This was a movie that was well worth my money and I saw it several times. The colors and photography in Zhang Yimou's latest directorial masterpiece are simply mindboggling. Zhang Ziyi shines as the star of this one. Some 'critics' have beat up on the plot, saying it was lacking. I say balony. The plot's fine. It was a deeply touching love story tucked into a traditional style fictional Asian fantasy movie with martial arts and it worked. I go see a movie to be pleasantly entertained and come away feeling satisfied with the experience. And I was, completely.
70 must see!
Looking beyond the breathtaking cinematography, this is STILL a great film. I do not review movie. But this work deserves better than most critics believe.
Myth: every movie should have plot, character development, great cinematography, action, theme, the whole shabang. It's a 2hrs film, give me a break. I'd rather see a film that focuses on a few elements and makes them really shine than to see one that TRIES to be everything and accomplishes nothing.
Story: Read from the movie's official site.
Character development: lots of critics compliant about the lack of character development in this film. This steams mainly from the writer's unfamiliarity with the Chinese culture. It's impossible to explain 5000 years of character development to a foreigner in a 2-hour time frame. Chinese is a very succinct. In order to get the character, one has to pay attention to what they DIDN'T say, read between lines. This is fortunate for the American audience since most of what they did say was lost in translation anyway. The characters and their roles in the film were very vivid to me. This is especially true in Zhang JiYi's role. Though belonged to a clan of assassins she's not valued in the clan for her fighting abilities, but rather, being used as a sexual tool against men in and outside the clan. Even though she didn't love Leo, she stayed because of her respect for Leo (an accomplished agent) and loyalty to her clan. Her own personality/individuality was suppressed by her upbringing and social pressure. Very typical of Chinese females. But when Jin came along with a promise to a carefree life, she's torn between her responsibilities and her dreams. Her desire to run towards a foreigner and away from her strict family/responsibilities is, unfortunately, also very common among Chinese females. :) Some parts of the character development in this movie was so vivid that it hurt. Those who compliant about character development, check out Zhang Yimou's early art films... with ONLY character development and little plot. See how long you enjoy character development before crapping out...
Cinematography: This is not a Lord of The Rings or Hero type of setting with big siege/war scenes. It more like Crouching Tiger with 2-15 people in a fight. Visually, the scenes are on par with Hero. No break through, but still an 11 out of 10. This is actually the first film in which I think Zhang JiYi looked stunningly beautiful.
Plot: Simple, tragic story with a couple of good twists. Good thing since a complex story will undoubtedly lose a lot of people who have to read subtitles.
Action: He directed Hero... Need I say more?
Acting: Andy Lau underperformed IMHO. Zhang JiYi did well. Takeshi Kaneshiro did his part as well.
Overall: Zhang Yimou is definitely producing films with higher "commercial" value than that of his early works. And this film shows that he is a master in balancing between action, character development, plot, and message/theme. Don't miss out of this one! Go see it NOW.
71 Incredibly amazing
The story is very complex, in the end, you find yourself suprised, and figure out, that the person you saw along the movie is actually not that somebody, as you thought. The movie is very moving, brightful, exciting, thrilling and enjoyable. It has a deep emotional impress of love. I have never seen such a beautiful movie in my life...
72 THIS IS A GREAT MOVIE
I have seen this movie five times in the theatre and it is honestly one of the best movies that I have ever seen. Not only are the fight scenes amazing, but the plot is good and the cinematagraphy is spactacular. This movie rocks!
73 House Of Flying Daggers is an amazing piece of work
A young warrior is sent out on a mission to accompany a blind girl who was posing as a dancer girl at the Peony Pavillion. He helps her escape and then run into the green forest fighting and falling in love. He figures out that she is a member of The Flying Daggers. Their love blossoms as they fight their way threw enemies on the hills and bamboo forests. They soon get rescued by The Flying Daggers but Jin finds out that Mei, the blind girl he fell for is not blind and was playing him behind his back and she loves another man as well. The 2 men fight for Mei. Beautifully and astonishingly done with awesome fight scenes and Zhang Ziyi (Rush Hour 2, Hero) is simply gorgeous and great. The director knows how to make a movie and he tells it well with colors and locations and some of the imaginary situations (swords bending, guys flying on trees..etc). A sure fire winner of 2004...not on my best movie list but it's almost close.
74 A director's perspective
I am a director who knows a bit about putting something like this together. No director in the US does ANYTHIING like this, ever. In the great words of Roger Ebert reviewing this film, he states that the US has learned "kiss kiss bang bang" but the Chinese could teach us to make films "kiss kiss bang bang pretty pretty" This film is stunning. The bizarre complaints by people who want realism, should not come here for verismo. It is supposed to be melodramatic, INCLUDING the ending. If you laugh at the end, you were supposed to laugh. It's supposed to be over the top and still enjoyable, much like a Puccini opera is over the top and nonetheless great. The cinimatic detail and sheer beauty with which this was made transports film back to where it should be: ART. There is a difference between ART and ENTERTAINMENT. Unfortunately the genre has offered so many cheap thrills for years, that one now has to be riminded that film can also be high art. Let the plot go for a moment. If you want a story with all the bows tied up at the end, don't go the the MET meseum of ART or see this movie. This movie is nothing short of inspiring and breathtaking from beginning to end.
75 Made me laugh
First of all, the scenery was breathtaking. The scene with the dancing and the gongs and everything was fantastic. Everything else kind of fell flat. This movie was supposed to be romantic and stuff but it was pretty comedic. I was laughing my head off in the last scene! And it was supposed to be sad! The plot was overly-gag-me cheesy and unrealistic (how could Mei still be alive after all that?!?). Fortunately the characters were overall likeable, except for Mei's psycho ex-boyfriend...please. And the fact that she should be a mondo-good martial artist but still almost gets raped, like, five times is so extraordinairly improbable (not to mention dumb)! By the way, the sex on the forest ground was totally unneeded. Overall this movie is sappy and overdramatic. I recommend you to pick it up at the library if you want a few laughs. Don't waste your money on this...film...if you want a good romantic/martial artsy movie buy 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' or 'Hero' instead.
76 "To be free....like the wind."
I had the opportunity to see this movie earlier in the month and it is great! The film is set in China during 859 A.D., during last days of the Tang Dynasty. One underground sect called 'House of Flying Daggers' are openly challenging the authority of the corrupt government. To crush the rebels, two police officers Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) and Leo (Andy Lau) plot an infiltration.
Jin poses as a wealthy man to meet a blind courtesan Mei (Zhang Ziyi), who is suspected to be the daughter of a leader of the secret clan who was executed, and Jin gains Mei's confidence by saving her life in which she then falls in love with him. By doing this, Jin hopes Mei will lead him to the rebel's secret base. Jin's partner, Leo, warns Jin not to fall in love with Mei but, fortunately, they both end up falling in love with each other anyway.
The rest of the movie is a love story mixed in with beautiful costumes and sets, lush scenery as well as spectacular fight scenes. The film itself delves into philisophical questions of whether Jin and Mei should go back to their roles demanded by the societies they belong to or if they should follow their own self-interest and go live happily ever after.
If you are a fan (like I am) of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" and "Iron Monkey" you will certainly love "House of Flying Daggers".
77 utterly disappointing...Zhang Yi Mo what were you thinking?
My expectations were high when I went in the theater and was crushed when I came out. It's a ridiculous shadow of the breathtaking beauty of Hero. Somehow it felt like a second year film student (a rather inadequate one at that) has tried to use the visual/thematic elements of what's good about Hero and tried to plagiarize it for a project. The whole color scheme saturation thing fell flat on its face. The snow storm scene obviously mimics that of the Red whirlwind of leaves scene from Hero except it didn't serve the emotional punctuation. It's trying to use the same devices but not to advance any plot, theme, or cinematic point, but using them for the sole purpose of having them there. The plot was so silly it was hard to stifle laughs when the movie thought it was at its most dramatic. It was tedious and revolting. As far as the acting goes, there were no emotional engagement, no chemistry, not event for a moment - only intense but superficial acting. I mean have you seen a colder after-desperate-sex-scene as they lay afterwards at an unnatural angle to each other on the grass but at no point touching each other or attempting to hold on to each other, not even their cloths. Zhang Zi Yi is of course as beautiful as ever and fantastic as a blind girl but I'm hoping for a bit of emotional depth and realism from her, mayhap also a fleeting touch of vulnerability? Sigh. I sincerely hoped that this would be a gratifying movie experience after having been floored by Hero. Alas, it is not to be.
78 Fun Movie to Watch, but It Needs a Morale to Story
This film is non-stop beautiful and action-packed, with likable main characters, humor, MANY surprising plot twists, and tons of cool, original, and fun fight scenes. The costumes and sets are very beautiful. The acting is terrific!
The fight scenes are very realistic looking, though sometimes they go overboard, but it's still fun and in character with an exaggerated version of this era in China. "House of Flying Daggers" adds a fresh dimension of highly original cinematography compostion and graceful choreography to the fighting and just about every second of this movie, too. It looks like everybody is a skilled martial artist, even many of the movie extras who have no dialogue, and the costumes and scenery are always amazingly breathtaking.
This film reminds me of "The Matrix" which had the special effect of "bullet time," but "House of Flying Daggers" has dagger time, arrow time, bean time, and dirt clod time.
They do all kinds of fighting in this film, hand-to-hand, with daggers, bow & arrows, on horseback, with bamboo stalks, even with their clothing! There is lots of original variety to keep from getting bored with the fight scenes. Even when I thought I'd seen movie fights using such and such weapons, they go and add a new twist in the way the characters use these weapons!
The only thing missing is a strong morale to the story, a satisfying statement about human life or relationships. The lack of a good point to the story is this movie's only weakness.
"House of Flying Daggers" is better than "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" because "Daggers" is more action-packed, with more realistic fighting, and less wimpy ballet wire work ("Crouching Tiger's" biggest weakness), and a less convoluted story to try to decipher.
"House of Flying Daggers" is non-stop FUN movie entertainment!
79 Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee
Here's one word that sums up this film: Beauty. The plot of "House of Flying Daggers" (original title: "Shi mian mai fu") is lacking, but in a way it's made up for with the intoxicating sets, costumes, and exquisite love story. Zhang Yimou backs away from the grandeur of "Hero" in favor of a more intimate story.
It's 859 A.D., near the end of the corrupt Tang Dynasty. A guerilla rebellion called House of the Flying Daggers (who are able to throw knives at great distances) has sprung up against the government. Despite the loss of their leader, the rebels are thriving. Deputy Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) decides to go undercover to infiltrate the House, and he tries to get the trust of blind courtesan Mei (Zhang Ziyi), daughter of the House's dead leader.
But soon he begins to fall in love with Mei, which jeopardizes his loyalties while Mei herself is experiencing confusion. But government officials want Mei dead because of her sympathies -- and even worse, they don't realize that Jin is undercover. To make things worse, Jin is not the only rival for Mei's love -- his best friend is as well.
Director Zhang Yimou apparently said that "Hero" was the warm-up to "House of Flying Daggers." It does seem more polished and fully realized, without the "Rashomon" storytelling. Instead of a war movie, it's a mixture of fairy-tale romance and beauty, and spies and guerilla warfare. The final half-hour is the stumbling block, where some plot threads come unravelled. Things get pretty confusing, and.
Zhang doesn't drop the ball as far as stylism goes -- color and exquisite details are in every frame. They have an almost intoxicating effect, and so do the action sequences. One of the most memorable scenes is Ziyi performing the "echo game," where she strikes drums in a particular rhythm with her flowing clothing. Not to mention a balletic, dreamlike fight in a bamboo forest, with the participants soaring and dipping like Cirque de Soleil dancers. It's all completely unreal, but there lies its beauty, like a painting of the sky that focuses on the sun and not the clouds.
This is entirely Zhang Ziyi's picture -- since her debut in "The Road Home," Ziyi has proved herself a wonderful actress. "House of Flying Daggers" focuses mostly on Ziyi, and she gives a truly exquisite performance, particularly as a blind woman -- watch her face. The two supporting actors, Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro, do a solid job in their roles, particularly Kaneshiro, who brings plenty of life to what could have been another cliched bad-cop-turned-lover.
"House of Flying Daggers" is worth seeing just to see -- it's visual ecstacy packed around a fairly typical love triangle plot and a slightly disappointing final half hour. But the sights alone in this intimate love story are exquisite.
80 Communism in disguise
Is it just me or does this movie and Hero subtly say "don't try to upset the communism statu quo in China becuase no matter how cool or romaantic the idea of going againts the odds, you'll lose and die in the end?" I just saw flying daggers and no matter how visually spectacular it was, the government wins in the end and the main pawns die, as in hero. Granted, a lot of history has happened to China after those 2 movies, but it's now communist with no signs of stopping. Thats the point. Unfortunately, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon set the bar too high for these 2 to match as far as Chinese films in the US go. The Pearl Harbor love triangle plot line was not evident to me until half-way through.
81 Great....but not as good as Hero
I have very mixed views on this one...a great success and a great failure
I have to give this movie one very absolute accolade: it is BEAUTIFUL. Hero, by the same director, made great use of pure colors. HOFD shys away from such a stark, obvious visual style but still manages to be very nearly as beautiful as Hero. Both the scenery and the fight choreography have some very breath-taking moments.
That said, HOFD has a rather large problem. The movie commits what I consider to be perhaps the biggest movie "sin" there is: the movie is HEAVILY anti-climactic. The best scenes occur 1/3 to 1/2 of the way through the movie. That might be ok if there was a decent ending scene. I haven't seen a movie fizzle out so completely since I saw Tomb Raider (not that the rest of TR was much better than the end). The movie fizzles out on several levels. First, the choreography of the final fight scene is completely lackluster- in fact, the fight feels more like something out of a King Arthur/Braveheart type film- not martial-arts related at all. Second, the story simply ceases to make much sense in the final scene. The motivations of the characters and the odd events that occur in the scene simply cease to be both sensible and entertaining.
House of Flying Daggers is beautiful, and I can easily recommend it- anti-climactic and all. Just don't expect it to be Hero.
82 good until the last five minutes
This is a stunningly beautiful movie. The director has a wonderful I for seeing the beauty of nature and capturing the innocence of his star, Zhang Ziyi, however without giving too much away the last five minutes was extremely frustrating. Those who have seen the movie I am sure know what I mean, but if you are down stay down. I did not realize snow had resurrecting powers.
There will of course be comparisons to "Hero" and while for most of the movie it compares well, in the end it just falls short. If I had to keep one or the other, the answer would be "Hero".
83 Visually fantastic...but....
The House of the Flying Daggers directed by Zhang Yimou is fantastically one of the most visually moving films I have seen in this year. The director's usage of colors in clothing, nature and interior decor proves to be nothing less then pure feast for the eyes.
The lead actors all proves to be quite good. Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro both proves to be good actors and their fight sequences got power and believablity. But the movie actually belong to Ziyi Zhang who looks devastatingly enchanting in this movie. Its her movie all the way and she takes advantage of it throughout every scene she is in.
However, the story have much to be desire. I am not going to give out the story but its not very original and its not very believable. While any one part of the movie, the romance and its discords, the fight scenes or the cloak and dagger stuff alone may have work, when you combined the three elements, the story simply don't make sense. This is one of these movies you feel enthralled with while you watch it visually but as you walked away from the theater thinking about it, you get more disappointed when the elements of the story simply don't add up. If none of the plots make any sense, what are you left with but a visual masterpiece but that alone don't make a movie. There may be folks out there who may be more forgiving then I but ironically speaking, this is a type of movie that does make you think about the movie and its consequences. And more you think on it, more disappointed you will be. Why ask why??
If you are a Ziyi Zhang fan, this movie is definitely for you. But otherwise, you should have a debate whether a visually enchanting movie without a decent story is for you or not.
84 WOW
It is difficult to understand some of the criticism I have read here, this film (as with all films of this ilk) requires people believe the unbelievable, so get over it, taken for what it is, it is the most beautiful,fantastic, fantasy film I have seen in years, I can hardly wait for the DVD.
85 My 2 cents
Watching the movie originally in china, and then watching it here with some friends, I got my 2 cents.
Learn chinese and watch it in chinese.
Or at least subtitles that make full.....[insert adjective that means to do full justice]
86 not bad but still got some fatal shortcomings
first, the bad casting of andy lau, a guy who always looked out of place no matter it's a movie about modern or ancient time. his acting is also very poor. to me, he's the chinese keanu reeve, an accidental actor, who never got the acting talent, no matter how hard they tried. second, the most annoying dialgue structure. you just cannot mix the modern chinese way of talking with the ancient chinese language. in this movie and the other one, hero, actors used the dialogue talking to each other were like in a time warp. everyone of them, every the sentence they used in the dialogue was part of modern plain chinese, part of ancient literary concentrate words, that ancient part would be only make possible in b class movies, and yet, zhang yimou never realized this fatal flaw and let the screenplay writers doomly messed the dialogue up. zhang also got a complex that forced him into a large-than-life pretentiousness. hero and this one, both looked so pretentious and overdone, overkilled in cinemagraphy, plot, settings, scene selections, constume designs, scenarios...and ended up either diluted or spoiled the whole movie into just a bit over mediocrity. zhang also spent and wasted lot of unnecessary production budget on finding the too out-of-the-world poetical correct but reality wrong locations, custume designs, with some lenghthy and meaningless scenes. he also got some unbalanced stubborness on something else: trying so hard and so desparately to get an oscard, a miniature holding and overcasted unprecedently by ang lee. he's always trying to surpass that director's block but so far fell about nine yards short. for ancient background scenario, he should keep it simple, candid, more direct with easy but still powerful conflicts with more down-to-earth human touch. he should also improve himself not to waste too much budget and time finding those traditional chinese brush painting-like scenes just for the montage-effect illusions, nor should he waste too much budget on the indoor studio shootings, those designer-obvious costumes and settings (like that whorehouse as big as half of the football field; all the whores wore and looked like miss universe pagent......) but most important of all, if he wants to do more wu-xia (ancient chinese chilvary legends), purify the dialogue, either keep in plain modern chinese or, concentrate ancient chinese; a mixture of the dialogue would only show that zhang, the great director, never got a true grip of such movie genre.
87 Being torn two ways...
Urrgghhh...this is a movie that is plain difficult to review, because I'm being torn two ways about things...On one hand you have some of the most striking cinematography ever put on celluloid, scenes that seemed painted on rather than to have existed in real life. Zhang Ziyi looks ravishing, so do the two male leads. Zhang Yimou's direction can't be faulted: the bamboo forest scenes contain some of the most awesome swordplay scenes ever put on film, and the chreography is by none other than Cheng Xiaodong. The music is beautiful, haunting.
Urrrggghhh. Then we must have the scriptwriters, who write such "luminous" lines such as "I have to kill you." "You must die, I have to kill you too." I understand Mandarin and thought the dialogue sucked big-time; had I been Zhang, I would have shot both scriptwriters for writing banally imbecile lines that a fourth grader would have done better. It sounds like Shakespeare clothed in pretentious garb. And what can we say about the script? Why don't they spend more time developing the relationships between the characters in a more nuanced and emotional resonant way? I'm baffled, cos in every other department the film is top-class.
My advice to Zhang: sack your scriptwriters. Get a Hong Kong scriptwriter instead.
88 Best Movie of 2004
"House of Flying Daggers" is the most romantic movie since "The English Patient" and the best action movie since "Crouching Tiger." But, let the viewer be warned. It starts slow, and builds up in intensity as time goes on.
The year is 800 A.D. and the Tang Dynasty of China is menaced by a secret organization called the House of Flying Daggers. Two under-cover policemen conspire to infiltrate the HOFD They see their opportunity through a captive partisan, a blind, beautiful, and deadly dancer named Mei, played by Zhang Ziyi. One of the policemen, Takeshi Kaneshiro, breaks Mei out of jail hoping she will lead him to the headquarters of the House of Flying Daggers. Dogged by pursuers, they flee together through a gorgeous landscape of autumn color, bamboo forests, hidden perils, and twists of the plot at every turn. Ostensibly an action picture, the romance -- and the deceit -- between Zhang and Kaneshiro dominates the movie, although there are enough artful action scenes to satisfy all but the most fanatic of Chinese martial art fans.
"House of Flying Daggers" is an old-fashioned romance dressed up in lavish Chinese costumes and photographed ravishingly. There is a bit of grit it it too. Zhang gets mussed and bloody -- sweats, cries, pants for breath, looks terrified, and shows a bit more skin than is common in Chinese movies. She was underused in "Musa" and "Hero," but comes into her own as a glamorous waif in "House of Flying Daggers." Not the least of the sumptuous pleasures of HOFD is the song by opera singer Kathleen Battle at the end. To tell more would be to give away surprises in this spectacular movie.
Smallchief
89 House of Flying Daggers: A Kung Fu Date Movie?!?
House of Flying Daggers (HFD) is a tough movie to recommend to acquaintances without in-depth explanation. Neither as accessible as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (CTHD), nor as sumptuous and epic as Jet Li's Hero, it is having trouble finding a Western audience despite glowing critical reviews.
It is still an excellent, exquisite motion picture, beautiful in form, thought-provoking in function. And its action scenes are the real deal. It's just that the other parts may not be so tolerable to those who will most appreciate them.
Imagine Shakespeare was Chinese; that is an apt way to begin describing this movie. Already the fanboys are turning up their noses. Then imagine he wanted to tell a romantic tragedy. Bid bye-bye to most other males. Then imagine him telling his story integrating amazing CGI, wire-fu and sword fighting. So long, women. On the sum of such description, that leaves as this film's audience only the curious and the brave and fans of pure cinema. But while its elements do not mesh
