film: House of Flying Daggers (directed by zhang yimou)

[mariacallas]

House of Flying Daggers-dir by zhang yimou

Im super excited and loooking forward to this epic...which was screened at the recent 2004 Toronto Film Festival with rave reviews all around (and i heard, is currently the no.1 box office hit in China right now). House of Flying Daggers directed by one of my fave directors Zhang Yimou (of Raise the Red Lantern fame) and starring Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, another fave)... it is said to be " Crazier than Crouching Tiger, zippier than Zatoichi, hotter than Hero. This one is a feast for the eyeballs, a treat for the romantically-inclined, and a full-course feast for the action aficionados.'

ANyone else looking forward to this? I heard it will be opening in US theaters sometime December....im going to hpefuly watch this here next week. wOOt !

 

[Jabberwocky]

Looks good... Take a look at these trailers, especially the Japanese one. Andy Lau is looking pretty badass, and I think it will be fun to see him in this kind of roll after being a fan of his music as a kid. I can definitely see him holding his own with the likes of Chow Yun Fat and Jet Li. My only concern is that he isnt truly a martial artist, but then again that has never held back Chow Yun Fat.

http://www.themoviebox.net/movies/2004/DEFGH/HouseOfFlyingDaggers/trailer.html

Is it going to be better than Hero or Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon? That's a tall order, but I am sure to be happy with it either way and am glad to see this genre of film finally gaining mainstream respect outside of Asia.

SG

 

[The Mexican]

trailer looks excellent!

 

[Roger&Me]

I saw this movie tonight, and have just two words to say about it:

Visually STUNNING.

 

[Jabberwocky]

Good film. I saw this one last week and although I enjoyed the movie I was actually a wee bit disappointed. I went into it with very high expectations having read silly sound bite reviews claiming it: "blows away Hero and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". Besides the fact that they are all Chinese period pieces I don't think it is very appropriate to draw further comparisons between the three.

Know before you buy your ticket that you are paying to see a Chinese romance film that happens to showcase martial arts, as opposed to a martial arts film with a romantic sub plot. Going into the theater understanding this context, I think people will find the film much more enjoyable.

I felt that the movie started out beautifully but seemed to lose momentum towards the end. Andy Lau, Zhang Zi Yi and Takeshi Kaneshiro all had marvelous performances. Staying true to form, Zhang Yimou dazzles you with gorgeous cinematography and fantastic use of color - the costume designs and stage sets are some of the most beautiful I've ever seen.

I hope the film does well - its been wonderful to see Chinese epics finally make an impact outside of Asia and hope it's a trend that continues to gain momentum.

 

[DemonsFall]

I've been looking forward to this a lot ever since I first saw the trailer. It just looks stunning.

 

[5-HT2]

Great acting, bad screenplay, over-the-top directing and cinematography, but still visually stunning.

Definitely not in the same league as either Hero or Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. When I walked out of the theatre after the first time I saw Crouching Tiger, I had to wipe tears of emotion from my cheeks. When I walked out of House of Flying daggers, I was sad that the actors weren't given more to work with.

The review in the Boston Globe said it best: "the plotline implodes on the last reel."

I felt at some points that Zhang Yimou was trying too hard to upstage Ang Lee, most egregiously in the still-amazing bamboo fight scene.

 

[L2R]

VERY pretty movie, just like hero, but i'm not a fan of Shang Yimou's style. His pulls of the heart strings and gliding fighters just reek of cheese.
I'd give it 3 of 4 BL stars.

 

[IhaveNoLegs]

Hero was prolly the best movie I've seen this year so I could barely keep my pants dry waiting for this. By itself it's a great action movie. But comparing it to hero it's just too much of the same. The over dramatizing of encounters between people was forcing me to zone out at points. But if you like anykind of cool camera work then this is a def Go See. Coulda used some more wicked cool caracters, but again im comparing to hero...

 

[ice-9]

It's all about getting a high quality transfer rate w/ DTS DVD for $6 CAN at the local Chinese mall.

:D

-Haven't watched it yet though, will post about it once i do.

 

[mariacallas]

^^^^

 

[ice-9]

I thought it was an excellent movie, but i'll have to totally agree with what 5-HT2 and S_G said. It kind of breaks down in the end and for a while I didn't know what direction the plot was headed. A lot of scenes are incredibly beautiful and have a floaty, artistic, and traditional feel to them. However some other scenes seemd a bit over the top and melodramatic. This is usually the norm with Chinese love stories though, and i'd still recommend it as a visual feast and a showcase of some decent acting.

3.5/4

 

[Mechanix]

i got it when it came out on dvd (taiwanese release, non-bootleg...came w/some postcards haha) a few months ago. it was definitely great visually, but i felt the story was lacking. i dunno, i just didn't like the ending very much. hero was kinda the same thing; great cinematography, pretty good story, but it seemed like it was missing something. i dunno what. i also recommend watching it when you get the chance.

 

[onetwothreefour]

vote now

 

[sPacE dEmOn]

Liked this much more than Hero.... Hero just seemed to slow and not enough action. Loved the cinematography :D

 

[Charlie Brown]

Great directing, beautiful use off camera angles and colours and film techniques and style...Good acting and plot i found although a love story has many subplots. Overall much better than C Tiger H Dragon and Hero...Maybe becos better actresses and actors...just appealled more to me.
Also fight scenes were alot better than the other two.
4 outta 5 excellent

 

[pfunk]

Overall much better than C Tiger H Dragon and Hero...Maybe becos better actresses and actors...[/B]

I don't know. You're probably not going to see more acclaimed Chinese actors than those that were in 'Hero'. Plus, Jet Li is, in real life, probably the biggest martial arts badass in movies (at least any that are shown in the West).

 

[mariacallas]

I got to watch this for the 2nd time on DVD......even if the story meanders towards the end (with some people calling this a "style over substance" effort lol...) the direction, cinematography and action scenes are BREATHTAKINGLY STUNNING and I just love it. The flower dance/echo game in the beginning after Mei sings "A Rare Beauty in the North"was such a fucking gorgeous sequence.

PS. Zhang Yimou is one of my favorite asian directors, ever since I saw Red Sorghum.

 

[kittyinthedark]

This is just a fucking stunning movie. I wish I had seen it on the big screen. I actually enjoyed the plot quite a bit as well.

 

[Jamshyd]

This is one of the most aesthetically impressive films I have watched. I mean, its worth watching just for the beautiful costume design .

I have not watched many martial arts films (I haven't seen Hero, but I'd like to since it was compared to this one). Generally though, I found that martial arts films tend to focus on over-the-top acrobatics but not much else. While this one has great acrobatics, it has much more focus on style, grace, and subtlety, which is what really drew me in.

Although rather simplistic (and a bit too luvy-duvy), I found their take on spy vs. spy to be a pleasant background to the film - although certainly not a centrepiece .

3/4 (4/5).