Wednesday, February 17, 2010

220. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)

Director: Ang Lee

Starring: Chow Yun-Fat
Michelle Yeoh
Ziyi Zhang

IMDb Rating: 8
My Rating: 9

"The things we touch have no permanence. My master would say: there is nothing we can hold onto in this world. Only by letting go can we truly possess what is real."


Wudang trained master swordsman Li Mu-Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) has decided to give up his warrior life. He gives his 400 year-old sword, the Green Destiny, to Yu Shu-Lien (Michelle Yeoh) with the instruction to turn it to the possession of their friend Sir Te. While staying at Sir Te's estate, Yu meets a young girl named Jen, who is set to be married. Jen (is not happy about her arranged marriage, and is quite envious of Yu's single lifestyle. Late that evening, the sword is stolen by a masked person. The thief escapes from Sir Te's estate, but not before engaging in battle with Yu, who realizes that the masked thief knows the Wudang style of martial arts. Together Yu and Li begin their quest to regain the stolen sword, and possibly finally ignite the romance that has remained dormant in both of their hearts.

When it comes to amazing cinematography, not many films exceed that of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Whether it be sword fights while soaring through tree tops or the vast landscapes of China, every frame of the film is absolutely beautiful. It's not often that you can say that a fight scene was gorgeous, but that is the case with each fight scene in the film. Some people might have found the flying element to be unbelievable, yet it provides the most stunning images of the film. You are mesmerized from the first scene when it appears, a dramatic chase across gorgeous moon lit rooftops. It is without question that Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a visual masterpiece.

The film relies heavily on it's martial arts and amazing fight scenes, yet the stories behind the characters might be more appealing to some. Most apparent is the love story between Li and Yu, who was once engaged to Li's brother Meng Si Zhao. When Meng was killed, the mourning brings a bond between the two that leads to their unspoken of mutual attraction. Both Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh do an excellent job of slowly revealing their feelings to each other as the film progresses. It is this story, and a few others similar to it, that make this film about so much more than visual effects.

In my opinion, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was the best film of the year 2000. It was of course an honor for a foreign film to be given an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture, although I believe it deserved the award as well. It's language barrier seems to be the main reason it didn't win the award. Don't get me wrong, I thought Gladiator was a good film, I just don't believe it was better than Crouching Tiger. While the previous statement can be debated, it would be hard to debate the sheer brilliance of this film. It's stunning images and revolutionary fight sequences are some of the most beautiful in film history. I am a huge fan of Asian cinema, and Crouching Tiger was of the films that brought a resurgence of them to American theaters. If you liked this film, check out other Chinese wuxia films like House of Flying Daggers and Hero.

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