Hoping for a poignant cinematic experience? "Hero" might be it.

[fadhatter]

INTERVIEW: Donnie Yen on "Hero" cuts

Plus "Twins Effect," "Death Duel" remake, & more...

by Jean Lukitsh

04.28.2003 - The long-awaited martial arts epic Hero probably won’t open in the US until the end of this year, but American audiences had a taste of the stunning images and choreography recently, during the 50th anniversary Academy Awards broadcast in March. The clip from Hero, a nominee for Best Foreign Film, featured Hong Kong superstar Donnie Yen in a high-kicking fight scene. (Although Hero was stiffed by the Oscars, I confidently predict the film will be remembered long after the other nominees have faded!) Meanwhile, US fans complain that not only do they have to wait WAY too long to see this masterpiece on the big screen, but also it appears that the film has been cut for theatrical release. Kung Fu Cinema talked to Donnie Yen last month about his scenes in Hero, and more. (Warning: contains one Hero spoiler!)

http://www.apple.com/trailers/miramax/hero/trailer/

I cant believe PJ won eleven oscar over this movie !!! this movie was classed "foreign" at the oscars. Shouldn't LOTR be classed "foreign" too, it was made in NZ ???

In the same vein that French and Italian cinema pioneered cinema in the 50s and 60s, its the hong kong movie makers who are setting the pace in the fantasy genre.

September 5, 2004 — Hero, starring Jet Li, remained the #1 movie at the weekend box office, earning an estimated $9 million. The comedy Without A Paddle, starring Seth Green, made an estimated $7 million for a total of $37 million. Anacondas: The Hunt for the Blood Orchid dropped to #3, earning an estimated $6.4 million.

For more, click the link below.
Source: Reuters

Hero (2002)

AKA: n/a

Premise: The King of Qin, soon to be China's first Emperor is threatened by three assassins. Nameless (Jet Li), a master swordsman is chosen to stop them, but conflicting accounts of how he does so paints a different picture.

Review: The most talked about Chinese martial arts film of 2002 and 2003 is Zhang Yimou's Hero. It presents a bold visual statement with stunning photography from Christopher Doyle, vivid art direction, and meticulously staged swordplay that possesses more dazzling, theatrical dance than screen combat. The story is seductively simple yet peels away in colorful layers of complex tapestries woven by the threads of trust, revenge, and ultimately sacrifices.

The story begins with Jet Li recounting to the King how he defeated the three assassins as played by Donnie Yen, Tony Leung, and Maggie Cheung. The events that lead to Li sitting before the King are actually recounted three seperate times, with the circumstances changing depending on whether Li or Chen Daoming, who plays the King, is speaking. The film's success depends on Yimou's ability to reveal new aspects of the characters and plot without being repetitive. He does so with great skill and gives us the chance to see fights between the lead characters unfold with different outcomes. In a couple of cases, the fights depicted never even take place. One particularly stunning confrontation between Leung and Li takes place on the surface of a placid lake with each combatant thrusting his sword tip into the water to propel his body into the air again. What is really happening is that the characters are fighting in their heads, a representation of the psychological war two warriors engage in that may determine the fate of a battle before it even begins..............


.......Like Japanese film legend Akira Kurosawa, Yimou has an artist's eye for the screen and treats it as his canvas. Few filmmakers have taken this more literally. The film's single greatest asset is the rich and wonderful imagery where entire sets, costumes, and even horses are coated in color. (Many of the soldiers' horses had to be painted black to match their armor.) For spectacle and epic proportion, nothing looms larger than the massive army assembled, all clad in black. Their training is such that they move as a single entity and when they loose a storm of arrows on two different occasions, the sight is extreme. In fact, Yimou goes overboard here when hundreds of bowmen expend thousands of arrows in order to kill a few people in scenes reminiscent of Kurosawa's famous finale to Throne of Blood. Another extreme scene has Maggie and Tony wading through the mass of men as they storm the King's fortress, leaving a long trail of dead behind them.

....Hero is the sort of film that could be easily misinterpreted. The king's "hero" defending his lord against three assassins sounds like the plot of a bloody Cheh Chang actioner from Shaw Brothers' heyday. The swordplay may be just as fanciful, if significantly more artistic, but the jaw-dropping wirework mixed with minor CGI enhancements does not define the film. Like Wong Kar-wai's equally poetic, if more confusing Ashes of Time, what drives this film are the complexities of its characters who struggle with their own passions. The film depicts the King as an idealist, when many Chinese historians will tell you the real King of Qin who became China's first Emperor, was very much a tyrant responsible for many deaths.

It's not the greatest martial arts film, but it brings so much to the table in terms of visual flair, plus any chance to see Yen versus Li is worth it. The narrative is presented in a thought provoking manner and fine acting by everyone is welcome. This is especially true for Jet Li who returns to the stoic, intense persona within a historical period that made him a star in Hong Kong. Tan Dun's musical score is not quite as distinctive as his work on Crouching Tiger, but is nevertheless an effective and sometimes haunting accompaniment. As cinematic art, Zhang Yimou has outdone himself in what I daresay is the best looking martial arts film ever and one of the most resplendent productions period.
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- Mark Pollard


http://www.kungfucinema.com/reviews/hero2002.htm

 

[Ol'gaffer]

Imo,

Hero wasn't a technologically stunning movie, as the same effects have been used in numerous films over many years already. The story was good, but it wasn't something that hadn't been done better already. It was also a single movie, where LotR was three. It was also a different genre, Hero was not fantasy entirely, but more of a Drama as well. Also, with budjet differences and the fact that Hero was not based on a book come into play as well.

As a sidenote, Hero would not have even been released in the States unless Tarantino had taken it up for himself to generate a theatre release uncut for the movie.

 

[fadhatter]

as the same effects have been used in numerous films over many years already.

name them gaffer, your hyperboles are getting tideous.

The story was good, but it wasn't something that hadn't been done better already.

Name them gaffer.

It was also a different genre, Hero was not fantasy entirely, but more of a Drama as well.

The Purists are crying for more drama, and the FADs are saying PJ's "dramatic effects" are greater than tolkien's.

Also, with budjet differences and the fact that Hero was not based on a book come into play as well.

whats your point gaffer??? that Hero is better since it had less budget in order to produce a better movie?? hero is based on the history book, which means it comes with as many interpretation as LOTR, eg the coomunists as pointed out in the above review.

As a sidenote, Hero would not have even been released in the States unless Tarantino had taken it up for himself to generate a theatre release uncut for the movie.

Well as a major point, Tarantino knows good movies when he sees one, given that he borrows liberally from the eastern cinema. On a major note, the movie broadens movie experience that would have been lost otherwise. The movie is good enough to be seen withOUT audio dubbing, it tells a tale through the visuals, and subtitles are prefered over the bad dubbing

 

[Ol'gaffer]

name them gaffer, your hyperboles are getting tideous.

- Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
- Once Upon a Time in China
- Bichunmoo
- A man called Hero
- Injeong sajeong bol geot eobtda (a.k.a Nowhere to Run)
- Fong Sai Yuk 1 - 2

Name them gaffer.

The stories of assasins against the emperor or a leading figure, have been done better imo in atleast:

- Bichunmoo
- Once Upon a time in China (although here it was more about the collision of two cultures)
- The House of Flying Daggers

The Purists are crying for more drama, and the FADs are saying PJ's "dramatic effects" are greater than tolkien's.

untrue, many have already agreed that there are parts in the film where the dramatic storytelling works somewhat better than in the book. But many also have agreed that many parts would have worked miles better if they had been more true to Tolkien.

whats your point gaffer??? that Hero is better since it had less budget in order to produce a better movie?? hero is based on the history book, which means it comes with as many interpretation as LOTR, eg the coomunists as pointed out in the above review.

Again, this is just your personal taste. Many critics have raved about Hero and many about LotR. Personally, I find comparing the two to be pointless as they are from different worlds. They are different movies and stories alltogether.

Well as a major point, Tarantino knows good movies when he sees one, given that he borrows liberally from the eastern cinema. On a major note, the movie broadens movie experience that would have been lost otherwise. The movie is good enough to be seen withOUT audio dubbing, it tells a tale through the visuals, and subtitles are prefered over the bad dubbing

The movie broadens many horizons to mainly american filmgoers. Without Tarantino countless of movies would be lost to America. Luckily it's easier here in europe to find these eastern movies. I also agree that dubbing is horrendous and should not be done. Ever.

 

[fadhatter]

nice bit of googling gaffer

have ya seen any of them?