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FILM DETAILS

Certificate 12

Cast Chow Yun-Fat Michelle Yeoh Chang Chen Ziyi Zhang .

Directors Ang Lee.

Screenwriters James Schamus Wang Hui Ling Tsai Kuo Jung.

Running Time 120 minutes

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Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Awe-inspiring epic saga. Absolutely unmissable

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Plot
Set in a mythical China of the early 19th century, a romantic epic is spun about the theft of an ancient sword known as Green Destiny. The owner, renowned warrior Li Mui Bai, and female fighter, Yu Shu Lien, discover the culprit is a young aristocrat, Jen

Review
Having proven himself a black belt of versatility with unsung US Civil War drama Ride With The Devil, Ang Lee's venture into the world of martial arts may prove the diminutive Taiwanese director has no limitations whatsoever.

With kung fu so gloriously choreographed, shot and edited that it literally has you gasping for breath, an epic canvas of stunning Chinese scenery and a set of beautifully measured characters trading genuine emotions, it's The Matrix spliced with David Lean, seasoned with the late '70s Oriental TV series, The Water Margin. Oh, and it's in Chinese.

Events begin with a tease - ten minutes of poised dialogue, elegantly shot and pristinely acted, building up the undercurrent of unrequited passion between Li and Yu. All very formal and cunningly misleading. Seemingly from nowhere, the movie then explodes into action, as a masked thief steals Li's famous sword and Yu gives chase across the rooftops of Beijing in an extraordinary display of high flying wire-work, edited to a surging staccato drumbeat.

So dazzling is its visual craft and breathless momentum, you have to swallow the urge to cheer out loud. Not since Jurassic Park has filmmaking joyously thundered through the boundaries of its own medium. And there's not a pixel in sight.

Over the proceeding two-hour span, Lee and legendary martial arts co-ordinator Yuen Wo Ping offer up increasingly astounding fight sequences, involving everything from the most elaborate bar room brawl in history, to a dazzling tree-top duel allowig the camera to dip and bend woozily with the flexing branches. The kung fu on show grants its masters a mystical weightlessness, and its director crafts it all like volcanic ballet, as graceful as it is brutal.

It is still an Ang Lee joint, though, and he gives his characters credence, making their romantic entanglements as real as their chopsocky is fantastical, and injecting a sly humour. Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh move seamlessly between feats of physical prowess and nuances of emotion. However, the fire at the heart of the movie is the stunning Ziyi. Ostensibly this is Jen's rites-of-passage, and as she rejects an arranged marriage, driven by an insatiable desire for self-expression, Ziyi fills her with furious, exciting fervour.

This is the story of true female empowerment, where the ladies revel in kick-arse glory and the men opt for calm consideration. On just about every level, it needs to be seen to be believed.

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Your Reviews

Average user rating for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

Its ace, but lets not get carried away...

Although I greatly respect its legacy and the film itself, I do not consider this all that absorbing with the films climatic impact weakened by surealism and more exciting scenes that occured earlier. That said, this is an excellant martial arts film, setting the standard for others to follow. The acting in its three leads is brilliant and notably rising star Zhang Ziyi. Highlights include some awesome fight scenes, some sumptuous landscapes and a well crafted script. This is a must see film but... More

Posted by trainedasninja at 15:15, 12 September 2011 | Report This Post

Masterpiece without a doubt!

CTHD is breathtaking, emotionally gripping and for once isn't a film that is about the martial arts, but rather about the complexity of its characters. The martial arts are simply a complement to this beautiful film. At the top of my list of all time favourites! ... More

Posted by victhom19 at 22:15, 02 May 2011 | Report This Post

its the daddy of all martial arts films ... More

Posted by ivanahump at 09:04, 15 December 2009 | Report This Post

just so good ... More

Posted by bobbyperu at 10:39, 22 October 2007 | Report This Post

just so good ... More

Posted by bobbyperu at 10:39, 22 October 2007 | Report This Post

RE:OVERATED SHITE

Perhaps you should stick to the no brainers.This film has way to much class for some who thinks HARD TARGET "fuckin rocks"! ... More

Posted by theslinker at 20:32, 28 July 2007 | Report This Post

RE:OVERATED SHITE

Perhaps you should stick to the no brainers.This film has way to much class for some who thinks HARD TARGET "fuckin rocks"! ... More

Posted by theslinker at 20:32, 28 July 2007 | Report This Post

Overrated SHITE!

This film makes 'Monkey', that fuckin crap program from the 70's, look like oscar material. The way people big this movie up fuckin shocks me. The wire work is over-used, and the martial arts isn't all that. I have seen better, and hated worse! ... More

Posted by tallaght24 at 16:57, 16 July 2007 | Report This Post

RE: overated

]Thanks for your comments Captain, glad that we share an opinion. Same with you Zatoichi, I completely agree that ] is ridiculously overrated. It just felt and looked so completely artificial to me and the whole nplot rip-off just wasn't convincing nor engaging IMO (I think n is slightly overrated too - gotta quit using that dreaded "o" word). If it wasn't for the marvellous Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung (seriously, are these two EVER bad? Like, ever? And together they're the equivalent of a cin... More

Posted by spicebrain at 02:22, 03 January 2006 | Report This Post

RE: overated

L: spice brain ]I'm liking the 5 stars. Others are entitled to their opinions, but for me, this is one of the few films where I fail to comprehend how anyone could not love it. action movie (and a superb one at that, I'll take the fight sequences in this over rixy, although somehow I think I'll probably be alone in that opinion on these forums...) genuine heart at its core. Ang Lee has always been great at exploring the effects of social constraints on his characters, but he truly excels ... More

Posted by The Captain at 01:25, 03 January 2006 | Report This Post

RE: overated

2"]One of the best films of its kind. Personally, I hated ] and thought f Flying Daggerscellent until the second half. ... More

Posted by Zatoichi at 01:21, 03 January 2006 | Report This Post

RE: overated

L: spicebrain ]I'm liking the 5 stars. Others are entitled to their opinions, but for me, this is one of the few films where I fail to comprehend how anyone could not love it. It's an action movie (and a superb one at that, I'll take the fight sequences in this over rixy, although somehow I think I'll probably be alone in that opinion on these forums...) with a genuine heart at its core. Ang Lee has always been great at exploring the effects of social constraints on his characters, but he ... More

Posted by maffew at 19:04, 02 January 2006 | Report This Post

RE: overated

really a fan of the movie. Movies like this, Hero and Flying Daggers all have complex and interesting stories and thats a good thing, but I just cant stand all the flying shit! Maybe its seen as beautiful to some, but it makes me cringe and puts me off movies like this. I like to watch a martial artist doing what I call proper martial arts. Id take Ong Bak over all 3 of the movies. ... More

Posted by __Andy__ at 16:35, 02 January 2006 | Report This Post

RE: overated

]I'm liking the 5 stars. Others are entitled to their opinions, but for me, this is one of the few films where I fail to comprehend how anyone could not love it. It's an action movie (and a superb one at that, I'll take the fight sequences in this over rixy, although somehow I think I'll probably be alone in that opinion on these forums...) with a genuine heart at its core. Ang Lee has always been great at exploring the effects of social constraints on his characters, but he truly excels himsel... More

Posted by spicebrain at 10:22, 01 January 2006 | Report This Post

RE: overated

I liked it more the second time I saw it....I didn't know it was soooooo sad...I wasn't expecting it...and I was VERY upset! ... More

Posted by Chrisdee at 09:25, 01 January 2006 | Report This Post

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