Customer Reviews

Hero Special Edition

5 star:		(240)
4 star:		(112)
3 star:		(40)
2 star:		(29)
1 star:		(34)

 

 

I feel like I have been waiting a long time to see this movie and that the trailer for "Hero" ("Ying xiong") has been teasing us for at least a year. I have to admit that I fully expected to see an epic full of battle scenes and massed armies of men. My mistake. This film from China is a pointed fable, distilled from legend that may well be myth, and with a point that may well be lost on Western audiences. This is clear from those viewers who are unwilling to accept the conventions of wire work in Chinese martial art pictures and whose standard of realism refuses to allow for the poetic ballet of combat.

The prologue makes it clear that this story takes place in China before it was China, when the land was made up of seven warring provinces and the King of Qin (Chen Dao Ming) dreamt of conquering the other six provinces and uniting the land. For years the king has been unable to have a peaceful night of sleep because there are three assassins who are out to kill him. Now comes a nameless warrior (Jet Li), who has come to the imperial court to be rewarded for killing the three unbeatable assassins. He is warned that he may not approach within 100 paces of the king or he will be killed. But because he has bested the assassin Sky (Donnie Yen) in combat, he is allowed with 20 paces to tell his story.

Most of the story of "Hero" is told in flashback as Nameless tells his stories and the king questions him. We also learn of the fates of Broken Sword (Tony Leung) and Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung), two assassins who were also a pair of lovers. But there is more than one truth and more than one tale to be told in this film. Director Zhang Yimou, improving on the artistry we first enjoyed in "Raise the Red Lantern," color codes the stories that we see. First the story is told in lush shades of red, then in cool blue, again in white, and finally in green. Drops of water and swirling yellow leaves all become parts of the dances of death during the fight sequences, captured by cinematographer Christopher Doyle. "Hero" is a gorgeous film that uses its saturated colors better than any film of recent memory. There is a code to the colors, but that is something you need to come to terms with on your own.

Another strength of this film is that the fighting (choreographed by Wei Tung) and special effects do not overwhelm the actors who are required to play what is on some level the same scene as slightly different characters. I know there are computer generated effects in this film, especially since there are more arrows shot in "Hero" than any film in history, but for once I did not get the feel that what I was seeing was not real. That is become this film keeps coming back to questions of aesthetics, from the breathtaking use of color to the eloquent idea that swordsmanship and calligraphy are intrinsically awaited.

Special mention has to be made of the music, composed by Dun Tan and featuring violin solos and fiddling by Itzhak Perlman along with drumming by the Japanese group Kodo. I have never really seen one of those Hong Kong kung fu movies where everyone screams while they fight and I might never get around to it given the silent eloquence of the fights in movies like "Hero" (not to mention "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"), where the moments are underscored by the sound of clashing swords, pounding drums, and a violin. "Hero" is an art film, albeit one made on a larger and more colorful canvas.

"Hero" may be sold as being a big film but it is really about something relatively plain and simple. I disagree with the idea that either the style or substance of the film is beyond our Western sensibilities. Apparently the reason the film has the "Quentin Tarantino Presents" tag at the start was so that Miramax would not cut 20 minutes of the film out on the pretext that it too Asian/confusing for Western audiences. Indeed, I have seen some critics who professes to be confused about the complex plot and I can only wonder if they were equally confused by "Rashomon," an obvious reference point to this one (in many ways Yimou owes more to Akira Kurosawa's classic film than to Ang Lee's "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon"). Certainly after a century of cinema we are capable to looking at the same thing from multiple perspectives and enjoying this gem of a film that has finally made its way to our shores.

Much as Ang Lee demonstrated his directorial virtuosity in CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, Zhang Yimou has applied his magnificent talents to the martial arts genre with HERO. This is movie not only worth seeing, but worth watching two or three times, or more. Each viewing unveils new appreciation for Zhang's artistic direction, Chris Doyle's cinematography, Tan Dun's musical score, and Itzhak Perlman's violin performance, not to mention fresh insights into the story line and character interrelationships.

The story line is simple enough on its surface, based loosely on Chinese historical fact. The king of the Qin state seeks to unify the Seven Kingdoms some 2,000 years ago, and three assassins from the defeated Zhao state wish to kill him. An unknown warrior named Nameless, from the Qin state, succeeds in killing the three assassins and returns to collect his reward in an audience with the King. As we view segments of Nameless's explanation of how he defeated three such fearsome opponents, a battle of wits ensues with the skeptical King until the truth emerges. Their verbal sparring beautifully parallels the feints, thrusts, and parries of the martial arts scenes.

Within this story line, we are treated to extraordinary, ballet-like martial arts contests between Nameless and the three assassins. Each scene is dominated by one primary color, from the opening desert white to the reds of the calligraphy school to the yellows of autumn leaves whose wind-swept swirls become weapons in themselves. A sword fight between Broken Sword and the King of Qin is cloaked in flowing green cloth, reminiscent of Zhang's use of colored cloth in JU DOU.

While HERO evokes memories of RASHOMON, this is not the same motif. The three "versions" of the assassins' reported deaths are rather more like the gradual unfolding of a Sherlock Holmes mystery. As the tale reveals itself, the relationship of the four assassins (including Nameless)moves from enemies to spurned lovers to companions working together and finally to a genuinely tragic (if seemingly platonic) love between two of them.

Several less recognized aspects of HERO are particularly worthy of note. First, anyone who saw Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung in IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE will find it remarkable that the same two actors could pull off the characters of Broken Sword and Flying Snow so successfully. Second, the game of Go played by the assassin Sky at the beginning of the movie magnificently foreshadows Nameless's successive movements in the King's presence from 100 to 20 to 10 paces. Third, the ballet movements in unison of the candle flames burning before the King are not only brilliant in conception, they mirror the closing scene's behavior of the King's faceless advisors calling for Nameless's execution. Finally, the juxtaposition of calligraphy brushes with swords and flying arrows is a dramatic visual rendition of the pen and sword adage.

A last comment. Criticism of HERO as Communist Party propaganda is laughably absurd and demonstrates a severe lack of understanding of Chinese history. Qin Shihuang was a product of his times, no more or less tyrannical than the Egyptian pharaohs, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, William the Conqueror, Suleiman, or the American generals who "cleared" the Wild West of Indians. Regardless of his methods, Qin Shihuang accomplished a grand unification (All under heaven) that continues two millennia after his death. HERO evokes the founding of a nation and one unknown man's ultimate decision to sublimate his desire for revenge to the greater good of his country. That makes it no more propagandist than stories of Abraham Lincoln's struggle to re-unify the North and the South at the cost of countless thousands of lives, and far less pathetically propagandist than the recent "American hero" movies celebrating Jessica Lynch or Ronald Reagan. Americans need to take a long, hard look in the mirror more often before screaming propaganda about the cultural work of other countries.

HERO is not a perfect movie. The sword fight over the lake goes a bit over the top, the calligraphy/sword connection is overplayed, and Zhang Ziyi's character Moon too often feels extraneous. Nevertheless, HERO is a Must See for anyone who loves great story-telling and great movie-making.

The one star is not for the movie itself, which is one of the best movies I've ever seen. But argh! I've got the Japanese DVD from Elite Group and it is so far superior to the North American release in all aspects (image quality, subtitles, disc pressing quality, and even the box!) that this version makes me want to cry.

Also, I'm getting tired of defending this movie to people who've only gotten the North American version of the subtitles. It's like we're not even talking about the same movie anymore.

What a thing to do to such a beautiful piece of art. How do these people sleep at night?

Looking through the other comments below, I followed Raul Saavedra's advice and checked out the difference between the image quality in the special features, and the movie itself. He has a very astute point. The main movie image quality just ends up looking that much worse in comparison. Why do the scenes look so awesome in the special features sections? My theory is that they tried to cram too much onto one disc (the Japanese release is 2 DVDs), and had to compress the video even more than the overseas releases to make up for it, so the image quality of the movie itself suffered.

PS. Go here for a detailed comparison review of the different versions:
http://www.dvdbeaver.com/film/DVDCompare7/hero.htm

One can view Zhang Yimou's "Hero" in two perspectives:

One perspective is looking at this movie as if it were Chinese propaganda, since the movie tries to characterize the first King of China as a "misunderstood protagonist being perceived to be a tyrant". In reality, he was worse than Hitler, if not equal.

But most aren't that cynical; Most would view this movie as a clash of action and complexity.

The movie begins with "Nameless" (Jet Li) being escorted to "The King" (Chen Daoming), after claiming to have defeated the 3 most feared assassins: "Long Sky" (Donnie Yen), "Flying Snow" (Maggie Cheung), and "Broken Sword" (Tony Leung). When he arrives at the castle, he walks past thousands of soldiers and gets body searched for weapons. He is told to stay "100 paces from the king; one pace closer and he will be killed without question." To prove that he has defeated these assassins, he brings their weapons as evidence (Two swords, one spearhead). Relieved and intrigued, The King asks Nameless to tell him how he defeated each assassin (each is represented with a flashback).

Nameless explains that his skill as a swordsman was not enough to penetrate the superior skills of those being discussed. He had to use or know something else to get the upper hand. He explains that Broken Sword's calligraphy exposed his swordplay. And since Broken Sword and Flying Snow were lovers, jealously would be a natural tactic. Nameless also uses "honor" as a technique when fighting against "Long Sky". They share a mutual respect as fighters. Halfway into their fight, they stop to ask a blind harpist to continue playing his instrument. While playing, both fighters visualize the fight, rather than physical confrontation. But after a moment of visualizing, they go for the deathblow, sort of resembling an Old-Western Duel.

With each succeeding story, Nameless is rewarded with riches and is allowed to walk a few more paces towards the King of Qin. But also with each succeeding story, it becomes more and more apparent to The King that something doesn't seem right. After all three stories are told, Nameless and The King are only ten paces apart. Now is when The King realizes that the stories might be fabricated. He mentions that he has fought these assassins one on one, and the very idea that a psychological technique like "jealously" corrupting such exceptional warriors would be preposterous. This is the part of the movie where the "Rashomon"-effect goes into effect, where the actual story has more than one point of view. The King retells the story in what he believed has happened. A series of "underestimating each other" occurs, adding a perplexingly rich structure.

"Beautiful" would be an understatement, and would not even begin to describe the mind-blowing visuals of everything in the movie, ranging from scenery to color schemes. Consider the scene where the army of Qin unleashes a plethora of arrows that rain towards a crimson-shaded calligraphy school with sonic precision. Or the flashback fight scene between Broken Sword and The King, where the subtle-bright green color gives off a "dream-like" depiction. And perhaps visually, the best fight in the movie: the scene where Flying Snow fights Broken Sword's apprentice, Moon (Zhang Ziyi) in a forest. Raining from the trees is a profusion of bright golden-yellow leaves that turn into a blazing crimson-red after the fight is over. The overwhelming colors literally explode off the screen. The cinematography is exceptional as well, catching the fierce intensity of the clash of weapons between every warrior. The visuals alone are worth the ten dollars.

The story thinned-out is simplistic, but it is the presentation of the story that makes it intricate. Many would dismiss this complex structure to be "too confusing". But perhaps it is the complexity that makes it alluring. While most movies "spoon-feed" you the story, this one allows you to be drawn in. Nevertheless, "Hero" remains to be both intriguing and compelling.

Zhang Yimou's "Hero" is probably one of the most visually beautiful and exquisitely filmed movies I have seen in many a year. Set in the third century BC during the unification of the seven kingdoms under the first Chinese emperor, the film stars Jet Li as a literally Nameless warrior who has supposedly vanquished the emperor's most fearsome enemies: Sky, played by Donnie Yen, Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-yuk), and the previously undefeatable Broken Sword (Tony Leung Chiu-wai).

Nameless is escorted into the divine presence as a hero, but after hearing his account of how he defeated these three foes, the emperor isn't having any of it; he suspects Nameless fabricated the whole thing only to get within striking distance (ten paces) of the emperor himself in order to carry out an assassination plot. The story then divides itself into a Rashomon-like re-telling from various POVs, each one photographed with strikingly vivid color shifts -- a vibrant red, a pale blue, a pristine white, and a delicate, pale green. And then we see Reality, photographed against a background of lifeless desert mesas which seems to emphasize the futility of it all.

The most compelling characters in the film are Sky and Broken Sword -- she's a single-minded woman warrior with a take-no-prisoners mentality, and Broken Sword, her lover, is a warrior who has fought one fight too many and no longer believes that the sword is the only option to resolving conflicts. But Sky, like the true believer she is, loves her principles more than him, and the resulting confrontation between them is as inevitable as it is tragic. The acting is excellent all around. Jet Li is an appealing and likeable figure, and Tony Leung gives a totally convincing performance as Broken Sword. The cast is rounded out by the exquisitely beautiful Zhang Ziyi as Broken Sword's servant Moon, in love with her master and faithful to the end, and Chen Dao Ming as the emperor of Chin.

There are going to be endless comparisons between "Hero" and "Crouching Tiger", Ang Lee's masterpiece. Visually, "Hero" can hold its own against "Crouching Tiger" any day in the week. And yet, somehow, it doesn't grab you emotionally in the way "Crouching Tiger" does. "Hero" is gorgeous to look at and maybe that's its problem, it's so eye-popping to watch that the story doesn't measure up to its pure visual impact. Zhang doesn't do a "Rashomon" tale as brilliantly as the late, great Akira Kurosawa, and in this film he doesn't grip us as totally as Ang Lee, but he's delivered a movie that, at least to watch, is eminently satisfying.

This film far exceeded my expectations. It is very deep on many levels. The astounding cinematography which uses beautiful displayes of colors for emotional content, hevenly scenery, and exquisite choreographed fighting. The fable like story telling which Poetically layers truth and reality, questions friendship, duty, and honor, and provides a glimps into chinese history. The blend of all of these elements makes the flim enjoyable on many levels.
Beware spoilers in this paragraph. Some scenes I particularly enjoied where the battle with Sky in the "chess house" where they were playing "Go" which is a poetic foreshadowing of the battle that takes place in Nameless and Sky's mind. The fight in the leaves where the opponents rarely touch they just use there energy to force the leaves at each other. And the water confrontation.
Now I just want to get something off my chest. I feel that the inclusion of Quentin Tarantino Presents tacked on to this film, and broadcast in all of the promotion is just blatant shameless advertising. I don't think it gives the creators there due respect by having Tarantino's name thrown out there like he had anything to do with the film being made. I love his films, but this is absurd. I've had several people come up and say "Hey have you seen the new Tarantino movie?" The same thing happended with The Iron Monkey. I think it is disrespecful to the creators.
This is a classic epic film that I will soon add to my collection, and treasure for may reasons. I can't recomend it enough for those who are seeking a film experience which offers significant beauty and depth.

It's not fair to compare this movie to "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" directed by Ang Lee. These two movies are so far apart from one another, akin to chalk and cheese. Where "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" is a no-nonsense straight-up story telling, "Hero" is more like a "Pulp Fiction" type of story telling. The same story is told from different perspectives and then, we shall decide for ourselves what actually happened and what outcome would we expect from those happenings. Many of my Chinese peers were utterly disappointed with "Hero" because it's arguably one of the most expensive Chinese movie ever made & yet, the final touch didn't quite live up to their expectation. Naturally, it's a star-studded movie with appearances by Jet Li, Maggie Cheung, Tony Leung, Zhang Jiyi. Due to Director's involvement in theatre productions in China, I would like to believe that he applied the visual touches of theatres into this cinema spectacle that I could only describe as spectacular. This time around, the martial arts is emphasised with special effects, & in order to prevent viewers from been confused with narrations by Jet Li, the cast were given the blue, red, & white treatments. For example, from one person's point of view, it's rendered the "blue", but from another person's, it's actually "red", & the truth is to be revealed in "white". It's quite imaginative to concoct a story about these few assasins who had attempted various times to rid of Emperor Chin, the Emperor who united China from various Kingdoms, the Emperor who gave us the Great Wall of China, & also the Emperor who in his later years would sent his followers around the world looking for elixir of life to give him the gift of immortality, and as the legend goes, those followers of his ended up settling in Japan & thus, the Japanese today. In the end, the assassins were the ones who convinced him that he's on the right path and thus, the formation of modern China. Talking about mixing fact with fiction. Overall, this is definitely a beautiful movie, a movie that deserves to be enjoyed but one also has to accept that it's an ambitious movie that didn't quite pick up an Oscar this year. Still, it's still a good movie to be had. Well done.

"Hero" is the apocryphal story of the uniting of warring kingdoms in Asia into the country of China. Three assassins who have sought to murder the king have themselves been murdered by the Nameless warrior (Li). Now, Nameless is brought before that king (Daoming) to be rewarded for his heroic deeds. While there, he recounts the tales of his battles with these assassins, and then the king offers another perspective on things that turns everything that has gone before on its head.

"Hero" is an interesting movie that will not appeal to everyone. It is in many ways reminicent of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", but also very different. Filled with vibrancy and color, every frame of this movie is amazing to look at. It is very easy to get lost in the images presented by director Zhang Yimou. The fight scenes are beautifully choreographed and surreal. Utilizing the "Wire-fu" first seen be American audiences in "Crouching Tiger", the characters leap and spin with no regard for gravity or any laws of physics. The story itself seems straightforward, until the king offers a possible alternative for the way things actually happened. Then, the movie takes a number of twists and turns that are mostly satisfying.

"Hero" is not your typical action movie, and I cannot recommend this movie for everyone. That being said, I think that this movie could be a pleasant surprise for some people looking for something a little different.

I have read many reviews of this film on internet forums. I am sad, but not surprised, to find that numerous reviewers have labeled "senseless plot" and "poor character development" as major faults of this film. I believe this is where the cultural gap came into play. It is often difficult to translate select elements and dialogues of an Asian film in a manner that Western audience would understand. (Try reading a book of traditional chinese poetry translated into English! Yikes!)
The subtitles for this film have done a decent job doing this. Still many things don't appear crystal clear. I highly recommend watching this movie twice before you complain of its plot problems.

Also, I have read quite a few reviews criticizing the scenes of fighting on bamboo and on top of the water in both this movie and Crouching. I would like to add that these are very traditional fighting sequences in Chinese Kung-Fu movies. Supposedly they demonstrate the power of a warrior's Kung to step atop anything, even ridiculously soft and yielding substances.
It may not appeal to your logic (why on earth would they fight atop trees when they can do it on the ground?), nevertheless, it is an essential element that allevates the magic power of Kung-Fu masters as presented on films. You really are missing the point if you are fussing over the logical explaination behind these scnes, for much of Kung-Fu is defying our logical perception of physical limitations.

HERO is Yimou Zhang's first attempt at a martial arts film - and the novelty shows. As the featurettes explain, he dreamed of making a sword film, searched for a story, and finally wrote his own story that would allow him to express his excitement about the genre.

So, the story is minimal - Nameless Hero (Jet Li) gradually approaches the King of the province Qin as he relates how he protected the King from potential assassins. The film is done in flashbacks to show how Nameless Hero accomplished his feats. In the end a plot is revealed that brings the movie to an odd resolution. And that is really all the story is about.

The beauty here is in the choices of various colors to depict the various stages of Nameless Hero's quest: oranges become yellows become reds become greens become whites, etc. The settings are placed within the vast deserts of China and in palace courtyards. The costumes and settings are magically lush and stunningly beautiful. The action is the expected highly choreographed martial arts sequences that appear more like ballet than fighting. The huge supporting casts of armies are amazingly well staged with epic action and surreal results.

The overall message is about the way the once divided China of 2000 years ago became united into what is called 'the Land'. That is really all we have as far as directorial message mission. It matters little that the acting is minimal and wooden, that the use of flashbacks and revised flashforwards leaves some mystery as to which of the characters have been killed on several occasions (!). The pleasure is in the looking - and this is a beautiful, active piece of art to watch.

Grady Harp