Quentin Tarantino Presents: Hero [2004]

The perfectly-picked cast from Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi and Donnie Yen all show that they've got excellent acting talents (especially Jet Li and Maggie Cheung) while also showing that they've also got tremendous physique and awesome martial artistry too. The story wonderfully flows along with the soothing soundtrack, beautiful colourisation (blues, reds, greens, oranges) and epic set-pieces. Now, the breath-taking action set-pieces is what this film is all about...from Jet Li's encounter with Sky (Donnie Yen) to the splendid grand finale with the Emperor, the action never stops with its fluent sword-fighting, effortless flying techniques (that looks almost as better than Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) and awe-inspiring visual-FX that looks gorgeous to watch on-screen.

Presented by Quentin Tarantino (Kill Bill Vol. 1 & 2) and loved by critics everywhere, this is a stupendously enjoyable and immensely unforgettable epic fable which will be loved by audiences for years to come.


Charge of the red, green and blue brigade   February 10, 2005
B. Roche (London, UK)
41 out of 48 found this review helpful

Don't be put off by the fact this film was heavily promoted by the self-styled saviour of Asian Cinema, Quentin Tarrantino, it is far better than anything he has even dreamt of directing or producing.

Hero is a tale based on Chinese folk-lore that Zhang Yimou paints in a glorious palate of reds, greens and blues. His very visual style of story telling is highly evident in this film and works perfectly with the ballet like performances of his stars.

The chemistry between the characters, especially Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung, is extraordinary and adds depth and emotional charge to the proceedings, saving Hero from being labelled as just another pretty martial arts film. The ever present Zhang Ziyi produces another memorable performance and Jet Li is the embodiment of collected calm as the nameless warrior.

The English dubbing is a good feature. As the audience for asian cinema has increased over the years, so has the quality of the international dubbing. Subtitles by their very nature have to be relatively short and to the point, especially in very visual films. This means that a lot of the dialogue is edited and you lose a lot of the script. The writing in Hero is so strong I recommend viewing the film dubbed into English as well as Mandarin with subtitles. It takes a bit to get used to but hearing the script as it was meant to be is well worth it. It's a bit like watching a film you've only seen on tv at an IMAX cinema - a whole new experience. The best example I've heard of this is in Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (another wonderful film), here's a section of dialogue:

"Even warriors can be stupid" - English subtitles
"In affairs of the heart even the greatest warrior can be a consummate idiot." - Same line but dubbed into English

Hero is a brilliant story told through visual flare and highly emotive performances, with an ending that leaves you breathless. The title of the film suggests it focuses on one character, one hero; but as the film unfolds you begin to realise that every character present could be described thus. Simply superb.


Majestic and moving.   January 21, 2005
36 out of 45 found this review helpful

After having watched crouching tiger hidden dragon, i was eagerly anticipating this film. However, i was not prepared for this film to soar above the quality i had seen inhidden dragon.
The first scene showed me just how wrong i was. The main difference in this movie, is that the mix between story and action has been done so perfectly, that it far acceeds all my intial expectations.

Another assumption i made is that zhang ziyi(formally known as zhang ziyi) would once again steal all the scenes and deliver a stunning lead performance. Here she is cast as moon, a protege to broken sword, and she does deliver a heartfelt performance, but she is less integral to the plot than in hidden dragon.

This film isn't about jet li(named hero)either. Surprisingly, jet li fits into his role with modesty, and chooses to play down the character of hero rather than make him the focus of the film. So, what of the plot? Well, the whole story is told via flashbacks - some real and some that didn't occur, so as you can imagine, the plot twists and turns a lot. Tony leung plays broken sword, a warriorwho wants revenge-as does hero- on the emporer. Maggie cheung plays falling snow, broken sword's wife, who wants to kill the emporer equally. Broken sword and Falling snow's messy and complicated love for each other is the real core of this film.

This film also has a trick up its sleeve. The fighting is not only brilliant and majestic- again the wire work is exceeding but it is beautiful as well. For every bout that the characters have- be it true or untrue, it is presented in the most unique and stunning way.
Be it moon and falling snow dashing between auburn trees in the wind, or broken sword and hero fighting on top of a lake, every scrap is a masterpiece in itself.These scenes aren't a rarity either, they come in thick and fast, there being over 15 in total.

Hero is an accomplished work of martial arts film making, and manages to strike the perfect balance between story and action, and that it is what lifts it above the quality of hidden dragon,it is a film so close to perfection, simply becaues you can't fault it.


Merely beautiful?   May 9, 2006
Dennis Littrell (SoCal)
24 out of 33 found this review helpful

"Hero" is a beautiful movie, as all Zhang Yimou movies are. There are spectacular outdoor, epic-like scenes, and wondrously colorful costumes and fabrics (and swords!) in addition to the choreographed sword play. I would also note that this movie was his most successful American box office flick--and therein lies a problem.

Zhang Yimou is a great artist. He uses the silver screen the way a Michelangelo or Rembrandt uses a canvas. His sense of color and line and composition would cause Da Vinci or Picasso or any of the great Renaissance masters to sit up and take notice were they around today. His films are universally admired not only for their visual artistry but--and this is where I take exception to the direction in which that this film suggests that Zhang Yimou is going--their story-telling ability and their unusual sensitivity to the human condition. Here we have a fantasy of Chinese history brought to life. We have supernatural swordplay--beautifully, hauntingly done, to be sure: sword play as ballet--but what we don't have is a real human story.

This is more like a legend. The great King of Qin, threatened by three great warriors--Sky, Broken Sword, and Flying Snow--is now threatened by a third, the Nameless one (like somebody out of a Clint Eastwood movie), who has pretended to vanquish the other three as a means to get within ten paces of the hated King in order to slay him. This is history as seen from the point of view of Great Men, not history as the force of events and conditions greater than any single person. This is also history as myth. It is nationalistic: the great Chinese king unites "our land" in a great historical event in which the Chinese people can take pride.

It also glorifies war. The great gray mass of soldiers in the service of the king (Zhang Yimou actually used something like 18,000 soldiers from the Revolutionary Army of the People's Republic of China in the production) represents a force that will go on to triumph over lesser forces. The King of Qin can be seen as the ultimate warlord, the warlord with the largest army and therefore the one who will win.

Yet, there is a sense in which this does not sit well with Zhang Yimou. He likes the individual heroes, and indeed would have Nameless achieve his personal victory except that Nameless sees in the end that killing the king would not be a victory at all. Furthermore, Zhang Yimou celebrates in the choreographed sword dances of his heroes the indomitable human spirit that will in the long run, triumph over the forces of sheer might. We can see this in not only the beauty of the dances, but in the association of calligraphy--that uniquely human art form--with the play of the sword. He who practices calligraphy with his heart and soul also learns the secrets of the sword.

My problem with all this is that just prior to seeing this film I viewed Hotel Rwanda (2004) in which ironically the horrendous human slaughter in Rwanda was achieved in large part through the use of machetes made in China. Can we celebrate the sword about which it is said: if you live by the sword you will die by the sword? These are words that have only a tiny impact to us compared to what they meant to the people of 2,000 years ago who actually knew what it meant to die by the sword. Or should we more correctly celebrate the word, not the sword? For it is also said that the word is mightier than the sword.

I think Zhang Yimou knows this, and I suspect part of what he wanted to convey in this film is that sort of message. However, I think his love of beauty and his sense of what works cinematically overcame what he might have intended, and instead of a great film we have one that is merely beautiful.

But by all means see this. See this for his artistry of course. See this to compare it to the legendary kung fu movies. See this for Jet Li who plays Nameless and is a great favorite of the Chinese cinema, and for Daoming Chen who plays the king. And see this for the beautiful actresses Maggie Cheung, who plays Flying Snow, and Ziyi Zhang, who plays Moon. And last but not least, see this for Tony Leung Chiu Wai who plays the enigmatic Broken Sword.