I'm the odd man out, I realize, but this movie is not able to cross the bridge to the 21st century. It's truly a classic, but "classic" in the sense of dignified and old; not in the sense that it works as well today as it did when it was released. If T of Z were an actress, it would not be Heather Locklear.

I'm not a film scholar and I don't know the technical side of film making, but to me this movie looks like a Chinese director's attempt to make a Japanese film; Kurosawa South. It's as ponderous as a comparable Japanese film, but without any of the endearing quirkiness.

The storyline is decent, though nothing special, but be ready for an incredibly s l o w movie and a lot of heavy eye makeup. If a character has to walk across the countryside, the director films it all in real time. (I'm exaggerating, but not by a lot.) And the sword fight scenes, though probably very realistic in terms of how they actually occurred back then, are much different than modern action sequences. It's not supposed to be a documentary; I would have liked to have seen more poetic license.

I'm not criticizing T of Z for not being like movies that were made thirty years later, I'm simply pointing out that viewers raised on modern films will look at this the same way I imagine teenage Eminem fans look at "Love, Love Me Do." If you're into film history or you were a Hong Kong movie fan back when A Touch of Zen came out, then this will probably be a very welcome three hours and no doubt worthy of the 8-10 grades all the other reviewers have given it. Otherwise, unbuckle your seat belt and get ready for a long, slow ride.