HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS (2004)

Aspect ratio: 2.39:1 (Super 35)
Sound format: Dolby Digital

659 AD: Toward the end of the Tang dynasty, two government agents (Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro) conspire to infiltrate a dangerous rebel group, but their plot is foiled by a young dancer from the Peony Pavilion (Zhang Ziyi) who leads them both astray...

Zhang Yimou's artful melodrama - apparently based on true events - draws inspiration from Chinese mythology and Japanese chambara epics, though its visual flourishes are decidedly modern in concept and execution. The director's episodic screenplay (co-written with Li Feng and Wang Bin) contains a fair number of gasp-inducing plot twists, supplemented by ultra-stylized battle scenes which culminate in a final confrontation between various characters on a bleak, snowbound hilltop. Like so many of these things, however, it's beautiful but repetitious, redeemed by its heartfelt emotion and cinematic intelligence (note how the movie is broken into four distinct sections, for instance, each one corresponding visually to a particular season of the year), and by the performances of a hugely experienced cast (though superstar Lau is basically sidelined by younger performers Kaneshiro and Zhang). Unlike the overt political content of Zhang Yimou's previous swordplay drama HERO (2002), "House..." is no more than an entertaining yarn, though clearly intended to challenge the dominance of Hollywood movies in Asian theaters. Beautifully photographed by Zhao Xiaoding, with breathtaking fight choreography by industry veteran Tony Ching (A CHINESE GHOST STORY). Dedicated to the memory of singer-actress Anita Mui, who passed away in 2003.

(Mandarin dialogue)