Martial Hearts (Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (DVD))

Member Name: gailsmith

Product:	Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (DVD)
Date:	11/01/01 (105 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great action, Great story

Disadvantages: Subtitled

Fight fans won't be disappointed by the body count in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, a martial arts tale of love, honour and fisticuffs in Imperial China.
Ice storm director Ang lee returns to his Chinese roots with this latest piece of epic film-making.
Featuring Matrix-style flying sequences, high-velocity fight scenes and love stories to give Mills and Boon a run for their money, this is as accessible as subtitled films get.
It's a strange diversion for Ang Lee as it's an old fashioned movie of the martial arts morality tradition.
The simplistic story begins with a reunion between two Wudan warriors, who have been secretly in love for years.
Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) is a Giang Hu fighter, who, following a period of meditation, has rejected violence for inner peace. He visits his warrior beloved Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) and asks her to take his 400- year- old sword Green Destiny to Sir Te in Peking, Yu Shu, a brilliant fighter who has taken over her father's security firm, does as commanded.
But the weapon is later stolen and when Yu Shu challenges the burglar she discovers she's doing battle with a fledgling Wudan warrior with enormous potential.
Jen(Zhang Ziyi), the beautiful daughter of Governor Yu, has secretly been training as a Wudan under nasty warrior witch Jade Fox, a bandit queen who has been posing as her governess for ten years. This is the cue for a series of far fetched action sequences as actors fly through the air like angels without wings performing impossible feats.
The hand-to -hand combat on the other hand is as exciting, frenetic and beautifully choreographed as I've seen in any martial arts movie.
Hearing the sword has been stolen and eager to be reunited with Yu Shu, Li Mu Bai turns up in Peking too. Meanwhile, on the eve of her arranged marriage, Jen, who has fallen passionatly in love with Lo(Chang Chen) tries to escape.
Mouthwaterng cinematography, wonderful performances
and an old fashioned story of love, honour and sacrifice make this a film feast.
It may not be the most intellectually-challenging movie, but for straightforward romance and action you won't be disappointed.

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