Achieves near perfection

Rating: 10/10 (27 May 2001)

I have only one word to describe this film in a nutshell: beautiful. I don't necessarily mean visually, although it is visually beautiful. I'm referring to everything in the film: The story, the cinematography, and just the emotions that this film generates in the viewer. This beauty is the reason that I've seen the film four times in the theater, and am planning on purchasing it on video as soon as it becomes available.
Acting: Chow Yun-Fat delivers a typical excellent performance. The real focus, however, is on the two woman who really drive the story, Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi. Ziyi in particular takes an increasingly central role as the story progresses, and her acting talents become more and more notable. I look forward to seeing her in later films. The thing that most impressed me most about the acting was the emotions that spoke through the language barrier. The third time I saw the film I paid less attention to the subtitles and more to the acting. I can testify that nearly all the performers are excellent.
Action: The action scenes are not actually the centerpieces of the film, although they are good enough to be. Yuen Wo Ping's choreography, coupled with Ang Lee's directing make for exciting, adrenaline filled fights. At first I wasn't sure to laugh or not at the flying scenes, but after I got used to it, they became some of the most fitting moments of the films.
Cinematography: I love almost any film with good cinematography, and this film was full of it. Sometimes it tends a little toward the dark side, but I think that may have been the effects of a dim theater. Especially well done were the scenes from the extended flashback in the middle of the film.
Score: Tan Dun's score won a well deserved Oscar. It sounds a little odd to my Western ears, but some of the pieces spoke volumes to me even without the visual images in front of me.
Story: Ah, this is the best part of the film. The story manages to fit this film into a variety of genres. This story is an action film, a drama, and a romance all rolled into one. This story is capable of being both uplifting and sad at the end. The ending is slightly ambiguous, but still manages to be perfect.
Basically, I believe this film comes close to being perfect. I give it 10 out of 10.