Beautiful Cinematography

Rating: 8/10 (11 September 2004)

The cinematography of this movie is excellent, as is the storytelling. It is without a doubt one of the best Asian films I've seen yet. Examples include the color changes as different stories unfold, and a rain-soaked chess house. These are some of the most interesting cinematic moments I have seen. Many people may mention a fight scene involving flying leaves and an interesting forest/garden. However, I did not find that very well done. But it was certainly interesting.
Unfortunately, I have never much enjoyed the flying around which was so prevalent in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. It is less obnoxious in this film, but it's definitely there. Of course, the whole genre includes that motif, but I don't like it, and I find it cinematic ally boring.
The sword play is exciting and fast paced. The music of a blind beggar on an ancient 7 stringed instrument (somewhere else has the name) is very exciting when set to one of the fights. The soundtrack is definitely engaging and exotic.
I thought the constant relating of calligraphy, chess, and music to swordplay was kind of trite. Though I thought it was a visual masterpiece, I felt the analogy was not very interesting. However, it was interesting to see the melancholy absorption of Broken Sword in his calligraphy work. A strong, emotional performance offsets this rather lame analogy. It didn't overly bother me.
I thought the movie was great, but it's message (while terribly Chinese), kind of rubbed me the wrong way. The film is about what a hero is (which I kinda liked, even if it wasn't a new theme), but it is also about the importance of the group, the nation, the collective. That's a very Chinese thing - as an American raised in our school of Liberal Democracy, I have different ideas about the value of the state. But, it is interesting to see how our civilizations differ.
So, to summarize, while I thought the hero theme was a little trite, and while I just disagreed with the "big picture" about society (which I don't hold against the film - it is important to be confronted with that which you don't believe in), the emotion, the melancholy, the excellent cinematography, and the music make it a masterpiece. It is brilliantly executed.
I gave it a 9/10. I love it, and would consider buying it on DVD (I own precious few).