Dull Jet, waste of Donnie, overall mediocre

Rating: 6/10 (19 April 2003)

Angst, angst, angst. Fight fight. Angst, angst, angst. That's really what Hero comes down to. Where is the charm? The gentle humor and intimacy that complements the pathos and makes Wushu films so enchanting? Well, let's start with the good - the cinematography is amazing, an excellent use of the entire widescreen aspect and a wonderful use of lighting and color; some clever directorial decision-making, as well, in the changing colors of Maggie Cheung and Tony Leung's costumes and the lenses used to tint the film. Also, these two actors also put forward very very strong performances; unfortunately, I've only seen each in one other film, and I was very impressed by their work here (especially with Maggie Cheung, though I've only seen her in the mediocre The Heroic Trio, so I came in with "modest" standards!). Donnie Yen also does a fairly good job...but just isn't given enough screen time to really develop a character. But the fighting choreography is superb.
Now the bad. First, Jet Li's performance is dull. Very dull. Usually the man can add life to the weakest script, but in his effort to project stoic hatred, he just projects, well, nothing. Nothing at all. And as I noted above, Donnie Yen doesn't get enough screen time to contribute much, other than a little moping...what a waste of talent!! But the real problem is bigger than the actors; the movie lacks intimacy - we're TOLD the story, not SHOWN or DRAWN INTO it. That's also the problem with CTHD, in my opinion. And hiding behind an "artsy" or intellectual facade just doesn't cut it. For a far, far better analysis of Kantian vs. utilitarian ethics (the question of killing the emperor; the question of whether or not to kill Jet at the end) check out Iron Monkey, in the brillant contrasts drawn between the ethics of Dr. Yang and Wong Kai Ying; similarly, to continue the CTHD comparison, for a much more fun - and more probing - examination of gender roles, watch Wing Chun, an earlier Michelle Yeoh work (with Donnie Yen too). These two hours of vast landscapes and non-stop tears, with no fun and joy and humor inserted here and there...well, it just wears you down and moves you from catharsis to boredom.
So, in sum, Hero is not at all horrible...but with such an outstanding cast and respected director, it should have been much more. Came in with (too?) high hopes; left disappointed.