A revolutionary Chinese film, but can be done better

Rating: 9/10 (27 April 2004)

After the first screening of Hero in China in the end of 2002, it was said that half of the audience cried while another half fell asleep. I think this is a very good and accurate comment on this film. I personally enjoyed this film a lot because of the cast (Maggie Zhang and Tony Leung are my favourite), the score, the cinematography and even the costume design. It is indeed the largest budget film ever made in China, and with Zhang yimou, it can not be bad.
However,the ideology of Hero is a strange and arguable thing. On one hand, the idea of union and sacrifice is perfectly understandable to Chinese people (if not so understandable to people from other parts of the world.) This is the reason for those people who burst into tears. On the other hand, it is somehow overdone and appears to be too ideal. People who fell asleep said the story is hollow and stupid; the film clearly aims to get an Oscar,therefore just a piece of commercial rubbish. I am in between of these two argument, I believe that as the best director of the fifth generation in China, Zhangyimou is ambitious to make something big. And if An Lee can won an Oscar by directing Crouching Tigger, why can't he make it? This motive certainly add the commercial factor in the film. But as Zhangyimou said, he is a Wuxia fan since childhood and always desires to make a film about it. He is now in his prime of career and has gained enough fame to make the world take notice of his talent, I think it is natural that he directed Hero which is so different from his previous works. And now his second Wuxia film is coming out soon, I am looking forward to see it.