Hero: So what did you think?

[hong]

The version released in China is the full version. The US versions has 24 minutes cut out of it. Not sure what is in those 24 minutes.

There is only the one theatre version of Hero, which goes for about 93-98 mins. The version being shown in the US is the same as that which was first shown in China in 2002, I believe, modulo some subtitling changes.

There is an extended 120-min DVD version which came out a couple of months back. This adds a couple of scenes of dialogue in the Red sequence, which help to clarify what's going on. The fights also go for a bit longer, and there's a brand new scene at the end with Zhang Ziyi and Jet Li. The DVD has technically only been released in China, but you should beable to buy it on the net.

 

[WayneLigon]

Saw it yesterday. Loved it. Apparently, if what I've heard is to be beleived, we have Tarantino to thank for the movie being uncut and subtitled. If so, someone send the man roses, OK?

 

[mmu1]

I was entertained by it, but expected it to be much better than it was.

I loved the visuals, thought the action was ok but not as good as in CTHD, felt some aspects of the story and the characters were interesting, but found the "message" of the movie to be a repugnant bit of propaganda that could be used to justify the actions of any other murderous tyrant in history.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

but found the "message" of the movie to be a repugnant bit of propaganda that could be used to justify the actions of any other murderous tyrant in history.

I didn't see it that way. The movie was creating a ficticious moment in real-world history. China really was a number of warring states, and it did consolidate, which did give the commons a greater peace. Keep in mind that the six kingdoms weren't just happy neighbors. They were constantly at war with each other. So it wasn't a matter of one ruler bringing war to everyone else for no reason. It was a matter of one ruler bringing another war to an already warring region...in the hopes of ending the continual inter-kingdom wars for good.

Or so it seemed to me. I also found it interesting that the emperor noted that his court felt the same way that you do: that he was a tyrant.

 

[RogueRonin]

I didn't see it that way. The movie was creating a ficticious moment in real-world history. China really was a number of warring states, and it did consolidate, which did give the commons a greater peace. Keep in mind that the six kingdoms weren't just happy neighbors. They were constantly at war with each other. So it wasn't a matter of one ruler bringing war to everyone else for no reason. It was a matter of one ruler bringing another war to an already warring region...in the hopes of ending the continual inter-kingdom wars for good.

Or so it seemed to me. I also found it interesting that the emperor noted that his court felt the same way that you do: that he was a tyrant.

Agreed. Maybe the King was a manipulative kind of guy, but I really got the impression that he truely wanted to bring peace. (Ok so maybe he also wanted to rule the world... But he wanted to rule a peaceful world, damnit!
)

 

[KenM]

Saw it today. I thought it was good. But if what I have been reading here is true, there is another version with 24 minutes of added footage?? I did think it would have been better if those 24 minutes were back in, to flesh out the story and characters more. I could tell where some things were cut.

 

[Thorin Stoutfoot]

So it wasn't a matter of one ruler bringing war to everyone else for no reason. It was a matter of one ruler bringing another war to an already warring region...in the hopes of ending the continual inter-kingdom wars for good.

Or so it seemed to me. I also found it interesting that the emperor noted that his court felt the same way that you do: that he was a tyrant.

And history affirms the judgement that he was a tyrant. After he united China, he burned lots of books, continued killing lots of people, and ended up on in the history books as having one of the bloodiest reigns in history. About the only thing one could say in his favor was that he enabled/forced the creation of a common written format for Chinese (this was alluded to in the movie), which is the reason many Chinese movies shown in Asia have subtitles --- in Chinese.

 

[Lord Pendragon]

And history affirms the judgement that he was a tyrant. After he united China, he burned lots of books, continued killing lots of people, and ended up on in the history books as having one of the bloodiest reigns in history. About the only thing one could say in his favor was that he enabled/forced the creation of a common written format for Chinese (this was alluded to in the movie), which is the reason many Chinese movies shown in Asia have subtitles --- in Chinese.

I'd be interested in knowing how much of his "bloodiest reign in history" was due to the blood shed winning his realm, and how much after he'd acquired it. But that's really beside the point. The crux of the matter is, was it worth it? Was it better for the people of China to be united under the emperor ("bloodiest reign in history" and all), or would they have been happier and safer had they remained six separate kingdoms. If the answer is the former, then I see nothing wrong with the philosophy of the movie.

 

[Liminal Syzygy]

Dubbling sucks. Long live subtitles.

 

[Mark Chance]

Was it better for the people of China to be united under the emperor ("bloodiest reign in history" and all), or would they have been happier and safer had they remained six separate kingdoms.

Historical counterfactuals, especially about something as fuzzy as measurements of happiness, might be an amusing way to pass the time, but that's about all they are.

If the answer is the former, then I see nothing wrong with the philosophy of the movie.

Utilitarianism is little comfort to thousands killed and the tens of thousands who endure the loss of their loved ones. Probably has something to do with the ends not providing justification for the means.