Hero: the next CTHD? [SPOILERS]

[hong]

I have just seen the trailer for this film, which was nominated for best foreign film at this year's Oscars. You can get it here (30MB QuickTime download): http://media.filmweb.no/trailere/smn/SMN20020821/36.mov

Website here:
http://www.herothemovie.com/

This thing is looking friggin' awesome, possibly the next Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. When's it due for general release outside Hong Kong?

Anyone seen it already and wish to comment?

 

[WizarDru]

Hey, it's got Donnie Yen, Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung in it (oh, and Jet Li, too). Sign me up. Boy, Hong Kong loves to make films about the First Emperor.

It has gotten wildly divergent reviews, partly based on it's Rashomon-esque format, and for being visually stunning but somewhat shallow. Rumors have it that Miramax is planning on releasing a version that's been gutted like a fish, removing 30 minutes worth of material....I hope that's untrue. I had thought we might have finally moved past the 'let's cut out any non-fight scene' era.

I have historically had a hard time explaining to some folks how some Jackie Chan films have had a half-hour yanked out of them, and been rearranged like a jigsaw puzzle. Granted, many of them didn't always suffer for that, but in some cases, much of the actual story or character-building is cut right out of the film.

Now I've got an itching to go watch Iron Monkey again.

 

[Krug]

Well I've seen it and the fights are more balletic. Only the fight between Donnie Yen and Jet Li look 'real' while the rest are wirework. It's gorgeously filmed though, and the structure and storyline are interesting.

However, i didn't find the love story between Maggie and Tony convincing. Throw them on screen and expect instant poignancy? C'mon! Donnie Yen is severely underused, as per usual.

The cinematography is amazing, but the two most amazing fights are hardly essential to the story. I'd say this is a film that's pure visual spectacle with a storyline that's ... not bad.

The next CTHD? In terms of box office I would say. I think visually people will respond to it, and might have the most visually appealing 'fight scenes' this year. (yes, even better than The Matrix)

 

[Chain Lightning]

I saw it too. The story is neat, and is told in a solid manner. Martial Art fiends will probably only go gah gah over the Donnie Yen vs. Jet Li fight. However, I count myself among those that really am hard to please when it comes to fight scenes. Where sometimes, anything short of Fist of Legend, Drunken Master 2, CTHD, just doesn't do it for me.

But, with "Hero" each fight scene, while not brilliant or ground breaking, had me riveted. The storytelling is just that good for me. It holds my attention. I want to know more, I want to go to the next scene. Although, maybe those with shorter attention spans may argue with me on this...as this is a movie with lots of quiet long scenes of beauty.

There's plenty of cool stuff here in this movie. If you like this genre and know it well, you should like it. But if you're into super realistic fighting and always roll your eyes at fantasy martial arts because its just not as cool as UFC or something, then maybe you'll not appreciate how cool it is to bounce yourself off the surface of the lake with your sword. Or to take on 3,000 elite troopers with just youself and your girlfriend.

I give it 8 out of 10

 

[Liminal Syzygy]

Is it in Mandarin, Cantonese, or a mixture?

 

[John Crichton]

SPOILERS?

Wait a sec...

Is this the same movie with that whacked sword battle outside the Statue of Liberty?

 

[Chun-tzu]

Hero will be frequently compared to CTHD, but I would not call it a worthy successor. On a visual level, it matches up quite nicely, but that's about it. The story in Hero will not appeal to very many outside the martial arts/action crowd.

It's also clearly written for a Chinese audience, whereas CTHD was more of a classic Chinese movie written for an American audience. There are differences in storytelling style between the two, which are very familiar to those who've seen a number of Chinese movies (both martial arts and non-martial arts), but it's difficult for me to explain. In at least one or two reviews, Hero has been called confusing, and I'd have to agree with that. It draws upon cultural references that the American audience won't be familiar with (or even many Chinese Americans, like myself), and doesn't bother explaining it (not that it should, necessarily). I'd be more specific, but it's been a while since I saw it.

If you watch Hero, expecting it to be the next CTHD, I think you're going to be disappointed (I was). It's a blockbuster (high budget) all-star martial arts movie, whereas CTHD fit into other genres as easily as it did the martial arts movie.

Cordo: I think it was in Cantonese, but to be honest, I don't recall.

John C.: As it's set in pre-Imperial ancient China, there's no Statue of Liberty in sight.

 

[Krug]

It's definitely in Mandarin. It's quite a minimalistic-film, with each 'version' of the story told in a different hue.

I think it'll appeal visually. It's like looking at a piece of modern art with big swaths of colour and grandeur. Very bold.

 

[John Crichton]

John C.: As it's set in pre-Imperial ancient China, there's no Statue of Liberty in sight.

Ah, that's good. There was another movie by a similar name a few years ago that had that scene. It looked cool but not at all like what this thread was about. Thanks.

 

[WizarDru]

Re: SPOILERS?

Wait a sec...

Is this the same movie with that whacked sword battle outside the Statue of Liberty?

Close, but no cigar.

You're thinking of "A Man called Hero", which I have on DVD. It's a weird little film, with some truly odd battle sequences (It's got NINJA!) in NYC. It's been accused of 'cashing in' on the success of 'the Stormriders', but I think that's a little unfair. It's a little uneven in the plotting, but it's got an amusing story, and some nice F/X for the fight sequences.