HERO (YING XIONG)

China, 2002, 99 minutes, Colour.
Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Ziy Zhong.
Directed by Zhang Yamou.

For some reason, Miramax held up the western release of this exciting martial arts spectacle for two years. When it was released in the US, it opened with a take of $17,000.000 and was top of the box-office charts for two weeks. One can see why.

During the 1990s, Zhang Yimou made a series of powerful dramas with Gong Li: Raise the Red Lantern, Ju Dou, The Story of Qui Ju, To Live. As a cinematographer, he makes films that are very beautiful to look at.

After a series of low-key dramas (Not One Less, The Road Home), he has moved into the Crouching Tiger genre with Hero.

The plot is complicated at first until one realises that one is getting different versions of the same story (with colour-codings to indicate this). In fact, the plot is fairly straightforward and concerns a warrior who has destroyed the enemies of a despot king who fears assassination. In telling the tales of his exploits against these enemies, the director shows us extraordinary feats with extraordinary camerawork and editing. In fact they are quite exhilarating, especially the flights of arrows.

Zhang Yimou then went on to make The House of Flying Daggers, which has far less plot but that does not matter as it is even more exquisite in its choreography of an elaborate and athletic palace dance and in the battles on the tops of the bamboo trees.

1. The influence of Crouching Tiger on Chinese history and martial arts film? The appeal, in Asia, throughout the world?

2. The tradition of martial arts in the East, in film, Hong Kong influence? Spectacle, art, military prowess? Stunt work and special effects?

3. The prologue, the history of China, the six kingdoms, Qin and Zhau, their rivalry, the King of Qin and his ambitions? The history of the battles, the united kingdom, ten years and the attempts of assassins? The final mission to assassinate the king? The lesson for the king in terms of peace? His achievement? The Great Wall of China? “Our Land”?

4. The 20th century perceptions of history, dramatising of history? The visuals, the tales, heroism, religious interpretation, cultural traditions?

5. The exquisite visual beauty of the film, compositions and tableaux? The palace, the calligraphy school, the deserts and the crags, the autumn forests and the leaves, the battlefields, battles on horses, battles with swords, the rain of arrows? Individual combat? The musical score?

6. The structure of the film: the prologue and the explanation of history, the hero and his arrival, his audience with the king, his gradual progress towards the king, telling the stories, the combat with the three warriors, the flashbacks, the truth and lies (and the different coloured costumes to indicate truth and lies)? The lesson for the king, the plan of the assassin, his philosophy of peace, his achievement? Execution?

7. The hero, the background information, Nameless? His background as a prefect in a small area of the kingdom? A foreigner? His mission, the confrontation with Sky, the provocation of the fight, the playing of the music, each of them looking at their opponent, the imagining of the battle (in black and white photography)? The defeat of Sky? The confrontation with Broken Sword? At the calligraphy school, the similarities between art and the martial arts, the sequences of brushing the calligraphy in the sand, the paint, the posters? Snow and her presence? The story of the bond between the two, their falling out? Broken Sword and his love for Moon? Her being the assistant with the calligraphy, getting the paints, the clash with Snow? The love affair, Snow and her stabbing Broken Sword? Moon’s grief? The irony of seeing them alive? A different story? The fight between Moon and Snow? The delineation of the characters, the different perspectives according to the different stories? Broken Sword as wise, his not killing the king, Snow and her reaction? Nameless and his learning from Broken Sword? His explanation of the test, Snow and her self-sacrifice?

8. The interactions, the test, Broken Sword and Snow, their deaths, on the crag? Moon and her wanting vengeance?

9. The king, his realisation that Nameless was an assassin? His plan? His abilities, his lesson to the king about peace? Passing on the message of Broken Sword? His throwing the sword but not killing the king?

10. His self-sacrifice, his going to execution, his doing it for the uniting of the land? The visuals of the execution, the arrows, his being carried in state?

11. The consequences for China, united, the Great Wall? The legend of the hero? Self-sacrifice?