House of Flying Daggers – 2004, Zhang Yimou
Imagine this scenario. You’re a happily married man, sat at a bar, when the most beautiful woman you’ve ever laid eyes on starts coming on to you. You learn a bit about her, she’s very nice, yet you don’t think she’s an especially great person. But she looks like an angel. What do you do? ‘House of Flying Daggers’ is the filmic equivalent of this problem. It has the best cinematography ever. Hands down, it wins. Its costumes are also probably the best in any film. Its music is haunting. It’s lead actors, gripping. But its script fails it, there are so many crippling twists in the last act, twists that corrupt moments of pure amazement from earlier, they cannot be ignored. This isn’t a problem with the lines spoken or the concept; it’s simply a number of twists that, like ‘Fight Club’, change the nature of what you saw, and therefore, how good they are. I want to say this is one of my all time favourite movies. I want to dump my wife and have this goddess. But, in the end, I remember my wife, I remember what a great script should look like, and I have to say no. I kick myself forever, but it has to be no. The film has a great premise, Jin, a police captain poses as a warrior, saving Mei, a captive member of the rebel group, the ‘Flying Daggers’, and leads her back to her home, while his team and partner Leo are not far behind, looking to find the ‘Daggers’ new leader. But as they make their way through the beautiful countryside, a passion grows between them, and Jin has a moral crisis. Damn! Every time I think about this film my heart aches, it is so amazing. It is so near flawless, I hate that its one flaw is so important to what makes a great film for me. I can’t even discuss the flaw, as I don’t want any of my reviews to have spoilers, and these plot points are major. The problem in reviewing this film is; if I don’t discuss the one flaw, what can I say about the rest? It’s almost perfect, how can I elaborate? ‘House of Flying Daggers’ is a filmic feast, a piece of art, but not a classic. For everything it achieves, it deserves a place on my top 100 list. The crew involved in putting these images on screen are among the best in the world, and Yimou is as far as I’ve experienced one of the great modern directors in Asian cinema today. That’s it, that’s as much as I can say. Words cannot describe the beauty, the tragedy that is this film. In a way, I have to recommend you never see this film. It depends what you believe, is it better to look upon perfection, only to have it rip away from you, and with it, leave a hole that can never be filled again, or never know it at all. In the end, it is grief I have for this film, and that conflict of “I wish I never met them” with “I’m so blessed to have met them.” Go with your heart, follow the wind, and if it takes you to this film, try not to regret it.
Best moment: Jin and Mei come across a meadow, but their joy turns to fear when they are surrounded by a dozen soldiers, and have to fight their way out.
Imagine this scenario. You’re a happily married man, sat at a bar, when the most beautiful woman you’ve ever laid eyes on starts coming on to you. You learn a bit about her, she’s very nice, yet you don’t think she’s an especially great person. But she looks like an angel. What do you do? ‘House of Flying Daggers’ is the filmic equivalent of this problem. It has the best cinematography ever. Hands down, it wins. Its costumes are also probably the best in any film. Its music is haunting. It’s lead actors, gripping. But its script fails it, there are so many crippling twists in the last act, twists that corrupt moments of pure amazement from earlier, they cannot be ignored. This isn’t a problem with the lines spoken or the concept; it’s simply a number of twists that, like ‘Fight Club’, change the nature of what you saw, and therefore, how good they are. I want to say this is one of my all time favourite movies. I want to dump my wife and have this goddess. But, in the end, I remember my wife, I remember what a great script should look like, and I have to say no. I kick myself forever, but it has to be no. The film has a great premise, Jin, a police captain poses as a warrior, saving Mei, a captive member of the rebel group, the ‘Flying Daggers’, and leads her back to her home, while his team and partner Leo are not far behind, looking to find the ‘Daggers’ new leader. But as they make their way through the beautiful countryside, a passion grows between them, and Jin has a moral crisis. Damn! Every time I think about this film my heart aches, it is so amazing. It is so near flawless, I hate that its one flaw is so important to what makes a great film for me. I can’t even discuss the flaw, as I don’t want any of my reviews to have spoilers, and these plot points are major. The problem in reviewing this film is; if I don’t discuss the one flaw, what can I say about the rest? It’s almost perfect, how can I elaborate? ‘House of Flying Daggers’ is a filmic feast, a piece of art, but not a classic. For everything it achieves, it deserves a place on my top 100 list. The crew involved in putting these images on screen are among the best in the world, and Yimou is as far as I’ve experienced one of the great modern directors in Asian cinema today. That’s it, that’s as much as I can say. Words cannot describe the beauty, the tragedy that is this film. In a way, I have to recommend you never see this film. It depends what you believe, is it better to look upon perfection, only to have it rip away from you, and with it, leave a hole that can never be filled again, or never know it at all. In the end, it is grief I have for this film, and that conflict of “I wish I never met them” with “I’m so blessed to have met them.” Go with your heart, follow the wind, and if it takes you to this film, try not to regret it.
Best moment: Jin and Mei come across a meadow, but their joy turns to fear when they are surrounded by a dozen soldiers, and have to fight their way out.
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