House of Flying Daggers – Blu-ray movie review

After absolutely loving 'Hero', I couldn't wait for Zhang Yimou's latest Wuxia Pien feature to arrive on Blu-ray. After watching it, I'm happy to say I wasn't disappointed, as it is another sumptuous, stylistic feature, which deserves all the accolades it is likely to receive.

The plot of the film is told in a more linear narrative when compared to that of 'Hero', but that is not to say it is any more straightforward. Set in the Tang Dynasty, the basic premise is nothing to write home about, featuring government officials on the trail of an underground rebel alliance 'The House of Flying Daggers'. However, there is enough characterisation and depth to hold your attention, while the (sometimes predictable) plot twists keep you guessing. Unfortunately, there is nothing entirely new about this story and it's probably familiar ground to fans of the wuxia genre. Nevertheless, it flows at a decent pace and is punctuated with enough stylistic action sequences that the 2-hour running time is quickly exhausted.

Director Yimou Zhang's work in Hero was more epic, more heroic, but SMMF has a more refined sense of story. The cast, the scenery, the music, including vocal performances by the legendary Kathleen Battle; all elements conspire brilliantly to convey subtle and nuanced meaning in moments. The story, as do all good stories of this genre, revolves around a delicate interplay of love, betrayal, deception and heroism of many different kinds, and, oh yes, those stunning ballets of combat layered with evocative sounds and effects.

In a nutshell, the plot goes something like this. A beautiful blind showgirl is captured as a spy. Her captors conspire to trick her into leading them to her leader. Along the way, both hunter and quarry become entangled in a web of subterfuge and deception. Add in a beautifully tragic romantic story line, again, as all such movies must have, and never forget that the essence of all truly great tragedy is inevitability.

I highly recommend this film to all. Don't be afraid of the subtitles. The Chinese film industry is really on a whole other level of film making than America. It's poetic with every shot and reminds you of old medieval tales in its unfolding. It is seriously a great and grand film. The fight scenes were excellent. Especially the scene of Mei mimicking the sounds on the gourds as a dance. It was sexy and delicate at the same time. The way the fabric of her clothing moved was visually stunning and breathtaking. I could immediately see this film taking place in North Africa, particularly Morocco, with black actors in the roles. The cultures seemed so similar, that's why I could envision it. Hey, it could work. Let's think about it America...lol. It was earthy, yet divine and lofty. I don't know how else to describe it. A beautiful movie by all my standards.

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