MUBI

This is a great piece of work. Amazingly beautiful cinematography throughout and fairly good music too. I agree that the use of slow motion is confusing at times and a bit of a cheap effect (still relied upon in his later work) but it does add to the elegant and leisurely pace of the work. The main thing to appreciate here is that when it comes to new wave kungfu flicks, while he may have been influenced by the greats before him (Kurosawa etc) this film does predate Crouching Tiger and Kill Bill, not to mention Yimou’s masterpiece ‘Hero’. Hey Mr Ang Lee, check out the swordswoman on the water scene

The film reflected to me why some directors and big budgets just shouldn’t mix. It seemed to be the kind of film that Wong Kar-Wai normally shies away from. The translation of claustrophobic suburban scenes to a facade of claustrophobia in the open and ever brooding desert was loose, but came so very close to working to great effect. As usual for Wong, every character was captivating and the action sequences played out in smudge-motion beauty that kept you ever gripped to the importance of what is happening over the action itself. Yet it still felt for me like Wong Kar-Wai had been handed too much money and he was forced to balance on the blades’ edge to stay true to his auteurship. Don’t think me foolish, there was signs of the director in all direction, but the film overall just didn’t sit right for the usual expectation of Wong. I did see the redux, so perhaps that explains the absence of authorship.

It really took me a while to begin to track with the piece (started it 3 times before I got through it) but when I finally began to track with the structure and the pace, I was blown away. The pieces are all there but it really takes concentration and an understanding of the style (which Chinese audiences are already culturally attuned to) to appreciate and enjoy the piece. I can say unequivocally that it is worth the investment. The fight scenes are especially breathtaking; brush painting brought to kinetic emotional life.