very versatile, can make all different kinds of boring films.
It’s all about Hulk.
The Hulk aside I like Lee’s films, especially The Ice Storm — my second favorite film ever.
His films are very calm, smooth, even Crouching Tiger, which could have been a kinetic mess, was restrained and allowed the story to unfold.
I agree with you Jazz, I’m right in the middle with him, he’s not going to blow you away, but I think his films leaves one with something to consider after they leave the theatre.
I have a lot of respect for him as a filmmaker as he tries to do a lot of different things (much like Danny Boyle). Even if he doesn’t succeed, I respect his ambition.
I love The Ice Storm. Crouching Tiger was better than I expected (generally I’m not a fan of these kinds of films).
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is beautiful. Haven’t seen anything else from him that comes close to it.
a nice guy – would give you the shirt off his back – anon
He made a terrible film about Woodstock, a passionless film about man love and a depressing film about the Hulk. He even managed to make Jewel unsexy
No one’s mentioned Sense and Sensibility. I thought that was solid.
And I might include Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as one of the better films of the decade. It’s very gorgeous and it expanded a genre. (I need to watch it again, though.)
Good blogpost on Hulk:
Hulk:
Lust, Caution 2007 I enjoyed.
I generally like what I’ve seen of his, particularly Ice Storm and Brokeback, but I do remember that I was expecting great things from Ride With the Devil, and my expectations were not met.
Brokeback Mountain was actually a lot better than I expected it to be.
I’m against him.
Actually, I like a number of his films . . . with qualifications. Not a fan of The Hulk or Ride With the Devil (though I’ve still only ever seen the theatrical cut of that one).
Back in the day I wore out a VHS copy of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon … maybe because I was in love with Zhang Ziyi …
Lee seems like the type of director who would thrive in a studio system; this is not the slight that I’m sure many would consider it to be, rather, I think he’s the type of director whose talents would benefit from having to make a new film every 8-10 months. Directors today don’t get the experience they used to; Michael Powell would not have been the director he was if he had not had to make nearly half of his films in the first decade of a nearly 50 year career. The same applies to John Ford, Raoul Walsh, etc. They all spent 10-20 years doing studio contract work (as was their later work) that allowed them to hone their skills and polish their craft (it was this kind of training that made Ford capable of making Stagecoach, Drums Along the Mohawk, Young Mr. Lincoln, The Long Voyage Home, and How Green Was My Valley all in a 24 month period, you will never see that again). They were not burdened with producing immediate blockbusters or having to wait several years between projects. They were always working; this is almost always forgotten when people ignorantly and callously dump on the studio system.
Lee has only made 13 films in 20 years.
Lee has a practical advantage in his partnership with James Schamus. Not only does he have a long term professional relation with a single screenwriter, but that screenwriter is also the CEO of Focus Features.
Working with Schamus is an advantage, I agree. I feel one of the greatest aspects of Ice Storm is Schamus’ pared down script.
I have enjoyed everything I have seen from him (less than half of his filmography), liking his take on things. The final battle in Hulk is more exciting and interesting to me than most final confrontations in most superhero movies, and I tend to believe the appreciation for this movie will grow over time (though that is a bit of an easy prediction given how thoroughly despised it was at release).
As to whether he is a great, probably not, but he is much better than mediocre, and that means something as far as mainstream film making/makers go. I suspect he may be better with characters than with stories, but I don’t know that I am unbiased enough to discern.
Edit: I think I agree with Rich Uncle Skeleton in that he would probably benefit from working in a studio system; he’d have more awful films, but his good films would have a better chance of being great as he’d be forced to be more resourceful and potent with his point of view. Plus, he does make the sort of mainstream pictures that work in that system (appealing to a large audiences without necessarily appealing to the lowest common denominator).
Ang Lee is a director I respect more than I admire. On a whole, I prefer his Taiwanese films but I think Den is right in point to a dullness and self-seriousness in his approach to his material (which sometimes works well like in The Ice Storm but other times ends up in duds like Lust Caution). He’s a hard director to pin down in both a good and a bad way. I will say this: I am definitely not looking forward to his Life of Pi adaptation.
A lot of discussion of his work relates to a certain kind of cultural dislocation or distance in his relationship to the material that he works with (a Taiwanese director adapting Jane Austen, doing American suburbia, American westerns, Woodstock, a heterosexual who makes movies about gays, etc,etc). I’m not sure what to make of that (is it a criticism? a compliment?) but it seems to be the point of departure for evaluation of his work for better or worse.
I was obsessed like Purusa – Crouching Tiger just brought out so much of Zhang Ziyi’s elegance. As for his films, the Wedding Banquet just really stands out mostly because of sentiment. But mostly because I have family from Taiwan, I’m somewhat biased in hoping that he makes extraordinary films.
“Ang Lee is a director I respect more than I admire”
This.
The only film i have time for is The Ice Storm. Never felt a strong desire to rewatch anything else by him. I’ve been meaning to give C.T.H.D another chance though, but it bored me to tears in 2000, and i was a huge fan of Asian cinema at the time and ought to have been more receptive to it.
Brokeback Mountain was very respectable, but for me personally it didn’t go far enough. Like most of his films since ‘The Ice Storm’, it just felt too safe for its own good.
Is the director’s cut of Ride With The Devil worth a look?
LOL@Den’s comment btw.
“Lee has a practical advantage in his partnership with James Schamus. Not only does he have a long term professional relation with a single screenwriter, but that screenwriter is also the CEO of Focus Features.”
that’s certainly convenient, isn’t it? ;-)
“And I might include Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon as one of the better films of the decade.”
Then you haven’t seen that many great films from the past decade…
Crouching Tiger however is one of the better Ang Lee films, whatever that means…he’s not really that accomplished nor imaginative in all of his studio films, Taiwanese and American I’ve seen alike and hands down, his Taiwanese cinematography is FAR SUPERIOR to anything American he made except The Ice Storm which is the only fine American film he’s made so far (without having seen Ride with the Devil and yet, i kind of doubt it will surpass the falldown of suburbia for me)
“It’s all about Hulk.”
Actually, one of his worst, have people really seen his early films besides Crouching Tiger or Lust, Caution?
As stated by the Mubi Community above,
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and Ice Storm.
Everything else generally falls into some level of mix between artistic success and failure.
“Everything else generally falls into some level of mix between artistic success and failure.”
Eat, Drink, Man, Woman is his best film period, as I said…do people actually watch his early films before they make any assessments?
Matt said, I’m against him.
Against? Whoa, that seems pretty strong. Why are you against him?
Btw, a phrase that comes to mind that I would use to describe him: a good (and sometimes very good) middlebrow filmmaker. By that I mean he makes serious well-made dramas for mainstream audiences; yet, the quality and maybe depth of the films don’t extend to an area I would call high art. Nevertheless, I might argue that at his best, his films (like Crouching Tiger) might be considered great art. (Again, I’m not entirely sure—but I’m open to that possibility).
@Dimitris
Then you haven’t seen that many great films from the past decade…
You’re making me want to watch this again, so I will know if I can really defend this film or not. I don’t think quickly disqualify the film as one of the decades, though. Here’s one reason: I think it transformed a genre. As far as I know, it was first to make a kung-fu film more about romance and drama than the action—not to mention it upped the ante in terms of constumes, cinematography and art direction. (Well, maybe Wong’s Ashes of Time beat Lee to the punch—but Crouching might be better in several ways. Again, I’ll have to see it again before taking a strong stand.) And it’s a solid film. So it’s not only a good film, but maybe innovative—or at least original as well.
(Btw, I’m curious to hear some of your picks for the best films of the decade.)
Edit:
I’m a little surprised that you think so highly of Eat Drink, Man, Woman. It was a fun film, but nothing spectacular. What makes it better than his other films in your opinion?
Freddie Elmes, baby. It’s all about Freddie Elmes!
Who?
DP. He shot The Ice Storm (as well as a whole host of other films). Great cinematographer.
There’s actually a funny story about Fred Elmes when he was working as an AC (or camera operator – I don’t recall) on A Woman Under the Influence.
Oh, OK. Thanks.
Jazzaloha
I didn’t a quick search on Ang Lee, and I don’t think there’s any discussion about him as a filmmaker. Personally, I think he’s a competent director. I don’t think his films are great, but they’re generally decent. He’s one of those directors that people may praise too highly or criticize too harshly. I’m right in the middle somewhere.
What do people think of Ang Lee as a filmmaker? What are some of his best films?