It's not a bad movie, but it isn't that MASTERPIECE some "intelctuals" are crying around. The fight scenes aren't that impressive nor believable (althought well choreographed), plus director Ang Lee doesn't know where to put the camera, making action sequences confuse and truncated.
All those people flying around and walking on walls didn't work well also. In the begining one even tries to "enter" in the movie's spirit, but after the third fight we get tired and the movie begins to look ridiculous, taking involuntary laughs from the audience. Not even the Jedi Knights of "Star Wars" do so many ludicrous acrobatics - and they use the "force", remember!

The actors seems very uncomfortable on their acting too, perhaps because they were forced to speak on ancient Mandarin, what let them tongue-tied and looking fake - the chinese audiences felt the same.

The screenplay is too much episodic, harming the movie's fluency. Beides that, the main plot (the Jade Fox situation) is quite weak and senseless. Also, the "powers" of the young Jen are never well explained, since in one sequence she beats an entire army of angry men easily, but in another scene she is easily defeated by Yun Fat using a thin stick. Ok, the guy is suposed to be the big boss, but that's away too much...

But the movie ultimate sin is the lack of humor and magic, registered marks of this kind of movie, and something necessary to make all those absurd situations digestible.
CROUCHING TIGER... wants to be taken "seriously" and end looking somehow ridiculous.

The score by Tan-Dun is quite good and deserves the Oscar.

All in all, those Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan movies are much more fun to watch and features some really impressive fights!

Anyway, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a fantastic movie. And please, God, do not criticize Ang Lee. I've already mentioned how much I think Tim Burton is a terrific director and will have a huge influence on my films (if I ever direct any), but his influence will pale in comparison to Lee's influence on me. The man is a genius, and directed the finest movie I have ever seen ("The Ice Storm"). He knows how to direct, and he knows how to do it damn well. He's brilliant. 'Nuff said.

As for the score, I liked it. I thought it fit the movie well. Haven't picked up a copy yet, but I plan to.

--Jason S.

All I can say is this, the movie is based on a fable, it isn't ment to be super real. I find the movie to be outstanding. Much fun.

To say the fight scenes were awful (or whatever words you chose, Andre) is something I can't understand. I thought they were majestic, beautiful, acrobatic, and as graceful as a ballet scene. The whole story was very well told, (if one takes the time and skill to actually read the subtitles) and some of the camera actions, the way it moved with the fighting scenes were unbelieveable. The scene in the trees with the rather subdued score alone is just amazing. Just another Kung Fu movie? I don't think so...

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Originally posted by Quill:
Her crowning moment was leaping to her death...I didn't applaud though...the arthouse crowd in Santa Cruz would have stoned me.

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The picture has its good points, but there are far better and more adventurous pictures in the same genre and idiom (e.g. ZU: WARRIORS OF THE SACRED MOUNTAIN and A CHINESE GHOST STORY).

In the first few minutes, almost like a checklist, we learn Chow Yun Fat needs to avenge his master's death, retrieve another master's stolen sword, and has a love that his life as a monk and warrior has forced him to unrequite. This is so Chinese film cliche that it's like ordering a combo with fried rice, egg roll, and fortune cookie.

There are things I liked, of course, the best being the whole fight-romance between the young girl and the bandit, which was both sexy and funny, but felt like a seperate movie from the rest.

I have to agree with Rocco that Michelle Yeoh is great in this film but then I think she's great in every movie even the James Bond movie.

Mark is playing CHICKEN RUN? BAN him, PeterK! BAN HIM!!!!

Michelle and the fight between the two girls were the only good thing about the movie.

People who love this movie probably have never seem a REAL chinese kung-fu movie...

why does that mean I have to dislike CTHD?

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Originally posted by Scott:
Well...all I can say is...I liked it. So, sue me.
Scotty

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Like I said in my original message, I liked it too. Just think it's quite overrated. I have seem tons of better chinese kung-fu movies before, inclusive with better fights and more believable flights...

So sue me now!

I thoroughly enjoyed the thoughtful balance of mysticism, feudal politics, romance and mythos. The dancelike fight scenes were surreal. I was completely captivated.

Critical hype is a tricky thing. While the critics and the academy awards have had a share in inflating many people's expectations, I will say that this a movie that audiences seem to have discovered on their own. I'm glad I saw it before all the hoopla tainted my experience.

I got a sense of confusion in the direction for CTHD, with the story not knowing which characters to focus on most.

Is it another example of style over content? Somewhat, yes, and then I didn't even think it looked THAT stunning either, very soft, and in the desert scenes, messy, look to it which kind of bugged me, and I agree with Andre in that visually Lee's direction was very jumpy..

I'd hope the cinematographic problems I spoke of would have been the print I saw, but I know a number of people who felt the same way, and even the DVD anamorphic transfer looks soft.

Some of it dazzled me, the fighting up in the treetops for instance, but on the whole it left a lot to be desired. I just don't feel it is a masterpiece in storytelling many claim it to be.

One thing though, regarding thow believable the fights are, CTHD is based on a fairy tale/folk tale of some sort, the fights intentionaly touch upon the mystical and I had no problem with it. This story source was nto clear to most seeing the film, so they laughed at it giving snide remaks such as "hah, that couldn't happen"...and so on.

So in the end it's one of those "Nice movie......but...." things for me.

Another thing that I keep thinking about regarding the mass publics love for the film is the possibility that they've never seen anything like it on the big screen so love it immediately, without having experienced something infinately better theatrically. I call this, the 'Gladiator' effect... *hides*

Dan (UK)

I was pissed that I didn't get to see if she got her wish. Damn foreign films!

Anybody else here familiar with the old folktale "Magic Monkey and the White-Boned Demon?" There've been a couple of Japanese movie versions of it, one quite dreadful. Surely there are numerous HK/Chinese/Taiwanese versions? That would make a kickass picture.

There are deeper films out there, but I loved CTHD nontheless.

With the crap that Oscar has chosen this time, CTHD deserves to win compared to Gladiator and Erin(which was very very very stupid) Brockovich!

One was just enough. And I don't think Ang Lee is such a great director. He did a nice movie, THE WEDDING BANQUET, mostly because it has a good screenplay. But his SENSE AND SENSIBILITY is an awful movie which is Lee's distant and dry direction's fault.