ioanaunteanu Things I've learned from the movie: A law enforcement officer can arrest a girl for wearing indecent clothes INSIDE a whorehouse; The same arrest can be dropped if the said girl performs an impressive dance for the officer; I'm serious, nobody thinks it's wrong; A blind girl can run through a forest (so a place with TREES) faster than two galloping horses; An enemy soldier will fall if hit with a stick no thicker than my finger; Enemy soldiers jumping from one bamboo tree to another will each throw at least 10 bamboo spears which are not visible during any of the tree jumping scenes; None of the above spears will hit the two main characters, even if they are a few meters away; A guy with a knife in his back will fight judo-style, land on his back at least three times, and the knife will remain there until it's time to be used in the dramatic final scene; The weather can change from sunny autumn to snowy mid winter in a few minutes because it's the dramatic final scene; The plot is masterful: A club of fighters/assassins/cool people with knives want the government to find their secret hideout. Their plan is to send an undercover agent for three years and the gorgeous girl for three days to convince the that they are, in fact, in that location. The gov becomes convinced only after some of its men were killed by another of its men; - The gov finally sends their best men to the hideout; The movie, however, ends before that final confrontation as deemed irrelevant?On the bright side, the costumes are gorgeous, and so is Ziyi Zhang (Sayuri from 'Memoirs of a Geisha').

Leofwine_draca I'll be the first to admit that I'm not a huge fan of the recent Oscar-winning period movies that have been coming out of Hong Kong – I thought that CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON and HERO were both okay films, well made certainly, but lacking that certain dynamic spark which is needed for a classic film. So it was with some trepidation that I sat down to watch HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS, well aware that director Zhang Yimou was also responsible for HERO, and fully expecting to be let down by this film, as well. I was in for a surprise.HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS blew me away. Whereas the two films mentioned previously have seemed false, concerning tired notions of heroism and chivalry, this one concentrates on torrid romance, with many love scenes taking place during the film's running time. This is what is needed to give the film heart and dynamism. Obviously, the excellent technical qualities are what make this such a good film; the CGI effects are excellent, the cinematography is breathtaking, and the fight choreography spellbinding. Director Yimou is first and foremost an artist and it shows; this is the most visually beautiful film I've seen in my life. Each of the major set-pieces has a major colour scheme going on and the camera superbly captures all the nuances. Costumes, sets, and weaponry are vibrant and engaging as well.The acting is excellent. Veteran Andy Lau has the most interesting role, a soldier torn between his duty and the girl he loves. Said girl is played by Ziyi Zhang, who I haven't liked much in her previous films; here she's excellent, and Zimou really captures her fragile beauty and innocence. The other central performer is Takeshi Kaneshiro, familiar from his role in 1997's HERO; here he makes good on his central role in that film – he's great as well.The various fight scenes are all fluid and the wire work is nicely incorporated into the battles, which never seem outlandish or unnecessary as in the films I mentioned at the beginning of this review. There are lots of shots of weapons flying through the air which I liked, and a classic stand-off at the film's climax, which takes place in a snowstorm and reminded me favourably of the climax of THE GOOD, THE BAD AND HTE UGLY; director Zimou is obviously cut from the same cloth as Sergio Leone. Other highlights include the showdown in the bamboo forest and the magnificent echo game which opens the film, and which makes the best use of surround sound I've experienced.

Anssi Vartiainen A Chinese wuxia film riding on the coattails of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, House of Flying Daggers deviates from the typical wuxia formula by being more of a love story rather than action-packed adventure. This ends up being both the strength and the weakness of the film.So what's the story. The 9th century China is in turmoil. Tang Dynasty is weakening and rebellious civil movements have begun to crop up all over the land. One of these is the eponymous House of Flying Daggers, and now the local police department believes that they have managed to locate one of the girls belonging to this organization. A plan is hatched to covertly release the girl and have her lead them to her leader. Yet problems arise as the amorous young police officer starts to fall for the fierce warrior woman.From that you can speculate much of the plot, and not in a bad way either. Sure, it's a bit predictable, but I'd rather see it as sticking to tried and true methods. Zhang Ziyi is an extremely fetching main female lead, and Takeshi Kaneshiro and Andy Lau are rather good as well as Jin and Liu, the two main police officers.Furthermore, it's an utterly gorgeous film. The settings are rich and detailed, the use of colour is phenomenal, the fight sequences are imaginative and enjoyable to look at and the music brings all together. One of the best looking films I've seen in a long time. The scenes in the bamboo forest with their thousands of shades of green are just... wow, I have no words.Yet I think that this film could have been much better with a change of focus. The setting about rebellious groups fighting against a dying dynasty is an interesting one and could have made for a really interesting adventure. Yet the main focus of the film is whether or not they really love each other? There's a missed opportunity here. Not that the love story isn't nice and heart-breaking and all that, but I was constantly questioning in my head, "Yeah, that's nice, but what about the rebellion? What about the House and its goals?" I can't exactly blame the director Yimou Zhang for trying to do something new with the genre, but perhaps a bit less adventure-oriented premise would have managed to keep my attention where it should have been.Still, it's a good film if you're looking for gorgeous visual, great action scenes and good acting performances. Recommended.

lyncati House of Flying Daggers revolves around a story where during the Tang Dynasty era, a secret organization called, "The House of Flying Daggers" is being sought after by the Chinese military. It is suspected a blind dancer is believed to have ties to the organization, so it is arranged for an officer to go undercover to befriend her and try to find a way into the organization.The main reasons to watch this movie are the for the beautiful choreographed fight scenes and the set. The fight scenes never feel rushed, and the director chose to film them in a way where you can see the entire battle unfold and enjoy it. The sets are flooded with beautiful colors, which further helps set the tones of the movie and fighting scenes.The only place where I would say the story falters slightly is in the story. The story itself is very entertaining to watch and will keep you committed to the movie when you aren't in awe of the fighting scenes, but at times the story can become predictable.Overall, this is an amazing movie. It will appeal to many different audiences with all that is offered. Fight scenes, romance, visuals, and great film making will keep you into the movie and entertained.