I highly recommend the first Drunken Master. Watching Jackie Chan fight in the prime of his life is a rather amazing experience. Unlike most of his early movies (cough Snake Fist Fighter cough), this one is fairly easy to get into.
Come on. The fight scenes in the Matrix = good? Are you smoking something? High production budgets does not a good fight scene make. The fight choreography was completely uncreative and relied solely on flashy camera work and special effects. Keanu was so stiff he made Al Gore look like Jet Li. They might as well have just splashed a big “SPIFF!!! BOFF!!! POW!!! KERSPLATCH!!!” over him every time he threw a punch, like in the old Batman tv show. It certainly would have been more convincing…
FWIW, not really. I mean, it wasn’t bad by any stretch of the imagination, but paled in comparison to the second one. No, that’s not my opinion. That’s the truth.
I saw CT,HD with high hopes but was disappointed - for one reason - I do’nt like ‘magical’ martial arts. Give me the realistic stuff anyday. The movie was better made, better acted, better filmed etc than the average Jackie Chan movie, no question, but I enjoy Jackie Chan films more.
I am aware of that Chinese films often portray martial arts in an unrealistic manner, I just wish I’d known that this was one of them.
I thought the fight scene in the tree was just laughable, and the flying even worse.
I am big Kung Fu fan. I am also a big closet romantic. Gone With the Wind is one of my favorite movies of all time. And I adored *Crouching Tiger… *
As for people who didn’t like it because it wasn’t hardcore Kung Fu…um…reality check. It wasn’t marketed as that. It was marketed as a magical-realism love story. And if you didn’t pay attention to the hoopla, the fact that it was directed by Ang Lee, who directed * Sense and Sensibility * and freaking JEWEL in *Ride With the Devil *should have been a big clue that this wasn’t * Shanghi Noon. * Don’t blame the movie because you hate the genre. Your mistake for going.
Magical Realism is, IMHO (where this thread belongs), one of the most beautiful genres of literary work. (ex: * A Thousand Years of Solitude * or * House of the Spirits ) It’s nice to see it moving into film, first with a sci-fi twist in * Matrix * and now with Kung Fu in * Crouching Tiger…
And Michelle Yeoh just rocks SO hardcore in anything. I’ve loved her since she was Michelle Khan. I think Shu Lai was a wonderful character. How does one go about being a female warrior in a society that represses women? I think this was the main theme in the film, and Shu Lai was one example of how grace and power can be combined. Jade Fox was the example of how ruthlessness and selfishness can be combined. An important thing to remember is that Chinese philsophy is all about duality, and it predominated this film. Shu Lai vs Jade Fox as the female teachers. Shu Lai vs Mu Bai as male/female wise warriors. Jen vs Shu Lai as youth vs maturity. Lo vs Mu Bai as someone who expresses his love to great tragedy and someone who represses his love to great tragedy.
In closing, I quote Dylan: “Don’t criticize what you don’t understand.” Can’t wait till this puppy comes out on DVD, I’ll be watching the fight scenes in slow motion.
IMHO, “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon” rules. I liked it mainly because the scenery is more beautiful and the fighting was more graceful than anything you will ever see in a big-budget American film. Of course, everyone has the right to not go in for such things.
As for the argument about CTHD’s fight scenes vs. Jackie Chan scenes, everyone will have their own opinion about this too. However, I think that audiences should appreciate variety in martial arts flicks. While Chan’s lightning-fast style is amazing, CTHD is also breathtaking, but in a different way.
As for “O, Brother…”, I haven’t had a chance to see it yet. I don’t have access to a car right now, so my movie selections are held hostage by friends who can drive. However, my Dad highly recommends it, so that probably means that I wouldn’t like it anyway.
Gaaaah! Swimming Riddles, why do you have to live on the East coast? I generally avoid the “flirt thread” thing, but it just gets more and more obvious to me that we’d probably make a pretty good pair. Oh well, so that this isn’t totally OT, I’ll just throw in briefly with with “WTF are talking about, Sealemon?” crowd: you’re crazy! When CTHD hits video in the States, watch the last Zhang Ziyi/Michelle Yeoh duel and the Keanu/Lawrence Fishburne fight back to back. If that doesn’t change your mind, you must not have one. Okay, that was a little harsh, but to me it’s so obvious it shocks me that anyone- and I do mean literally anyone, over the whole earth- could disagree.
Oh my Lord, Swiddles, I knew you were awesome. I love those movies! I have been trying to find “A Thousand Years of Solitude” on tape to no avail (and I don’t want to pay shipping charges from Amazon). And “Gone With the Wind” - hell, I have the entire script memorized from seeing it so many times. We’re gonna have to have a huge sleepover party someday. If you were a man I’d propose right now.
Awesome insight on the duality thing. I’ll pay more attention to that when I see it Friday. I’m slapping myself for not noticing the first few times, and I’m really glad to think that the entire American viewing public isn’t positively enraptured by stuff like “Save the Last Dance.”
You know what I heard after the opening credits, when the first dialogue began? “You didn’t tell me this had subtitles!” said one teenager to another. Sheesh.
Dave, I’m going on a Canadian road trip this summer. We’ll have to get together and watch CT,HD one more time.
I prefer the fight scenes in Crouching Tiger but I liked the fight scenes in The Matrix too. If I’m not mistaken both movies were choreographed by the same guy, Woo-ping Yuen. The difference IMO is that the actors in Crouching Tiger fight like they actually know what they’re doing. The Matrix fight scenes LOOK choreographed, if you get my meaning, but I liked them anyway.
Admission: I like Jackie Chan stuff, but I REALLY like wire-fu. It’s a hoot. Just saw Iron Monkey and it was great.
I mean, I liked the Matrix, too. But why does everyone keep comparing this movie to The Matrix? Is it thought that it’s derivative of it (rather than derivative of its own wu xu genre, which is 20+ years old?)?
Hey Bill H. if you were looking for Jet Li style Kung Fu, wait for Matrix 2 to come out, OK? I loved the movie CTHD too. Better comments were made about this film than I can write.
Now that the gang is all here, how about making a movie featuring Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Jackie Chan and Jet Li, all in the same film, directed by John Woo, choreographed by Woo-ping Yuen? How about it folks?
To me, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was a work of art. It transcended being a “movie.” You know how people try to explain how a Rembrandt painting or a passage by Dvorak moves them emotionally? How something deep inside is not only touched, but moved? The definition of “art” I guess. It doesn’t happen to me all that often; but it did when I went to see this movie. I’ve already seen it four times and will undoubtedly go again. The painful thing is the realization that I can only see it for the first time once.
And the first fight scene? Magnificent (as were the others). Afterward I realized I had hardly dared breathe. Really–my chest hurt.
Well, Capacitor, your idea is understandable- it’s one that lots of “newbies” have- but misguided, I think. I think it’s kind of silly to assume that this would be a good idea just because they are all from the Hong Kong film industry. I mean, Jackie/Yuen/Woo? Think about it. There’s not much of a common thread other than action and Chinese blood. No offense, though, I myself just about peed my fanboy pants when I found out years ago that Woo made a movie with Chan.
Sorry Capacitor, now that Maggie is married to a snooty French filmmaker she only makes “art” movies and sneers at her populist roots. So explain “Sausalito,” you stuck-up bitch! She is a good actress, though.
I like CTHD as a technical achievement very much. Yeah, the plot was silly and the exposition was practically farcical, but the cinematography and wire work were fantastic. I put it in the same category as The Fifth Element, worth seeing just because it looks cool.
I’ll prolly buy the DVD.
Speaking of foreign films, I just saw City of Lost Children the other day, and I have to say it was one of the most incredible films I’ve ever seen. Wow.
Sorry about being a little rabid about the Matrix earlier, but most of my friends and coworkers are obsessed about it and I have to be forceful to get my point across.
I still think the fight scenes aren’t going to age as well as DM1/2, Once Upon a Time in China, or CT, HD. The actors don’t have quite the same joy of performance.
CTHD was good, not great. Perhaps my expectations were too high. “You can count on me” was the best film I saw from last year. If you’re lucky, you might be able to catch it at second run houses still.
