House of Flying Daggers (5 Stars)

Dancer's Top Films #22

Visually, this is the most beautiful film I've ever seen. I'm not just referring to Zhang Ziyi, although I admit that her beauty is stunning. The film's background is perfectly crafted, indoors and outdoors, whatever is taking place in the foreground.

The Tang Dynasty is corrupted and disliked by the general populace. There's a rebel group called the Flying Daggers, which steals from the rich and gives to the poor. Two police captains, Leo and Jin, have been given ten day to identify and arrest the leader of the Flying Daggers. Their only lead is a blind girl who dances in a local tea house. She's known to be a member of the Flying Daggers. To gain her trust Leo arrests her, and then Jin frees her. Jin and Mei head northwards to rendezvous with the rest of the group.

It's a complicated plot. There are multiple levels of deception. Nobody is who he initially seems to be. Even the Flying Daggers themselves turn out to be less idealistic than they're presented in the opening scenes. They're cunning and ruthless, willing to kill anyone who gets in their way.

At its core, this is a love story. Jin and Mei fall in love as they travel together, even though they're both deceiving one another. Mei is torn between Jin and a lover in the Flying Daggers that she hasn't seen for three years. It's difficult to write anything else without giving away spoilers. All I'll say is that the final battles are beautifully filmed. You've never seen a film like this before.

In the north there is a beauty, peerless and independent.
One look from her will overthrow a city, another look will overthrow a nation.
It's not important to know whether a city or a nation will be overthrown,
Because such a beauty will never be seen again.

Success Rate:  + 5.7

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