Exclusive: House of Flying Daggers Viennale Review!

As you can imagine, the cinema was full. Over 700 people came to see this Sony Pictures Classics release. Most of the people came with high hopes (after seeing "Hero"), and others just came because it’s a Festival and "you have to be there". I was one of the first named kind (but without seeing "Hero" yet), and waited very impatiently for the light to go out and the film to begin…….

The movie is settled in 859AD, when the Tang Dynasty, one of the most enlightened empires in Chinese history at its height, is in decline. The Emperor is incompetent and the government is corrupt. Unrest is spreading throughout the land, and many rebel armies are forming in protest. The largest, and most prestigious, is an underground alliance called the "House of Flying Daggers".

The House of Flying Daggers operates mysteriously, stealing from the rich to give to the poor. Thus, they have earned the support and admiration of the people and expanded quickly. Based in Feng Tian County, close to the Imperial Capital, the House of Flying Daggers has long been a thorn in the side of the local deputies, their hated rivals.

The deputies are enraged because, even after they fought and killed the leader of the House of Flying Daggers, the House continues to thrive. Under the leadership of a mysterious new leader, the House of Flying Daggers grows ever more powerful. Feng Tian County’s two local captains, Leo (Andy Lau Tak Wah) and Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) are ordered to capture the new leader within ten days.

Captain Leo suspects that Mei (Zhang Ziyi), the beautiful new dancer at the local Peony Pavilion, is actually the daughter of the old leader. He hatches a plan to arrest her and bring her in for questioning. When Mei refuses to divulge any information on the House of Flying Daggers, the two captains set up another plan. This time, Captain Jin will pretend to be a lone warrior called Wind and rescue Mei from prison, earning her trust and escorting her to the secret headquarters of the House of Flying Daggers.

The plan works, and on their long journey to the House, Jin and Mei warm to each other. Before long, Mei has developed feelings for her enigmatic protector, and Jin is surprised to find himself falling for Mei’s headstrong charm. Both struggle to contain their feelings, but under the starry night, their irrepressible desire is almost beyond their control. Danger lurks in the forest surrounding them, and the wind is still, as if sensing the tension in the air.
What lies ahead for Jin and Mei, these star-crossed lovers ? If this is true love, then why are there plots in their head, and secrets in their hearts ?

After 120 minutes the lights went on and the audience applauded, which it always does at Festival presentations. But this time it seemed, like they meant it seriously. I did for sure.

What Zhang Yimou delivered to us, was cinema as it should be. The film has a great story with some twists and unexpected changes and a cinematography that really reminded me of antique paintings. The movie was very colourful and detailed. Yimou used very sharp pictures with a very good contrast and well chosen colors that fitted perfectly into the mood of the scene. This was also transported by the costumes and the scenes that played inside of buildings.

Of course we get to see lots of over the top martial arts sequences. All of them are choreographed like a ballet performance. Very smooth and fluidly, the actors sometimes seem to float over the screen and this makes the scenes very good to watch. They are not choppy and just cut together punches and kicks, they are very accurate, fast, and always filmed in a way, so the audience can follow the fight. It never gets annoying, because you thing you missed a scene. It’s always there and always fun to watch. Yimou always gets you in the mood of being in the middle of the sequence.

Besides Zhang Yimou’s directing (he also co-produced and co-written the story), another very positive part were the actors and actresses. I have to say that I watched the movie in its original language with English subtitles, therefore it was easier to judge the actors and actresses. Well known for his quirky character acting, Takeshi Kaneshiro (who portrays Jin, and is also known for portraying Miyamoto in Takashi Yamazaki’s 2002 Japanese science fiction hit "The Returner") and Andy Lau Tak Wah’s (portrays Leo, and  is well known as Lau Kin Ming in "Internal Affairs") performances were very good.

But the best performance by far was Zhang Ziyi’s (Mei). Who at age 25, possesses the easy grace and on-screen intensity of a seasoned professional. She also starred in "Hero" and "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" for which she received 14 nominations, going on to win the 2001 Independent Spirit Award and 2000 Toronto Film Critics Association Award, among others.

If you put everything together you get a wonderful film, telling a love story in the form of a traditional martial arts movie. The movie has great actors/actresses, unbelievable fighting sequences and wonderful pictures. What more can you expect to get ? Zhang Yimou said about his movie: "Many directors have told similar stories, but my concern is how people fall in love, and what we are willing to sacrifice for the sake of that love. At the end of the day, love is a triumph of the human spirit".

It took not long for me, to decide how my voting would be. It was fixed at the moment the end credits appeared. Go see this movie. I can’t imagine anyone who will leave the cinema disappointed.

The movie gets 10 of 10 points !

You can look at all "House of Flying Daggers" pics here.