I was a little disappointed with Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Part of the letdown may have been due to raised expectations. I had seen two previous films by acclaimed director Ang Lee, and both (Sense and Sensibility, Eat Drink Man Woman) were very good to great.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon had also generated rave reviews, and was a blockbuster despite the seeming handicap of its Mandarin language. It won Oscars for its cinematography, sets, and score. It also won Best Foreign Language Film, and was nominated in six other categories including Best Picture and Best Director. It has become a fixture in the imdb.com top 250, currently at #40.

The plot is intricate, and for a while I had trouble following it. It seems that Li Mu Bai (Yun-Fat Chow) has tired of seeking vengeance on Jade Fox (Pei-pei Cheng) for killing his master. He instead wants to settle down with his platonic girlfriend, Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh). Enter troublemaker Jen Yu (Ziyi Zhang), whose actions force Li Mu Bai to postpone his retirement. All the aforementioned characters are expert warriors.

Jen Yu is the easily the most interesting of the major characters. She has a strong mix of positive and negative traits. She is young, gorgeous, and from a wealthy and noble family. More importantly, she is a great fighter. On the other hand, she is immature, proud, and impetuous. She makes and betrays allegiances. During the course of the film, she commits numerous felonies, including theft, assault, and murder.

The murder charge is admittedly arguable. She assists Jade Fox in an ambush that ends in a policemen's death. I remember that it was Jen Yu who wanted to kill all of the witnesses, but it might actually have been Jade Fox who said that.

As thoroughly relaxed as Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien are, it is surprising how much patience they show with Jen Yu, and how much trust they place in her. This was one of three things about the film that I consciously disliked.

My second quarrel is with the action scenes. I can accept the fact that all the characters can fly. I just wish that it wasn't so obvious that cables were used to accomplish this. I also have trouble accepting that one person can beat up multiple people at the same time, as if they have eyes on the back of their heads. Even though Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is hardly the only film in which similar scenes are commonplace.

My final difficulty with the film is comparatively minor. Jen Yu is drugged by Jade Fox, to immobilize her and use her as bait to lure others into an ambush. Shortly later, however, Jen Yu has fully recovered, and is able to accomplish a time-critical errand. Admittedly, continuity is of less importance than it is usually accorded, but somebody should have caught the error at some point during production.

One supporting character that I did like was the barbarian Lo (Chen Chang). He is the only one of Jen Yu's seven would-be mentors (I include her parents and her initial betrothed in this list) that understands her. Her actions cry out for punishment, and only Lo is willing to deliver it, and on his terms.

I also felt that Yun-Fat Chow and Michelle Yeoh were well cast and have good screen chemistry. They are an ingratiating presence. It is their characters that mildly annoyed me. Although I admit that their restraint is a product of their discipline and training, it never seems to occur to them that Jen Yu is a brat that needs a good spanking. She's skilled enough with a weapon already. (41/100)

k@filmsgraded.com, www.filmsgraded.com


Recommended:
No

Viewing Format: VHS
Video Occasion: Fit for Friday Evening
Suitability For Children: Suitable for Children Age 13 and Older