Hero (2002 China, 2004 USA)

Also known as Ying xiong.
Heavily steeped in oriental warrior-philosophy, filled with love triangles and betrayals, and blessed with a visual style of stunning beauty, this is the kind of movie that puts the art back into martial arts. Taking cues from Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece Rashamon, director Yimou Zhang builds this story around telling the same snippets of story over and over again, each time from a different perspective, resulting in a tale of wonderful clarity and color. The acting here is a bit overcooked, but if you've ever watched opera, it comes off in much the same way: broad strokes of emotion meant to fill a canvas with each line, instead of the usual subtle nuance we're used to seeing. What really strikes home with this film, though, is its visual style. Picking a primary color to base each version of the story around makes for an interesting and exceptionally accessible symbolism that gives the audience the chance to sort out the true meaning of each story. It's a brilliant tweak that just makes watching the film much more interesting and attractive. If you're not big on warrior philosophy and foreign films, your mileage may vary. But for everyone else, regardless of whether they consider themselves fans of martial arts epics, Hero is absolutely worth seeing.

9 out of 10.