Hero

Composite Score: 83.99

Starring: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu-wai, Maggie Cheung, Ziyi Zhang, Daoming Chen, Tianyong Zheng, and Donnie Yen

Director: Yimou Zhang

Writers: Feng Li, Yimou Zhang, and Bin Wang

Genres: Action, Adventure, Drama, History, Martial Arts

MPAA Rating: PG-13 for stylized martial arts violence and a scene of sensuality

Box Office: $177.40 million worldwide

Why should you Watch This Film?

                Hero is Yimou Zhang’s wuxia film about a Nameless defense officer in ancient China who is summoned to the presence of the King of Qin to recount his victories over three infamous assassins, allowing the King to carry on his plan of uniting the warring clans of China under his own banner. The film is loosely based on a true story of assassination attempts on the life of China’s first emperor – Shih Huang Ti – and stars Jet Li as its titular nameless hero alongside Tony Leung Chiu-wai as the assassin Broken Sword, Maggie Cheung as the assassin Flying Snow, Ziyi Zhang as Broken Sword’s servant Moon, Daoming Chen as the king, and Donnie Yen as the assassin Sky. Its story unfolds in a blend of conversations in the present that lead to flashbacks and speculations that feature most of the film’s action. The film’s gorgeous use of color in its cinematography, excellently choreographed martial arts action, surprisingly touching story, and themes of peace and violence have made it one of the greatest films of all time.

Why shouldn’t you Watch This Film?

                The biggest flaw with Hero lies in its historical context. The King of Qin who finds himself as the target of so many assassination attempts is the first emperor of China – Shih Huang Ti, who is considered a powerful ruler in Chinese history but by no means the most benevolent. His reforms streamlined government policies at the expense of free speech and philosophical practice, often with violent retaliation against his detractors. The fact that this fairly totalitarian emperor – who also happens to have been the first Chinese emperor to unite all of “China” under one rule – is viewed as a sort of hero for his efforts to bring peace to China through war in the film gives it a bit of an odd reading. This potentially problematic only compounds when you consider the underlying implications of some of his conversation, and Broken Sword’s conversation, with Nameless. One could easily watch this film and leave with the message that cultural annihilation/assimilation is an acceptable side effect when the ultimate goal is world peace. I don’t know that I’m quite ready to embrace that sentiment just yet.

So wait, why should you Watch This Film?

                Questionable messaging or not, this film really is great. For starters, Hero overflows with gorgeously choreographed martial arts sequences that put each performer’s skill fully on display for the audience. Obviously, Jet Li features quite heavily as the Nameless hero taking on the various assassins in one-on-one combat, with great moments between him and each of the three assassins, all set against vibrant color palettes on beautiful sets. Donnie Yen, as always, kicks things off with the most unique fight of the film, facing off against Nameless’s swordplay with his (Sky’s) own spear work in an acrobatic display that showcases both men’s capabilities well. Maggie Cheung gets so many opportunities to display her own sword skills as Flying Snow, facing off against Nameless in a battle of revenge, against Ziyi Zhang’s Moon in perhaps the most beautiful fight of the film, and finally against Tony Leung Chiu-wai’s Broken Sword in the film’s heavily charged finale, every time giving the audience something new to marvel at. Finally, I wasn’t sure whether we were going to actually get the face-off between Broken Sword and Nameless that the film seemed to be building to in the first act, but when it comes toward the end of Act II, it pays off in beautiful fashion with plenty of emotion and reason underplaying the combat that unfolds on screen, making it a true delight to behold.

                The way that the story unfolds in Hero elevates it from other films like it in the way that its plot feels just as important as the fights that it leads to. Each fight becomes more than just a show of force between two characters with unique styles; they are now showdowns of ideology, some of which may or may not have even occurred. The film’s nonlinear narrative with two unreliable narrators telling the story to one another lends itself to the fantastical elements of the film nicely – couching the legendary feats of the various fighters within the acceptable range of exaggeration from one narrator or the other. All of it drives to the film’s ultimate message (not the pro-imperialist undertone) that good rulers recognize that peace is only achieved when they choose to lay down their arms not when someone else forces them to – that those with power are also the ones with the responsibility to choose peace (wait, is this just the Spider-Man message?). The story execution to arrive at that point is beautifully done, blending drama, philosophy, history, romance, and martial arts into one excellent narrative.

                Hero succeeds not just as an excellent martial arts film – though it is certainly that – but simply as an excellent film thanks to how it tells its story and arrives at its point with the help of the excellent actors and their abilities showcased on-screen, earning it a spot among the greats. If you can get past the imperialist undertones of the film’s story, the action and the twists and turns of the plot will definitely have you engaged for the film’s entirety. It is currently available to stream with ads via Pluto TV or to rent on most other streaming services if you’re in the market for a fun martial arts watch some time soon.