House of Flying Daggers (2004)

I watched this movie years ago but I still remember its events clearly.
I was mostly attracted by the story : there was Action combined with romance (which is one of the favorite genres that I like to watch).
The story was like a moving painting with all the bright and dark sides of it just like other chinese Fantasy-Wuxia films that manages to keep you interested especially when there are fighting scenes on the screen.
The ending wasn't what we all want it to be but it's sort of expected for this genre of film.
If you're action-romance lover then this film's for you.

Read More

I just finished watching this amazing movie right now.
Up until the end I would\'\'ve given this movie a 10 in story, but the ending just ruined it for me. It wasn\'\'t a bad ending, it just wasn\'\'t my type of ending. Some people will probably love this movie and give it all 10\'\'s but for me the ending just wasn\'\'t how I would\'\'ve ended it so i\'\'m giving the story a 9, the acting was a 10 since all of them were amazing actors, the music an 8 because while it wasn\'\'t the best music it did fit the story just fine. As for rewatch value, while I personally don\'\'t like to rewatch movies or dramas until 1-2 years afterwards, I would rewatch this one so i\'\'ll give it a 7. Overall, i\'\'m giving this movie a 9 because if you\'\'re a fan of any of the cast(lucky me for being a fan of all three of the main actors!), or a fan of the Wuxia genre, or a fan of Chinese choreography, you\'\'ll absolutely love this gem of a film.

Read More

At the beginning of the movie I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. I wanted to watch it till the end. The storyline was captivating and the acting was outstanding! But as the story progressed I grew restless. The interest was lost and the plot just went on and on without anything happening. Repetition of encounters were too many to count and the action was lost on me to be honest. I think the ending could have been much better. It was predictable and the whole mood of the movie was gone. Anyhow I didn't like the movie because I thought it would be "beautiful" and "amazing" as many reviews on other sites said it would be. I set my expectations too high for this one and it just didn't meet it in the end.

Read More

"The wind breezes through without a trace"

House of Flying Daggers was a movie where style over substance wasn’t a failing. Zhang Yi Mou pulled out his magical color palette and bathed the screen with gorgeous deep hues. Beautiful people wore luxurious costumes as they danced, fought, and loved in the kaleidoscope background. This director knows how to hit all my film watching pleasure spots through sight and sound.

The plot is fairly simple. With a failing and corrupt government, the underground House of Daggers grew into being. Stealing from the rich and helping the poor while fighting against the crooked officials they’ve earned a target on their backs. Jin and Liu are tasked with bringing down the Daggers’ leader. They suspect the new blind dancer at the Peony Pavilion is the daughter of the recently deceased leader and seek to use her to guide them to the alliance through subterfuge. Jin goes undercover as someone taken with her beauty and breaks her out of jail. The only problem is, “who’s zoomin’ who?”

The thin storyline worked largely due to the commitment of Zhang Zi Yi and Kaneshiro Takeshi in playing adversaries pretending to have fallen for each other, especially when their true feelings begin to trip them up. Their relationship evolves from brutal possession to erotic whispering caresses. Treachery and zealous devotion played out both personally and professionally for a number of people. The twists and turns may not have been earthshattering but they were entertaining. They also showed how little value was put on the lives of the pawns in the game between two powerful forces.

Tony Ching choreographed numerous wire-fu fights with swords and speeding daggers. The battle in the bamboo forest was stunning. Soldiers crawling up and down the verdant trees while also using them as weapons was enthralling. For the most part people were shown full body length in order to observe the intensity of the fights. When the bamboo shatters or impales it was both beautiful and shocking. The singing daggers could bend in flight and bank off of objects to land their targets. While not a fight, Zhang Zi Yi’s dance with the drums was breathtaking and quite memorable. Zhang Jianmin’s dance choreography flowed with power equal to any fight in the film. The percussion ballet was as magnificent as the bamboo one.

Umebayashi Shigeru’s score could be wistful one moment and heart pounding the next. Romantic, playful, traditional and modern, the music enhanced every scene. Zhang’s use of color never ceases to amaze me. Whether in the feminine Peony Pavilion with pink dresses and butterflies or the autumnal trees and falling leaves of the forest, he never neglects the important visual aspects of his films. As mentioned before, the emerald bamboo battle was one of the most iconic scenes from his films.

Mei and Jin’s life and death decisions were made in the sheer elegance and poetry of Zhang’s visual style accompanied by a haunting score. The plot involving both personal and national passions played out in the forests, fields of flowers, and snow. It’s hard to say which was more captivating, I tend to lose my sense of perspective when immersed in Zhang Yi Mou’s world.

3 February 2024

Read More

I bought this movie for a dollar when I was like 12 and just because I was all into action asian movies. When I saw the movie I was an expert at this type of movie already and it was similar to others I had seen since there were awesome fighting scenes and music that helped the movie out as well. The beginning of the movie is one of my favorite scenes because the main actress shows how awesome she is and not just here but later on as well. I love movies like this where the female is an awesome weapon specialist or fighter. I like to rewatch the movie because it is an action movie and is very interesting and does not bore you when you watch it again. I might watch it right now after I finish this because writing about it just made me want to watch it again.

Read More

I watched this film with my daughter last night and what an experience! The martial arts is out of this world, as implausible as they may be. (Even my youngest wondered why Mei's sleeves made a sound when they touched drums.) The storyline begins as one thing, establishment versus dissidence, but ends as another entirely. The twists I never saw coming which I like that in a movie. I was all set to watch a film where one side vanquishes the other, but it turns out to be something else entirely. If this is the first time watching, be prepared to be surprised. I have to admit there was some laugh out loud moments at some of the crazy stuff the MLs do. I have grown up watching martial arts films and we would always joke about how gravity just doesn't exist in these films. This one is no different. The setting is the biggest star. Gorgeous cinematography takes your breath away. The Ukrainian forest where it was filmed is magnificent, as is the bamboo forest where one of the biggest ambushes takes place.

Now for the weak plot. There are some parts of the story which I felt should have been explored. The title is House of Flying Daggers, so why does the plot barely revolve around them? Weren't they supposedly stealing from the rich to give to the poor? It's all alluded to, never shown. The movie needed them to be dealt with, yet was mostly centered around our three main leads. Grant you, this kept things more simple but it needed more substance. There is no buildup to the romance either, and I was a bit bothered by this. It was cold and then got really hot within minutes, but once it got started, it was smoking!

The OST was the best part of this production. I listened to the whole thing on Spotify today and loved the romantic ballads and moving themes. The Lovers melody is very moving and Kathleen Battle's rendition is beautiful.

Read More

I watched this movie for the first time one day while my laptop was broken to pass the time, and I instantly fell in love with it. After that, I showed it to my sister and that became the first movie we ever saw together, and it was instantly deemed a classic among our lists of movies we've watched both separately and together. The storyline was absolutely captivating and had us hooked from the beautiful beginning to the unexpected ending with its multiple plot twists and breathtaking moments. This movie turned us into fans of the Wuxia genre's unique fighting styles and amazing choreography. The casting was great and they played each of their parts well. We both enjoyed the music, specifically the main theme and its arrangements.



This movie is perfect for those who love the Wuxia and romance genres. I highly recommend!

Read More

The movie was addicting. I can still remember the sad moments so clearly like I saw it just a day ago. I have been trying to find something close to this movie. But on the vail. Even though this movie is not the best of its gerne. And that is what I like so much about this film. It's not perfect, but I still like it as if it was. It's hard to explane. Perhaps my positive view of this movie is because I saw it as a child. And my view of things was very different. It is also the first pure asian movie I saw.

The story was magnificent. I have never seen anything like this before.

Acting was well played. I could never even catch myself thinking that there are cameras filmig this whole scene.

Music was the thing that really made me feel like I was in the middle of the action myself. Even though I didnt quite like the songs. They werent of my taste.

I should watch this again some time. Since the last time I saw it was atlest 5 year ago.

Read More

⚔ Mission Fail °8.5° °spectacular°

"When can we see each other again?" "We cannot. We belong to two opposing sides. If we meet again, one of us will have to die."

Right now, the emperor is weak. The government is corrupt. Factions have formed. The rebels are rising. The House of Flying Daggers is the most dangerous group of rebels. We're in China, 859 AD, at the waning of the Tang Dynasty.

HoD is a 2004 119-minute release that is rated 87/82 on RT, 7.5 on IMDB, and 8.3 on MDL. There's much more going on than meets the eye. We have wheels within wheels and gears inside of them.

The acting is China's run-of-the-mill-superb. Takeshi Kaneshiro (This Is Not What I Expected) is ML Red Cliff Jin. The actor's father is Japanese and his mother, Taiwanese, which explains his name - and his look, actually. Andy Lau (Tak-Wah, Singing When We're Young) plays the other ML, Liu Zhao Tou. Zhang Ziyi (The Rebel Princess-9.1, Hero & Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon~loved both~) is the new blind maiden at the pleasure house, Xiao Mei. Is she in the Flying Daggers cult? The cast is rounded out with Song Dandan as Yee, Zhao Hongfei as Xiao Bu Kuai, and Jun Guo as a law enforcement Officer. The screenwriter is Bin Wang (Hero, To Live) along with writer/Director Zhang Yimou (Under the Hawthorn Tree & Hero).

The Tang version of the CIA local branch has devised a clever scheme. An officer, Jin, will break Mei out of prison in hopes that she will lead them to the Flying Daggers sect, so they can eliminate this dangerous group. Mei is not easily managed, though. Soon, Jin has to fight his own people to survive, because no one else knows about his mission. Things continue to get more tangled and murky.

The cinematography is gorgeous. Exotic forests, fields, fall foliage and flowers. Fighting, too! The fights are beautiful ballet. We see every season represented in the film. One fight takes place in a bamboo forest. It's spectacular. Fall is a good time to fall in love... Finally, there's flakes of snow, moving into the finale. Probably some frostbite, too.

There's a good twist or two. They twist beautifully in this film. The whole movie is a magnificent twist-within-a-twist. My biggest complaint is that it's over with so quickly. Having gotten used to 25-75 episodes, I've been watching some unforgettable Cdramas. Sometimes the big budget items, like sophisticated fight scenes and pricey special effects don't make much of a showing (sometimes they aren't bad) but it's hardly noticeable given the top-tier writing, acting, sets & costume.

In order of ~lite & trite~ to ~heavy & serious~ you may also like:

🔮🐉-
C/🇨🇳: Love Between Fairy & Devil 8.9;
Douluo Continent 9.4;
Handsome Siblings 8.7;
Ancient Love Poetry 8.6;
Love and Redemption 10

⚡😱/🚀 -
C🇨🇳: Heavenly Sword and Dragon Slaying Saber 9-Kung-fu!;
🇨🇳The Untamed-8.6

💓 -
C🇨🇳:
A Little Thing Called First Love 8.5;
The Romance of Tiger and Rose 9.8;
The Sleepless Princess 9.1;

K🇰🇷 :
Love To Hate You 8.9;
Crash Landing On You 9.1;
Oh My Ghost 10;
It's Okay Not to Be Okay 9;

🎎 -
C🇨🇳: Overlord 8.4,
Story of Yanxi Palace-10 (I'm on ep 50 out of 72. So far every episode is a 10).
Under the Power 8.6,
The Rebel Princess 9.1,
The Sword and the Brocade 8.6 (in ancient Chinese opera style),
Ruyi's Royal love in the palace (episodes 1 - 49 are a 9.3. While looking up its historical accuracy, I learned how heartbreaking the rest of the show is. It's over 80 episodes, so that's a hella-lotta hurt. I am not up for it now, so I stopped at episode 49, which is a perfect ending).
The Rise of Phoenixes 9

K🇰🇷:
My Only Love Song 8.7 excellent comedy;
Mr. Queen 8.5;
My Sassy Girl 8.5;
The King's Affection 8.3;
Mr. Sunshine 9

⚡😱/🚀 - K🇰🇷:
K2 8;
Private Lives 8.1;
Sisyphus 8;
Tunnel 8.1;
Signal 8.6;
The Man From Nowhere 8.9
Black 9;
Squid Game 8.4;
Kingdom 8.3;
Sweet Home 8.4

〰🖍 IMHO

📣8.5 📝8.5 🎭8.5 💓6 🦋6 🎨8.8 🎵/🔊7 🔚8 🤗6 ▪ 🌞4⚡7 😅2 😭7 😱3 😯3 🤢3.5 🤔6 💤0

Age 12+
There's sword fighting and violence, but this is a great movie for people of most ages.

Rated TV-PG: Parental Guidance Suggested

Re-📺? Yep.

Read More

Have mixed feelings about this.

The story started of great. Mysterious faction and govt trying to find them.
And then idk what the movie was trying to show. Ofc i didn't see the tags and that wrong on my part but most of the time went in the romance and the scenes and and ending with the love triangle between the leads.

Cinematography is great
Fighting scenes are great
Them putting ambushes from both sides were good
Twists were great.
Except for the story telling?
It felt uncomplete to me. Maybe coz i was more focused on faction and how its gonna fight?

Maybe i would love a drama of this which shows more about faction.

Ending is satisfying but i was hoping all the three to whoosh. But anyway still fine i guess.

Read More