"House of Flying Daggers" does a couple of neat tricks, takes one or two grand leaps, and then falls on its face and never recovers.
This disappointing film is the latest from director Zhang Yimou, who was behind brilliant movies such as "Hero" and "The Road Home."
What happened?
The film begins by summarizing what is perhaps one of its most interesting concepts. An incompetent government, a revolutionary group of Robin Hood-like bandits - this is the stuff intelligent action flicks are made of.
But instead, the social complications set the stage for what is ultimately a tired Romeo and Juliet clichÇ, complete with inexplicable and childish passions motivating all three members of this martial arts induced love triangle.
After two or three promising introductory scenes in which arresting actress Ziyi Zhang shows off her flexibility and form as the top girl in a brothel, "House of Flying Daggers" trips over its own feet.
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Zhang's character, Mei, is arrested after revealing herself as a revolutionary. Though she is evidently blind, she battles the police exquisitely until she is captured.
This fight scene sets the tone for the remarkable hand-to-hand combat that is to come. One thing this movie has in its corner is its tasteful use of wire fighting and artful use of plot elements to complicate the brawls.
Mei's blindness allows the director to focus in on the subtle sounds of the fight, as sound is her primary navigation tool in combat. This makes for some interesting cinematography and the amplification of finer detail.
Mei is sprung from the slammer by one of the guards who makes up some thin excuse for helping her. He proceeds to try and seduce her with such clever tactics as declaring himself a playful wind. They make their way through various forests. Wackiness ensues.
After the rich color, complex storyline and 3-D characters in "Hero," "House of Flying Daggers" is a let down.
The relationships are unbelievable and contrived. The characterization is weak. Can a resourceful and deadly fighter like Mei really be torn romantically between two men who have attempted to rape her on separate occasions?
The cinematography is inconsistent enough that I was often wondering if the wide shots and close-ups of a single scene were supposed to be the same location.
And the fight scenes are only fight scenes, not elegant symbolic references to wider themes, character and plot. In short, this is just a movie.
By the time "House of Flying Daggers" is making its last gurgling gasps for air, some audience members may be wondering what took so long for this thing to die.
See this movie if you're looking for decent martial arts, the occasional brilliantly colored brawl in a bamboo patch or if you're just a crazy Ziyi Zhang fan.
But if you've gotten used to expecting something more from films like these, rent "Hero" instead and write director Yimou a long letter.
Grade: C+
