Spellbindingly beautiful Chinese movie.
The plot:
Jet Li plays Nameless (that's what he calls himself!), an apparent hero for the Qin King, who has vanquished the three most deadly assassins, Sky, Broken Sword and Flying Snow, whose aim in life was to assassinate the King.
The King demands to know how such an innocuous seeming individual as Nameless could overcome such fearsome opponents, and has him recount his tale, occasionally allowing him to move closer to where he sits on his throne.
But the King has made a mistake, for Nameless is not a loyal disciple for Qin, but himself an assassin, who has hatched a dastardly plan to assassinate the King himself, with the help of his three collaborators, the assassins he claims to have killed.
It sounds more complicated than it is, and the structure works.
Described as Rashomon-like in composition - a movie I must make an effort to watch at some point - the movie uses flashbacks to recount a tale of intrigue and betrayal, all stunningly shot.
It truly is beautiful to watch, director Yimou Zhang, who also helmed the equally sumptuous House of Flying Daggers, having a real eye for artistic flair.
With spectacular stunt work and fight sequences, employing wire work in a way that simply adds to the air of majesty, this is just breathtaking movie making.
Fantastic.
5 out of 5
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