movies

A Touch of Zen

Great martial arts set pieces, but slow-moving drama. Worth seeing, but be prepared for it to drag a bit.

This movie is a classic of the Wuxia genre, roughly akin to Westerns in U.S. iconography and filmography. These movies are characterized by swordplay, fantastic elements, and Confucian ideals of balance.

The movie is held together by the story of Ku, a young scholar, who grows curious about some new people in his town: a young woman, her mother, and three men. However, the stories of the other characters are drawn out and ultimately intersect. The story is romantic, and the movie is shot in a very grand style -- lots of beautiful scenery shots set the mood but slow down the action.

The fight scenes are exciting and innovative, even viewed 35 years later (at least by this American's eyes). Many of the sequences provided inspiration for Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and, oddly enough, for John Carpenter's Big Trouble in Little China.

Overall, I am glad that I watched this and I do think it was a good movie; however, I found it a bit tedious.