Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon

"Wo Hu Cang Long", better known as "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", is Ang Lee's mega-popular movie with action, adventure, and romance. It was a Hollywood success, winning four Oscars at the Academy Awards, including Best Foreign Language Film. It stars Chow Yun Fat as Li Mu Bai, Michelle Yeoh as Shu Lien, and perhaps the best-known Asian star today, Zhang Ziyi, as Jen Yu (Jiao Long). The movie itself is quite wuxia, but also meaningful.

As far as the plot goes, most audiences have watched this movie, considering the hype about it. Simply, two warriors, Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun Fat) and Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh), go in search for the Green Destiny Sword, which was lost. A young aristocrat (Zhang Ziyi) who is about to get married, befriends Shu Lien. Other reviewers have given a very in-depth synopsis, so I will skip the details.

I have little complaints as far as the acting goes. Despite the fact that, besides Zhang Ziyi, all of the main actors had obvious Mandarin accents (especially Michelle Yeoh), the acting was quite good. Chow Yun Fat and Michelle Yeoh, especially the latter, were spectacular - the two really lightened up the show for me. They are one awesome action team. Both Hong Kong actors, I liked how they gave their characters great depth. One-dimensional characters are one of my pet peeves, and I enjoyed their performances as Li Mu Bai and Shu Lien. The scene where Li Mu Bai is poisoned is quite moving, especially when he says he would rather be a ghost alongside Shu Lien than go to heaven without her.

The lead supporting actress, Zhang Ziyi, was not bad at all. Having seen "The Road Home", I do not find myself a huge fan of Zhang Ziyi, and while I do not find her acting the best ever, she was good in her role as Yu Jiaolong (Jen). I like how she gave Jen some attitude - it fits Jen's personality and the way she acts throughout the story.

However, the biggest problem with Zhang Ziyi's acting is that her facial expression is usually blank. Her voice shows emotion, but her face does not show that emotion as well. But as I consider it, seeing Shu Qi in the role of Jen would possibly be less pleasant, so Zhang Ziyi's kung-fu stunts impressed me enough. It compensated for her acting skills, which are in need of growth.

The stunts performed by all three leads were amazing. My favorite is the scene when Chow Yun Fat and Zhang Ziyi fight on top of the bamboo tree - it is an impossible feat that looks thrilling anyway. My greatest credits to Zhang Ziyi, who did all her own stunts in this series.

So, does this movie deserve the acclaim it has received? In my opinion, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", is a quality movie. It is moving, breathtaking, and the acting, of course, is excellent. Scenes such as the fighting between Shu Lien and Jen make this movie practically sparkle in a special way. As far as wuxia films go though, I do not find "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" the best I have seen. Therefore, I do believe "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" was somewhat overrated. Nevertheless, the romantic and action elements do seem to fall into place very nicely. Finally, the ending scene was incredibly touching, leaving a lasting impression.