Cast: Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, Chen Dao Ming and Donnie Yen
Director: Zhang Yimou
Studio Synopsis: A fearless warrior (Jet Li) rises up to defy an empire and unite a nation! With supernatural skill, and no fear, a nameless soldier (embarks on a mission of revenge against the fearsome army that massacred his people. Now, to achieve the justice he seeks, he must take on the empire's most ruthless assassins and reach the enemy he has sworn to defeat.
DVD Rating: PG-13
DVD Running Time: 99 minutes
DVD Extras: Inside the Action: A Conversation with Quentin Tarantino; Hero Defined; Storyboards
DVD Official Web site: http://video.movies.go.com/hero/
Trailer: http://video.movies.go.com/hero/
Review: ÒYou hope your film will leave impressionÑHero does just that,Ó director Zhang Yimou says without boastfulness during a making-of documentary of his exquisite tale of courage and sacrifice. Yimou is right: Hero is a classic martial arts epic set 2,000 years ago in China thatÕs as graceful as its gravity-defying swordsmen. He also manages that rare feat of skillfully blending dynamic swordplay with a Rashomon-like story that is both captivating and affecting. The small screen does not diminish the grandness or beauty of the action, especially such masterfully executed fight scenes that see the protagonists clash in heavy rain, in swirling leaves and across a lake. Jet Li gives his best performance since Lethal Weapon 4 all but turned him into DMXÕs high-kicking sidekick. Li maintains a quiet fury as an assassin recounting his successful effort to dispatch the EmperorÕs most feared enemies. The DVD, which includes Chinese- and English-language versions of Hero, is unfortunately skimpy with extras. For starters, this is not the 118-minute extended version that was released on DVD in Asia, nor does the DVD include any deleted scenes. The aforementioned documentary, Hero Defined, is a routine look at how the film was made. YimouÕs biggest revelation is that it rained on the first day of shooting, a sign of luck because Òwater equals money.Ó Inside the Action offers a chummy but surprisingly unrevealing chat between Li and Quentin Tarantino, who shamefully seizes every opportunity he has to plug his Kill Bills.
ÑRobert Sims
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