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House of Flying Daggers - Review  

post #1 of 34
7/18/04 at 12:56am
Thread Starter 
Taking a vacation in Taiwan for the summer has its benefits, like being able to see House of Flying Daggers almost five months before it hits the U.S.

There weren't as many benefits as I thought there would be, though. The action scenes were fantastic, the cinematography was Oscar worthy, and the actors did a fine job. The story, however, with its superfluous twists and turns, left some things to be desired.

Unless you are able to see this in a theater with a very good presentation, I would recommend a DVD rental at best.
post #2 of 34
7/19/04 at 8:38am
How would you say it compares to Hero?

Quote:
The action scenes were fantastic, the cinematography was Oscar worthy, and the actors did a fine job. The story, however, with its superfluous twists and turns, left some things to be desired.


On a certain level I feel your description applies to that movie as well.
post #3 of 34
7/19/04 at 11:06am
Excellent observation and question. Interesting to see what Thomas has to say.
post #4 of 34
7/20/04 at 10:45am
Ditto.
post #5 of 34
7/26/04 at 3:54am
Thread Starter 
The action scenes were much better in House of Flying Daggers. There weren't as many twists in Hero as there were in HoFD. The cinematography was on par with Hero, but there are much nicer things to look at in HoFD.
post #6 of 34
7/26/04 at 11:09am
What else can you ask for...sounds like another keeper to me.
post #7 of 34
7/26/04 at 3:48pm
Quote:
there are much nicer things to look at in HoFD


I hope this essentially means more screen time for Zhang Ziyi?
post #8 of 34
7/26/04 at 4:11pm
Quote:
I hope this essentially means more screen time for Zhang Ziyi?


Oh you bet there is. Have you seen the new trailer? She's everywhere. Rolling semi nekid around on the forest, dancing on opera stage, taking a bath in some pond, throwing knives.
The movie should really be titled the Zhang Ziyi Show.
post #9 of 34
7/26/04 at 4:15pm
I've just seen a couple of promo photos so good to know! Can't wait...I'll probably pick up the DVD release seeing how long it took Hero to get here.
post #10 of 34
7/26/04 at 4:17pm
Or maybe "The House of (Zhang Ziyi's) Flying Daggers"
post #11 of 34
7/26/04 at 4:18pm
Allow me to introduce Miss Ziyi....

http://www.apple.co.jp/quicktime/tra...ers_large.html
post #12 of 34
7/29/04 at 8:07pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
I've just seen a couple of promo photos so good to know! Can't wait...I'll probably pick up the DVD release seeing how long it took Hero to get here.
It'll hit the U.S. in December, courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics. Hero was handled by MiramAXE.

Quote:
I hope this essentially means more screen time for Zhang Ziyi?
She's one of three main characters, unlike her role in Hero, so she definitely got more screen time this time around.
post #13 of 34
7/29/04 at 8:51pm
Even better! Thanks for the info.
post #14 of 34
8/2/04 at 1:10pm
Now THAT'S a trailer! Looks damn good!
post #15 of 34
10/11/04 at 10:29am
Thread Starter 
If you have a region-free DVD player and you don't want to wait until December, YesAsia has the Region 3 DVD for sale, set for release this Friday, October 15th. If you don't have a region-free DVD player, and would be willing to settle for VCD quality, YesAsia is selling the VCD as well.
post #16 of 34
10/11/04 at 11:56am
Thanks for the info. I went ahead and placed an order even though there's no details on the release. It was cheap enough to risk it.
post #17 of 34
10/11/04 at 4:55pm
The trailer looks great but I have a question. In the trailer the film is called Lovers, is that its Asian title while House of Flying Daggers is the American title? Or is Lovers and House of Flying Daggers two different movies both starring Zhang Ziyi.
post #18 of 34
10/11/04 at 5:11pm
Same movie. Different titles.
post #19 of 34
10/11/04 at 5:41pm
I believe the film (using all of its titles) should be:

"Lovers Surrounded on All Sides by the House of Flying Daggers"
post #20 of 34
10/11/04 at 6:07pm
quote:
The action scenes were much better in House of Flying Daggers. There weren't as many twists in Hero as there were in HoFD. The cinematography was on par with Hero, but there are much nicer things to look at in HoFD.




my take on the comparisons between the two:

Action: slightly in favor of Hero

Cinematography: about equal

Sets/Props: Daggers wins here

Story: Hero Wins... by a pretty big margin (imo)



I loved both movies, but I do have some disappointment about the story in HoFD, still easily worth the price of admission.
post #21 of 34
10/13/04 at 12:50pm
Thread Starter 
DDDHouse just put it up for pre-order, and it's slightly cheaper than what YesAsia is charging.

http://www.dddhouse.com/dddhouse/en/...productID=4043
post #22 of 34
10/13/04 at 2:31pm
cdwow.com also has it for pre-order.



Even though there are no listed details, the rumor is that it will have a DTS soundtrack and be 2.35:1 anamorphic with no watermark.
post #23 of 34
11/1/04 at 6:16pm
Sony pictures classics???



Oh Boy, get ready to double-dip for the R1 SUPERBIT
post #24 of 34
11/1/04 at 7:12pm
i'd have to say the cinematography in Hero was better, only because Hero was just mind-blowing in that regard. HoFD had the bamboo/forest scenes that were amazing, and the "echo" game scene, but outside of that, it couldn't compare to Hero, which had the many moutain shots, the epic army shots, the lake/water-skipping shots, even the emperor temple shots. or maybe i'm just confusing cinemat. with sets/locations
post #25 of 34
11/13/04 at 1:50pm
Thread Starter 
This trailer is really good:

http://www.greenroom-press.com/clien...s/trlr2_hi.mov
post #26 of 34
12/3/04 at 12:59pm
When is this getting a wide release? I see that it is limited starting today in NY and LA.
post #27 of 34
12/3/04 at 1:16pm
Ebert's site shows 12/17.
post #28 of 34
12/3/04 at 2:52pm
Thread Starter 
A wider release on 12/17, but it won't hit Columbus, OH, until 1/14.
post #29 of 34
12/5/04 at 3:32pm
Yeah same here. Before I saw HOFD there were many posts on other forums about how the 1st act was very strong and cool and that the film got worse so I thought the film was to going to fade.
I saw this on friday and found this to be very untrue. I liked the movie more n more as the characters integrated and as the story unfolds ESPECIALLY the parts when we find out more about the Flying Daggers culture and how they function. I really like the way the 2 leads performance's are layered with emotions and feelings as they move along.
I just can't believe some people on IMDB say that Zhang Ziyi is a terrible actress, that's just nuts. And whats his name Kaneshiro played his part just great.
All in all now after seing Hero and HOFD I would give the slight edge to HOFD because I see now that Hero is more of a fantasy/fable style film whereas HOFD is more humanistic and gritty. And I never got tired of those daggers flying around like some ppl said from IMDB, that was very cool.
The CGI and special effects in this film are very unique and down to earth and not outlandish and overdone like the current trends it movies are heading today.
post #30 of 34
12/6/04 at 5:58am
Hero and HOFD are two very different movies, both are visually stunning and beautifully made but I found HOFD more intriguing. The "echo-game and fight" scene was just so unique and to me almost mesmerising, have never seen such spectacular action before! The three main actors also played their parts beautifully and made their characters even more believable. Great movie!
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