Hero (Blu-ray)
Directed by Zhang Yimou
Studio: Miramax
Year: 2002
Aspect Ratio: 2.35:1 1080p AVC codec
Running Time: 99 minutes
Rating: PG-13
Audio: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 English; Dolby Digital 5.1 Chinese, French, Spanish
Subtitles: SDH, French, Spanish
Region: A-B-C
MSRP: $ 44.99
MSRP: $ 44.99
Release Date: September 15, 2009
Review Date: September 8, 2009
The Film
3.5/5
An outstanding example of a Wu Xia martial arts epic, Hero contains the biographical mythology and the stunning combat sequences filmed in a kind of poetic dreamscape that these kinds of movies do so well. Beautifully directed by Zhang Yimou and filmed against some of the most breathtaking natural backdrops imaginable, Hero will be a banquet for fans of the genre but possibly something of a chore for non-fans despite the cinematic beauty of its majestic construction. For me, the fight sequences go on too long despite their innate balletic athleticism, and some interpersonal relationships occasionally seem a bit alien for western understanding. But there is no denying the power and splendor of the images erase most of the concerns about the movie’s subjective content. If nothing else, Hero is eye candy to an infinite degree.
At the height of China’s Warring States period, the country was divided into seven kingdoms. The Qin king (Chen Dao Ming) was obsessed with conquering all of China and becoming its first Emperor. He had long been the target of assassins throughout the other six states, the most legendary of which are Broken Sword (Tony Leung), Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung), and Sky (Donnie Yen). To anyone who can defeat these three dangerous assassins, the king promised great power, mountains of gold, and a private audience with the king himself. But defeating the killers is a near impossible task. that is until a solitary warrior (Jet Li) arrives at the palace ready to tell his story of defeating the other assassins and looking for a his audience with the king.
The script by Li Feng, Zhang Yimou, and Wang Bin takes almost a Rashomon approach to the storytelling. The nameless warrior tells several versions of his encounters with various of the assassins which occasionally get shot down by the king only to find him offering a new rendition of the story being told. (We do finally get the truth by the end of the film.) But the script merely makes a convenient hanger on which to present the stunning martial arts sequences in a succession of awe-inspiring scenes: the fabled rematch between Jet Li and Donnie Yen (who had fought memorably on screen a decade earlier) takes place partly in black and white, the Jet Li-Tony Leung match occurs over a glassy lake filmed in misty blues, Maggie Cheung faces off with Ziyi Zhang (who plays servant Moon) in an avalanche of fall colored golds and reds that literally take one’s breath away. But director Zhang Yimou has an artist’s eye for arresting use not only of color but also of spectacle: an injured character in red robes sinks to the ground, his robes puddling out from him as if they were his blood (mimicking that famous moment in Hitchcock’s Topaz); the sky blackens with thousands of arrows shot from the king’s aggressive armies; a room is moodily lit and adorned in hues of violet, a visual respite after the stunningly bright reds, greens, and golds of previous scenes. With such visual grandeur and an audio track that constantly weaves together lilting music and the thunder of the vast armies in attack mode, the abrupt shifts in emotions and some of the platitudes (“a warrior’s ultimate act is to lay down his sword”) go down much easier.
The principal actors all do magnificent jobs combining emotional surety with the athleticism necessary to pull off these moves even with the help of stunt people and the special effects wizards of today. Jet Li is remarkably calm and still in repose, his might and menace reserved only for battle. Tony Leung also seems to have many turbulent emotions going on underneath his exterior of calm. Chen Dao Ming’s kingly arrogance is well established with the actor never sinking to overacting to achieve his effects. Both of the primary female stars, Maggie Cheung and Ziyi Zhang, handle the changes in character mood necessitated by the script’s different story scenario quite handily.
Video Quality
4/5
The film’s theatrical aspect ratio of 2.35:1 is delivered in 1080p using the AVC codec. Though there are scenes where sharpness isn’t all it could be, the transfer doesn’t routinely disappoint with mostly stunning images of beautifully saturated color and very good detail. Occasionally flesh tones vary (looking almost purplish at one point) and are probably the weakest aspect of the transfer. The film has been divided into 14 chapters.
Audio Quality
4.5/5
The DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 track is available with the English-dubbed track only, so this is the one I listened to. It’s a powerful encode with outstanding spread of ambient sound through the available channels, an excellent structuring of music throughout the soundfield, and wonderfully effective use of deep bass in the LFE channel. When those armies begin thundering in attack, you’ll be well satisfied with the sound design that is being offered here.
Special Features
3/5
All of the bonus featurettes are presented in 480i.
“Close Up of a Fight Scene” goes into detail with three of the film’s most stunning combat sequences: the Jet Li-Donnie Yen fight (two weeks to film), the autumn orchard fight between the two ladies (filmed in an amazing three days), and the lake fight (which took three weeks). This feature runs 9 ¼ minutes.
“Hero Defined” is the movie’s EPK featurette, a 24-minute documentary on the film’s preproduction backstory, music scoring, six month shooting schedule, adept stunt work, location shooting, and special effects.
“Inside the Action: A Conversation with Quentin Tarantino and Jet Li” finds the famous director (who served as one of the film’s producers for its American release) talking with the film’s star about his work on this film and also shows clips of other Li movies including both parts of The Legend and Fists of Legend. The feature runs 14 minutes.
Four storyboards in split screen panels with the sequence from the actual film may be watched separately or in one 5-minute grouping.
A promo for the soundtrack CD runs for 39 seconds.
A second disc in the package is the digital copy of the movie. Inside the case is the activation code and instructions for installation on Mac and PC devices.
In Conclusion
3.5/5 (not an average)
Hero comes to Blu-ray looking and sounding great befitting the splendid visual and aural luxuries which the movie has to offer. Fans should be well pleased with the release, and even non-fans might want to give it a rental, just to give the rapturous visuals a look-see.
Matt Hough
Charlotte, NC
