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Capturing
Rare Beauty HOUSE OF FLYING DAGGERS: Directed by Zhang Yimou. Written by Li Feng, Zhang Yimou, and Wang Bin. Produced by Bill Kong. Executive producer, Zhang Weiping. Cinematography, Zhao Xiaoding. Editor, Cheng Long. Action director, Tony Ching Siu-Tung. Production design, Huo Tingxiao. Sound, Tao Jing. Composer, Shigeru Umebayashi. Theme song sung by Kathleen Battle. Costumes, Emi Wada. Starring Zhang Ziyi, Takeshi Kaneshior, Andy Lau and Song Dandan. Sony Pictures Classics, 2004. NR. 119 minutes. This martial arts love story, House of Flying Daggers, celebrates Chinese director Zhang Yimou's third cinematic incarnation of himself. During the Cultural Revolution, Zhang emerged as a leader among China's Fifth Generation Filmmakers, making internationally honored films such as Red Sorghum (1987), Raise the Red Lantern (1992), and To Live (1994). But a few years ago he re-imagined his cinematic mission, making such documentary-like, "small" films as The Road Home (1999) and Not One Less (1999).
An energetic, award-winning filmmaker, Zhang's now stealing Hong Kong's thunder as a Mainland action director. Flying Daggers is his second foray (Hero, 2003) into traditional Wuxia movies with this difference: Zhang's work includes passion, love, romance and interesting characters who drive the action. Just as Zhang's earlier films featured the luminous Gong Li, surely one of world cinema's most beautiful stars, his new pictures worship the rare beauty of 25-year-old Zhang Ziyi (Hero, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon). In Flying Daggers both Takeshi Kaneshiro as Lin and Andy Lau as Leo are in love with Mei (Zhang Ziyi), and who can blame them? As a genre, martial arts films use conventions similar to Westerns, and one of the tropes is a martial arts battle set amid a giant bamboo forest. Here Zhang manages to outdo the fabulous fighting scene from Crouching Tiger, or at least give it competition. In this spectacular sequences, Mei and Lin, who have developed a surprisingly close relationship after a really bad beginning, fight for their lives against government soldiers simultaneously attacking both from the tree tops and the forest floor, using bamboo weapons as well as swords, daggers, etc. But Mei and Lin have sorcery (and CGI effects) on their side. Nevertheless, it's a stunning piece of action theater. Another show-stopper happens early in the film, a battle of wills between Mei and Captain Leo called the "Echo Game." Mei is a blind dancer in the Peony Pavilion, a local brothel, and Leo is a savvy provincial official. He challenges Mei to the game because he wants an excuse to arrest her. He believes she belongs to a secret underground organization called the "House of Flying Daggers." Much of the film is acted out in the natural world of meadows, woods, streams and wetlands, where the three major characters meet or travel together. As in Hero, the autumn colors of the forest add drama to the love triangle onscreen. The woods can be an ominous place, where danger from outside steals silently toward the characters. One fabulous image shows Li lovingly constructing a one-person bathtub deep within a reed-covered pond for the lovely Mei, then watching her surreptitiously. The political struggles of 859 AD during the bloody decline of the Tang Dynasty are used mainly to draw a line and place the characters on one side or the other, depending on their loyalty. But loyalties change, as do the characters' personae, and before the conflict between the Daggers and the government is resolved, personal conflicts have taken center stage. The finale, shot in a clearing in the woods as a snow storm blows in, is elegaic. The film's latent tragedy comes to the fore, and the characters make their final decisions about where to stand. This resolution takes place in a world drained of vibrant color, a black-and-white world at the end. Exquisitely shot and edited, House of Flying Daggers is not as emotionally resonant as Zhang's earlier films. But it captures something true about three-sided-love and leaves the viewer with a lingering melancholy that's not unpleasant. Cinematically and aurally without peer, this may be the year's most physically beautiful film shot primarily in nature. Playing now at Cinema World, the film receives my highest recommendations.
OPENING
OR RETURNING: Are We There Yet?: In Brian Levant's new movie, Ice Cube takes his recently divorced girlfriend Nia Long's two kids on a road trip from Portland to Vancouver, BC, on New Year's Eve. Jay Mohr plays his best friend. PG. Cinemark. Assault on Precinct 13: Re-make of John Carpenter's 1976 low-budget classic about a remote police station under siege stars Ethan Hawke, Laurence Fishburne and Maria Bello. French director Jean-François Richet works the urban thriller genre R. Opens Wed. 1/19. Cinemark. Benjamin Smoke: Jem Cohen and Peter Sillen's critically acclaimed documentary follows the underground life of musician Benjamin, who plays with his band, Smoke. Benjamin's a speed-freak renegade, who lives in an Atlanta neighborhood called Cabbagetown. LA Times critic Kevin Thomas called Benjamin –the very embodiment of the famous observation that burning the candle at both ends produces such a lovely light.” At 8 pm on 1/21 at DIVA. $2-$5 donation accepted. Birth: Nicole Kidman stars in Jonathan Glazer's (Sexy Beast) new film, playing a woman who forms a relationship with a boy of 10, who seems to be the reincarnation of her dead husband. Lauren Bacall is her mother, Danny Huston is her boyfriend, Anne Heche is her girlfriend and Cameron Bright is the boy. R. Movies 12. Christmas With the Kranks: Based on John Grisham's Skipping Christmas, this comedy stars Jamie Lee Curtis, Julie Gonzalo and Tim Allen and is directed by Joe Roth. Also stars Dan Aykroyd, Cheech Marin and M. Emmet Walsh. PG. Movies 12. Tchaikovskii: Part of the Tschaikovsky Festival, Igor Talankin's 1971 biography of the great composer is remembered chiefly for its outstanding music. In Russian with English subtitles, it plays at 7 pm on 1/25 in 180 PLC, UO campus. Free. Votergate/Bush's Brain: Double feature. Votergate (2004) is a documentary about voter fraud in Ohio, Florida and other states following the 2000 election. Bush's Brain (2004) is a documentary profile of Bush's campaign advisor, Karl Rove, whose political tactics Bush seems to follow slavishly. Films play at 7 pm on 1/26 in 180 PLC, UO campus. Free. What the Bleep Do We Know?: Through interviews with scientists and spiritual teachers, a new way of thinking about consciousness, intentionality and the ability to make a difference in the world emerges. But it begins with Amanda (Marlee Matlin). Highly recommended. NR. LateNite Bijou. Online archives. Work and the Glory, The: Based on Mormon writer Gerald Hand's historical novel, the film is a love story set in 1820 in Palmyra, New York at the time of Joseph Smith's vision. Probably best for true believers. PG. Cinemark. Films open the Friday following EW publication date unless otherwise noted. See archived reviews at www.eugeneweekly.com
CONTINUING: Alexander: Oliver Stone's action adventure epic stars Colin Farrell as Alexander the Great, with Val Kilmer, Angelina Jolie, Jared Leto, Rosario Dawson and Anthony Hopkins. Tedious at three hours, this epic by Oliver Stone misses the mark. R. Movies 12. Online archives. Aviator, The: Martin Scorsese's 169-minute film about lover, aviation pioneer and eccentric billionaire industrialist Howard Hughes stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Hughes, with Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly, Alec Baldwin, Jude Law, Alan Alda, Frances Conroy and Ian Holm. DiCaprio is brilliant in the role, and Scorsese makes the film his own. One of the best films of the year. Very highest recommendations. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Online archives. Blade: Trinity: Vampire hunter Blade (Wesley Snipes) goes after vampire leaders bringing back the rejuvenated Dracula, their progenitor, who's now called Drake (Dominic Purcell David Goyer's film is based on the Marvel Comics character and also stars Kris Kristofferson, Ryan Reynolds, Jessica Biel, Parker Posey and Natasha Lyonne. R. Movies 12. Coach Carter: Based on a true story. Samuel L. Jackson stars as a basketball coach in a Richmond, CA high school. His tough-love ethic requires players to keep up their grades and dress right. He makes national news when he benches the whole team for poor academic performance. Directed by Thomas Carter (Save the Last Dance). PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Elektra: Jennifer Garner plays Elektra, a killing machine, based on the Marvel comic book character created by Frank Miller. The publicity material calls her –a lethal synthesis of grace and power,” which means she wears skimpy outfits and jumps around a lot. Co-stars Goran Visnjic (–ER”), Terence Stamp, and Abby Miller. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Finding Neverland: Johnny Depp stars as British playwright J.M. Barrie, based on Allan Knee's play, The Man Who Was Peter Pan. Directed by Marc Foster, it also stars Kate Winslet, Julie Christie, Radha Mitchell and Dustin Hoffman. Winslet and Depp's performances are radiant, but the real star of the show is 12 year-old Freddie Highmore, playing the actual child, Peter Llewelyn Davies, who inspired Barrie's play. The picture is heartbreaking, gorgeous and probably too complicated for young children. PG. Cinema World. Online archives. Grudge, The: The curse of one who dies in the grip of a powerful rage kills and is passed like a virus from victim to victim. PG-13. Movies 12. House of Flying Daggers, The: Zhang Yimou (Hero) directs another martial arts film from mainland China about a secret society that destroys an evil, Tang Dynasty regional government. Stars the fabulous Zhang Ziyi, Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro. Exciting, beautiful. Highest reommendations.PG-13. Cinema World. See review this issue. I Heart Huckabees: Delirious, laugh-out-loud comedy from David O. Russell (Three Kings, Flirting with Disaster) stars Jason Schwartzman, Lily Tomlin, Dustin Hoffman, Isabelle Huppert, Mark Wahlberg, Naomi Watts and Jude Law. Even funnier on second viewing, this is one of 2004's top films. Very highest recommendations. R. Movies 12. Online archives. In Good Company: Written and directed by Paul Weitz (About a Boy), this comedy is about the relationship between an older man (Dennis Quaid) and his much younger boss (Topher Grace). Scarlett Johansson co-stars. Sweet comedy about workplace changes and what really matters: career or home? PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Incredibles, The: Writer, director Brad Bird and Pixar Animation Studios create an action-adventure story set in suburbia where a former top crime fighter, Mr. Incredible, gets the call to jump back into actions. PG. Cinemark. Online archives. Kinsey: Bill Condon's excellent film about human sexual researcher Alfred Kinsey stars Liam Neeson, Laura Linney and Peter Sarsgaard. Frank, open-hearted and genuinely humorous, this is a must-see movie. An entertaining and enlightening antidote to the bedroom politics of the religious right and one of 2004's best, the film gets my highest recommendations. R. Bijou. Online archives. Ladder 49: Stars John Travolta and Joaquin Phoenix) as Baltimore firemen. PG. Movies 12. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events: The New York Times calls the Lemony Snicket books –mordantly funny,” but the stories of the misadventures of three orphans who fall into the hands of an evil count are popular with children and adults. Jim Carrey plays said count, three game kids bedevil him, and Meryl Streep, Timothy Spall, Billy Connolly, Luis Guzmán, Jennifer Coolidge, Jane Adams and Catherine O'Hara help. Directed by Brad Silberling and written by Robert Gordon. PG. Cinemark. Meet the Fockers: Jay Roach follows Meet the Parents (2000) with Ben Stiller's bride and in-laws to-be Teri Polo, Robert De Niro and Blythe Danner meeting his eccentric parents, Dustin Hoffman and Barbara Streisand. Culture clash. Surprisingly funny and heart-warming, with a lovable performance by Hoffman. PG-13. Cinemark. Cinema World. Online archives. National Treasure: Directed by Jon Turteltub and producer Jerry Bruckheimer, adventure stars Nicolas Cage searching for treasure George Washington hid during the Revolutionary War. Sean Bean plays his British rival who's anxious to score the treasure first. PG. Cinemark. Ocean's Twelve: Director Steven Soderbergh returns with the gang: George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Don Cheadle, Bernie Mac, Andy Garcia, Julia Roberts and newby Catherine Zeta-Jones. A recent group interview in Premiere makes reveals they had a blast making this sequel. Highly recommended for its unabashedly confident entertainment value. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives. Phantom of the Opera, The: The Andrew Lloyd Webber musical is brought to the screen by Joel Schumacher. It stars Emmy Rossum, Gerard Butler and Patrick Wilson. Unfortunately, under Schumacher's insipid direction, kitsch dominates. If you already love the work, you may enjoy the film, but the too-sweet sentimentality is too much for me. PG-13. Cinemark. Online archives. Racing Stripes: A farmer (Bruce Greenwood) and his daughter (Hayden Panettiere raise a baby zebra to become a champion racer. Live action, computer animation, with voices by Frankie Muniz, Dustin Hoffman, Whoopi Goldberg and Snoop Dogg. PG. Cinema World. Cinemark. Ray: Jamie Foxx plays late, great Ray Charles in this musical, biographical drama, directed by Taylor Hackford. Co-stars Kerry Washington, Regina King, Clifton Powell, Harry Lennix, Terrence Dashon Howard, Richard Schiff, Aunjanue Ellis and Sharon Warren. Outstanding performance by Foxx. One of the year's finest films. PG-13. Movies 12. Online archives. Saw: James Wan's bloodthirsty horror tale about a serial killer who commits suicide, leaving would-be victims chained up, stars Cary Elwes, Danny Glover, Monica Potter and Leigh Whannell. Movies 12. R. Shall We Dance: American remake of the sublime Japanese film of the same title. Sorry to report it, but Jennifer Lopez plays the dance teacher and Richard Gere the shy man who learns to dance. See the original to compare to this all-Hollywood effort. PG-13. Movies 12. Shark Tale: In this computer-animated feature, a lovable tropical fish with the voice of Will Smith takes on the underwater Mafia when he assumes responsibility for killing the godfather of the Great White Sharks. Other voices include those of Jack Black, Robert De Niro, Renée Zellweger, Angelina Jolie and Martin Scorsese; Eric Bergeron. Directed by Vicky Jenson. PG. Movies 12. Sideways: Fresh social comedy by Alexander Payne follows two guys on a bachelor week in California wine country. Great performances by Paul Giamatti (American Splendor) and Thomas Haden Church (–Wings”) sweetens the tale, as do Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh. One of the best films of the year. Don't miss. R. Bijou. Cinemark. Online archives. White Noise: Stars Michael Keaton as an architect who thinks his dead wife (Chandra West) is talking to him through electronic devices in their home. Geoffrey Sax directs this suspenseful thriller, which also stars Deborah Kara Unger and Ian McNeice. PG-13. Cinemark. Without a Paddle: High-speed comedy adventure stars Seth Green, Matthew Lillard and Dax Shepard as clueless adventurers who go into the Oregon wilderness in search of lost treasure. PG-13. Movies 12.
MOVIE
THEATERS Bijou
Art Cinemas Regal
Cinemas Cinemark
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