Hero (DVD) > Reviews

Advantages: Great Story, Beautiful Cinematography, Great Acting, Jet Li at his Best, Musical Score
Disadvantages: Maybe too similar to Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon. Some may find Martial Arts a bit OTT

...period of the 7 kingdoms, Hero or ‘Ying Hung’ (as it is pronounced in Cantonese), is the story of Nameless (played by Jet Li) who after defeating all the potential assassins to the King of the Qin, the 7th Kingdom, finally meets the king himself to tell his triumphant story. Nameless has the honour of sitting and dining 10 paces away from the king and the king is anxious to know how Nameless managed to wipe out the fear which has kept ... Read review

Advantages: Beautiful locations, wonderful acting
Disadvantages: Fight scenes a little too long

... I had wanted to watch Hero for several years; I was enchanted by ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ and knowing it was under the ‘wuxia’ genre in addition to hearing its rave reviews I knew I could be confident in getting it. The story is the tale of pre-united China, and more specifically of an assassin – Nameless (Li) – visiting a paranoid king (Chen) to tell of the other assassins he killed to protect him in order for a reward. As the film progresses ... Read review

Advantages: The amazing choregraphy, the use of colour
Disadvantages: The romance can get a bit boring

Hero is director Zhang Yimou's first attempt at martial arts after several dramas and other genres of film, and since this he has also made House of Flying Daggers, which is supposed to be even better than this amazing film (I haven't seen it yet but I can't wait). Hero cost $30million to make, which may not seem much, but it is the most expensive Chinese film ever made. It went on to take $173million at the worldwide box office, and it was nominated ... Read review

Advantages: Breath-taking images, arty play on colours, poetic, emotional
Disadvantages: There's a twist at the end, but predictable from then onwards

...Personally, I feel that Hero is a better film in terms of the plot(s!), cinematography and arty implications, and cast performance. Whether you are completely new to Far Eastern cinema, or a well-learned fan, Hero is definitely one to watch. Please don't let the martial arts or the subtitles deter you from watching this film. Although the film is set in the context of martial artists, the fight scenes are more poetic and 'dance' than your usual ... Read review

Advantages: -
Disadvantages: -

...was made after Hero, but Hero stands head and shoulders above them both. 10/10 Summary: An martial arts epic, that will have even not martail art fans begging for more!! THIS REVIEW IS ALSO POSTED ON DOOYOO BY ME UNDER THE SAME USERNAME ... Read review

Advantages: Beautifully choreographed fight scenes, twist in the tale
Disadvantages: A little long winded

...forward to the release of Hero in British cinemas in late 2004. The film is directed by Yimou Zhang (House of Flying Daggers) and stars Jet-Li (The One, Romeo Must Die) and is shown mainly as a series of flashbacks. An appearance is also made by upcoming actress of the moment Zhang Ziyi (Crouching Tiger, House of Flying Daggers), though in a fairly minor role. THE STORY: Set in ancient China when the country was divided into 6 kingdoms, ... Read review

Advantages: one of the most beautiful films ever made
Disadvantages: the comparison to crouching tiger. lack of depth of characters

...from this small niggle, Hero does have one more problem… the comparison to Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. With the appearance of the gorgeous Zhang Ziyi, this does not help matters. Hero is a completely different film. The fact that it has amazing swordplay, has Zhang Ziyi, and is Chinese does not mean they should be compared. Hero is a story based around war, death and the choices people make told in flashback whereas Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon ... Read review

Advantages: Jet Li at his best, supporting cast, story, martial arts
Disadvantages: people may not like subtitles(can watch dubbed i suppose)

ANOTHER STRAIGHTFORWARD NO BULLSH*T REVIEW Breathtaking...as corny as that sounds it's the first thing that comes to mind when i think about this film!!! The film is set in ancient China when the country was still split - into six kingdoms - and focuses on the kingdom of Qin, it's king and his many enemies as he looks to take control of everything. I dont want to give to much away about the plot, however it is basically Jet Li's character(unnamed!!!) ... Read review

Advantages: stunning cinematography, beautifully choreographed fights
Disadvantages: I couldn't find any

...events in ancient Chinese history, Hero tells the story of a warrior without a name (Jet-Li) who claims to have killed three assassins: Broken Sword, Flying Snow and Long Sky in order to protect the King of Qin (Daoming Chen), who will become the future Chinese emperor and who will build the Great Wall. Through flashbacks, Nameless tell his tale to the King. I won' tell you the rest of the story but they are plenty of twist to keep you guessing right ... Read review

Advantages: spectacular action and cinematography, complex and moving plot, jet li
Disadvantages: hard to follow at times, quite similar to crouching tiger

Many martial artists are now involved in film-making in America, working on high-budget projects with awesome special effects and ropework. However, many feel that the best martial arts films are those made in Hong Kong and China, without the mainstream influence of Hollywood. These films retain the stylised acting and pure martial arts of the classic kung fu movies. Hero manages to combine the best parts of both American and Oriental influences. ... Read review

Advantages: Beautifully shot, great martial arts
Disadvantages: Maybe too much martial arts for some

...Zhang Yimou at the helm, Hero was destined to be a winner. It tells the story of emperor Qin, renowned throughout China for being the first to unite the country as a whole, and a swordsman (Li) who is honoured by the emperor for killing 2 ruthless assassins who had previously tried to take the emperors life. As the story unfolds, we see 3 different versions of events, each of which is visually marked in a striking way by use of a particular ... Read review

Advantages: Amazing use of colour, beautiful scenery, extrodinary fight scenes
Disadvantages: Some fight scenes are quite long...

...So i would say that Hero is the porn of the Matial Arts industry. Great looking sequences, very exciting camera work and actors that are very good with their swords! The only thing that i can think of as negative is that by the 4th time i watched it, i did start to think that maybe the fight scenes were alittle long. Abit like when you watch matrix reloaded again and that Neo vs all the Agent Smiths in the park fight seems to go on forever. However, ... Read review