The Grandmasters

[Drunk Monk]

I started my review of this on the Ashes of Time thread: <!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://brotherhoodofdoom.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1611">viewtopic.php?f=6&t=1611</a><!-- l -->

Bottom line: This is a gorgeous film, a filmmaker's film, the kind of film that you can spend hours deconstructing its cinematography if you're a film nerd. WKW is really working light and shadow, so many shots are tightly-framed glowing faces while the rest of the screen is pitch black. Z and Tony Leung have great faces, so it works.

As a Kung Fu flick, it works until about the hour and a half mark. There are some decent fights, all very artsy with the slo mos and stylistically visionary, yet still convey the action well. But the last half hour is about romantic regret, melancholy over missed chances, the stock and trade of most WKW films. There's no final climactic fight, or rather, the climax happens with a half hour more film to go, which just feels premature to me, but might be like cuddling after for the film nerd set.

Will this be the next CTHD? It might. I think the film crowd will love it, but I thought they would love Wuxia (aka Dragon) more too. It will surely stand as a 'must-see' Kung Fu flick for any fan of the genre because it is a departure from the norm, a classy beautiful production. I hope it does well as I hope any film does as it has some great messages and any good film is a boost to the industry. I'm no fan of Z, but she turns in one of her best performances since The Road Home.

It was a crime to watch this on a stuttering pirate. Well, pirating is a crime, but I mean that this is such a beautiful film that it deserves to be seen properly on the big screen, and I will pay to see it there if given the chance.

[Drunk Monk]

We're involved with a screener in SF this Monday. Please apply for tickets, even if you can't go (it makes our numbers look better). If you do go, get there early, as people will get shut out.

[cranefly]

I have a gofobo account and usually get email notifications of screenings, but nothing on this yet.
I even went to the site and specifically sought a screening for this, but got "No Screening" for the area.

Maybe I'm too early.

--cranefly

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Hmmm. I entered the code and was able to get passes. I used the Saratoga zip code.

[cranefly]

Oh. Yeah.
The code.

Okay, I printed out two tickets.
The problem is, it's for August 19, and the script is due August 20.
So I don't think there's a chance in hell.....

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Yeah, too bad about the script getting finished.

[cranefly]

I did print two passes out. I don't know why. Maybe just wishful thinking.
But here's the thing. Half the pass is the poster. If you look at it above, you can imagine how much toner it used.
Definitely not printer-friendly.

[Drunk Monk]

at least we'll get two entries on gofobo.

i'm going tonight. i'm eager to see the american cut. i think i might like that better. the china cut (reviewed above) got too long at the end and this film might be great with some judicious editing. we shall see.

[Drunk Monk]

I enjoyed this film much more on the big screen. The U.S. edit trimmed down that laborious ending and tightened up a lot of slow scenes. There is a sword fight, well, sword vs. jacket stuffing, and straight razor vs. chopstick.

I'm tempted to go so far as to say that this is the most beautiful Kung Fu film ever made.

[Drunk Monk]

S thought there were too many fights (she says that to irk me) but conceded that it was gorgeous, albeit a little heavy-handed with the melodrama.

T couldn't follow what was going on until about halfway through the film (Z's story arc). She thought the fights were cool.

I was struck by WKW's artistry again, but decided that most of the dialog is Kung Fu Fortune Cookie wisdom.

There was this old lady behind us, a stereotypical art-film patron who nodded approvingly when she saw me (ooooh, a real Asian at the Asian movie). She was wearing way too much perfume. But that sort of worked for the brothel scene in the beginning. Later, my nostrils were too fried to be able to sniff anymore.