Shi mian mai fu (2004)

Director:

Yimou Zhang

Writers:

Feng Li (writer)
Bin Wang (writer)

Release Date:

14 January 2005 (USA)

Genre:

Action | Adventure | Drama | Fantasy | Romance

Plot:

A romantic police captain breaks a beautiful member of a rebel group out of prison to help her rejoin her fellows, but things are not what they seem.

Plot Keywords:

Police | Dancer | China | Police Officer | Tragedy

Awards:

Nominated for Oscar. Another 16 wins & 36 nominations

Cast

Takeshi Kaneshiro	...	Jin
Andy Lau	...	Leo
Ziyi Zhang	...	Xiao Mei (as Zhang Ziyi)
Dandan Song	...	Yee
Hongfei Zhao	...	Performer
Jun Guo	...	Performer
Shu Zhang	...	Performer
Jiusheng Wang	...	Performer
Zhengyong Zhang	...	Performer
Yongxin Wang	...	Performer
Dong Liu	...	Performer
Qi Zi	...	Performer
Xuedong Qu	...	Performer
Liping Tian	...	Performer
Hongwei Zhao	...	Performer

Also Known As:

House of Flying Daggers (International: English title) (UK) (USA)
Attack from Ten Directions (International: English title) (literal title)

MPAA:

Rated PG-13 for sequences of stylized martial arts violence, and some sexuality.

Runtime:

119 min | Australia:118 min

Country:

China | Hong Kong

Language:

Mandarin

Colour:

Colour

Aspect Ratio:

2.35 : 1

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

Iceland:12 | Iceland:14 | France:U | Malaysia:U | South Korea:12 | Singapore:NC-16 (re-rating) | Singapore:PG (original rating) (cut) | New Zealand:M | Argentina:13 | Australia:M | Brazil:14 | Canada:14A (Ontario) | Canada:G (Quebec) | Finland:K-15 | Germany:12 | Hong Kong:IIB | Ireland:15A (original rating) | Ireland:15 (video rating) (cut) | Netherlands:16 | Norway:15 | Philippines:PG-13 | Spain:13 | Sweden:11 | Switzerland:14 (canton of Geneva) | Switzerland:14 (canton of Vaud) | Switzerland:16 (canton of Zurich) | UK:15 (cut) | USA:PG-13 | Mexico:B

Filming Locations:

Beijing, China

Company:

Beijing New Picture Film Co.

Trivia:

Yimou Zhang conceived the story in the late 1990s as a companion to Ying xiong (2002) (aka Hero).

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: When Jin saves Mei from the general's troops in the bamboo grove, he blocks four swords which are swinging toward her simultaneously. One of the blades, however, clearly gets past Jin's sword. Rather than having his attack deflected, this soldier simply stops his swing and lifts his sword away in unison with the others.

Quotes:

Jin: When can we see each other again?
Mei: We cannot. We belong to two opposing sides. If we meet again... one of us will have to die.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in Chacun son cinéma ou Ce petit coup au coeur quand la lumière s'éteint et que le film commence (2007)

Soundtrack:

Beauty Song (Jia Ren Qu)

Beautiful Romantic Adventure

In the Ninth Century, the Tang Dinasty in China is weak and corrupt, and an army of rebels called "The House of the Flying Daggers" fights against the government military forces, and steals from the rich to give to the poor people. Leo (Andy Lau) and Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro), two captains of the government army, plot a scheme against the rebels using the blind dancer Mei (Zhang Ziyi) to approach their leaders, but their love for Mei leads them to a tragedy.

"Shi mian mai fu" is a beautiful romantic adventure, with amazing clothing, cinematography, colors, music score, fight and martial arts choreography and special effects. The story begins like an action movie, and ends like a tragic romance. Visually, it is an impressive masterpiece, the story is also very nice, Zhang Ziyi is amazingly gorgeous and I really liked this movie a lot. My vote is nine.

Title (Brazil): "O Clã das Adagas Voadoras"("The Clan of the Flying Daggers")