I didn't think I could be so bored by a martial arts film. How disappointing; I was looking forward to finally seeing a film by the legendary director King Hu, but this may turn me off any other films of his. The story is a dull one about a fugitive girl, an expert in martial arts taught by some powerful monks, who moves into a small town hoping to escape her death sentence. Her father had spoken out against a local tyrant, and his whole family was sentenced to death. An artist neighbor of the girl falls for her, and gets mixed up in the dangers she faces. The martial arts sequences are few and far between in this 3 hours + film, and the ones that are there are mostly poor. The editing is so choppy that it's often impossible to tell what's going on. Worse yet, a good number of these sequences are at night, so you can't see anything. Only the two climactic battles (the film is split in two) are any good at all, and they are kind of similar, at that. The only commendable aspect of the film is its gorgeous color cinematography. It is truly exceptional, but nothing else about A Touch of Zen is.
Think me a rube or what have you, but nothing but pseudo-profundity and a lack of technical knowledge.
Think me a rube or what have you, but nothing but pseudo-profundity and a lack of technical knowledge.