It doesn’t always work, but Zhang Yimou’s delayed new picture, about a man trying to find a reel of film that contains a shot of his long-lost daughter, features stunning performances from Zhang Yi and newcomer Liu Haocun.
A return to form in some ways, Zhang’s monochrome martial-arts drama is visually gorgeous but not always compelling.
Fairly entertaining inasmuch as it is a CG-fest ‘historical fantasy’ with spectacular visual flourishes, but ultimately generic and mechanical in its execution.
The plot may involve repetition, but the dramatic power of its execution sees Zhang return close to the form of his early 1990s works.
A surprisingly uneven film with a lack of character and historical focus on 1937 Nanking.
A beautiful love story, directed and acted with such artful simplicity that it is difficult not to fall in love with its purity.
Possibly the worst film in Zhang Yimou’s career, this remake of the Coens’ ‘Blood Simple’ is a travesty on every count.
Zhang Yimou’s best film of the 2000s decade, this is a drama-cum-tragedy that is never uncomfortable to reveal its sentimentalism amid stunning action set-pieces.
This culturally vibrant but slowly-paced drama lacks the emotional pull that Zhang Yimou’s earlier films are famous for.
Arguably Zhang’s masterpiece, this plays out like an opera, at times ceremonial, at times tragic, but always tense and captivating.
