Hero 英雄 - Zhang Yimou

"Hero" or 英雄 (2002)

(Click on title to be directed to the IMDB page for this film)

Director:

Zhang Yimou

Principal Cast:

Jet Li (Nameless), Tony Leung Chiu Wai (Broken Sword), Maggie Cheung (Flying Snow), Daoming Chen (King of Qin), Donnie Yen (Sky), Zhang Ziyi (Moon)

Plot Summary:

The film is set in the Warring States Period in China, at approximately the time when the King of the kingdom of Qin began his campaign to unify the seven warring kingdoms under one rule. Nameless (Jet Li), the prefect of a small jurisdiction in the King's budding empire, travels to the palace to announce his defeat of Sky (Donnie Yen), Broken Sword (Tony Leung), and Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung), three dangerous and highly skilled assassins that had long been planning to murder the King. As a reward for his victories, Nameless is granted an audience with the King, and allowed to sit within 10 paces of the throne to tell his story. This leads into a series of flashbacks, divided into three distinct arcs, and marked by different color schemes. The first arc, presented in vivid reds and oranges, consists of Nameless' account of his encounter with and defeat of the assassins. As he describes the circumstances behind his victories, however, the King of Qin notices flaws in his story. This leads into the second arc, colored in muted blues and purples, in which the King of Qin presents his conception of the events that led up to their meeting. In the third and final arc, presented in white and green, Nameless corrects various mistakes in the King's version of the story, briefly mentions his own background, confesses his true motive in coming to the palace.

Clip:

The clip begins at approximately 00:34:17 in the film. This is the red leaves scene from the first arc of the story, as intially presented by Nameless to the King of Qin. In the previous scene, Flying Snow killed Broken Sword in a fit of jealousy after seeing him make love to his servant, Moon. Now, Moon, who is devoted to Broken Sword, confronts Flying Snow in order to avenge him.

Trailer: