kung fu women rock my world.

ever since i saw michelle yeoh in police story 3, i fell in love with her. i fell in love with the whole concept of kung fu women. i was addicted and i had to see all their films - police story 3, heroic trio, executioners, dragons inn, wing chun, tai chi master, the golden swallow films, even (embarrassingly enough) a cynthia rothrock film.

way before annie oakley and bonnie parker made their way into history books, china has had a long tradition of woman leaders, fighters, and heroes. china's first female general dates back to queen fu hao of the shang dynasty (16th - 11th century b.c.). fu hao's grave was unearthed by female archeologist, zheng zhenxiang in 1976, revealing symbolic battle axes, bronze statues and ceremonial artifacts, all in the name of the shang dynasty queen. the stronger female characters found in hong kong films versus hollywood is indicative of china's long and powerful history of women warriors and leaders. james cameron thought he broke barriers with sigourney weaver in alien and linda hamilton in terminator two, but chinese directors have been fortunate enough to just write about what has been around for centuries.

crouching tiger, hidden dragon is the definitive kung fu woman film. the previous holder of this title was undoubtedly wing chun (1994), directed by the venerable yuen woo ping. wing chun is a movie that is more a shakespearean play about mistaken identities and love than an out and out kung fu action film. set in a small chinese province over 300 years ago, the film is based on real life martial arts master, yim wing chun (michelle yeoh). the story tells of a woman who defends her sisters and town against an army of brutal criminals. the movie is full of great dialogue, intense fight sequences and showcases yeoh's fantastic abilities as an actress and as a stuntwoman.

crouching tiger is a movie which turns out to be all of wing chun and more. although i was more than excited that work had given me the opportunity to watch this much anticipated film two months before its united states release date (yes, i love my job), i wasn't sure if i was prepared for ang lee to direct such an epic kung fu action film. the spectacular cast and crew involving michelle yeoh, chow yun fat, cheng pei pei, yuen woo ping and even cellist yo-yo ma was a roster of chinese entertainment masters. ang lee, on the other hand, i always felt specialized in retelling jane austen stories (sense and sensibility) and what are generally known as 'chick flicks' (wedding banquet, eat drink man woman). but now i understand why ang lee is the perfect choice for china's kung fu comeback. crouching tiger, hidden dragon is an epic kung fu jane austen action flick of immense proportions. it has love, fighting, loyalty, honour, deception, intrigue and historical context. this is the movie that titanic could only strive to be. extra points go towards the fact that leonardo dicaprio is nowhere to be seen. one of the points that i thought would work against this film is jet li's absence. originally cast as the character which chow yun fat now plays, jet li reportedly stormed off the set, leaving the production in a lurch. fortunately, chow yun fat steps up to the plate and does a wonderful job in his role as michelle yeoh's partner.

without giving too much of the film away, crouching tiger, hidden dragon revolves around the fate of the green destiny, a 400 year old sword currently in the possession of master swordsman li mu bai (chow yun fat). li mu bai asks fellow swordswoman yu shu lien (michelle yeoh) to deliver the green destiny to peking. upon arriving in peking, yu shi lien meets the young and beautiful jen yu (ziyi zhang) and her domineering mother (cheng pei pei). the sword is stolen and the rest of the movie is the fight to get it back.

the set designs, landscapes, costumes and stellar acting are all of epic proportions and the combination of superb talents in this single picture is present in every frame of film. director ang lee has made a point of showing all the gorgeous and varied environments of china's landscape by working with the practiced eyes of cinematographer, peter pau. one aspect of the film that impressed me was the wonderful aural experience which accompanied the breathtaking imagery, such as the uncanny ability of american foley artist marko costanzo to replicate the audio action of hong kong action films. in addition to the foley art, benjiman cheah, crouching tiger's foley editor, turns the green destiny sword into a character of its own with a reverberating, metallic shimmering voice.

upon my initial viewing of the movie, the first fight sequence felt too wire-dependent. characters were running on walls and jumping on rooftops, defying gravity with a little too much float. it felt too over the top, especially knowing that the choreography was all the work of the very experienced yuen woo ping. with films like drunken master two, fist of legend, tai chi master and wing chun under his belt, and with master action heroes like chow yun fat, michelle yeoh and cheng pei pei at his command, it becomes obvious that there must be some reason for the apparent abuse of the wire fighting effect. in an interview several years ago, michelle yeoh once explained that the chinese audience expects their heroes to fly, it's what the gods did. these aren't normal people who are fighting, they're legends, they're superhuman. american audiences are so ready to suspend their disbelief to think that superman can fly or that there's space cowboys who roam in a galaxy long, long ago, but when presented with kung fu pictures, western audiences regard it as unbelievable.

fascinating.

despite its marketing as an action film, crouching tiger, hidden dragon is a love story. it's about women and what they do for their own honor and their hearts. i'm not sure how sony entertainment pictures will market this film. it's an action story, it's a love story, it's a foreign art film, and it's got complicated characters. there's no 30 second commercial or movie poster that will be able to encompass all aspects of this movie, and any attempt to do so will only fail. hopefully the word of mouth will get out enough that this is a movie for everyone. women will be enraptured by the female warriors and their love stories, men will love the hardcore action and kids will want to fly with supernatural powers. the hip hop wu-tang audience will love the hong kong action heroes and the code of honor that the main characters carry and the sensitive artists will love the beauty and grandeur of it all.

crouching tiger, hidden dragon will not hit american screens until december 8th, but once december 8th rolls around, you should definitely plunk down your hard earned cash to go see it.

you won't be disappointed.

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