Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a martial arts movie directed by Ang Lee, starring Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi and Chow Yun-fat. It still holds the record for the highest grossing foreign language film in America, gaining both critical and commercial success upon its release in 2000. Though it features some of the best action put to film, it remains criminally underrated in today's movie conversation, which prompted me to write this article given my large readership (lol not really... this is for you, my one reader- I appreciate ya). If you haven't seen the film, Youtuber Patrick H Willems has an interesting video on why the film is great: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UBiy4TSaNzk
There are two scenes from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon that I find myself re-visiting time and time again, one is from the beginning of the film, and the other near the end:
(minor spoilers for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon)
The Night Fight
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon's story begins in a gentle fashion, introducing its characters and their history carefully. Having directed Sense And Sensibility (which is also a fantastic film!), Ang Lee brings his aptitude for romantic period dramas here as we find out about Shu Lien and Li Mu Bai, the latter of whom is owner of a legendary sword called the Green Destiny.
When the famed Green Destiny is stolen by a mysterious figure clad in black the action begins in the 'Night Fight' clip above- from this scene onwards, I was utterly gripped. Michelle Yeoh's character, Shu Lien, chases the thief across rooftops and eventually discovers that this is no ordinary thief, but a skilled warrior.
As through the whole film, this scene is set to a fantastic score (in this clip, consisting only of drums) by Tan Dun which enhances the already mind-blowing action, choreographed by stunt coordinator Yuen Woo-Ping, whose work on The Matrix contributed to a change in landscape of the action genre.
Not to be underestimated, the camera work in the night fight is superb- everything is shot clearly so that the audience can always see what is taking place; we never lose a sense of geography or the characters, whilst maintaining an atmospheric setting under the moonlight. Within the story itself, the scene serves to set up a mystery revolving around the sword and who it is being stolen by, as well as Shu Lien's dedication to protecting its legacy.
Memorable moments: foot fighting (!), rooftop jumping
Swords Vs Weapons
Jen Yu (Zhang Ziyi) is in possession of the Green Destiny and finds herself facing the more experienced Shu Lien (Yeoh). An interesting dynamic presents itself: naivety versus experience, emotion versus discipline and, of course, a more powerful weapon pitted against a more experienced fighter. All these factors are the backbone of a ridiculously entertaining fight sequence performed by two incredibly skilled actors, with close up camera shots leaving little room for stunt doubles.
This might be my favourite action sequence of all time, or at least in my top five. There might be grittier or more spectacle based scenes out there (see The Raid, Mission Impossible, Bourne Identity), but this 'Swords vs Weapons' sequence has incredibly intricate choreography, interesting camera angles, humour, drama and two charismatic and dedicated actresses. I come back to this scene time and time again, just trying to take in all of the sharp choreography and camera movements. Speaking of the latter, Ang Lee chooses to utilise a mixture of over-head, wides and close-ups with varying shot lengths. This results in a controlled variation throughout the sequence that means the action seldom becomes tedious.
The editing is also masterful- quick cuts are not required to cover up stunt doubles (both actresses trained incredibly hard for this movie) but the variation in shot length subtly changes the pacing, simultaneously keeping the energy high but also keeping all the movement in frame. Additionally, the relentless action never gets repetitive. The change in weapons provides for a physical change in action but there is also a constant eb and flow as to which of the pair is winning. Compare this to Revenge of the Sith's lightsaber fight between Anakin and Obi Wan- it is perfectly performed by the actors but, at times, the choreography feels monotonous despite the high stakes and emotion.
The action in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is something that I am constantly looking for in mainstream movies today- well shot, intricately choreographed but also involving genuinely dynamic characters. Marvel's planned Shang Chi movie might be an opportunity to bring martial arts films back into mainstream conversation (there have been plenty of memorable martial arts movies since 2000, but certainly not on the level of popularity and critical success as Crouching Tiger). This scene features all of the action glory you could hope for in this genre, but also highlights two well-written, engaging female characters at its very center. And that is something that makes this scene incredibly special for me.
Memorable moments: Jen's graceful floor dive, all the overhead shots, Shu Lien's hook ended swords, weapon is too heavy
Thank you for reading this article- hopefully it made you want to visit, or indeed re-visit, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. If you are a martial arts movie fan, I would love to hear some recommendations of similar movies!
I do not own any of the images or videos used in this post.