Hero

See this movie. Set 2000 years ago in China, Jet Li stars as a mysterious, nameless warrior. Returning from a mission, he kneels before his master, a king seeking to unite all the small warring factions under one banner. Most of the film takes place in flashbacks as the nameless warrior recounts how he slew his King's enemies. The story undergoes a steady pace of plot twists that are stunning, powerful, and occaisionally devastating. The film has a lot of heart and soul in it, and as the name suggests, it reflects upon what makes a hero. It is a surprisingly rich and mature story for what is billed as a martial arts action-fest. It is a lot like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon in that it focuses on the drama and story first and foremost - the action scenes progress the plot in a way that is poetic and beautiful (as well as being kickass). There are some amazing performances here, notably by Tony Leung Chiu Wai (John Woo fans might remember him from Hard Boiled) and Maggie Cheung, and the lovely Ziyi Zhang (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) makes a welcome appearance. The locations are exotic, and the cinematography is breathtaking. I really enjoyed this film, even more so than Crouching Tiger.