House of Flying Daggers
| Movie | |
|---|---|
| German title | House of Flying Daggers |
| Original title | Shí Miàn Mái Fú |
| Country of production | China |
| original language | Standard Chinese |
| Publishing year | 2004 |
| length | 119 minutes |
| Age rating | FSK 12 |
| Rod | |
| Director | Zhang Yimou |
| script |
Li Feng Wang Bin Zhang Yimou |
| production |
William Kong Zhang Weiping Zhang Yimou Zhang Zhenyan |
| music | Shigeru Umebayashi |
| camera | Zhao Xiaoding |
| cut | Cheng Long |
| occupation | |
| |
House of Flying Daggers ( Chinese 十面埋伏 , Pinyin Shímiàn Máifú - "surrounded by ten sides (from the hiding place)") is a film by the Chinese director Zhang Yimou from 2004. It was released in Europe in autumn 2004, with Takeshi as the main actors Kaneshiro , Zhang Ziyi and Andy Lau .
The film belongs to the Wuxia genre, i. H. the protagonists have fighting skills that border on the supernatural. At the center of the plot is a tragic love triangle. The film is one of the most internationally famous Chinese works.
action
China in the year 859, in the last legs of the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907): A rebel group called the House of Flying Knives , which had already tried to overthrow the Empire once in the past, comes back into the focus of the police and the Military. Their leader was recently killed, but the group promptly found a successor.
The police officers Jin and Leo are assigned to track down and kill the new leader within ten days. Leo already has a lead: the daughter of the old rebel leader is said to be blind and coincidentally, the beautiful blind dancer Mei just turned up in the local tea house. Disguised as a guest, Jin provokes a riot there in order to provide Leo with an excuse for the arrest of Mei. She actually turns out to be a member of the "Flying Knives" and despite her blindness is a famous fighter. However, Leo manages to defeat them.
Leo convinces Jin to do another trick. Jin helps Mei to escape from prison in the hope that Mei will lead her apparent savior to the leader of the "Flying Knives". The plan seems to be working at first. In the case of a fictitious attack by privy police officers, Jin can again portray himself as a savior. Mei seems to trust Jin, and together they set off on the journey. Leo follows them and keeps secret contact with Jin.
On the way, however, they encounter uninitiated government troops who are supposed to prevent Mei's escape by all means. Fierce fighting ensues, in which Jin is forced to kill colleagues to protect Mei for the first time. He has increasing doubts about his mission and begins to fall in love with Mei.
Finally the two reach the rebels. Jin is captured there. It turns out that Leo is an agent of the "Flying Knives". Mei is neither blind nor the daughter of the old rebel leader, just a bait to lure the emperor's general into a trap. Jin no longer plays a role in this plan; Mei is therefore assigned to kill Jin.
However, Mei also fell in love with Jin during the few days they traveled together. She therefore rejects the advances made by Leo, who has long been in love with her, and frees Jin. Leo is deeply bitter. He attacks Mei and seriously injures her. Jin is horrified and wants revenge on Leo. A fight ensues between the two former friends.
When Leo threatens Jin with his throwing knife, Mei moves with the last of his strength. She warns Leo: if he would kill Jin, she would kill him with the throwing knife still stuck in her chest. The desperate Jin tries to dissuade her because the blood loss would be Mei's certain death. Leo makes an attack move. Mei reacts immediately and pulls the knife out of his chest, but throws it into the trajectory of Leo's knife to protect Jin instead of killing Leo. But Leo's attack was only faked, he still holds his knife in his hand. Mei dies in Jin's arms, Leo leaves the two of them shaken.
meaning
As in most wuxia films, this film is about an old Chinese legend, in this case the old poem Jiārén Qū ( 佳人 曲 ) by Lǐ Yánnián ( 李延 年 ) from the Western Han dynasty , which was written by Zhang Ziyi ( 章子怡 ) is sung during the dance scene or by Takeshi Kaneshiro at the end of the film. The poem is about a beautiful young woman from the north who, with her enchanting gaze, can ruin a city and, with a second glance, an entire nation. In this case, the poem can be interpreted to mean that it is about a beautiful woman who is ruining two men who are fighting over her.
Original text:
| Long characters | Abbreviation | Pinyin inscription | translation |
|---|---|---|---|
|
北方 有 佳人 ， 絕世 而 獨立。 |
北方 有 佳人 ， 绝世 而 独立。 |
Běifāng yǒu jiārén, juéshì ér dúlì. |
Beauties of the north, extraordinary and independent |
background
- The film is dedicated to Anita Mui . She was originally supposed to play the leader of the rebel group, but died of cancer in December 2003.
- Lovers by Shigeru Umebayashi will be sung by Kathleen Battle .
- The budget for the film was $ 12 million.
- The end of the film in the snowy forest was shot in Ukraine . The snowfall was unexpectedly heavy there in October. In retrospect, director Zhang Yimou called this a stroke of luck, as it was ideal for the mood of the film.
- To prepare for her role, leading actress Zhang Ziyi had contact with a blind girl for two months .
- House of Flying Daggers was one of the few films that also appeared on Enhanced Versatile Disc .
Reviews
“The grandiose drama combines furious martial arts duels and chases with a sophisticated imagery and, last but not least, impresses with sheer beauty. Rich in references to ancient Chinese painting and the aesthetics of the Peking Opera, the film also captivates with its idiosyncratic landscape poetics and its well thought-out color dramaturgy, which comments and deepens the events. "
Camera work, choice of colors and perspectives are considered to be excellently implemented. According to many critics, the plot is often announced in advance, which makes many scenes and their outcome predictable. Especially towards the end, the fight scenes seemed inappropriately extended and no longer committed to a narrower goal.
The common thread was also lost for many reviewers of the IMDb ; At the end of the film, no reference is made to the history of China or the effect of the sect on the development of the dynasty.
The German Film and Media Evaluation FBW in Wiesbaden awarded the film the title valuable.
See also
Web links
- House of Flying Daggers in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- House of Flying Daggers atRotten Tomatoes(English)
- Discussion of DVD and film music CD
- illustrated film review (German)
- Comparison of the cut versions BBFC 15 - FSK 12 , PG-13 - FSK 12 by House of Flying Daggers at Schnittberichte.com
Individual evidence
- ↑ Poem "Jiaren Qu (佳人 曲)" - Chinese: [1] . Retrieved April 27, 2017 - baike.baidu.com - Online
- ↑ Poem "Jiaren Qu (佳人 曲)" - Chinese: [2] . Retrieved April 27, 2017 - so.gushiwen.org - Online
- ^ House of Flying Daggers. In: Lexicon of International Films . Film service , accessed August 28, 2012 .
- ^ House of Flying Daggers. In: FBW . Retrieved February 4, 2018 .