I just read several viewer reviews of "Hero" which were posted on the
MSN website. There were a whole lot of them, more than 250 such
posts. From what I read, it seems that either the viewers understood
what they saw and greatly appreciated the movie, or they have no idea
whatsoever.
The movie is not a martial arts flick. It is a stylized dance. It is
a costume play. It is an allegory. It is a philosophical discourse.
Kurusawa's Rashomon would be an equivalent.
I do agree with some of the comments that it is not worth paying US$10
to watch, but only if you did not understand it or expected something
else altogether. It is worth viewing over and over again, not because
you want to see the gore, but to see the drama. This is one of those
movies you would have been asked to see and submit a reaction paper or
critique in a creative writing or literature class.
One comment asked why the Jet Li character dies. That is a
no-brainer, almost like watching "Titanic" and wondering why the ship
had to sink. Or why Jesus was crucified in "The Passion..." Or even
why the Ali MacGraw character had to die in "Love Story." Other
movies come to mind: "The French Connection" (an american detective
in France?); "The Magnificent Seven" (why were they dissuading the
kid?); "Braveheart" (so Mel Gibson died?); "Ronin" (why were they
after the briefcase?); or "All That Jazz" (it's a musical? a comedy?
why were they dancing if he was dying?).
There will always be movies which others cannot understand. I have
given up trying to understand a movie. After watching "A Man and A
Woman," "Help!" and "A Hard Day's Night." I have decided that nothing
needs to make sense, only that it makes sense. Movies are truly an
art form. But only those movies which move a person or makes the
viewer empathize, only those can be considered as art.
Now when is the next James Bond movie coming out?
--andoy
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