Hero — Zhang Yimou

Hero is one of the great films by one of the world’s most brilliant image-makers in Zhang Yimou, shot by one of the world’s most attuned and adaptive cinematographers in Christopher Doyle, and stars more than a smattering of the most (justly) recognizable faces in Chinese cinema with Jet Li and Tony Leung leading the way along with the always welcome likes of Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, and Donnie Yen. Such top-tier, artistry-reinforced collaborations are so rare in cinema, with the incredible exceptions of shared creative successes like Steven Spielberg and John Williams, Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung, or Fritz Lang and Thea von Harbou, that the rare instances that do make it to production must be cherished and celebrated. The sum of Hero’s collaborative artistry asserts itself as one of the most winsome and graceful moving pictures of the 21st century. Hero is a film worth celebrating.

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