Zhang Ziyi Movie Marathon (Part I)

House of Flying Daggers (a.k.a. Shi Mien Mai Fu)

Another wuxia movie from director Zhang Yimou. A bit short on the plot side, but there's no shortage of star power, grand cinematography, and exaggerated fight scenes. There are two ways to look at this movie. You can view it as a story about government corruption and avenging secret societies. It's also a movie about love and betrayal. The movie is set in 859AD Tang Dynasty. Andy Lau and Takeshi Kaneshiro plays two police captains Leo and Jin of Feng Tian county investigating rebel group House of Flying Daggers. A new brothel called Peony Pavilion opens up in their locality and they suspect that the star dancer Mei (who is blind) might be connected to the group. Leo and Jin tried the good-cop-bad-cop routine on her. Leo arrests her and locks her up in the county jail. Jin pretends to be a righteous swordsman, and rescues her from the prison. They flee together for three days, all the while being attacked by government troops. Mei being the luscious Zhang Ziyi and Jin being the long-haired Takeshi, the two fell in love. In a particularly tight situation, they were rescued by the Flying Daggers. SPOILER ALERT! SPOILER ALERT! Turns out that Nia, Madam of the Peony Pavilion, is the leader of the rebel group, and Mei is just one of her soldiers, and not the former leader's blind daughter, as originally imagined by Leo and Jin. Nia's no fool. She knew all along that Jin is a copper, so she orders Mei to bring him outside and kill him. She herself brings the captured Leo outside. More revelations: Nia is actually Yee, acting as proxy for the big kahuna. And Leo's actually an undercover agent for the Flying Daggers. Three long years he's been doing this dangerous job - just to impress Mei and win her love.

This is where the convoluted love story begins: Knowing how Leo and Mei haven't seen each other for so long, Yee gives them some private time. They kiss and try to make love, but Mei is not in the mood. Leo discovers that Mei has fallen to the Takeshi curse, and does not love him anymore. He would have none of it, so he tries to have his way with her against her will (to put it nicely). The real Nia shows up and throws a dagger into his back. Ouch! Mei takes Jin out the back, but she can't bring herself to kill him. Instead, they make love on the fields. He asks her to join him and get away from it all, but she refuses. Being a man, Jin didn't ask a second time, and simply rode away. Being a woman, Mei changes her mind a few minutes later and chases after him. Being a sourgrape, Leo throws a dagger straight at her heart. What he can't have, no other man can have. Now you have to try to understand Leo. I mean, this guy has invested blood, sweat, and tears into the relationship, and he gets stabbed in the back (literally). What about Jin? The flamboyant playboy flirts with Mei for only three days, and he wins her heart. Being a psychic, Jim senses something is wrong, so he rides back to the scene of the crime. The boys have a big showdown in front of the bleeding lady, and ultimately both managed to stab each other in the back. But Leo has another ace up his sleeve (actually, another dagger in his back). This is the dagger he copped from Nia. He pulls it out and is getting ready to deliver the killer blow to Jin. Miraculously, Mei awakens from her death and declares that if Leo kills Jin, she will kill him (Leo) using the dagger that is still stuck in her heart. (Thereby killing herself, too.)

Now, the true test of true love: would you sacrifice your life to save your lover's? Jin walks towards Leo. By shortening Leo's striking range, he'll be dead before Mei can intercept the dagger. He uses this strategy to dissuade her from pulling out her dagger. Disgusted by such display of mushiness, Leo strikes. Without a second thought, Mei reacts. We see (in slow motion) Mei's dagger cutting cleanly through a drop of blood. It was just a bluff by Leo, and Mei fell for it. Leo gave the test, and Mei passed with flying colors. She dies in Jin's arms, while Leo walks away.

What better way to end a romance movie with a love song:

"A rare beauty of the North.
She's the finest lady of the Earth.
A glance from her, the whole city goes down.
A second glance leaves the city in ruins.
There exists no city or nation
That has been more cherished
Than a beauty like this."