User Reviews

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is visually beautiful, with graceful fight scenes and a calm, poetic tone. The action is impressive and the world feels rich, but the slow pacing and distant characters can make it hard to fully connect. It’s a stylish and artistic film, even if it doesn’t always feel engaging.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon has a few pacing issues but the incredible action sequences and excellent performances more than compensate.

Mythical, romantic kung-fu that functions under its own peculiar set of rules. Like a storybook, Crouching Tiger is more invested in a sense of poetic philosophy than the concrete laws of physical reality. Hence, gravity is treated as little more than a passing concern and we're released to enjoy a string of smooth, balletic airborne action scenes. Needless to say, they're all fantastic. Each one a unique member of the family, having swapped weaponry, dance partners and scenery from a wide pool of spectacular options. Hard-hitting but precise, it's a stunning display of form, strategy and blink-of-the-eye counter strikes, with the occasional dance across a serene lake thrown in to cut the tension. The underlying story is rich and meaningful, too, though it is guilty of suddenly filling in a whole lot of back-story in one long, jolting flashback scene that chews up most of the second act. It's about hidden passions, personal guilt, the conflict between what looks right and what feels right... plus a lost comb and a stolen sword. Even undisputed masters on the battlefield must deal with private regrets after they've thrown the final blow. A resonant Eastern epic that's chock full of memorable scenes, well-crafted characters, gorgeous locations and risky personal conflicts. It's a keeper.

Quite boring, overrated, with stylized combat, people who think they understand martial arts rate this movie highly but its just simpleton's version of high art.

bel film con un bel finale. Zhang Ziyi e Michelle Yeoh superbe come sempre . oscar meritati

CTHD is a sentimental period drama wrapped in a martial arts package. The writing, soundtrack, cast and fight choreography are superb keeping you drawn in. The quality of the production is exceptional and holds up well in 2022. I suppose the only criticism for me is that Ang Lee never chooses to lean fully towards either the action or the drama so neither get the full focus to truly bring forth a 'perfect movie' experience.

A beautifully made, graceful, well acted, and emotional movie that is still excellent to watch to this day. Watching it in its original Chinese language with subtitles is an exceptional joy as effort was put into the subtitles to make it fit with the somber nature of the film.

I was absolutely mesmerised by Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Everything about it is breathtaking, it is nothing short of a poetic, visually gorgeous martial arts masterpiece. As much as I did love Brokeback Mountain, I think this is Ang Lee's best film. Speaking of Lee, he is a fine director, and does a superb job with his direction on this film. The story is easy to follow, but there is also a certain complexity to it as it explores the perennial themes of love, loyalty, duty and sacrifice, while the script is wonderfully poetic and the pace rarely lags. The characters are also hugely credible. They could have been clichéd easily, but actually they have surprisingly so much depth to them and at the end you admire them. The visuals, music, stunt work and acting are what really impress though. The film looks gorgeous, all Ang Lee's films look beautiful but this gets my vote as his most visually stunning. The cinematography is beautiful, and the scenery and costumes are exquisite. The stunt work is brilliantly choreographed and the special effects actually enhance rather than distract. The music is just gorgeous, there were a few scenes where I was reduced to tears. And there are many memorable scenes especially the jaw-dropping rooftop pursuit and tree top battle. As for the acting, Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh both excel, and I was surprised in a very good way by Zhang Ziyi who is electrifying as the teenage thief. In conclusion, this is a breathtaking film and a must see for anyone who loves martial arts or visually stunning movies especially. 10/10 Bethany Cox

A fantastic layered story with it's stunning cinematography and beautifully choregraphed fight scenes all combines to make one of 2000's best movies. A classic.

From the same school as Ben Hur and Spartacus, an epic adventure that intelligently combines martial arts with Chinese mythology, using astonishing choreography. It is true that there have been identical films, but none have been able to duplicate it. Some of the best of the new millennium.

The main force of this movie is the way it is filmed: landscapes, fights scenes, light and the differents shooting plans in the overall are amazing, colorful and impressive. Choregraphies are barely too unbelievable to be underlined. Choice of actors and their importance in the plot also are surprising. I was astonished by the place let to women in a 2000-movie taking place in the Medieval Asia. Hopefully these women are able to take the huge place they deserve in the story and complete it perfectly, making this a considerable piece in the feminist fight. Story by the way is crazy-original and totally goes out of the mainstream way of asian martial movies. Unfortunately the movie is constructed in a way it makes difficult to easily and clearly understand where it wants us to go. Stories are developped in parallel with varying levels of detail. The bad point about choregraphies is to look in the scenes in which characters 'fly' and 'run' of roofs. In these parts of the movie special effects simply ****. It then becomes really hard to keep focus despite what the movie is showing us. Laughter is not welcome during drama scenes. I read a lot of people's opinion saying the acting was cool. I do not agree since half of the characters (often the oldest) seems to play like they were impassible monks. Hopefully the end brings a bit of emotions to everyone in the cast. Speaking of the ending (no spoil I promise), I just didn't get it. The credits truly seem to be in the bad place. I can't help thinking that producers didn't know how to end all this.

Absolute magic. The story is simple but done extremely well. The choreography, camerawork and editing show mastery on another level. This is definitely a film worth owning and watching a hundred times over.

If you are a crying SJW, that os your movie! It is a masterpiece, with respecto for plot, characters and public inteligente! 2 thumbs UP....

Watched this movie when I was very young and didn't get the meaning of it, but I liked the ending song anyway. Now I'm a grown-up, this movie really surprises me when re-watch.

This movie feels like Imagine walking through a art gallery, beautiful and the focus isn't the story.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Beautiful visuals, excellent action sequences and great direction make this movie worth your time.

This movie is awesome and emotional. Very good music, actors, and have stunning atmosphere.

This film bangs and is monstrously important to Western interest in Asian wuxia films. Buoyed by strong performances, explosive (though not literally) action sequences, and an atmospheric soundtrack, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon stands as a tribute to all the classic wuxia films. I find it funny that all the people giving negative reviews to this film have names like Kevin, Todd, and Tracey.

Plenty of movies claim to have "something for everyone", but few are able to master dozens of elements the way Crouching Tiger does. This is one of the great art house films ever made and also one of the great action spectaculars. How delightfully crazy is that to think?

hidden beneath its self-created legacy.. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon The action sequences can be inedible for some viewers but one cannot deny the fact about the way they are projected, as they express rage, fury and vulnerability more than the performance can; this is a masterstroke by the makers and the primary reason of its definite impression that it leaves the audience with. The script doesn't bar any specific format and has a newer and smarter structure to offer, that is completely adaptive and enthralling in its own way of storytelling. Ang Lee; the director, has done a tremendous work on executing such an eerie and humane vision of its "meta-human" characters. It is rich on technical aspects like editing, sound department and choreography. The performance unfortunately is not something where the feature scores and the actors, too weren't given enough range and room to flaunt in or factor in except for the lead actress. Despite of brilliant execution, it fails to draw out the essential emotions from the screen which at a certain point, is what it completely relies upon and in the end leaves this hollow space floating in the air. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is actually hidden beneath its self-created legacy that is layered and installed subtly which is plausible but it also never goes loud even when it becomes essential.

This movie is the very definition of perfection. The action, the editing, the music, the cinematography, the script - everything. It all just comes together into a single blend of perfect film-making that will never be surpassed.

Hands down, the best Ang Lee movie over all. I've finally experienced his movies and it assumes his best movie is also the best movie of 2000 according to the Metascore.

I had high expectations for this show but was largely let down. Although the special effects were good, the acting was mediocre and the ending was terrible and disappointing.

When I watch an action movie that has romance, I cringe because alot of times those two genres dont get mixed very well, but the director did such a wonderful job paying sooo much attention to the music, film setting, and the beauty that China has to offer. Yes, it is not that perfect in terms of predictability but you will get immersed in the interweaving plots that this movie has to offer. For me, it was quite relatable from the lessons that the director tried to convey. The fight scenes are of course classic and the acting is alright. I'm giving this a 10 because this is a unique film in its genre that gives a real story instead of just 2 hrs of hardcore action

After seeing good reviews for this movie I thought it was gonna be really cool but I was wrong. This movie is very overrated and has a boring story. The story is about a thief that steals a special sword, people chase after that thief, the thief falls in love the end. The fighting scenes are cheesy and not very good and the floating acrobatics did the movie no justice. Overall I wouldn't recommend this movie, there are better martial arts/fantasy movies out there.

Crouching poop is more like it. For sheep who want to belong to the hip crowd and the artsy fartsy folks with below average IQ. Clearly the reviewers were all paid off or cherry picked (Sony is notorious for fixing reviews), because they cant get average real people to positively review their garbage. Extremely boring film with nonsensical plot, uninteresting characters that have no depth whatsoever on top of extremely stupid looking martial arts like we were back in the early 80s again (but without the grit). No redeeming qualities anywhere. This one was so bad I actually walked out of the movie theater on its premiere more than a decade ago. I asked and was given a refund. I watched it entirely a few days ago and basically played with my phone the second half of the movie out of boredom. For what its worth, I like action movies but I don't need explosions and effects to find enjoyment. I need a story 1st, and then anything else is gravy... it a movie after all. If i want to look at a painting ill go do that but this is a movie and not a painting. A movie is supposed to have a story to tell otherwise there is no reason to make it into a movie aside from appeasing one inflated ego. Even if a story is non-sense it could still be interesting if characters are interesting or funny. This movie has none of that. It might as well had been told in a 10 page picture book for kids. People need to stop selling out just to fit into the crowd. Grow a spine and call it what it is. This is a bad movie that was overrated through corporate payoffs.

To this day I still do not understand what anyone got from this movie. I waited and waited for a good scene, any good scene to arrive, then the movie abruptly ended. Worst movie I can remember seeing. "Action" movie? There is NEVER any decent action and the story is rubbish.

I must have seen a different movie. Many of my friends praise this as the ultimate (and poetic) martial arts movie. For me the movie was just above average. The story is nothing special for me. I will even say it was boring some times. The pictures are fantastic and the soundtrack is good. The martial art scenes are good too and Chow Yun Fat is always a bonus point. The actors are good, a solid performance from everyone. Overall I find the movie is a bit overrated but by all standards no failure. I would give 6,5 /10 so that means rounded up 7/10.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is Lee's masterpiece, and possibly his most creative film. He honors the traditional style of Chinese filmmaking with respect and careful attention to detail. It's beautiful and stunning, with memorable and expertly choreographed fighting scenes, and top-notch cinematography. Even thought the movie was translated into English for me, I still found its (translated) dialogue very well-written and well-said. Not to mention, the acting and story are pretty good as well, but not up to the level of the beauty and art side of the film.

This is martial arts at its finest, a film where everybody is fighting for something, there is always a sense when watching a classic martial arts film that when these fight scenes happen, the artists involved appreciate and respect the skill of their enemy or counterpart, and director Ang Lee has respected this essence in this epic tale. Not only does he create some spectacular scenes of awe and beauty, but he also has a compelling and fluid story that equally matches the action, a feat that may seem impossible, given the ambitious, heroic and gravity-defying segments that are played out as a well choreographed drama that surprises throughout, it's a riveting fantasy but also keeps a very grounded element and human touch to drive the film forward. The story surrounds a very ancient and sought-after sword, owned by veteran warrior Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) who is now passing it along as a gift, something that surprises many, including his fellow warrior and longtime love interest Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh). But the such a sought after sword is not safe anywhere and a cunning but unknown thief steals the sword, setting various pieces of the puzzle into place, we are also introduced to Jen Yu (Zhang Ziyi), who has a deep interest in the work of the warriors, but leads a very routine life and is soon to be married. She is the dark horse of the film, where it becomes clear that all is not as it seems with this mysterious girl. This ties in well with the spectacular scenes of action involving roof chases, wall climbing and some very impressive sequences that were all done without computer generated actions, these actors and actresses did most of their own work, and it is the seamless motion of these moments, paired with an intriguing and in depth story that make this one of the best martial arts films ever made, it has moments of grandeur but also never let's go of its humility, which combines love, loss, anger and respect,all while also showing some groundbreaking fight sequences that will truly be viewed as unmatched. Great performances, excellent direction and expert cinematography which creates a mesmerising film of epic proportions, it has a simple premise but is delivered on a much broader and intertwining story arc that keeps on giving right to the credits.

This is not your typical American "Chinese" film about fighting, gangs and all that stereotypical crap. Humanism permeates this film as much as in other film by Lee Ang. All violence is token and is subjugated to a purpose. Comparing this film to Jackie Chan flicks is not unlike comparing fine cuisine in China to the supposed "Chinese food" in the US.

I honestly headed into this film thinking that I would not like it because of the subtitles, but it was very good. Not the best movie ever, obviously, but it was very entertaining, especially once I came to understand what the characters were representing. Ang Lee did a fantastic job directing the film and all of the actors were marvelous as well.

I found it a little overrated. It wasn't as astonishing as I had expected. A little better than a so-so one for me. That's it. Some predictable stuff and not so amazing story to me.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is arguably one of the finest movies ever made and it is truly a masterpiece in every aspect of film-making such as characterization, action sequences, screenplay, direction, cinematography, acting, the stoyline and the main theme of the movie. I don't remember how many times I have watched this movie and it always feels so great, gives me much satisfaction.

Brings an elegance to the martial arts movie that is of utmost significance. It is not the perfect film that the critics make it out to be, but I'm glad this film was made. It teaches us that a genre which seems flat and one-sided can be transcended and made important.

The go-to wuxia film. Lyrical and elegant, at a certain point it becomes more than just an action film with beautifully choreographed action sequences.

Please no, make it stop. When the most over-rated director of all time is let loose with such a poor script and weak concept, no wonder the result is a muddled and contrived nonsense. Absolute drivel from start to finish, genuinely I can't find anything positive to say about this awful waste of time. I gave this 1 out of 10, and that point is only earned for it being the only film I ever walked out on at the cinema. I gave it a second chance on DVD, but to no avail. This motion picture is a modern day version of the emperors new clothes! People will tell you its good and give you that knowing look, as though there's some deep, wonderful secret to be found here. There isn't. The only secret is that its simply a woefully poor film. Avoid at all costs.

It goes from boring in the beginning all the way to the perfect martial arts/action movie. I found most of the martial arts scenes to be surprisingly ambitious.

I was in the belief that this movie would turn out amongst the critics as a pile of worthless, tedious crap. I found myself choking on the fact that this actually did well at the box office, and even critics raved about. I've seen a lot better films in my lifetime, and yet this tops off as best compared with films I've seen which ACTUALLY HAVE A PLOT. Darn it, I hoped something interesting would happen when I was watching this, but I couldn't, because I didn't know what the hell was going on. I couldn't exactly make out much apart from some sword, dancing through trees and some random love story, which in itself made no sense. And the ending? The worst ending in the history of the earth, a complete flop - fortunately, at least the other parts of the film were bad so it wasn't let down by the ending, although I wouldn't have minded in myself - it was so boring anyway, I didn't see why we should have turned it off while me and my family we watching before it finished. At least I got to see what sort of MASSIVE FAIL the ending was, to top it all off.

One of the best movies ive seen ever, so beautiful the music is poetic and beautiful, the fight scenes beautifully choreographed, such a lovely movie.

This film really surprised me. It's very well made and stunning to watch. The scenery is spectacular, the film alone could be used as an advertisement for Tourism in China. The action sequences are unbelievable and the three main stars are very well cast. This is a visual feast.

I had no idea what to expect my first time watching this film and it had everything to make it a masterpiece and is also the film that cause an interest in foreign films for good reasons. As far as story go, Ang Lee dose a great job capturing the feel in every scene in both the action sequence and dramatic scenes that its beautiful to watch. It`s a story that blends action, romance, betrayal, and vengeance with flawless execution which makes for an experience unlike Hollywood will ever make. The special effects in this film makes it more unbelievable how incredible this film is. The only complaints is not a big deal unless you hate reading subtitles for an entire movie. I recommend anybody who wants a different experience than what their usually use to.