Hey! Thanks for watching this video! If you'd like to talk to us, we have a subreddit at /r/AccentedCinema, where I posted an ongoing AMA. You can also reach me via our Facebook, Twitter, and our Patreon exclusive Discord server!
Yes even though I’m not a fan of how this movie dragged and bored me this film was visually beautiful and I definitely give huge props to them for that.
@@AccentedCinema I feel that every time Golden Flower show up, feel like you holding something, I know that when you throw it into an excuse of "Japanese knock-off".
It was very atmospheric until the scene where the army of convicts started sledding into battle on their metal umbrella beyblades while firing arrows at people on rooftops.
That shit was pretty interesting, but this movie is not losing any points for it on my account. I don't think that I was even surprised the first time I saw the scene.
Zhang Yimou's use of colour has made him one of my favourite directors. I find his movies so visually mesmerising, that I don't really care about the plot. The lake fight scene in Hero is one of my ever favourite scenes in general. With Shadow, he captured the Chinese ink painting feeling amazingly well, especially given that it is a very hard style to translate into a movie.
@@jacoblevenson7934 Well I mean Snyder is style over substance. He can do well with some writing especially if his films are based off already well written sources. Notice the word some. Snyder likes to stylize killing and fighting and adrenaline with a dark tone and almost quite literally. Knowing that, we now know why 300 worked but his DC films didn't. Imagine Batman killing people who are just doing their jobs? But Zhang Yimou is a much more competent director because his style isn't 1/2 glorifying killing and another 1/2 setting a dark tone. Zhang Yimou has a complicated approach meanwhile Snyder wont compromise his simple approach. But I do mostly agree with you.
Ever since Okami I've been amazed that someone could capture the feel of an ink wash painting in a 3d game, but to see it done in live action is something truly incredible. Out of all the movie related UA-cam channels I watch, You are definitely the most consistent in adding movies to my "need to watch list".
I love this channel so much. Chinese cinema doesn’t get enough love on filmtube. People seem to think all Chinese cinema is “wolf warrior 2” and other propaganda pieces for some reason. So much cultural history and development that has gone into Chinese cinema that goes unnoticed by westerners
It shames me that I can never seem to remember this director's name, though I am very familiar with his works. Hero and Raise the Red Lantern are just so visually amazing that I get pulled into his films and often forget just how long they are.
I learned about Zhang Yimou when I first visited the Beijing Film Academy nearly twenty years ago. Coming from America, I was surprised to discover that Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was not very well received there, (I believe the word "rubbish" was being thrown around) and everyone was touting this amazing director named Zhang Yimou. Hero was in post production at the time, very near release, and everyone was very excited. There were 5, or so, graduates from that academy, years earlier, including Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige, who had gone on to do amazing things in cinema, and the school was very proud. Under the Hawthorn Tree was the first Zhang Yimou film I saw while actually living in China. I watched the film so many times. He was known mainly for his more flashy, action stuff in America. This film really expanded my impressions.
I have such great memories of watching Hero as a kid, that was the first wuxia movie I had watched. I was awestruck completely, thinking about the first fight between Donnie Yen and Jet Li still gives me goosebumps. Also, it introduced me to a new genere of movies, for which I am forever grateful.
Loved hearing the thoughts of someone with more knowledge than myself on Chinese ink paintings! I'm Chinese, and I love Chinese ink paintings, but just as a layman with only basic knowledge, especially with the cultural elements and technical terms. And also loved hearing balanced criticism about Zhang Yimou and your own changing/fluid appreciation/views on his work!
Zhang Yimou's movies were some of my first aproches to chinese cinema and my favorites to this day. Hero, The curse of the golden flower, The house of the flying dagers, they were realy impresive in the visual department so I ended facinated by them. It's true there are a lot of parts that look like more like an anime, specialy for the action scenes, but for the most part I haven't seen anything like his movies else were. And Shadow, I think is his best movie yet, alongside Hero. Mesmerising, exiting and visualy unmatched. (Sorry for the english)
Have i ever mentioned how very glad i am that a person like you still exists? Another chinese person who still very much love the classical beauty, values and aesthetics that i grew up with. Coming to your channel always feels like home
Hero is not only the greatest martial arts film I have ever seen... But one of the most beautiful films I have ever seen Period. Zhang Yimou is much more than a director, he's a true artist.
for the 9 people who disliked this video, you have no soul. I fully respect and love all your commentary on filmmaking especially educating me on the beauty of asian cinema. 🙇🏾♂️
I watched this essay first, then forgot the main plot point, then went to watch the movie. when the scene came with the shadow being introduced the first time, I was like *shocked pikachu face*. Great movie! Thanks for introducing it. I just realised that your header is from Shadow. You must have been planning this essay for a really long time! Glad to be able to watch it ^^
visually this is one of the best martial arts movies ever, and some of the genius in battle was also amazing - when i saw the soldiers sliding down the street inbetween metal umbrellas i knew i had to watch this movie. I was not disappointed.
Last week, I came to work and my uncle had this movie on the TV. It really intrigued me so it's cool to see you made a video on it because I don't have anyone else to talk to about it
I have to finish Golden Flower, I saw it on TV a few years back but tiredness got me when the plot started to get interesting. (Or i began to understand it, might as well be) Also, amazing prop and weapon design; I wish i could have one of those Guan Dao (I hope that’s the correct spelling) they look simply beautiful.
They really are. You are extra correct, as the story of Shadow was originally based on the invasion of Jing Province. In other words, the dude who's using that weapon was literally supposed to be Guan Yu, whom the weapon is named after. Zhang seems to have a thing for Guan Dao. Can't blame him, it's the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of Chinese weapons.
I thought the colors in Hero were very intentional and most definitely had meaning--like the red retelling was the one filled with passion, while the green one was about youth.
Shadow is an amazing movie. I was first drawn back by its dark and desaturated looks but the story progression and action just fits so perfect in that color
I watched this last year it was phenomenal! As a huge fan of East Asian Cinema and wuxia films in particular, I must say I really love your work, dude.
I loved Raise the Red Lantern but admittedly wrote this film off without much thought because of a relatively low average rating on Letterboxd. You've convinced me to give it a shot though. This is a really excellent analysis video. I'm an American learning Mandarin and this channel has been such an amazing resource for gaining more insight into Asian cinema and art. Keep up the good work!
i watched this movie a few weeks ago and i think its a masterpiece. i felt chinese art vibes while watching it and am glad you made this video essay to explain it!
THIS. i am sick & tired of westerner immediately equating some asian artist to that of westerner as in some form of "compliment". You can appreciate one without putting next to some other. Zhang is in his OWN LEAGUE
@@은이지-m6c yes. Exactly. We have a very popular and talented music composer in india named AR rahman who's called the "Mozart of Madras". Like, I geddit, mozart was amazing, but it still frustrates me kinda.
Hey AccentedCInema. Have you ever considered making a video about HERO from a Chinese Perspective? I feel people who claim that it's a propaganda are clearly ignoring the historical context that it was set in.
Good essay! Zhang Yimou's films are pretty diverse. There are the style over substance but also his earlier films that are full of substance like Not one less
I just watched this movie yesterday! It feels so strange to already see a criticism of it. It had memorable crazy visuals. I falled in love of the all-grey aesthetics of the movie but I also felt like something was lost in translation as a westerner. Overall I give the movie an 8.5/10. I wish one day you talk about things that usually are lost in translation for westerner audiences in chinese/or asian/ movies.
if they translated everything from the chinese sentences into english or other western languages, then the sub would be too long and people might need to pause lots of time while watching. chinese is quite a compact language, adding those idioms & history references making the language even more compact.
I love the attention to detail and the contrast with western cinema. It's a lovely movie and Zhang Yimou is brilliant. I fell in love with Ying Xiong and his vision. Love you bringing attention to Chinese and other cinema!
I saw shadow on an airplane and I was just mesmerized by the stunning visuals of the movie. wish i could've seen it in the theater.. also how cool (and useless) is the umbrella weapon!!?
what a great analysis and in-depth explanation of how the look of the film was achieved ! thank you for this video, I definitely have a greater appreciation for inkwash paintings now too
Wonderful video essay as usual. Hit the nail on the head with the culture of Chinese art slowly diluting. It's like the idea of say Ming dynasty vases, where it once was revered, now you just end up wondering if it's just another knock-off product. The appreciation towards the art form is almost cheapened due to low cost of manufactured goods coming from China. Take those China travel tours that take you to multiple cities (and shops like silk and tea pots along the way). The shopping aspect makes you feel like those products should be cheaper because you're in China, yet we often forget that it still does take skill to produce those items... Where in western society a premium cost is added to 'hand-crafted' or 'artisan'.
This is definitely my favourite of Yimou's films not only does he nail the visuals like always but the story is actually on par with the quality of the rest of the films elements
Thank you for sharing. Most of the other movies you have mentioned I’ve heard of, but not this one. I’m mainly a sculptor but I love working with ink drawings as well. I’ll have to watch this!
I wanna say, the fear of modern Chinese culture being a knock off of Japanese culture is legitimate but also kinda funny seeing as if you want you can say Japanese culture knocked off old Chinese culture and ended up promoting it as if it were it's own, so now China taking elements of Japanese culture to use in it's own works is kinda just a response intentional or not. I think him "dumbing down" Chinese culture isn't necessarily bad, just making it a bit more accessible, for people to delve further in, as long as it's not insulting and completely opposite of the substance.
Chinese culture is actually much older than Japanese culture, which is honestly partial ancient Chinese culture that has slowly evolved over time. Granted, many east Asian cultures are influenced by each other, but much of what has made Japanese culture would not even exist without Chinese culture to catalyze it
I just came from watching a review of the game Ghost of Tsushima and how there is a "Kurosawa mode" that turns the game black and white supposedly mimicking sumi paintings. From your analysis here, clearly Zhang Yimou's interpretation here is much more nuanced and true to its artform of the Chinese inkwash paintings. It fun to see how different medium attempts to execute similar treatments and how one's knowledge of the source material affects the appreciation of the final product.
The game was designed and made with colors in mind. While shadow is made from the beginning to resemble these painting. The mode is just a fun fan tribute like the pixelated filter in some shooter (which worsen your accuracy). Also it's a video games where the audience hold most of the control vs a movie where directors control everything. Better comparison would be games like Okami (various japanese art traditions), team fortress 2 (vintage satirical cartoons), banner saga (classic disney animation)...
would you like to make a video that talks about the movie Hero? i really liked it and i would love to see what a critic or just a youtuber like you think about it
If I could afford to give you more, I would. Your videos are beautiful and exceptional to me. I learn more about my own culture every time something like this comes up. Thank you. Could I by chance ask, who did the calligraphy for this video? It's gorgeous.
The props are made by the prop team. However, that one shot showing the calligraphy in progress is actually done by the actor legit. Zheng Kai, the actor, went to learn calligraphy for this film. Same with the two main characters playing the string instruments.
I admit that i didnt quite understood what you meant at the end of the film. I lack proper context to know what is chinese culture and what isnt, and watching your videos i got a feel for what these might be but i dont think i quite have the full picture yet. Was hoping you could clarify it a bit more.
That's kinda a question without an answer. At the end of the video, my statement is pretty much "Drawing lines and deciding what is and is not Chinese culture is unhelpful". If it feels appropriate, it probably can be incorporated into Chinese culture. It's like American Chinese food. It's not born in China, but it's made by Chinese, and it feels Chinese, then there's no reason to exclude it.
@@AccentedCinema Still, even if you cant explain a feeling, it helps to give context to someone who doesnt know that feeling. Having said that i dont know how you whould go about doing that in this case. I whould need to study chinese aesthetics terms, wich seems harder to do as opposed to studying japanese aesthetics, about witch many works have been published in english. Chinese art philosophy just isnt easy to research for some reason.
@@RandomUserX99 White? Im a brown latino. And i wasnt talking about asian art, i was talking about art specifically from China. Furthermore, i was not treating it as "alien", i was treating it as foreign and thus requires context to fully understand, because while we are all humans, diferent cultures speak diferent languages. Thats the basis for aesthetic philosphy.
I saw this on Netflix and was almost gonna watch it until King's War caught my eye, which seems to be very similar to the outstanding 2010 Three Kingdoms series. Definitely gonna give that film a watch now.
Hey! Thanks for watching this video! If you'd like to talk to us, we have a subreddit at /r/AccentedCinema, where I posted an ongoing AMA. You can also reach me via our Facebook, Twitter, and our Patreon exclusive Discord server!
Yes even though I’m not a fan of how this movie dragged and bored me this film was visually beautiful and I definitely give huge props to them for that.
Let me tell U have an eye for movies .Your observations quite good and expect more from you
Did you just say all of Western art is one method? You racist.
Can you watch and review Tumbadd (a horror film) I really liked it... I think you might like it too :)
Yep there isn't a proper video on tumbadd yet.
_"If you aren't mesmerized by the stunning visuals yet, you have no soul"_
*Blind People:* ಥ_ಥ
Ah dang it. Now I feel like an asshole.
@@AccentedCinema, there are times wherein we just don't _see_ things coming
Man, I'm going to hell for laughing.
@@seniorpedro9654 me too...
@@duchi882 Jerk.... funny joke though.
When you weren't inspired by the hall of the mirror in Versailles.
Lol
It took me a great deal of mental fortitude to not make a reference when showing footage from Cursed of the Golden Flower.
@@AccentedCinema I feel that every time Golden Flower show up, feel like you holding something, I know that when you throw it into an excuse of "Japanese knock-off".
@@AccentedCinema Aww...but you should've... :P
LMAO, yes!
the mood and atmosphere of this movie is insane, you can really feel the damp and wetness through the screen.
It was very atmospheric until the scene where the army of convicts started sledding into battle on their metal umbrella beyblades while firing arrows at people on rooftops.
That shit was pretty interesting, but this movie is not losing any points for it on my account. I don't think that I was even surprised the first time I saw the scene.
Woah
Zhang Yimou's use of colour has made him one of my favourite directors. I find his movies so visually mesmerising, that I don't really care about the plot. The lake fight scene in Hero is one of my ever favourite scenes in general. With Shadow, he captured the Chinese ink painting feeling amazingly well, especially given that it is a very hard style to translate into a movie.
Can you recommend me some of his Movies?
@@zee446 Raise the Red Lantern, Ju-dou, Red Sorghum, To Live, Not One Less, The Road Home.
In Zhang Yimou's case, I think style is substance.
Basically Snyder
@@daoyang223 Accept with much more talent and intelligence with the style being used.
@@jacoblevenson7934 Well I mean Snyder is style over substance. He can do well with some writing especially if his films are based off already well written sources.
Notice the word some. Snyder likes to stylize killing and fighting and adrenaline with a dark tone and almost quite literally.
Knowing that, we now know why 300 worked but his DC films didn't. Imagine Batman killing people who are just doing their jobs?
But Zhang Yimou is a much more competent director because his style isn't 1/2 glorifying killing and another 1/2 setting a dark tone. Zhang Yimou has a complicated approach meanwhile Snyder wont compromise his simple approach.
But I do mostly agree with you.
So you may say this movie is all substance and no Substance.
Dao Yang Or Chinyder how about Schina?
Ever since Okami I've been amazed that someone could capture the feel of an ink wash painting in a 3d game, but to see it done in live action is something truly incredible. Out of all the movie related UA-cam channels I watch, You are definitely the most consistent in adding movies to my "need to watch list".
I agree. This channel expanded my film horizons beyond hollywood, which is great
I love this channel so much. Chinese cinema doesn’t get enough love on filmtube. People seem to think all Chinese cinema is “wolf warrior 2” and other propaganda pieces for some reason. So much cultural history and development that has gone into Chinese cinema that goes unnoticed by westerners
It shames me that I can never seem to remember this director's name, though I am very familiar with his works. Hero and Raise the Red Lantern are just so visually amazing that I get pulled into his films and often forget just how long they are.
Yimou in Chinese actually means "To make a living with art".
Talk about name affecting life.
@@AccentedCinema Is that his birth name or one he took up as a director?
@@jacoblevenson7934 That's his birth name
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zhang_Yimou
Yimou is also the director of 2008 Beijing Olympic Games opening ceremony!
try Emo :)
I've seen this movie so many times. The splash of red blood against the black and white environment is so eye-catching
I learned about Zhang Yimou when I first visited the Beijing Film Academy nearly twenty years ago. Coming from America, I was surprised to discover that Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was not very well received there, (I believe the word "rubbish" was being thrown around) and everyone was touting this amazing director named Zhang Yimou. Hero was in post production at the time, very near release, and everyone was very excited. There were 5, or so, graduates from that academy, years earlier, including Zhang Yimou and Chen Kaige, who had gone on to do amazing things in cinema, and the school was very proud.
Under the Hawthorn Tree was the first Zhang Yimou film I saw while actually living in China. I watched the film so many times. He was known mainly for his more flashy, action stuff in America. This film really expanded my impressions.
I have such great memories of watching Hero as a kid, that was the first wuxia movie I had watched. I was awestruck completely, thinking about the first fight between Donnie Yen and Jet Li still gives me goosebumps. Also, it introduced me to a new genere of movies, for which I am forever grateful.
Loved hearing the thoughts of someone with more knowledge than myself on Chinese ink paintings! I'm Chinese, and I love Chinese ink paintings, but just as a layman with only basic knowledge, especially with the cultural elements and technical terms. And also loved hearing balanced criticism about Zhang Yimou and your own changing/fluid appreciation/views on his work!
My lil' teen jaw just completely dropped at the first ten seconds of the footage.
WOW.
JUST ... Wow ...
It's difficult to have words for it!
To quote Howlin' Wolf: "You gotta feel what you're doin', man."
Zhang Yimou's movies were some of my first aproches to chinese cinema and my favorites to this day. Hero, The curse of the golden flower, The house of the flying dagers, they were realy impresive in the visual department so I ended facinated by them. It's true there are a lot of parts that look like more like an anime, specialy for the action scenes, but for the most part I haven't seen anything like his movies else were. And Shadow, I think is his best movie yet, alongside Hero. Mesmerising, exiting and visualy unmatched. (Sorry for the english)
Have i ever mentioned how very glad i am that a person like you still exists? Another chinese person who still very much love the classical beauty, values and aesthetics that i grew up with. Coming to your channel always feels like home
Finally another great essay! As a big fan of Chinese films, I'm grateful for your work. Explained context adds more layers and helps for understanding
Hero is not only the greatest martial arts film I have ever seen...
But one of the most beautiful films I have ever seen Period.
Zhang Yimou is much more than a director, he's a true artist.
for the 9 people who disliked this video, you have no soul. I fully respect and love all your commentary on filmmaking especially educating me on the beauty of asian cinema. 🙇🏾♂️
I watched this essay first, then forgot the main plot point, then went to watch the movie. when the scene came with the shadow being introduced the first time, I was like *shocked pikachu face*. Great movie! Thanks for introducing it. I just realised that your header is from Shadow. You must have been planning this essay for a really long time! Glad to be able to watch it ^^
The second 4k movie I ever bought. The training sequence in that high of resolution is mind blowing.
As usual, high-quality content that makes you enjoy.
哥们儿，我真的非常佩服你的文案。能看出来是下了很多功夫的。而且我很喜欢你与众不同的切入点与视角。
顺带……恭喜，有赞助广告了 XD
Thank you very much for such a great exploration of concepts behind the visual style of the movie. It connected a lot of the dots for me.
What a beautiful visual style, I'll be sure to give Shadow a watch soon!
It's on Netflix!
visually this is one of the best martial arts movies ever, and some of the genius in battle was also amazing - when i saw the soldiers sliding down the street inbetween metal umbrellas i knew i had to watch this movie. I was not disappointed.
Zhang Yimou is one of my favorite directors! So happy to see you discuss Shadow!
I love your ending here. It's just as important to improve art into the future, not just stay the same as the past.
Last week, I came to work and my uncle had this movie on the TV. It really intrigued me so it's cool to see you made a video on it because I don't have anyone else to talk to about it
The blade umbrellas rolling down the street made me laugh the first time I saw it, but it's still a really entertaining and beautiful movie.
Wouldnt be so bad if it wasn't spinning like freaking beyblades. Zhang Yimou needs to do more previs with his action scene.
IMO ‘Shadow’ is a masterpiece.
我最喜欢的youtuber更新了
these videos are so informative. these are literally the highlight of my week everytime they come up.
I have to finish Golden Flower, I saw it on TV a few years back but tiredness got me when the plot started to get interesting. (Or i began to understand it, might as well be)
Also, amazing prop and weapon design; I wish i could have one of those Guan Dao (I hope that’s the correct spelling) they look simply beautiful.
They really are. You are extra correct, as the story of Shadow was originally based on the invasion of Jing Province. In other words, the dude who's using that weapon was literally supposed to be Guan Yu, whom the weapon is named after.
Zhang seems to have a thing for Guan Dao. Can't blame him, it's the first thing that comes to my mind when I think of Chinese weapons.
I thought the colors in Hero were very intentional and most definitely had meaning--like the red retelling was the one filled with passion, while the green one was about youth.
Shadow is an amazing movie. I was first drawn back by its dark and desaturated looks but the story progression and action just fits so perfect in that color
I've always loved Zhang Yimou's works, especially his older ones.
This movie is a master piece. Also, great work on the video. I loved it.
Elaborating what that FEELING is would be the next step. Thanks for introducing such a beautiful movie
I watched this last year it was phenomenal!
As a huge fan of East Asian Cinema and wuxia films in particular, I must say I really love your work, dude.
I loved Raise the Red Lantern but admittedly wrote this film off without much thought because of a relatively low average rating on Letterboxd. You've convinced me to give it a shot though. This is a really excellent analysis video.
I'm an American learning Mandarin and this channel has been such an amazing resource for gaining more insight into Asian cinema and art. Keep up the good work!
Please watch a film yourself, don't judge by what some critic says
i watched this movie a few weeks ago and i think its a masterpiece. i felt chinese art vibes while watching it and am glad you made this video essay to explain it!
"Zhang Yimuo is right up there with the likes of West Anderson" LOL. West Anderson wishes he was anywhere near Zhang Yimuo.
Exactly this
It's Wes Anderson, - not West. Also, both directors are fantastic.
How do you know that
THIS.
i am sick & tired of westerner immediately equating some asian artist to that of westerner as in some form of "compliment". You can appreciate one without putting next to some other. Zhang is in his OWN LEAGUE
@@은이지-m6c yes. Exactly. We have a very popular and talented music composer in india named AR rahman who's called the "Mozart of Madras". Like, I geddit, mozart was amazing, but it still frustrates me kinda.
Hey AccentedCInema. Have you ever considered making a video about HERO from a Chinese Perspective? I feel people who claim that it's a propaganda are clearly ignoring the historical context that it was set in.
Loved your take onChinese cinema, I don’t know how to get Chinese films, but what little I’ve seen of hem hey are beautiful o watch, Hank you.
Oh man, the hairs on my back tingled (in a good way) when you said Mortal Kombat! I want to see that!
Good essay! Zhang Yimou's films are pretty diverse. There are the style over substance but also his earlier films that are full of substance like Not one less
super amazing video. Definitely gonna watch this film first then complete the rest of the video
Thanks for another great video. I was not aware of this film. Adding to the must watch list.
While being a bit disappointed by the movie's story, I also enjoyed the visuals greatly. It looks gorgeous.
i like the wobbly blades but yeah man art everywhere
I just watched this movie yesterday! It feels so strange to already see a criticism of it. It had memorable crazy visuals. I falled in love of the all-grey aesthetics of the movie but I also felt like something was lost in translation as a westerner. Overall I give the movie an 8.5/10. I wish one day you talk about things that usually are lost in translation for westerner audiences in chinese/or asian/ movies.
idiom, poetry, usually this is what missing when translating to english.
1 word in chinese can be translated into dozen meaning.
if they translated everything from the chinese sentences into english or other western languages, then the sub would be too long and people might need to pause lots of time while watching. chinese is quite a compact language, adding those idioms & history references making the language even more compact.
I love the attention to detail and the contrast with western cinema. It's a lovely movie and Zhang Yimou is brilliant. I fell in love with Ying Xiong and his vision. Love you bringing attention to Chinese and other cinema!
I looooved this movie, it captured my attention and just held if the entire way through.
edit: I need to see him make an MK film omg please.
I saw shadow on an airplane and I was just mesmerized by the stunning visuals of the movie. wish i could've seen it in the theater.. also how cool (and useless) is the umbrella weapon!!?
what a great analysis and in-depth explanation of how the look of the film was achieved ! thank you for this video, I definitely have a greater appreciation for inkwash paintings now too
When he pulled out the umbrella in that fight I lost my effing mind!! It might be the most bad-ass shot I’ve ever seen.
Wonderful video essay as usual. Hit the nail on the head with the culture of Chinese art slowly diluting. It's like the idea of say Ming dynasty vases, where it once was revered, now you just end up wondering if it's just another knock-off product. The appreciation towards the art form is almost cheapened due to low cost of manufactured goods coming from China. Take those China travel tours that take you to multiple cities (and shops like silk and tea pots along the way). The shopping aspect makes you feel like those products should be cheaper because you're in China, yet we often forget that it still does take skill to produce those items... Where in western society a premium cost is added to 'hand-crafted' or 'artisan'.
thank you for the videos.
This is definitely my favourite of Yimou's films not only does he nail the visuals like always but the story is actually on par with the quality of the rest of the films elements
Thank you so much for this. Without this video, I would have never heard of this movie. Now, I'm excited to check it out.
Thank you for sharing. Most of the other movies you have mentioned I’ve heard of, but not this one.
I’m mainly a sculptor but I love working with ink drawings as well. I’ll have to watch this!
stunning visual and very good plot , i was so lucky to have a chance to watch this in the cinema . 3 times , couldn’t help myself .
Wish I could've seen this movie at the cinema when it was out.
An absolutely GORGEOUS film 😍. We need more films that have a particular aesthetic vision and run with it
I wanna say, the fear of modern Chinese culture being a knock off of Japanese culture is legitimate but also kinda funny seeing as if you want you can say Japanese culture knocked off old Chinese culture and ended up promoting it as if it were it's own, so now China taking elements of Japanese culture to use in it's own works is kinda just a response intentional or not. I think him "dumbing down" Chinese culture isn't necessarily bad, just making it a bit more accessible, for people to delve further in, as long as it's not insulting and completely opposite of the substance.
All East Asian countries took inspiration from Chinese culture into making their own. They include Japan and Korea.
If someone wanna talk about the culture, how could he split it from the long history, but talking a few decades ago?
Chinese culture is actually much older than Japanese culture, which is honestly partial ancient Chinese culture that has slowly evolved over time. Granted, many east Asian cultures are influenced by each other, but much of what has made Japanese culture would not even exist without Chinese culture to catalyze it
Lol what I don’t have such a fear because you know enough of your own culture you can identify it.
@@unboppable1595 no
Very good. Thanks once again for an enlightening video essay on the craftsmanship of Asian filmmaking.
Thank you for sharing, I'm currently watching it
honestly im in love with the tradional chinese clothes. It is really beautiful
Thank you for another video :)
I just came from watching a review of the game Ghost of Tsushima and how there is a "Kurosawa mode" that turns the game black and white supposedly mimicking sumi paintings. From your analysis here, clearly Zhang Yimou's interpretation here is much more nuanced and true to its artform of the Chinese inkwash paintings. It fun to see how different medium attempts to execute similar treatments and how one's knowledge of the source material affects the appreciation of the final product.
The game was designed and made with colors in mind. While shadow is made from the beginning to resemble these painting. The mode is just a fun fan tribute like the pixelated filter in some shooter (which worsen your accuracy). Also it's a video games where the audience hold most of the control vs a movie where directors control everything.
Better comparison would be games like Okami (various japanese art traditions), team fortress 2 (vintage satirical cartoons), banner saga (classic disney animation)...
Hell yes! I’ve been hoping that you’d make a video on this. I was a huge fan of it when I first watched it
Didn't even know the existence of this movie! Thank you.
I've always loved Kurosawa's 'Kagemusha' (the shadow warrior). It will be fascinating to see another film with a parallel storyline.
would you like to make a video that talks about the movie Hero? i really liked it and i would love to see what a critic or just a youtuber like you think about it
I need a Yimou directed mortal kombat movie in my life.
very nice and on spot digestion.
If I could afford to give you more, I would. Your videos are beautiful and exceptional to me. I learn more about my own culture every time something like this comes up. Thank you. Could I by chance ask, who did the calligraphy for this video? It's gorgeous.
The props are made by the prop team.
However, that one shot showing the calligraphy in progress is actually done by the actor legit. Zheng Kai, the actor, went to learn calligraphy for this film.
Same with the two main characters playing the string instruments.
@@AccentedCinema I wonder if deeguh meant who wrote 比，柔，色，意境, etc. the subheadings in your video.
@@YiWeng oh! Those are a public domain font set I downloaded years ago. I forgot who it sampled from, unfortunately.
just amazing
Im gonna add this on my watchlist
I know this isn't very insightful, but damn, that blade umbrella looks cool ^^
I fucking love this movie. I'm so happy you did a video on this. I love inkwash painting and make some myself.
Great episode! Keep it up!
great film, great video! thank you
One of the most visually beautiful films I ever seen… And the story is very Shakespearean too!
those are some amazing visuals
Very insightful.
I admit that i didnt quite understood what you meant at the end of the film. I lack proper context to know what is chinese culture and what isnt, and watching your videos i got a feel for what these might be but i dont think i quite have the full picture yet. Was hoping you could clarify it a bit more.
That's kinda a question without an answer. At the end of the video, my statement is pretty much "Drawing lines and deciding what is and is not Chinese culture is unhelpful". If it feels appropriate, it probably can be incorporated into Chinese culture.
It's like American Chinese food. It's not born in China, but it's made by Chinese, and it feels Chinese, then there's no reason to exclude it.
@@AccentedCinema Still, even if you cant explain a feeling, it helps to give context to someone who doesnt know that feeling. Having said that i dont know how you whould go about doing that in this case. I whould need to study chinese aesthetics terms, wich seems harder to do as opposed to studying japanese aesthetics, about witch many works have been published in english. Chinese art philosophy just isnt easy to research for some reason.
just stop seeing Asian art/culture as something alien which require learning because you're white. You'll get it if you see everyone as human.
@@RandomUserX99 White? Im a brown latino. And i wasnt talking about asian art, i was talking about art specifically from China. Furthermore, i was not treating it as "alien", i was treating it as foreign and thus requires context to fully understand, because while we are all humans, diferent cultures speak diferent languages. Thats the basis for aesthetic philosphy.
I absolutely love this movie, I'm so glad I decided to watch it
Love your videos!
I swear i saw this film in passing while going through netflix. I will have to give it a watch.
i love the visuals of this movie.
Love this. Thank you!
Loved this film
thanks for introducing new movies to me
I saw this on Netflix and was almost gonna watch it until King's War caught my eye, which seems to be very similar to the outstanding 2010 Three Kingdoms series. Definitely gonna give that film a watch now.
Brilliant video ,
i had the bad luck of only seeing this on the plane... gotta watch it again
I guess that movie definitely goes on my ever-growing list of "I need to watch those" ^^
If you’re in the US you can watch this on Netflix. Time to test the black/grey saturation of my TV!