’Hero’ worship

Films which feature what friends might refer to as “death-defying kung-fu moves” are not usually the sort to get my juices flowing, and so, having not seen ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’, my enjoyment of ‘Hero’ was all the more unexpected.

In these post-LOTR times, when film-makers think they can make up for a poor script, an absence of plot and a dearth of decent acting performances by bludgeoning audiences with CGI, it’s no surprise that movies like ‘Hero’ are meeting with approval in Hollywood.

But make no mistake, it’s light years ahead of the big-budget rabble, stunningly sumptuous in sonic as well as visual terms. What initially appears a one-dimensional plot soon blossoms into something gripping, and though some will inevitably gripe about the need to follow subtitles, the dialogue is minimal and doesn’t distract attention from the incredible cinematography.

The perfect marriage of action and art?