- Actors: Zhang Ziyi, Michelle Yeoh, Pei-pei Cheng, Chow Yun Fat, Chang Chen
- Director: Ang Lee
- Producers: Ang Lee, Bill Kong, Hsu Li Kong
- Format: AC-3, Dolby, Dubbed, Subtitled, Widescreen, 4K
- Language: Mandarin Chinese
- Subtitles: French, Portuguese, Czech, Slovak, Russian, Polish, Croatian, Korean, Arabic, Mandarin Chinese, Hebrew, Slovene, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Romanian, Thai, English, Spanish, Greek, Turkish, Japanese
- Dubbed: French, Portuguese, Czech, Hungarian, Thai, English, Spanish, Japanese
- Region: Region A/1
- Aspect Ratio: 2.40:1
- Number of discs: 2
- Rated: PG-13
- Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
- Release Date: October 18, 2016
- Digital Copy Expiration Date: December 31, 2019
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was a
defining film in the United States,
further establishing Ang Lee’s status in Hollywood
while simultaneously proving that American audiences could be coerced into
reading subtitles for the right film. The surprise popularity of Lee’s film
would inspire a whole new market of poetic and remarkably beautiful action
films. These martial arts films are not defined by the number of explosions or
decapitations, but actually make the characters as significant as the action
they engage in. This was the defining film which introduced Hollywood to the medium, actually seeming
slow in comparison to the many have become since. It isn’t a perfect film, with
many characters and sub-plots that drift in and out of the story, but there is
little of the film which is not engaging and satisfying even as it requires
extra work from the audience.
Set in 19th-century
China,
the film follows the theft of a sword called the Green Destiny and the efforts
of two warriors to retrieve it. Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun Fat) gifts his beloved
sword to a friend and fellow martial arts master, Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh),
only to have it stolen by a mysterious masked thief in the night. These two
warriors set out on a mission to retrieve the powerful sword, revealing the
hidden skills of a young aristocrat named Jen Yu (Zhang Ziyi) who is preparing
for an arranged marriage. As the details of her background are revealed, a love
story and a revenge narrative emerge from the mystery behind the stolen sword.
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| Q&A with Ang Lee and James Schamus for 4K release |
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is the
definitive art-house action film, filled with spectacle that is both
awe-inspiring and visually poetic. While this film simply carried on the
tradition of past Chinese martial arts films, it was a film that managed to
catch the attention of U.S.
audiences, reviving the genre and an entire market of films for a new
generation. Now the 4K Ultra HD release provides the opportunity for a whole
new generation to discover the film in remarkable clarity and detail.
There have been
several Blu-ray releases of Crouching
Tiger in the past, starting with a disc included in a set with two other
modern martial arts movies. While each of these high definition releases were
more than adequate in showing the spectacular photography amidst the ballet of
kung-fu battles, the 4K brings added clarity to the aging film. Not only is
there more detail, the colors also seem to leap off of the screen, and even the
sound of the wind on the soundtrack creates an immersive experience with the
right surround sound system. The 4K releases also comes with a Blu-ray disc and
a Digital HD copy, along with all-new special features. There is an
introduction by director Ang Lee that is only included on the 4K disc, as well
as a new making-of featurette, a retrospective, and six never-before-seen
deleted scenes. Also included are music videos and a theatrical trailer.
Entertainment Value:
9/10
Quality of
Filmmaking: 8.5/10
Historical
Significance: 8.5/10
Special Features: 8/10
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