House of Flying Daggers | |
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Theatrical release poster
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Traditional | 十面埋伏 |
Simplified | 十面埋伏 |
Mandarin | Shí Miàn Mái Fú |
Cantonese | Sap6 Min6 Maai4 Fuk6 |
Directed by | Zhang Yimou |
Produced by |
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Written by |
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Starring | |
Music by | Shigeru Umebayashi |
Cinematography | Zhao Xiaoding |
Edited by | Long Cheng |
Production
companies |
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Distributed by |
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Release date
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Running time
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119 minutes |
Country |
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Language | Mandarin |
Budget | $12 million |
Box office | $92.9 million |
House of Flying Daggers | |
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Soundtrack album by Shigeru Umebayashi | |
Released |
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Genre | Stage & Screen Classical |
Length | 49:37 |
Label | Edko (Hong Kong) Sony (United States) |
Producer | Shigeru Umebayashi |
House of Flying Daggers is a 2004 wuxia romance film directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Andy Lau, Zhang Ziyi and Takeshi Kaneshiro. Unlike other wuxia films, it is more of a love story than purely a martial arts film.
The use of strong colors is a signature of Zhang Yimou's work. Several scenes in a bamboo forest completely fill the screen with green. Near the end of the film, a fight scene is set in a blizzard. The actors and blood are greatly highlighted on a whiteout background. Another scene uses bright yellow as a color theme. The costumes, props, and decorations were taken almost entirely from Chinese paintings of the period, adding authenticity to the look of the film .
The film opened in limited release within the United States on 3 December 2004, in New York City and Los Angeles, and opened on additional screens throughout the country two weeks later.
The film was chosen as China's entry for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film for the year 2004, but was not nominated in that category, though it was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Cinematography.
In AD 859, as the Tang Dynasty declines, a number of rebel groups are established, the largest of which is the House of Flying Daggers, based in Fengtian, who battle the corrupt government that oppresses the people. Its members steal from the rich and give to the poor, gaining the support of the locals. Two police officers, Leo (Andy Lau) and Jin (Takeshi Kaneshiro) - who are best friends - are ordered to kill the leader of the group within ten days, a task that appears to be impossible as no-one knows who the leader of the House of the Flying Daggers is.