GamerTab That was an excellent one.

Dynamixor The performances transcend the film's tropes, grounding it in characters that feel more complete than this subgenre often produces.

Allison Davies The film never slows down or bores, plunging from one harrowing sequence to the next.

Ezmae Chang This is a small, humorous movie in some ways, but it has a huge heart. What a nice experience.

JoeytheBrit King Hu's Hsia nu, which served as the inspiration for Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, has acquired near-legendary status in the forty-plus years since it was first made. The film tells the familiar tale of a small-town man, still living at home with his mother in his thirties, who meets an attractive woman living in the deserted fort next door. The man strikes up a friendship with her, but is drawn into political intrigue when he discovers she is actually the daughter of a murdered ruler on the run from her father's killers. The man draws on his interest in military strategy to help the woman defeat her pursuers.This is no ordinary chop-socky flick, as can be seen by the way it polarises opinion between those who praise it as a lyrical work of art and those who complain about not being able to see what's going on during the night fighting scenes. I watched expecting an art-house flick, but was still surprised at how rigidly the director sticks to his artistic vision while making virtually no concession to the action genre. Even the fight scenes – and there are quite a number after the first hour – are out of the ordinary. They do at least boast a type of editing that was way ahead of its time – the film doesn't look at all dated – in the way that we are constantly teased with incomplete shots of the action.The pace is measured to say the least; director King Hu seems more interested in savouring the composition of each shot for its own sake rather than developing a character or advancing the plot. The cinematography is superb, the composition seductive, but as the hour mark passes with little of any substance revealed, suspicions of indulgence are unavoidable. The plot isn't complicated, but is nevertheless difficult to follow at times (I should point out the UK DVD version I watched was approximately 30 minutes shorter than the running time given on IMDb, which might account for the gaps in the plot.) Ku, the nominal hero, is an artist, an observer who, during the course of the film, must set aside his passivity, and the film calls upon the audience to do the same, which is why some might find it challenging to watch without their attention wandering. The film is really three types of story rolled into one – ghost story, political intrigue and spiritual enlightenment – and journeys from the mundane (Ku's daily routine of setting of to work and unlocking his small kiosk) to the sublime (the monk's transcendence into Nirvana). It's the sort of journey the viewer needs to repeat in order to appreciate all its subtleties and power but, in all honesty, if you're like me, it's probably a journey you'll only feel like taking once.

PiranianRose To think that I used to accuse King Hu of doing injustice to the wuxia genre with boring storytelling and slow action, I must have been on crack at the time--as his best works completely transcend elements of conventional film-making. In A TOUCH OF ZEN, It's not the story or the action that stands out; although they are part of the system, they are secondary to the theme of spiritual enlightenment, which is what counts in Buddhist philosophy. When the abbot confronts the East Chamber agent, the art of combat is strictly utilized by the abbot to guide the agent to "put down his sword, and attain peace with Buddha." There is a haunting sight when the bookworm scholar is amused by his tactic which fooled the agents. He thinks he has reached the peak of perfection, but then he sees dead bodies lying around who have suffered from his tactic, and the only thing on his mind is a woman whom he lusts. As book-smart as he is, he still suffers from worldly affair like everyone else. Only at the end when he accepts Buddha is he able to live in peace.Aside from the philosophical points, ZEN also scores strongly in establishing mood, suspense, and fascinating visuals. The Jiang Hu in this film feels incredibly authentic, and the rich mise-en-scene is refreshing compared to the limited Shaw Bros studio offerings. I loved the photography throughout; it beautifully captures the spiritual wonder of ancient Orient. In framing still shots, King Hu chiefly employs medium and medium close-ups, mounting his camera at an upward angle so we can always see beyond the characters, perhaps to suggest existence of higher wisdom.One observation I would like to propose is that although ZEN is probably a milestone in Chinese cinema, it would be a minor masterpiece compared to the best works from 60s Japan. The lush photography and haunting images from KWAIDAN come to mind as a comparison. No doubt, King Hu also learned a few tricks from the likes of Kurosawa, such as pointing his camera at the sun which occurs frequently in ZEN.[9/10]

gray4 I just never expected anything like the experience of watching "A Touch of Zen". I settled down to watch a quaint old film from 1960s' world cinema. Three hours later I was exhilarated after stumbling across of the greatest films made in the 20th century - and it wasn't a moment too long.The film is carefully structured, in three contrasting sections. It is only when you look back that you realize just how cleverly King Hu has created those three sections. The same characters, for the most part, appear in each section, but each focuses on a different combination. The first section focuses on the artist Ku, slowly building a picture of a quiet life in a rural backwater. The second switches tempo, with amazing martial arts action focusing on the fugitive Ku and her friends. The final section calms down again, as the mysterious Buddhist monk comes into sharp focus, and the martial arts become more and more amazing.All this takes place in the most beautiful Chinese countryside, sometimes bathed in light (the use of sunlight and the monk is particularly impressive) and sometimes in dramatic thunderstorms, making the film even more of a delight to watch. Don't be put off by the 'kung-fu' label, this is even better than "Crouching Dragon, Hidden Tiger".

deadjoe Ok A Touch Of Zen can be describe like a Wu Xia Pian, but it is a good movie in all the direction. Not only a good wu xia pian, a good movie.Critics of Occidental country always ignore the genre movie. It is why by exemple, we never saw "Ninkyo Eiga" from Japan, but it is the moste populare genre in the 60-70 era. When a director like Sergio Leone made too much succes, they can't ignore him. But in general, they try to put their own idea of the each country's cinematography on the dictionnary. Japan are a zen country who made slow movie like Ozu (althought Ozu try to made movie like American with Japanese things).This is why the history of cinema are full of injustice. King Hu are one the great injustice. Yes, he made wu xia pian, a martial art genre movies. Swordplay movie in fact.But is movies are a perfect mechanic, an exemple of editing. Hu made is own editing and like the piano play by Glenn Gould, we recognise his style when you pay attention of editing.Hu dont want to use "wire" or special effect. He want use "editing" and camera to suggest anythings.A Touch Of Zen are a gem. But i understand, it is maybe too much asian for the american country. All the first alf of the movie are talk and slow pacing. But the others alf are action, action and action. I dont know who want to watch that. Intellectual who love serious movies will love the first alf but maybe they just think acyion are too stupide. Same thing for the teenager who love action pack.But, if you forget all your expectation, you will be touch byééé magic of poetry. Hu made a 3 distinctive parts movie. The first focus on individuality, the second on politics and the third on religion.The first hour focuys on a naive scholar who discover strange yhing happen in the village where he live whit his old mothers. Suspens and mystery are the substance of this part.The second show politics manipulation and the substance of war. This is the Hu tradionnal part. We are in Dragon Inn Gate, Fate Of Lee Khan or all the politics corruption things. A lot of martial arts.The third part introduce us in the things of spirit. Hu show us a personn face to himself, the society and the spiritual....But dont epect the spiritual journey like American movies. It his a King Hu movie. Ellipse and short cut are always where you dont expect and the focus always where you never goes....A great movie.