Member Drunken Monk Posted May 17, 2019 Author Member Share Posted May 17, 2019 (edited) I’m afraid to say Shadow didn’t quite do it for me. It’s a fine film. A fine film with moments of genius. But it’s certainly not the upper echelon of wu xia films as we have come to expect from Zhang Yimou. I found the film dragged a bit and the plot simply didn’t progress. That’s my chief complaint. Oh and anyone going in, expecting an action-fest...don’t. There are very few action scenes in this one. There are some good weapons fights an hour in but little more than that. Also, the blades umbrella gimmick didn’t work for me. It is beautiful to look at, the acting is superb and it does feature some solid action but, for me, it’s nothing to write home about. A solid 7 out of 10. It certainly doesn’t have the re-watchability of Hero or House of Flying Daggers. Edited May 18, 2019 by Drunken Monk 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Drunken Monk Posted May 18, 2019 Author Member Share Posted May 18, 2019 I’ve had a few hours to think about the film and I think I like it more than I stated above. It’s sat with me and, in my mind, I enjoy replaying certain moments. So, maybe a 7.5 or 8 out of 10? 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member BLfan Posted May 18, 2019 Member Share Posted May 18, 2019 14 hours ago, Drunken Monk said: It certainly doesn’t have the re-watchability of Hero or House of Flying Daggers Waiting for the 4k version of these. I always expect an action fest movie but as I get older, I can appreciate it when it is not, look forward to checking out Shadow. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted May 20, 2019 Member Share Posted May 20, 2019 Yeah, there`s been some build-up for this movie so I am keeping expectations low. Just another couple of weeks to wait until this hits where I live. But, if it is worth a purchase it`s blu-ray for me. Not sure I want to travel down that 4k road and it doesn't help that I`ve just seen commercials for 8k TV`s. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member reason108 Posted June 3, 2019 Member Share Posted June 3, 2019 There`s way too much hype surrounding this movie. It`s based on 3 Kingdoms (according to the film`s credits) which is something that we have seen a million times before. A little too predictable. Yeah, color design, costumes and cinematography are pretty cool. Not much martial arts. Not something that I want to own. Though, I think that I liked it better than House of Flying Daggers, still not as good as Hero for me. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Ronin Posted November 8, 2019 Member Share Posted November 8, 2019 I really liked this film, but not a ton of action in it (not really the point of the film). Now on Netflix: https://www.justwatch.com/us/movie/shadow-2018-0 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Koravec Posted May 11, 2020 Member Share Posted May 11, 2020 I really liked this film as well. Not as much to it as you may of imagined, limited locations/sets, smaller in scale to what I pictured. This isnt necessarily a bad thing. In a lot of films you see some of the best action sequences displayed in the trailer (ie: Anna), however in this one theyre displayed simply by the cover. The bladed umbrella weapon and yinyang court is the basis of this entire movie. Not that its just a series of matches either, but you anticipate for the battle to happen just as the protagonist does. And soon realize that the protagonists fight isnt even of central importance, but rather the ability for him (being 'the shadow') to last three rounds to give enough time for the person hes portraying to his civilization. Not that theres much of a civilization to be seen either, as a majority of the movie takes place in the king's court. Though approaching the final sequence you see the civilians take on the enclosed kingdom. They use the same bladed umbrella gimmick which the film appears to be based around. Twirling into the enemy soldiers like human 'beyblades' (lol). It took me a while of watching before even realizing the film was in black & white. Actually I dont recall if it was just in black & white at all. I suppose theres other earth tones involved, but it comes across as so natural to the films sequencing, and theme of mirroring yin and yang, that you barely notice, aside from how well the film goes along without color. I enjoyed the colorless aspect the film the same way I did in Miku's Blade of Immortal adaption. A scene or two drenched in rain, makes for a nice immersion into the darker setting sort of like in Grandmasters. [btw there seems to be another thread for this movie] 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted June 1, 2020 Member Share Posted June 1, 2020 I wonder why this is listed as a wuxia movie. I'm 45 minutes into it and there has been no fight scene yet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted June 1, 2020 Moderator Share Posted June 1, 2020 3 hours ago, Iron_Leopard said: I wonder why this is listed as a wuxia movie. I'm 45 minutes into it and there has been no fight scene yet. Does that mean the likes of ‘SPL’ & ‘Flash Point’ shouldn’t be listed as martial arts flicks either? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Iron_Leopard Posted June 1, 2020 Member Share Posted June 1, 2020 13 hours ago, One Armed Boxer said: Does that mean the likes of ‘SPL’ & ‘Flash Point’ shouldn’t be listed as martial arts flicks either? Well "Shadow" is way more focused on its story and being dramatic compared to those two you mentioned. I guess if "Shadow" is listed as a martial arts movie then "Boyz N the Hood" should be listed as an action movie instead of a drama because it has a few gun fights in it. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderator One Armed Boxer Posted June 2, 2020 Moderator Share Posted June 2, 2020 6 hours ago, Iron_Leopard said: Well "Shadow" is way more focused on its story and being dramatic compared to those two you mentioned. I guess if "Shadow" is listed as a martial arts movie then "Boyz N the Hood" should be listed as an action movie instead of a drama because it has a few gun fights in it. True. However I think "martial arts movie" is a very broad brushstroke. Wuxia refers to a story that takes place in the martial arts world, which 'Shadow' definitely fits into the category of. Expecting a story that takes place in the martial arts world to have have martial arts in it is a reasonable expectation, and 'Shadow' does, I don't think it really matters exactly how much or when those scenes take place. Movies like 'Ashes of Time', 'Sword Identity', and 'Swordsmen in Double Flag Town' are all described as wuxias, and it could be argued that 'Shadow' features more 'fight' action than any of those. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member FightingFool Posted June 25, 2021 Member Share Posted June 25, 2021 Shadows...Zhang Yimou directed quite complicated tale about king, commander and their shadows. Dull martial arts, only half-decent scene was attack of blade umbrella squad. Never been fan of movies like house of flying daggers, hero, hidden dragon etc but this is far worse. Best to use viewing time for movies made on classic era. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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