S. C
Stunning scenery, sets and costume designs with a great cast and contrasting character writing, this world feels real and alive. The score is just perfect and does great in accompanying story. Lots of great and patient cinematography that knows its purpose. However the structuring seems to be the only thing to be somewhat unstable which makes it challenging to follow and to connect the dots.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
01/13/24
Full Review
Daniil A
Reading some reviews by so-called critics (even the Top ones) made me sign up and post my first ever RT review. Roger Moore (the critic, not Bond) compares it to more regular wuxia movies like House of the flying daggers, calls it asian western and complains about lack of action. Does he even understand what that movie is about or what its trying to achieve? No.
The main thing you have to understand going in Ashes of Time, is that it's not a martial arts movie. Wong Kar-Wai uses the wuxia setting to once again convey the central themes of his entire filmography. It's a tale of unrrequited love, lost opportunities, longing, living in the memories and ultimately being alone. Some say that the plot is impenetrable, but thats not true - by the end of the movie every characters' arc feel whole, every conflict (inner and outer) is understood, and even if you didnt pay attention and missed some plot details, you still got The Mood of the movie, cos just like all of WKW best work its a movie for your heart and your soul. Its brilliant on every level, from passionate acting by a bunch of Kar-Wai's regulars, to painting-like visuals by Christopher Doyle, to heart-penetrating musical score. It may not be WKW's best work, but its definitely my favourite among his filmography.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
08/29/22
Full Review
Audience Member
A revitalized version of one of a chinese auteur's earliest films. The cinematography here is glowingly epic with it's bright and wonderfully contrasted/saturated sepia tones. Arguably, the weakest link here is actually the plot and how the central story is told in this wuxia picture. It's often muddled and a bit hard to follow in it's fractured structure but master Kar-Wai's remake is a beautiful swashbuckler fueled with foreboding romance.
Rated 3.5/5 Stars •
Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars
02/20/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Ashes of time is a cinematic masterpiece, not for everyone.
You start with a middle man who gets compensation for assassinations committed in China, desolate is the setting. This is a slow burner movie and this is key in the story telling and the climax of the film. It is a lesson in time and love which is poignant when you understand it.
Leslie Cheung narrates as Ou-yang Feng and fills out the story around him speaking of the people pass by and make an impression on him. He speaks of a friend and a few others the long days, for he lives at an inn of sorts his life is quite uneventful. But he hires skilled warriors to do jobs for people in need or people who simply want some one killed.
In the end though it is about time even though maybe slow it is fleeting and if you ever find love recognise it and hold on to it...to live, otherwise you will regret it.
As I said this movie is not for everyone, pacing is slow which for me is the point...the setting is desolate after all...Ou-yang Feng is stuck in a rut after all and we live in this rut with him. The acting is good if not spot on...with an all-star cast that consists of aforementioned Leslie Cheung, and others such as Maggie Cheung, Tong Leung x 2, Jacky Cheung, Carina Lau, Charlie Yeung and more.
Love is fleeting as is time. This is what i learned from this movie.
Rated 4.5/5 Stars •
Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars
01/15/23
Full Review
Audience Member
A must-see film about the philosophy of martial arts.
Rated 5/5 Stars •
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
02/27/23
Full Review
nick s
The Hong Kong wuxia films are well-known for strong bonds with traditional Chinese legends and philosophy. These features are also marked with plenty of bizarre martial arts scenes, crazy stunts, tricks, and symbolism. However, Kar-wai decided to test the water from a different angle. Ashes of Time is an eclectic and grotesque tale of grief and romance told in a tonally complex way, thanks to the cinematography of Christopher Doyle and Kar-wai's aesthetics. The viewers have never seen wuxia in such light before Ashes of Time.
The martial arts scenes in Ashes of Time are not something we associate the film with. The combat moments look totally different from what we are used to watching wuxia. The heroes remain engaged with the romance and inner conflicts even while fighting. We see them being emotional over something and ruminating, rather than getting focused on the fight. Sometimes, these martial arts scenes are lensed in a slow-motion to emphasize the emotions we see on the protagonists' faces. The camera is focused on the mood of characters, utilizing the brilliance of light and colours that become a distinctive part of Wong Kar-Wai's work. The fights in this film are employed only to add something into the romantic mood and story. This is why Ashes of Time remains one of the most unusual wuxia films ever created.
The plot of Ashes of times is non-linear and quite coherent. The protagonist martial arts master Ouyang Feng who is portrayed by Leslie Cheung encounters a few other great sword masters and wanderers. Listening to their stories about emotional dramas and disappointment, employing them or helping them out, he slowly immerses into his own anxiety and woe realizing how lonely he is. As it always happens in the films of Wong, none of the heroes is delighted to be happy in love, they all suffer from heartbreaks, under different circumstance.
The encounters between Ouyang Feng and other protagonists are divided into 5 acts, based on different legends and stories. The stories are just loosely related to each other, but they all disclose peculiarities of Ouyang Feng's feelings and emotions. This is the first time Kar-wai develops and uses this approach comprising the stories in one film which are loosely connected. He would make something similar in his 2 next films and repeat the division into acts concerning the protagonist in the film 2046.
Ashes of Time was praised for brilliant Christopher Doyle's cinematography once again as he claimed the best cinematographer reward at 1995 Hong Kong Film Awards. With this new success, it became clear Wong-Doyle collaboration will stand for years. In addition to this success, William Chang had won two rewards for the best art direction and best costume and make-up design. The visual part of Ashes of Times is fascinating and gorgeous, and the important credits go to William Chang for his work with costumes. Kar-wai would return to martial arts films again within almost twenty years working on The Grandmaster, which will be certainly pretty much influenced by Ashes of Time.
Rated 4/5 Stars •
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
03/31/23
Full Review
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