Hero

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Hero

PG-13

Released Aug 27, 2004

1h 33m

Action

History

Drama

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Tomatometer

Popcornmeter

94%

Tomatometer

210 Reviews

87%

Popcornmeter

100,000+ Ratings

In this visually arresting martial arts epic set in ancient China, an unnamed fighter (Jet Li) is being honored for defeating three of the king's most dangerous enemies. When Nameless recounts his battles with the assassins -- Broken Sword (Tony Leung Chiu Wai), Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-yuk) and Moon (Zhang Ziyi) -- the king begins to question some of the details. As Nameless goes on, the king challenges the tales, interjecting his own take on these perhaps suspect version of events.

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Critics Consensus

With death-defying action sequences and epic historic sweep, Hero offers everything a martial arts fan could ask for.

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Terry Nguyen

Vox

Through the film's striking use of color and landscape, combined with its riveting action sequences, it goes beyond the chronological constraints of a typical blockbuster film.

Oct 8, 2021

Full Review

Christopher Orr

The New Republic

Until the final 15 minutes of its deceptively short hour-and-a-half running time, Hero is a marvel, one of the best films to be released in the United States this year. It concludes, however, on a note both emotionally unsatisfying and morally idiotic.

Jan 5, 2018

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Joanne Kaufman

Wall Street Journal

As they move through the martial-arts sequences, the performers leave the impression that the laws of gravity are subject to amendment. The rules of love and war -- all's fair -- are, Hero makes clear, immutable.

Mar 18, 2014

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Sebastian Zavala Kahn

Me gusta el cine

It says a lot about the importance of unification, making it clear that its protagonist becomes the Hero of the title both for what he does and doesn’t do. “Hero” has managed (and will keep managing) to stand the test of time. [Full review in Spanish].

Rated: 5/5

Feb 27, 2025

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Joshua Polanski

In Review Online

The sum of Hero’s collaborative artistry asserts itself as one of the most winsome and graceful moving pictures of the 21st century. Hero is a film worth celebrating.

Sep 8, 2024

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Sean Collier

Box Office Prophets

A tremendously entertaining and visually rich spectacle.

Rated: 9/10

Jun 26, 2021

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No N

I can't believe how bad this was. The story was occasionally interesting, but overall it was incredibly boring with a really bad, harmful message. The fighting was so boring and weird. It was clearly trying to be artistic, but it fell so flat and was just SO boring to sit through. I'm really pretty in shock it was so bad. I normally love Jet Li movies.

Rated 0.5 out of 5 stars

06/16/25

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Leprechaun K

Putting Tony and Maggie in the same shot is just magical. Art design and cinematography were excellent. Well directed but the hint of political influence was off putting. Still a good movie.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

02/26/25

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Pei Dawei P

Wow, this film is just… excellent. Great visuals, and a great message. You think you’re gonna watch an action movie and you get art, music, perspective with the action serving as a compliment, a delivery device. The vibe of this entire film really culminates at the end and it’s gonna stick with me for a while.

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

12/30/24

Full Review

Petros T

The photography and aesthetics are dazzling, the big-scale setpieces are impressive (the sequence with the arrows in particular is fantastic), and some of the fight scenes (e.g. the lake one) are actually all about storytelling and characters. In truth, it's a very stylized film (the wire work gets a bit much and even the plot becomes a tad gimmicky), which can be slightly off-putting, but the craftsmanship on display is undeniable and is paired with interesting themes and a touching conclusion.

Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars

10/19/24

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Audience Member

A master piece… period. No need to describe just rush to watch this movie. Watched already 10 times

Rated 5 out of 5 stars

06/12/24

Full Review

Alec B

Love the colorful Rashomon-style narrative. The anticlimactic ending, while initially frustrating, ultimately makes sense given the character's choices.

Rated 4 out of 5 stars

02/21/24

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Synopsis

In this visually arresting martial arts epic set in ancient China, an unnamed fighter (Jet Li) is being honored for defeating three of the king's most dangerous enemies. When Nameless recounts his battles with the assassins -- Broken Sword (Tony Leung Chiu Wai), Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-yuk) and Moon (Zhang Ziyi) -- the king begins to question some of the details. As Nameless goes on, the king challenges the tales, interjecting his own take on these perhaps suspect version of events.

Director: Yimou Zhang
Producer: Yimou Zhang, William Kong
Screenwriter: Yimou Zhang, Li Feng, Wang Bin
Distributor: Miramax Films
Production Co: Beijing New Picture Film Co.
Rating: PG-13
Genre: Action, History, Drama
Original Language: Chinese
Release Date (Theaters): Aug 27, 2004, Wide
Release Date (Streaming): Aug 26, 2016
Box Office (Gross USA): $53.6M
Runtime: 1h 33m
Sound Mix: Surround, Dolby SRD
Aspect Ratio: Scope (2.35:1)

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