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Hero

Play trailer Poster for Hero PG-13 2004 1h 33m Action History Drama Play Trailer Watchlist
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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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Hero

Hero

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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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Critics Reviews

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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 Full Review 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 Full Review 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 Full Review 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 Full Review Sean Collier Box Office Prophets A tremendously entertaining and visually rich spectacle. Rated: 9/10 Jun 26, 2021 Full Review Read all reviews

Audience Reviews

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will t how do you describe a masterpiece? zhang yimou's use of colour and expert cinematography left my jaw on the floor, and no to mention the absolutely gobsmacking fight sequences, which blew my mind. i definitely didn't expect to like this as much as i did, and now it's headed straight to my top 20 favourite films ever. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 07/17/25 Full Review 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 Full Review 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 Full Review 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 Full Review 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 Read all reviews
Hero

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Cast & Crew

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Yimou Zhang

Director

Jet Li

Nameless

Tony Leung Chiu Wai

Broken Sword

Maggie Cheung

Flying Snow

Donnie Yen

Sky

Chen Daoming

The King of Qin

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Hero

A scene from the film "Hero." Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-Yuk) and Moon (Zhang Ziyi). Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-Yuk). Left to right: Tony Leung Chiu Wai as STEEL and Maggie Cheung Man Yuk as SNOW in Zhang Yimou's HERO. Behind the scenes of the film "Hero." A scene from the film "Hero." A scene from the film "Hero." A scene from the film "Hero." A scene from the film "Hero." Flying Snow (Maggie Cheung Man-Yuk) and Moon (Zhang Ziyi). View more photos

Movie Info

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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