I love this movie so much

Why so much hype?

All of these films share one commonality, that being a kind of emotional center that humanizes a cast of monsters.

It is an exhilarating, distressing, funny and profound film, with one of the more memorable film scores in years,

I haven't watched a lot of Chinese cinema, but Warriors of Heaven and Earth seems to be part of a uniquely Chinese genre - the martial arts movie that preaches the importance of loyalty to the state.Lai Xi (Nakai Kilchi) is a Japanese warrior who has spent most of his life in China, serving the Emperor with his prodigious skill and strength. Xi has been given two oddly disparate missions. He is to both safeguard an important young woman on her way from the Western regions of China to the capitol, and he's also to hunt down and bring to justice the renowned outlaw "Butcher" Li (Jiang Wen). Li was once a solider in the Emperor's army, but he rebelled at being ordered to slaughter unarmed women and children. Li and his loyal men became mercenaries, until Li's men settled down in an isolated village while the "Butcher" pursued his destiny alone. Wandering through the desert, Li is saved by a convoy that's taking valuable Buddist artifacts to the imperial capitol. Xi and Li finally meet, and after a brief sword fight, Xi agrees to allow Li to escort the convoy to the Emperor and only kill him after that mission is complete. But, both Xi and Li have to save the convoy from Master An (Wang Yuengi), who seeks the convoy's artifacts to help his Turkish allies control China's Western regions. Through combat, deprivation and hopelessness, Xi and Li fight on…until the story ends with a rather strange, "Look! It's magic" conclusion.The first thing to know about this film is that it is not a wildly exaggerated, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", people-flying-through-the-air-with-super-powers martial arts movie. There are a couple of moments of so-called "wire-fu", but this is a much more realistic adventure and I think it's the better for it. Some people really get off on the intricately complex, ballet-like conventions of modern martial arts films, but I prefer action scenes that bear some resemblance to what can happen in actual life.There are certain aspects of the story that don't make sense or don't seem to hang together that well, but this is a foreign film so it's hard to tell if anything is actually missing or if I am just missing certain cultural or social themes that a Chinese audience would easily recognize.Even with all that, there's some good acting here. Jian Wen and Nakai Kilchi create very different characters without big scenes to show off in. Lai Xi has a decidedly aristocratic air to him, while "Butcher" Li is a solider much more used to the muddy trench. Several of the other characters are also allowed some depth.The theme of loyalty to the state running through Warriors of Heaven and Earth isn't something you see much in cinema from other countries. Loyalty is usually something between individuals, not between a person and a ruling government. Yet, I've seen a few Chinese films that strongly stress the nobility, honor and necessity of sacrificing oneself for the betterment of the nation. It's a very communitarian, as opposed to individualistic, concept of heroism.Warriors of Heaven and Earth is a pretty straight-forward adventure tale that's enjoyable on its own, but it also might teach you a little bit about modern Chinese culture…or at least the culture that's being propagated at this particular time.

This is my second Chinese film after Mulan and I picked it up to see more of the actress Wei Zhao. But I am warming to this genre - yes simple (but reading subtitles the screenplay could not be too complicated or it would be exhausting!). Again I am struck by the superb sets - breathtaking country. This time the similarities with Westerns are palpable - the characters, lines ("Something doesn't feel right"), behaviour all reek of the 'Wild West' and serve to remind us that we humans are basically the same everywhere - and so are our stories - despite superficial variations. But my biggest impression is how the lead hero played by Jiang Wen is so like our own dear Russell Crowe! Deep voice, flat expression, speaking eyes , unflappable calm and stocky build - it's uncanny. Mind you I'm not sure whether RC can wiggle his ears like Jiang! Recommended.

How should we call this genre? Chinese film-makers take their rich history and repack it into action movies very much shoot in accordance to the Hollywood action and western movies conventions. If the Clint Eastwood movies of the 6os were spaghetti westerns, these should be noodles westerns, right? The result is quite entertaining, I confess. As a warning, 'Warrior of Heaven and Earth' do not get to the level of 'Tigers' or 'Hero' from a story budding, fights choreography or cinematography. It's what is called in American cinema slang a B movie, but not a bad one. Acting is good, there are good moments of cinema, and I actually enjoyed the fact that the fights avoided this times the physically impossible choreography in some other movies - no jump records broken in this one, no walking on the ceilings and walls, sorry! The less successful parts in Ping He's film are related to some cheap low-budget effects, discontinuities in the story and a tendency to solve conflicts through super-natural effects which are quite in contrast to the down-to-earth tone of the rest of the story. But this may be where the Ewnglish title comes from - the Earth action, and the Heaven dramatic solutions.Worth watching, although not the best in his category. 6 out of 10 on my personal scale.

I knew nothing of this movie before I watched it.I wish people would stop comparing every single Asian film to CTHD. The film is not trying to be CTHD or better it. It is trying to be something different from the wire-fu extravaganzas that are coming out of China.I was pleasantly surprised by the quality of this film. Certainly one of the better Asian films to be released in recent years. It's not perfect but I found it to be entertaining and would recommend it to anyone who appreciates simple adventure yarns. The story is simple but why should stories be complex to be good? The best stories are often simple ones.Go and see it but don't expect a wire-fu spectacle and you won't be disappointed.