Hero ***
Cast: Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Zhang Ziyi, Donnie Yen, Chen Daoming
Director: Zhang Yimou
Running Length: 1:36
MPAA Classification: PG-13

"Hero" is the apocryphal story of the uniting of warring kingdoms in Asia into the country of China. Three assassins who have sought to murder the king have themselves been murdered by the Nameless warrior (Li). Now, Nameless is brought before that king (Daoming) to be rewarded for his heroic deeds. While there, he recounts the tales of his battles with these assassins, and then the king offers another perspective on things that turns everything that has gone before on its head.

"Hero" is an interesting movie that will not appeal to everyone. It is in many ways reminicent of "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", but also very different. Filled with vibrancy and color, every frame of this movie is amazing to look at. It is very easy to get lost in the images presented by director Zhang Yimou. The fight scenes are beautifully choreographed and surreal. Utilizing the "Wire-fu" first seen be American audiences in "Crouching Tiger", the characters leap and spin with no regard for gravity or any laws of physics. The story itself seems straightforward, until the king offers a possible alternative for the way things actually happened. Then, the movie takes a number of twists and turns that are mostly satisfying.

"Hero" is not your typical action movie, and I cannot recommend this movie for everyone. That being said, I think that this movie could be a pleasant surprise for some people looking for something a little different.