Quite simply, House of Flying Daggers is a film that sets several new standards for production and entertainment values. It is a wild riot of color, music, passion, action, mystery, pure old-fashioned thrills and even dancing.
91
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
Entertainment WeeklyOwen Gleiberman
An outrageously gorgeous spectacle of balletic aggression. At the same time, it offers something we rarely encounter in a whirling martial-arts extravaganza: a romantic passion that's woven into the very fabric of the action.
Forget "Hero" -- that cult hit was just Zhang Yimou's warm-up for this martial-arts fireball that throws in a lyrical love story, head-spinning fights and dazzling surprises.
80
VarietyDerek Elley
VarietyDerek Elley
The tangled tale of love and disguise is awesome in its action sequences but doesn't touch the heart to the same degree.
80
L.A. WeeklyDavid Chute
L.A. WeeklyDavid Chute
The most seamless piece of sensuous expressionism Zhang has created since "Ju Dou" (1990).
75
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
ReelViewsJames Berardinelli
If you think "Hero" is a sumptuous film, prepare to be blown away by House of Flying Daggers.
75
PremiereGlenn Kenny
PremiereGlenn Kenny
All told, while the goods that Daggers offers are choice, the movie ultimately demonstrates that too much can be, well, more than enough.
70
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
The A.V. ClubKeith Phipps
Choreographed to the last beat, the action scenes have a depth that the film's thinly sketched characters never quite develop.
70
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
Village VoiceMichael Atkinson
If only this epic had enough substantial melodramatic hooks to hang this woman's beauty on; emotional traction is most often buried under acres of carefully coordinated vistas and CGI-hued flora.