Director Kar Wai Wong has taken his 1994 film Ashes of Time, tweaked it a bit, and it has resulted in this version. I didn’t see the original, but I can tell you that this version is a pleasure to look at, and a little hard to follow. A hit man (Leslie Cheung) lives in the desert and hires swordsmen for contract killings. A gold star for you if you can figure out exactly what is going on all of the time. The film isn’t so incomprehensible that you can’t enjoy it. The martial arts sequences are filmed in a way that can only be described as “art film.” In fact, it’s quite enjoyable just looking at it. Still, a viewing of the movie should come with Cliff Notes or something. It made me feel stupid at times. But it’s pretty. Oh my, it’s pretty.
Ashes of Time Redux
