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What can we say about director Ang Lee? The man is clearly on a roll. From 1995's Sense and Sensibility to his magisterial Ice Storm to the criminally overlooked Ride with the Devil, he has made three of the most interesting and entertaining movies of the last five years. This coming Friday, however, might mark the day he finally becomes something of a household name, for his new movie, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, is one of the great cinematic pleasures of this past year.

Starring Chow Yun-Fat (Anna and the King) and Michelle Yeoh (Tomorrow Never Dies), the film is both an exhilarating action movie and a sweeping romantic epic. Chow Yun-Fat plays Li Mu Bai, a legendary martial artist who has just returned from a long period of meditation and training. He has decided to forego his vocation for a time and so gives his sword, the famous Green Destiny, to Yu Shu Lien (Yeoh) for safekeeping. Though she too is a fantastic martial artist, the sword is soon stolen by a young but very adept thief. The attempts to retrieve the weapon and the intrigue surrounding it form one part of Crouching Tiger's story.

Li also has another mission--to capture the elusive Jade Fox, a female criminal who was responsible for the death of his master. Apparently, she is hiding in the Beijing compound of a powerful politician, Governor Yu, which creates intriguing problems of its own.

A third facet of this rich plot concerns Jen (played by newcomer Zhang Ziyi), the daughter of Governor Yu, who is scheduled to be married off shortly. Her desire, though, is not for her husband but for the life of the adventurer, a fact she confides in Shu Lien. As soon becomes apparent, she has already taken great strides in becoming a master of the martial arts, all of which might have something to do with the mysterious arrival of Jade Fox. Jen also has a secret lover from her past, a desert warrior named Lo who has, unbeknownst to her, also come to Beijing.

Jen isn't the only one with romance in the air, however. There is the just-beneath-the-surface affair between Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien, which continuously threatens to break through the reserved (even repressed) emotions of our heroes.

The intricate plot, though, isn't what people will be talking about after seeing _Crouching Tiger_. Instead, the topic of conversation will be the eye-popping, gasp-inducing, jump-out-of-your-seat, I-can't-believe-I-just-saw-that fight sequences that are liberally sprinkled throughout the film. It's pretty much impossible to describe them, since so much of their power comes from the incredible beauty and grace of the choreography. Let's just say that they make The Matrix look like some student movie and expose Charlie's Angels as the shameless poser that it is. Ang Lee's razor-sharp direction and Peter Pau's awe-inspiring cinematography (particularly his spectacular night lighting) combine perfectly with Yuen Wo-Ping's intricate choreography. So much so that when the combatants literally take to the air, that doesn't break the spell of suspended disbelief but somehow seems like the most logical outcome possible. And just when you thought it couldn't get any more impressive, there's a scene at the top of a forest of swaying trees that you just have to see for yourself.

It doesn't hurt that Chow Yun-Fat and Michelle Yeoh are usually in the middle of the action. As I've mentioned in these pages before, it's only our cultural myopia that prevents us from recognizing Chow Yun-Fat as the superstar that he is. When he held Green Destiny in his hands, I had no doubt that I was looking at a legend; when he and Michelle Yeoh held each other, I was convinced there's was the greatest love of all. That Michelle Yeoh can stand toe-to-toe with Chow Yun-Fat and hold her own is a testament to her star power. She has a regal bearing and a pitch-perfect stoicism that makes her emotional scenes all the more effective.

The real revelation of the cast, however, is Zhang Ziyi. Given the thankless task of trying to match up with Chow and Yeoh, she simply goes one step farther and combines a maturity that belies her years with a sparkling, youthful intensity. When she falls in love, she has all the romantic passion of a teenager; but when she sets her mind to claiming Green Destiny, she has the force of a great master. And though I'm embarrassed to point it out, she might be the most beautiful woman I've seen on the big screen this year.

But here's the difference between Hollywood's ever-growing exploitation of women and the powerful feminism of Ang Lee. Despite the fact that he has two genuinely gorgeous women in leading roles, the movie never focuses on their beauty or sex appeal. Instead it portrays them as strong, extraordinarily effective women who can do anything a man can do, while at the same time overcoming the obvious prejudice against them. Ang Lee's film doesn't shy away from the obstacles that face his female characters; but unlike so many movies and tv shows of the past year, these women don't need to take their clothes off to gain the upper hand. But they don't deny their femininity, either. They embrace it. As Ang Lee has done in his past films, he rejects both the ludicrous feminism that says there are no differences between men and women and the inane post-feminist defenders of crap like _Charlie's Angels_ and jiggle television. If I had a young daughter (or a young son, for that matter), I'd be thrilled to take them to a movie like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

Of course, I'd be happy to take anyone to see it. Though the fight sequences will grab much of the attention, this is also a fantastic "date" movie, with not one but two moving love stories and enough lush images of China (both Beijing and the desert wilderness) to sweep us into another realm. Add in a gorgeous musical score written by Tan Dun and featuring cellos solos Yo-Yo Ma, and you have cinematic artistry of the highest order.

Even Crouching Tiger's faults (and there are some) are more a consequence of the movie's greatness. The screenplay has difficulty juggling all of the different stories, and sometimes the film's pacing suffers accordingly. Furthermore, some minor characters that could've been fascinating get lost in the shuffle of our protagonists. And for some moviegoers, the movie's first hour might be a confusing mix of characters and stories. But don't let a little work stop you. The rewards are vast. 

J. Robert Parks 12/15/2000

It should be mentioned that Crouching Tiger is in Chinese, with English subtitles. If that stops you from going to see it, shame on you.