This film will be well remembered, not for its ink paint style of cinematography, but for its characters, dialogue and ensemble performance. Deng Chao, who plays both the Shadow and the Commander at a time and can be often seen in the same frame with the help of marvellous visual effects, deserves all the attention and compliments for his commitment to acting. Didn't expect the adapted-from-historical-events drama turns out to be an action thriller ending with heavy blood stains, and the film almost reminded me of Feng Xiao-Gang's "The Banquet" when the ending credits rolled. But then, when I thought of the body moves of the Shadow, the Commander and his wife among Yin and Yang in the fight-practicing scene, and those tender moments between Shadow and his love, and their passion covered or burned through eye contact and physical distance in the light and the dark, I realised this is a Zhang Yimou film. The craftsmanship is simply for storytelling!
