(aka "Ashes of Time" )
Hong Kong / China / Taiwan 1994
Based on a classic piece of heroic literature by the prolific Chinese author Louis Cha, and dealing with a film genre firmly entrenched in Hong Kong cinema, Ashes of Time is conspicuous for its original and post-modern approach.
The "story" is made up of the interactions between various characters as they weave in and out of each other's lives, with a small village in a bleak desert wasteland as the crossroads. These vignettes are not necessarily sequential, and we gradually piece together the relationships and backgrounds of the protagonists, some of which contribute to a larger story, while others do not. The characters are perfect flawed incarnations of fantastic beings, played by an all-star cast, and the performances teeter on the line between iconography and real depth.
Part of what I love about this movie is the way director Wong Kar-Wai takes the reflective internal monologues and quirky, alienated losers from his other movies (notably Chungking Express and Fallen Angels), and transposes them to the world of Chinese heroic fantasy. An interesting idea that both ennobles and deconstructs the genre. Martial-arts superheroes who can literally shear mountainsides with the wave of a sword, engaged in their own personal conflicts and bouts with inadequacy, in the spaces of time that occur between legend-worthy events. This unusual treatment brings these myth-like characters into a new human and poetic dimension.
This is a truly beautiful movie. The cinematography is a lush blend of stunning vistas, iconic images, sensual motion, documentary-style camerawork and stylish, hallucinogenic fight sequences. The whole film functions as a visual metaphor for textiles and tapestry, it's interwoven plots echoed in the camera's attention to fabric and texture throughout. The people are beautiful, the desert is beautiful, and the music is hauntingly atmospheric.
That said, this movie is not going to appeal to everyone. The disjointed dreamlike narrative can be confusing initially, but in the end, if you take some time to retrace, it all does make sense. The puzzle pieces do all come together into a coherent picture, but you may have to trust me on that. Also, people looking for the action sequences Hong Kong movies are famous for, will find the emphasis is on the characters and their meandering thoughts. When the nonetheless exciting and very cool action scenes do take place, they are blurred hyperkinetic washes of motion. While Hong Kong audiences have been exposed to some of the greatest choreography captured on film, Ashes of Time attempts to capture an impressionistic, psychological aspect as well.
This movie takes many of its cues from Sergio Leone's revisionist westerns like Fistful of Dollars. The stylized desert environment is the wastes of New Mexico revisited through Chinese legend, complete with tormented superhumanly-skilled anti-hero swordsmen/gunslingers, deromanticised values, posturing showdowns and roving gangs of horse thieves. Even the music echoes the lonely anthems in The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly. Still, Ashes of Time manages to be its own beast, a technical, artistic and thematic masterpiece, that gives a new twist on old conventions, and simultaneously manages to be a meditative and visual feast as well. A movie you won't forget.
Posters
 |
 |
 |
Theatrical Release: Toronto Film Festival - Canada - 16 September 1994
Reviews More Reviews DVD Reviews
DVD Comparison:
Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC
Big thanks to Ole Kofoed and Gary Tooze for the Screen Caps!
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - RIGHT)
| DVD Box Covers |
|
|
| Distribution |
Zoke Culture Region 0 - NTSC |
Mei
Ah Region 0 - NTSC |
| Runtime | 1.37.33 | 1:37:52 |
| Video |
1.90:1
Aspect Ratio |
1.89:1
Aspect Ratio |
|
NOTE: The Vertical axis represents the bits transferred per second. The Horizontal is the time in minutes. |
||
| Bitrate:
Zoke Culture
|
|
|
| Bitrate:
Mei Ah
|
|
|
| Audio | Mandarin (dub) Dolby Digital 2.1 |
Cantonese Dolby Digital 2.1,Mandarin (dub) Dolby Digital 2.1 |
| Subtitles | Chinese and English (Not removeable) | Chinese and English (Not removeable) |
| Features | Release
Information: Studio: Zoke Culture Aspect Ratio: Edition
Details: Chapters 6 |
Release
Information: Studio: Mei Ah Aspect Ratio: Edition
Details: DVD
Release Date: August 1, 1999 Chapters |
| Comments |
This ranks as one of the worst transferred film s to DVD ever. I supect one of these has ported from the other as the ingrained subs are exact. Only differences are the Mei Ah has the original Cantonese audio and the Zoke doesn't - the Zoke has menus and the Mei Ah doesn't and the Mei Ah has more chapter stops. DVDBeaver's recommendation is NOT to buy either of these DVDs at any cost (not even for free!). They are absolutely the pinnacle of 'horrible'. No Extras, burnt in subs and ghastly video and audio. |
|
Recommended Reading in Chinese/Hong Kong/Taiwanese Cinema (CLICK COVERS or TITLES for more information)
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
Memoirs from the Beijing Film Academy
by Zhen Ni, Chris Berry, Ni Zhen |
Zhang Yimou: Interviews (Conversations With
Filmmakers) by Frances Gateward |
Chinese Films in Focus: 25 New Takes by Chris Berry |
Wong Kar-Wai: Auteur of Time (Bfi World Directors) by Stephen Teo |
China into Film: Frames of Reference in Contemporary
Chinese Cinema (Envisioning Asia) by Jerome Silbergeld |
New Chinese Cinemas
by Nick Browne |
Once Upon a Time in China : A Guide to Hong Kong,
Taiwanese, and Mainland Chinese Cinema by Jeff Yang |
Chinese Film Theory by George S. Semsel |
Check out more in "The Library"
DVD Menus
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - LEFT
vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - RIGHT)
|
|
|
|
|
Screen Captures
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM)
|
|
|
|
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM)
|
|
|
|
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM)
|
|
|
|
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM)
|
|
|
|
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM)
|
|
|
|
(Zoke Culture - Region 0 - NTSC - TOP vs. Mei Ah - Region 0 - NTSC - BOTTOM)
NOTE: Not exact frame!
|
|
|
|
Report Card:
|
Image: |
equally horrible |
|
Sound: |
Mei Ah (Has Cantonese) |
| Extras: | -- |
| Menu: | Zoke Culture |
DONATIONS Keep DVDBeaver alive and advertisement free:
Mail cheques, money orders, cash to: or CLICK PayPal logo to donate!
|
Gary Tooze 1775 Rowntree Court Mississauga, Ontario, L4W 4V3 CANADA |
|
Many Thanks...
Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review Wong Kar wai Ashes of Time DVD Review
