General Yu is executed after having been accused of treason by the powerful eunuchs, and his children will be deported. Eunuchs plotting to kill even the children, and prepare an ambush on Dragon's shelter in the middle of the desert. There are other guests, who are also interested in the deal.
elementally perfect. enough to make you want to work at a movie theater where it's all they ever show.
So exciting to finally see this on the big screen, finally can get a sense of the sublimity of King Hu's use of space, the 'scope frame arranged so precisely in the various stand-offs, the judicious close-ups lunging out at the audience. Even smaller stuff, like the "take the shortcut" joke, which would be just as at home in a Mel Brooks movie, works so much better on the big screen, similarly the whip pans of Pai Ying's leaps out of danger, the gradual reddening of Shih Chun's eyes, and the gorgeous natural vistas that would go on to become an integral part of Hu's films. Having perfected the action movie in 1967, he was free throughout the 1970s to take it places no one has yet managed to follow.
I ended up watching this on YouTube, because there's not even a legitimate release on DVD. This is wrong. This should be on Criterion. Still trying to decide which is cooler: When Xiao catches an arrow in a porcelain wine carafe and with a flick of the wrist tosses it right back at the man who shot it at him OR every single camera movement, shot composition, and edit.
King Hu... Wow. Just wow.
-Remember the tension in the opening scene of Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)?
-Remember how tension escalated from an indoors conversation into a stylish outburts of tragic violence in the opening sequence of The Good, the Bad and the Ugly (1966)?
-Remember the basement scene in one of the best referential films of the decade, Inglourious Basterds (2009), where there was a non-stop, upwards sloping trend of tension until it culminated in an explosive aftermath?
This was Leone's legacy. But so it was Hu's.
King Hu, even if I must resort to the most childish pun regarding his name, is unquestionably the Taiwanese king of the wuxia genre. What an awesone name…
An amazingly entertaining Wuxia film from King Hu, the film rarely drags, the action is constantly on a knife's edge and the various battles and action scenes are all amazing and entertaining. An extremely fun, wonderful film, and clearly extremely influential on Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon.
biggest shit eating grin on my face since idk, i watched bruce lee rip out chuck norris' chest hair? anyhu favourite King Hu so far
Shih Chun can toss my noodles any day ((((nah mean?))))
A quite surprising delight to find a wuxia film I like. There were no flashbacks, and the fight scenes were actually well choreographed. The climatic fight scene was especially well shot. On top of that, the score brought everything up a notch; it didn't have any recurring theme standing out, it was just used when needed be, and King Hu executed it perfectly.
Overall I don't really have any nitpicks with the film, I really enjoyed it, that is all.
I wouldn't be surprised if The Hateful Eight was influenced by this. What an exciting film through and through. Very suspenseful and intense, am glad that I watched this.
Never has a plot been so unnecessary as in Dragon Inn. It serves little more than simply to point out who’s good and who’s bad – beyond that, battle is joined. But this isn’t much of a complaint. Centring on the eponymous inn (which serves much like the western’s saloon as a central conflict point), the film is at its best a showcase of outstanding (pre-wire) Wuxia choreography and truly magnificent control of camera.
Hu combines long-takes, lateral movement, push ins, quick montage, and a flurry of reaction shots to keep the visual field consistently interesting, and always relevant. Rarely is the camera action pure showboating, always in some way emphasising the onscreen elements. The image quality is similarly impressive,…
Thrilling and original in its surprising stillness and chamber film qualities. But enough is enough....WHERE IS THE RESTORATION FOR PAINTED SKIN?
Dragon Inn is a masterclass in action editing and pacing. It is so well-crafted with a sense of movement that is almost musical, so expert is King Hu at knowing when to cut from mid to wide shots and from lengthy, elaborate camera moves to static shots that its tonal shifts between comedy and action flow together seamlessly. I'll admit to preferring the first 80 minutes, taking place mostly in and right around the inn, where the film has a sense of playfulness in the various factions attempts to deceive everyone around them, but the final 30 minutes are quite stunning in their own right, opening up into mountainous vistas for the inevitable final showdown.
Hu's film is mythically graceful, with action gliding across mist-blanketed mountains and the expanse of an entire world. Attempted manipulation turns individual heroes into a collective legend, absolute badasses gathered by destiny to correct injustice. Heroism requires sacrifice and fueled by a reliance on each other.
Compassion exists in between sword gouges and launched arrows, and that human delicateness is mirrored by the movie's soft colors, by its fluid action and almost-gentle momentum. An absolute epic.
Josh 1,098 films
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