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Life of Pi(film)
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Life of Pi
Life of Pi 2012 Poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster

Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
Gil Netter
Ang Lee
David Womark
Screenplay by
David Magee
Based on
Life of Pi
by Yann Martel
Starring
Suraj Sharma
Irrfan Khan
Tabu
Adil Hussain
Rafe Spall
Gérard Depardieu
Music by
Mychael Danna
Cinematography
Claudio Miranda
Editing by
Tim Squyres
Studio
Fox 2000 Pictures[1]
Distributed by
20th Century Fox
Release dates
September 28, 2012(NYFF)
November 21, 2012(US & Taiwan)
December 20, 2012(UK)

Running time
127 minutes[2]
Country
United States[3]
Language
English
Tamil
Budget
$120 million[4]
Box office
$609,016,565[4]
Life of Piis a 2012 American 3Dlive-actioncomputer-animatedadventuredrama filmbased on Yann Martel's 2001 novel of the same name. Directed by Ang Lee, the film's adapted screenplaywas written by David Magee, and it stars Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Rafe Spall, Gérard Depardieu, Tabu, and Adil Hussain.
The storyline revolves around an Indian man named Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, living in Canadaand telling a novelist about his life story and how he survives a shipwreck in which his family dies at 16, and is stranded in the Pacific Oceanon a lifeboat with a Bengal tigernamed Richard Parker.
The film had its worldwide premiereas the opening film of the 50th New York Film Festivalat both the Walter Reade Theaterand Alice Tully Hallin New York Cityon September 28, 2012.[5]
Life of Piemerged as a critical and commercial success, earning over $609 million worldwide. It was nominated for three Golden Globe Awardswhich included the Best Picture – Dramaand the Best Directorand won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Score. At the 85th Academy Awardsit had eleven nominations, including Best Picture, and won four (the most for the evening) including Best Directorfor Ang Lee.[6]


Contents [hide]
1Plot
2Cast
3Production3.1Development
3.2Pre-production
3.3Production
3.4Post-production
3.5Music
4Distribution4.1Marketing
4.2Theatrical release
4.3Home media
5Reception5.1Box office
5.2Critical reception
5.3Controversies
5.4Accolades
6See also
7References
8External links

Plot[edit]
A Canadian novelist named Yann Martelmeets an Indian man, Pi Patel, with some knowledge from Pi's late father's friend, known to Pi as "Mamaji", for a good book. Pi tells Yann his life story.
In a flashback, Pi's father named him Piscine Molitor after a swimming pool in France. By the time he reached secondary school, he changed his name to "Pi" (the Greek letter, π) because he was tired of being called "Pissing Patel" (due to the pronunciation of his name). Pi's family owned a zoo, and Pi took great interest in the animals, especially a Bengal tigernamed Richard Parker. When Pi tries feeding the tiger, his father runs in and angrily tells him that the tiger is dangerous, and forces Pi to witness the tiger killing a goatto prove his point. Pi is raised Hinduand vegetarian, but at 12 years old, he is introduced to Christianityand then Islam, and decides to follow all three religions as he "just wants to love God". His mother supports his desire to grow, but his father, a rationalist, tries to convert him to his own way of thinking.
When Pi is 16, his father decides to move the family to Canada, where he intends to settle and sell the zoo animals. Pi's family books passage on a Japanese freighter named Tsimtsum. During a storm, the ship founders while Pi is on deck. He tries to find his family, but a member of the crew throws him into a lifeboat. As the ship falls into the sea, a freed zebralands on the boat with him. Pi watches helplessly as the ship sinks, killing his family. After the storm, Pi finds himself in the lifeboat with the injured zebra, and is joined by an orangutan. A spotted hyenaemerges from a tarp covering half of the boat and snaps at Pi, forcing him to retreat to the top of the tarp while it kills the zebra and orangutan. Later, Richard Parker emerges from under the tarp, killing the hyena.
Pi retrieves biscuits, water rations and a hand axe and builds a small raft to stay at a safe distance from Richard Parker. Pi begins fishing and is able to feed Richard Parker. He also collects rain water for them to drink. When the tiger jumps off to hunt fish, Pi considers letting it drown but ultimately helps it climb back into the boat. During a night-time encounter with a breaching humpback whalePi loses much of his supplies, forcing him to eat fish for the first time in his life. Pi trains Richard Parker to accept him in the boat and realizes that caring for the tiger is keeping him alive.
Weeks later they reach a floating island of edible plants, supporting a mangrovejungle, fresh water pools, and a large population of meerkats. Pi and Richard Parker eat and drink freely and regain strength. At night, the island transforms into a hostile environment: Richard Parker retreats to the lifeboat and the meerkats sleep in the trees while the fresh water pools turn acidic and digest the dead fish in the pools. Pi discovers that the island itself is carnivorous after finding a human tooth embedded in a flower. The next day, Pi and Richard Parker leave the island.
The lifeboat reaches the coast of Mexico. Pi is crushed emotionally that Richard Parker does not acknowledge him before disappearing into the jungle. Pi is rescued and brought to a hospital. Insurance agentsfor the freighter interview him, but do not believe his story and ask what "really" happened. Remembering an incident aboard the ship when the ship's cook insulted his family, he makes up a less fantastic account of sharing the lifeboat with his mother, a Buddhist sailor with a broken leg, and the cook. According to this story, the cook killed the sailor in order to eat him and use him as bait. In a later struggle, Pi's mother pushed her son to safety on a smaller raft before the cook stabbed her and threw her overboard. Pi later returned, took the knife and killed the cook.
Next, Yann notes the parallels between the two stories: the orangutan was Pi's mother, the zebra was the sailor, the hyena was the cook, and Richard Parker was Pi. Pi asks which story the writer prefers, and Yann chooses "the one with the tiger" because it is "the better story", to which Pi responds, "Thank you. And so it goes with God". Glancing at a copy of the insurance report, Yann sees that the agents wrote that Pi survived 227 days at sea with an adult Bengal tiger, meaning they had also chosen the more fantastic story to be the one recorded as the real story.
Cast[edit]
Piscine Molitor "Pi" Patel, the film's protagonist Gautam Belur as Pi, age 5
Ayush Tandon as Pi, age 11/12
Suraj Sharmaas Pi, age 16
Irrfan Khanas Pi, adult
Rafe Spallas Yann Martel, the real-life Canadian novelist who wrote this story.
Tabuas Gita Patel, Pi's mother
Adil Hussainas Santosh Patel, Pi's father
Ravi Patel, Pi's older brother: Ayan Khan as Ravi, age 7
Mohamed Abbas Khaleeli as Ravi, age 13/14
Vibish Sivakumar as Ravi, age 18/19
Gérard Depardieuas the Cook
Po-Chieh Wangas the Sailor
Shravanthi Sainath as Anandi, Pi's teenage girlfriend
Andrea Di Stefanoas the Priest
Elie Alouf as Francis "Mamaji", Pi's uncle
Production[edit]
Development[edit]



"I wanted to use water because the film is talking about faith, and it contains fish, life and every emotion for Pi. And air is God, heaven and something spiritual and death. That's how I see it. I believe the thing we call faith or God is our emotional attachment to the unknown. I'm Chinese; I believe in the Taoist Buddha. We don't talk about a deity, which is very much like this book; we're not talking about religion but God in the abstract sense, something to overpower you."
—Ang Lee, on the use of water and the spiritual element of Life of Pi, November 17, 2012.[7]
Life of Piis directed by Ang Leeand based on a screenplay by David Magee. The screenplay is adapted from the 2001 novel of the same name written by Yann Martel. Before Lee, the project had numerous directors and writers attached, and the Los Angeles Timescredited Fox 2000 Picturesexecutive Elizabeth Gabler with keeping the project active.[8]Gabler in February 2003 had acquired the project to adapt Life of Piinto a film. She hired the screenwriter Dean Georgaris to write an adapted screenplay. In the following October, Fox 2000 announced a partnership with M. Night Shyamalanto direct the film. Shyamalan was attracted to the novel particularly because its main character also comes from Pondicherryin India. The partners anticipated for Shyamalan to direct the film adaptation after completing The Village. Shyamalan also replaced Georgaris as the screenwriter, writing a new screenplay for the film.[9]Ultimately, Shyamalan chose to film Lady in the Waterafter The Village, and Fox 2000 Pictures decided to find another director. In March 2005, they entered talks with Alfonso Cuarónto become the director.[10]Shyamalan said in 2006, "I was hesitant [to direct] because the book has kind of a twist ending. And I was concerned that as soon as you put my name on it, everybody would have a different experience."[11]
Cuarón decided to direct Children of Meninstead, and in October 2005, Fox 2000 Pictures hired Jean-Pierre Jeunetto direct the film. Jeunet began writing the adapted screenplay with Guillaume Laurant, and filming was scheduled to begin in mid-2006, partially in India.[12]Jeunet eventually left the project, and in February 2009, Fox 2000 Pictures hired Ang Lee to direct the film.[13]In May 2010, Lee and the producer Gil Netter proposed a reported budget of $120 million, at which the studio balked, placing the project's development on hold for a short time.[8]David Magee was hired to write the screenplay, as Lee began to spend several months looking for someone to cast as Pi.
Lee stated that water was a major inspiration behind making the film in 3-D: "I thought this was a pretty impossible movie to make technically. It's so expensive for what it is. You sort of have to disguise a philosophical book as an adventure story. I thought of 3-D half a year before 'Avatar' was on the screen. I thought water, with its transparency and reflection, the way it comes out to you in 3-D, would create a new theatrical experience and maybe the audience or the studio would open up their minds a little bit to accept something different."[7]Following the premiere of the film, Lee stated that his desire to take risks and chances helped with his direction, saying "In a strange way it did feel like we're the vessels, we have to surrender to movie god. We have to let things happen. I just had this feeling, I'll follow this kid to wherever this movie takes me. I saw the movie start to unravel in front of me."[14]
Pre-production[edit]




Suraj Sharmaplays Pi at age 16.
After 3,000 young men auditioned for the film's lead, in October 2010 Lee chose to cast Suraj Sharma, a 17-year-old student and an acting newcomer.[15]Upon receiving the role, Sharma underwent extensive training in ocean survival, as well as in yoga and meditation practices to prepare for the part.[16]Two months after Sharma was cast, it was announced that Gérard Depardieuwould play the role of the Cook, Irrfan Khanwould play the adult Pi. It was also announced that Adil Hussainwould play Pi's father, while Tabuwas in talks to play the role of Pi’s mother.[17]
In April 2011, it was announced that Tobey Maguirewould be joining the film in the role originally referred to as "a reporter."[18]However, in September 2012, it was announced that Lee had cut Tobey Maguire from the film. Lee justified the cut by stating that he did it "to be consistent with the other casting choices made for the film, I decided to go with an entirely international cast."[19]Like Shahrukh Khan, Lee described Maguire's presence also as "too jarringly recognizable." He reshot the scenes with Rafe Spallin the role later referred to as the Writer.[19]
Production[edit]
Principal photographyfor the film began on January 18, 2011 in Puducherryat the Holy Rosary Church in Muthialpet. Filming continued in Puducherry until January 31 and moved to other parts of India, including the popular hill station of Munnarin Kerala, as well as Taiwan. The crew filmed in Taiwan for five and a half months in Taipei Zoo, an airport in Taichung, and Kenting National Park, located in Pingtung Countywhere Lee was born.[20][21]The ocean scenes of the film were shot at a giant wave tank built by the crew in an abandoned airport.[22]The tank is known as the world’s largest self-generating wave tank, with a capacity of 1.7 million gallons.[23]With production scheduled to last two and a half months at the tank, cinematographer Claudio Mirandaassisted in the tank's design in order to get the most out of it for lighting, explaining, "We knew we were going to be inside there shooting for 2.5 months, so it was worth it to be able to do anything we want. On all these kind of scenes, we had an idea of what the weather would be like. In that tank, I can create storm clouds, nightfall. We had curtains that I can block out [light], doors to open and let in real sunlight,” Miranda says. “So lighting-wise, [the movie] had a big ebb and flow."[24]After photography was completed in Taiwan, production moved back to India and concluded in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.[15]
Post-production[edit]
The lead visual effectscompany for Life of Piwas Rhythm & Hues Studios (R&H). 3D effects for the film were created by a team of R&H artists in Los Angeles, Mumbaiand Hyderabad(India), Kuala Lumpur(Malaysia), Vancouver(Canada), and Kaohsiung(Taiwan).[25][26][27][28][29][30]
The R&H VFX(Visual Effects) Supervisor Bill Westenhofersaid that discussions of the project began with Ang Lee in August 2009.[31][32]Westenhofer noted that Lee "knew we had done the lion in the first Narnia movie. He asked, 'Does a digital character look more or less real in 3D?' We looked at each other and thought that was a pretty good question."[33]He also stated that during these meetings, Lee said, "‘I look forward to making art with you.’ This was really for me one of the most rewarding things I’ve worked on and the first chance to really combine art with VFX. Every shot was artistic exploration, to make the ocean a character and make it interesting we had to strive to make it as visually stunning as possible.”[34]Rhythm & Hues spent a year on research and development, " building upon its already vast knowledge of CG animation" to develop the tiger.[35]The British Film Institute's Sight & Soundmagazine suggested that, "Life of Pican be seen as the film Rhythm & Hues has been building up to all these years, by taking things they learned from each production from Cats & Dogsto Yogi Bear, integrating their animals in different situations and environments, pushing them to do more, and understanding how all of this can succeed both visually and dramatically."[36]
Artist Abdul Rahman in the Malaysian branch underscored the global nature of the effects process, saying that "the special thing about Life of Piis that it was the first time we did something called remote rendering, where we engaged our cloud infrastructure in Taiwan called CAVE (Cloud Animation and Visual Effects)."[37]
Additional visual effects studios that worked on the film include MPC, yU+co, Buf, Crazy Horse Effects, Look Effects, Christov Effects, Lola VFX, Reliance Mediaworks, and Stereo D.[34]
Music[edit]

Life of Pi: Original Motion Picture Soundtrack

Soundtrack albumby Mychael Danna

Released
November 19, 2012
Genre
Soundtrack
Length
65:10
Label
Sony Music
Producer
Mychael Danna
Mychael Danna chronology

Moneyball
(2011) Life of Pi
(2012) Devil's Knot
(2013)

The film's musical scorewas composed by Mychael Danna, who previously wrote the music to Lee's films The Ice Stormand Ride with the Devil. A soundtrack albumof the music was released by Sony Musicon November 19, 2012.[38]The album features the track "Pi's Lullaby", which was co-written by Danna and Bombay Jayashri, who performs the song in Tamil.[39]
All music composed by Mychael Danna.

[show]Track listing







  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  
Distribution[edit]
Marketing[edit]
Due to the film's holiday release, Life of Pi's financial success had been under review. Dorothy Pomerantz of Forbessaid, "It looks like chances are very slim that the film will earn back its production and marketing costs let alone turn a profit." Pomerantz attributed this to the fact that film was not led by a big name star and faced other winter blockbusters.[40]John Horn and Ben Fritz of The Los Angeles Timescompared the film to Martin Scorsese's Hugo, a large-budget 3D film that opened during the 2011 Thanksgiving week. They said that Life of Picould have ended up like Hugoby "failing to connect with moviegoers" and become a "financial failure."[41]Similar speculation had been made by other news sources.[42][43]
Whether or not Hurricane Sandywould affect the film's publicity was also a question. Because the film includes a massive storm, it was speculated that the recent storm might result in lower box office revenue due to the unintentional overtones of Sandy's devastation. A Fox spokesperson made note that there were no plans to change the film’s marketing approach.[44]
During the marketing campaign for Life of Pi, the film was promoted as "the next Avatar" in trailersand TV spots.[45]James Cameron, the director of Avatar, later became the subject of two featurettes that focus on the film's 3D and computer-generated imagery.[46]In addition, the original novel was re-released in a movie tie-in edition.[47]This was later followed by the release of The Making of Life of Pi: A Film, a Journey, a book by Jean-Christophe Castelli that details how Life of Piwas brought to the big screen.[48]
Theatrical release[edit]
Life of Pihad a wide releasein the United States on November 21, 2012 in both traditional and 3Dviewing formats. It was originally scheduled to be released on December 14, 2012, but when The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journeywas announced for the same release date, Life of Piwas postponed a week. It was then shifted a month in advance.[49]
Home media[edit]
Life of Piwas released on DVD, Blu-ray, and Blu-ray 3D in North America, on March 12, 2013.[50]The film's 2D Blu-ray release contains many special features, including a one-hour making-of special entitled A Filmmaker's Epic Journey, two featurettes focusing on the film's visual effects, as well as two behind-the-scene looks at storyboardingand pre-productionartwork. In addition, the film's 3D Blu-ray release contains five deleted scenes and a featurette entitled VFX Progressionsthat takes a look at what was shot and how it evolved to be what was rendered on screen.[51]
Reception[edit]
Box office[edit]
As of May 8, 2013, Life of Pihas grossed $124,772,844 in North America, and $484,029,542 in other countries, for a worldwide total of $609,006,177.[4]During its opening on the extended Thanksgiving weekend, the film debuted in 2,902 theaters throughout the United States and Canada and grossed $30,573,101.[52]The film did well internationally and is one of the few Hollywood films to earn more in China than in the United States.[53]On the Chinese mainland, from November 22 to December 24,[54]the film topped the box office for three weeks,[55]and grossed over $91 million.[56]As of January 24, 2013, it had also topped the box office for three weeks in Australia,[57]Chile,[58]and four weeks in Mexico[59]and Peru.[60]The film became the biggest Hollywood hit of the year in India[61][62]and is also estimated to be the third-highest grossing Hollywood release of all time in the country behind Avatarand 2012.[63]Life of Pihas earned HK$45,058,653 (US$5.8 million) at the Hong Kong box office, making it the highest grossing Ang Lee film in Hong Kong.[64]
Critical reception[edit]
Life of Pireceived widespread critical acclaim. It has an 88% approval rating on the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoesbased on 213 reviews.[65]On Metacritic, the film has an average score of 79 out of 100, based on 44 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews."[66]
Roger Ebertof the Chicago Sun-Timesgave Life of Pi4 out of 4 stars, referring to it as "a miraculous achievement of storytelling and a landmark of visual mastery" as well as "one of the best films of the year." He particularly praised the film's use of 3D that he described as "deepen[ing] the film's sense of places and events."[67]Comparatively, Peter Traversof Rolling Stonehighlighted the use of 3D in the film suggesting that "like Hugo, from Martin Scorsese, Life of Piputs 3D in the hands of a worldclass film artist. (Ang) Lee uses 3D with the delicacy and lyricism of a poet. You don't just watch this movie, you live it."[68]Parmita Borah of Eastern Faresays, "There is this one scene in particular where the entire ocean is covered with jelly fishes which makes you feel like 'this is what heaven must look like'."[69]
The Los Angeles Timescritic Betsy Sharkey referred to the film as a "masterpiece," stating that

"There is always a poetic aesthetic that Lee brings to his best work – the brutal martial arts ballet of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragonor the homophobic hatred against the backcountry grandeur of Brokeback Mountain,which would win him an Oscar for directing in 2006. In Life of Pi,certainly given its technological achievements, the filmmaker has raised the bar. Not since James Cameron's breathtaking blue Avatarin 2009 has 3-D had such impact."[70]
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, renowned director James Cameronhighlighted the use of 3D in the film stating that

"Life of Pibreaks the paradigm that 3-D has to be some big, action fantasy spectacle, superhero movie [....] The movie is visually amazing, inventive, and it works on you in ways you’re not really aware of. It takes you on a journey, and unless you’ve read the book – which I hadn’t – you have no idea where that journey is going. It does what good 3-D is supposed to do, which is, it allows you to forget you’re watching a 3-D movie."[71]
According to French journalist Marjolaine Gout, the movie is "a philosophical tale where Noah’s Arkmetamorphoses into 'The Raft of the Medusa'". She adds that it is "a visual masterpiece" in which "Ang Lee proves, once again, his talent as a universal storyteller". She also writes about the visual poetry of the movie reminding viewers of the works of classical painters and the symbolic of kolams. The film got 8 out of 10 stars, the readers gave 7 stars.[72]
Yann Martel, the author of the novel on which the film is based, found the film to be a "delightful" adaptation, saying,

"I’m happy it works so well as a film. Even if the ending is not as ambiguous as the book’s, the possibility that there might be another version of Pi’s story comes at you unexpectedly and raises the same important questions about truth, perception and belief."[73]
A. O. Scottof the The New York Timeswas critical of the film's narrative frame, arguing that "the movie invites you to believe in all kinds of marvelous things, but it also may cause you to doubt what you see with your own eyes – or even to wonder if, in the end, you have seen anything at all." Scott further criticized the film for repressing the darker themes of the tale.[74]Nick Schager of The Village Voicealso panned the film stating "A stacked-deck theological inquiry filtered through a Titanic-by-way-of–Slumdog Millionairenarrative, Life of Pi manages occasional spiritual wonder through its 3-D visuals but otherwise sinks like a stone."[75]Peter Bradshawof The Guardiangave the film 2 out of 5 stars, and states "despite some lovely images and those eyepopping effects, it is a shallow and self-important shaggy-dog story – or shaggy-tiger story [....] It deserves every technical prize going."[76]
Richard Corlissof Timeselected the film as the third-best movie of 2012, as well as calling it the next "Avatar."[77]
In an interview with People, President Barack Obamasaid the film "was good – because we (he and his daughter Sasha) had read that book together."[78]
The film has been described as containing a "subtle, artistic warning" about the dangers of increased anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissionsand ocean acidification, the acidic island Pi and Richard Parker encounter being compared to Castello Aragonesein the Tyrrhenian Seanear Naplesand Richard Parker's final dismissive departure representing the "not too pleasant face of Gaia (see Gaia hypothesis)."[79]
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Anne Hathawaysaid the film is one of her "favorite films of all time".[80]
M. Night Shyamalan, who was originally approached to adapt the novel into a movie, praised Ang Lee's "wonderful job" but acknowledged he would have done it differently:

"Though Lee did a wonderful job, I think my film would have been different from his version. Different perspectives, I guess. When I was approached to do the film, I wanted more time. The production house wanted me to do it right away, but I’m sure they had their reasons. It took them six years to find another director."[81]
Controversies[edit]
Despite the Oscar for Best Visual Effects at the 2013 Academy Awards, Rhythm & Hues Studios(who provided most of the visual effects for the film) was forced to file for bankruptcy on February 11, 2013, citing unfair competition from subsidized and tax exempt foreign studios.[82]This sparked a demonstration of nearly 500 VFX artists who protested outside of the 2013 Academy Awards.[83]Inside, during the Oscars, when R&H visual effects supervisor Bill Westenhoferbrought up R&H during his acceptance speech for Life of Pi,the microphone was cut off.[84]This started an uproar among many visual effects industry professionals, changing profile pictures on social media such as Facebook and Twitter to show the green key colour, in order to raise awareness for what is happening to the effects industry.[85]In addition, director Ang Leewas criticized by the protest leader for his failure to thank the effect industry, "Ang thanked the crew, the actors, his agent, his lawyer and the entire country of Taiwan right down to the team that built the wave-pool on the soundstage where Pi was shot. But failed to mention hundreds of artists who made not only the main character of the tiger, but replaced that pool, making it look like a real ocean for 80% of his movie."[86]He was also criticized for earlier complaining about the costs of visual effects.[86][87]
A trust named after Carnatic musicianIrayimman Thampihas accused Bombay Jayashri's Oscar-nominated song "Pi's Lullaby" of not being an original composition.[88]The trust has alleged that the first eight lines of the song is a word-by-word translation of composer Thampi's renowned lullaby in Malayalam Omanathinkal Kidavo. Jayashri has denied the allegation.[88][88][89][90]
The New York Times reported in 2002 on the similarities between the book by Yann Martelon which the film is based and Max and the Cats, by Brazilian writer Moacyr Scliar, published in 1981. The book tells the tale of "a Jewish youth who survives a shipwreck and ends up sharing a lifeboat with a panther."[citation needed]
Accolades[edit]
Main article: List of accolades received by Life of Pi
Life of Piwas nominated for eleven Academy Awardsand won four (more than any other film from 2012): Best Director(Ang Lee), Best Cinematography(Claudio Miranda), Best Visual Effects(Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Rocheron, Erik-Jan de Boerand Donald R. Elliott) and Best Original Score(Mychael Danna).[91][92]It was nominated for three Golden Globe Awardsand won for Best Original Score. The film also won awards for cinematography, film editing, sound effects and original score at several other awards ceremonies. In addition to the academy award, Ang Lee won best director awards from the Kansas City, Las Vegas, and LondonFilm Critics. The film was awarded the Best Pictureaward by the Las Vegas Film Critics Society and was named one of the top ten films of the year by the New York Film Critics and the Southeastern Film Critics.
See also[edit]


United States film.svgFilm in the United States portal
Taiwan-icon.svgTaiwan portal
Flag of the United Kingdom.svgUnited Kingdom portal
Iphone4sblacksideview1.png2010s portal


Survival film, about the film genre, with a list of related films
References[edit]
1.Jump up ^"Life of Pi - The Hollywood Reporter". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
2.Jump up ^"LIFE OF PI(PG)". British Board of Film Classification. November 9, 2012. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
3.Jump up ^"Life of Pi". AFI. Retrieved December 15, 2013.
4.^ Jump up to: abc"Life of Pi". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 6, 2013.
5.Jump up ^Scott, A. O. (September 27, 2012). "A Festival Whose Age Is Just a Number". The New York Times. Retrieved January 12, 2013.
6.Jump up ^Brooks, Xan (February 25, 2013). "Ang Lee wins best director Oscar for Life of Pi". theguardian.com. Retrieved October 17, 2013.
7.^ Jump up to: abEbert, Roger (November 17, 2012). "Ang Lee: Of water and Pi". Chicago Sun-Times.
8.^ Jump up to: abZeitchik, Steven; Horn, John (May 27, 2010). "'Life of Pi' suffers another blow". Los Angeles Times.
9.Jump up ^Brodesser, Claude; McNary, Dave (October 8, 2003). "'Pi' in sky at Fox 2000". Variety.
10.Jump up ^Brodesser, Claude (March 31, 2005). "Inside Move: New baker for Fox's 'Pi'". Variety.
11.Jump up ^Schwartz, Missy (May 3, 2006). "'Water' Bearer". Entertainment Weekly.
12.Jump up ^Fleming, Michael (October 23, 2005). "Jeunet gets piece of 'Pi'". Variety.
13.Jump up ^Fleming, Michael (February 17, 2009). "Ang Lee circles 'Life of Pi' film". Variety.
14.Jump up ^"BEST NEWS: Ang Lee surrenders to 'Movie Gods'". CNN. December 21, 2012. Retrieved March 10, 2013.
15.^ Jump up to: abMcClintock, Pamela (October 25, 2010). "Indian teen newcomer gets 'Life of Pi' lead". Variety.
16.Jump up ^Patches, Matt (November 22, 2012). "'Life of Pi' Newcomer Suraj Sharma Reveals Ang Lee's Acting Boot Camp". Hollywood.com. Archived from the originalon January 25, 2013. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
17.Jump up ^Fischer, Russ (December 8, 2010). "Gerard Depardieu and Irrfan Khan Cast in Ang Lee’s ‘Life of Pi’". Slash Film. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
18.Jump up ^Kit, Borys (April 8, 2011). "Tobey Maguire Joins 'Life of Pi' Cast". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
19.^ Jump up to: abGeorge Wales (September 6, 2012). "Tobey Maguire cut from Ang Lee’s Life of Pi". Total Film. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
20.Jump up ^李安30億打造《奇幻漂流》 掐預算導演兼伙夫, Apple Daily (Taiwan), November 20, 2012
21.Jump up ^"Ang Lee begins shooting in Pondy, Life of Pi' comes alive". The Times of India. January 19, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
22.Jump up ^Caro, Mark (November 16, 2012). "A perilous journey for 'Life of Pi' director Ang Lee". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 22, 2012.
23.Jump up ^"About Life of Pi". News Desk. The Express Tribune. November 20, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
24.Jump up ^Bierly, Mandi (February 24, 2013). "Oscar-nominated cinematographers explain how they envelop you in the story". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved February 24, 2013.
25.Jump up ^A Glimpse of Rhythm & Hues (Asian Facilities) Work on Ang Lee's Masterpiece, 'Life of Pi.' "
26.Jump up ^Making of Life of Pi: In Conversation with R&H
27.Jump up ^Rhythm & Hues Taps NVIDIA Technology for Life of Pi. Animation World Network, November 26, 2012
28.Jump up ^A First Mate Bares His Fangs: Creating a Tiger for ‘Life of Pi’. New York Times, November 16, 2012
29.Jump up ^Rhythm & Hues Makes Skies Soar, Computer Graphics World,November 27, 2012
30.Jump up ^Malaysian team behind special effects for Life of Pi and Snow White movies
31.Jump up ^'Life of Pi's' digital magic. The Los Angeles Times, January 18, 2013
32.Jump up ^EXCLUSIVE: Life of Pi's Stunning Effects. The Daily (News Corporation), November 26, 2012
33.Jump up ^How "Life of Pi" animators visualized Ang Lee's blank slate. Chicago Tribune, December 12, 2012
34.^ Jump up to: ab"Life of Pi: a tiger’s tale", Fxguide, November 26, 2012
35.Jump up ^Vfx team dares to take tiger by the tail. Variety (magazine), December 15, 2012
36.Jump up ^Video essay: The animal menagerie of Rhythm and Hues," British Film Institute's Sight & Soundmagazine, December 21, 2012
37.Jump up ^"Local touch to Life Of Pi", New Straits Times, November 26, 2012
38.Jump up ^"‘Life of Pi’ Soundtrack Details". Film Music Reporter. October 14, 2012. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
39.Jump up ^"Original Motion Picture Soundtrack of Life of Pi Available November 19, 2012". Sony Music. KOTA News. October 25, 2012. Retrieved November 22, 2012.
40.Jump up ^Pomerantz, Dorothy (November 21, 2012). "Why I Hope 'Life of Pi' Will Succeed at the Box Office (Even Though I Know It Won't)". Forbes. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
41.Jump up ^Horn, John; Fritz, Ben (November 19, 2012). "'Life of Pi' a huge gamble for 20th Century Fox". LA Times. Retrieved November 20, 2012.
42.Jump up ^Cunningham, Todd (November 20, 2012). ""Life of Pi" and "Rise of Guardians" Debut, but It's Still "Twilight" Time at Box Office". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
43.Jump up ^Smith, Grady (November 21, 2012). "Box office preview: 'Breaking Dawn' headed for Thanksgiving win". Entertainment Weekly(CNN). Retrieved November 21, 2012.
44.Jump up ^Zeitchik, Steven (October 30, 2012). "Hurricane Sandy: 'Life of Pi's' unfortunate coincidence". LA Times. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
45.Jump up ^Subers, Ray (November 21, 2012). "Forecast: 'Guardians,' 'Pi' Target Family Audiences Over Thanksgiving". IMDB. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 22, 2012.
46.Jump up ^Chitwood, Adam (November 16, 2012). "Two New Featurettes for Ang Lee’s LIFE OF PI Focus on the 3D and Creating a CG Tiger". Collider.com. Retrieved November 23, 2012.
47.Jump up ^Ahearn, Victoria (November 23, 2012). "Man Booker judges still proud of honouring Yann Martel’s Life of Pi". The Canadian Press. Calgary Herald. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
48.Jump up ^The Making of Life of Pi: A Film, a Journey. Google Books. October 30, 2012. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
49.Jump up ^McClintock, Pamela (June 1, 2011). "'Life of Pi' Moves Back One Week to Avoid 'Hobbit' Film". The Hollywood Reporter.
50.Jump up ^Life of Pi Blu-ray and DVD, January 29, 2013
51.Jump up ^Broadwater, Casey (March 8, 2013). "Life of Pi 3D Blu-ray Review: The Rime of the South-Asian Mariner". Blu-ray.com. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
52.Jump up ^"Weekend Box Office Results for Thanksgiving, November 21–25, 2012". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
53.Jump up ^"'Life of Pi' is second Hollywood film to gross more in China than U.S. – latimes.com". December 16, 2012.
54.Jump up ^"少年派下线 国内票房5.7亿". ent.qq.com. December 26, 2012. Retrieved December 26, 2012.
55.Jump up ^"少年派三连冠破四亿". news.mtime.com. December 11, 2012. Retrieved December 11, 2012.
56.Jump up ^"Box Office Milestone: 'Life of Pi' Crosses $500 Million Worldwide". hollywoodreporter.com. January 24, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
57.Jump up ^"Australia Box Office Index". Box Office Mojo. January 24, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
58.Jump up ^"Chile Box Office Index". Box Office Mojo. January 24, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
59.Jump up ^"Mexico Box Office Index". Box Office Mojo. January 24, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
60.Jump up ^"Peru Box Office Index". Box Office Mojo. January 24, 2013. Retrieved January 24, 2013.
61.Jump up ^Bhushan, Nyay (January 11, 2013). "'Life of Pi' Becomes 2012's Highest-Grossing Hollywood Release in India". hollywoodreporter. Retrieved January 11, 2013.
62.Jump up ^"Ang Lee's LIFE OF PI top Hollywood Grosser of 2012 in India". bollywoodtrade.com. January 11, 2013. Retrieved January 11, 2013.
63.Jump up ^"'Life of Pi' Becomes 2012's Highest-Grossing Hollywood Release in India". Retrieved March 9, 2013.
64.Jump up ^"Life of Pi Hong Kong Box Office". HK Neo Reviews. February 24, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
65.Jump up ^"Life of Pi". Rotten Tomatoes. Flixter. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
66.Jump up ^"Life of Pi Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved January 12, 2013.
67.Jump up ^Ebert, Roger (November 20, 2012). "Life of Pi". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
68.Jump up ^Travers, Peter (November 20, 2012). "Life of Pi". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
69.Jump up ^Borah, Parmita. "Life of Pi – a fascinating story". EF News International. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
70.Jump up ^Sharkey, Betsy (November 20, 2012). "Review: 'Life of Pi' is a masterpiece by Ang Lee". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 24, 2012.
71.Jump up ^"James Cameron: 'Life of Pi' 'breaks the paradigm' of 3-D movies". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved November 2, 2012.
72.Jump up ^Gout, Marjolaine. "Review: 'Life of Pi' by Ang Lee". Ecran Large. Retrieved November 28, 2012.
73.Jump up ^Quill, Greg (November 23, 2012). "Yann Martel on Life of Pi: Author gives 3D movie by Ang Lee thumbs up". Toronto Star. Retrieved November 25, 2012.
74.Jump up ^Scott, A. O. (November 20, 2012). "Plenty of Gods, but Just One Fellow Passenger". The New York Times. Retrieved January 12, 2013.
75.Jump up ^Schager, Nick (November 23, 2012). "Life of Pi Is the Story of How Important Life of Pi Is". The Village Voice. Retrieved November 21, 2012.
76.Jump up ^Bradshw, Peter (December 20, 2012). "Life of Pi – review". The Guardian.
77.Jump up ^Corliss, Richard (Top 10 Movies of 2012). "Top 10 Movies of 2012". TIME. Retrieved December 4, 2012.
78.Jump up ^"2012 – The White House Interview". People Magazine. Retrieved December 31, 2012.
79.Jump up ^Thomas Faunce "Life of Pi's Acidic Island a Warning of Our Warming World. The Conversation. January 27, 2013 http://theconversation.edu.au/life-of-pis-acidic-island-a-warning-for-our-warming-world-11599(accessed Jan 27, 2013).
80.Jump up ^"Twitter / WSJ: Anne Hathaway on Life of Pi:". Twitter.com. January 10, 2013. Retrieved March 3, 2013.
81.Jump up ^Samarth Goyal (May 26, 2013). "I would’ve made a different Life of Pi: M Night Shyamalan". Hindustan Times. Retrieved May 28, 2013.
82.Jump up ^Hart, Elly (February 28, 2013). "Life In The Movie Business: An Inside Look At The VFX Crisis". Gizmodo Australia. Retrieved March 5, 2013.
83.Jump up ^[VFX protest at Oscars: images from the picket line + audio interview http://www.fxguide.com/quicktakes/visualeffectsprotestatoscars/]
84.Jump up ^Hartlaub, Peter (February 25, 2013). "Biggest Oscars snub: A shark attack on the VFX industry | The Big Event | an SFGate.com blog". Blog.sfgate.com. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
85.Jump up ^McWeeny, Drew (February 25, 2013). "The visual effects community sees red in the wake of Oscar protest and on-air snub". Hitfix.com. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
86.^ Jump up to: ab"Ang Lee under fire from visual effects artists over Life of Pi speech". The Guardian.
87.Jump up ^"Oscars 2013: VFX Artists Blast 'Disgraceful' TV Moments". The Hollywood Reporter.
88.^ Jump up to: abcA Case of two lullabies, Business Standard dated March 16, 2013. http://www.business-standard.com/article/beyond-business/a-case-of-two-lullabies-113031500573_1.html
89.Jump up ^Life of Pi: Is Bombay Jayashri's Oscar nominated song 'Pi's Lullaby' not original?
90.Jump up ^Irayimman Thampi Trust alleges plagiarism
91.Jump up ^"Oscars – The Nominees". The Academy Awards of Motion Pictures and the Arts. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
92.Jump up ^"Oscars 2013: the full list of winners". London: The Guardian. February 25, 2013. Retrieved February 28, 2013.
External links[edit]
 Wikimedia Commons has media related to Life of Pi (film).
 Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Life of Pi (film)
Official website
Life of Piat the Internet Movie Database
Life of Piat allmovie
Life of Piat Rotten Tomatoes
Life of Piat Metacritic
Life of Piat Box Office Mojo


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Pushing Hands (film)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search


Pushing Hands
Pushing hand.JPG
Movie poster

Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
Hsu Li Kong
executive producer
 Liu Yiming
 Ted Hope
 James Schamus
 Ang Lee
Written by
Ang Lee
James Schamus
Starring
Sihung Lung
 Deb Snyder
 Bo Z. Wang
Cinematography
Lin Jong
Editing by
Ang Lee
Tim Squyres
Release dates
1992
Running time
105 min
Country
Taiwan, Republic of China
Language
Mandarin Chinese, English
Pushing Hands (Chinese: 推手; pinyin: tuī shǒu) is a film directed by Ang Lee. Released in 1992, it was his first feature film. Together with Ang Lee's two following films, The Wedding Banquet (1993) and Eat Drink Man Woman (1994), it forms his "Father Knows Best" trilogy, each of which deals with conflicts between an older and more traditional generation and their children as they confront a world of change.
The film was first released in Taiwan. After The Wedding Banquet and Eat Drink Man Woman became successful in the United States, Pushing Hands received a U.S. release.[1]


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Title
3 Filming style
4 Characters
5 References
6 Notes
7 External links

Plot[edit]
The story is about an elderly Chinese t'ai chi ch'uan teacher and grandfather who emigrates from Beijing to live with his son, American daughter-in-law, and grandson in a New York City suburb. The grandfather is increasingly distanced from the family as a "fish out of water" in Western culture. The film shows the contrast between traditional Chinese ideas of Confucian relationships within a family and the much more informal Western emphasis on the individual. The friction in the family caused by these differing expectations eventually leads to the grandfather moving out of the family home (something very alien to traditional expectations), and in the process he learns lessons (some comical, some poignant) about how he must adapt to his new surroundings before he comes to terms with his new life.
Title[edit]
The title of the film refers to the pushing hands training that is part of the grandfather's t'ai chi routine. Pushing hands is a two person training which teaches t'ai chi students to yield in the face of brute force. T'ai chi ch'uan teachers were persecuted in China during the Cultural Revolution, and the grandfather's family was broken up as a result. He sent his son to the West several years earlier and when he could he came to live with his family with the expectation of picking up where they left off, but he was unprepared for the very different atmosphere of the West. "Pushing Hands" thereby alludes to the process of adaptation to culture shock felt by a traditional teacher in moving to the United States.
Filming style[edit]
Donald Lyons wrote that in the film the director Ang Lee "a mastery of the visual dynamics of interior spaces and their psychic pressures."[2]
Characters[edit]
Alex Chu (T: 朱曉生, S: 朱晓生, P: Zhū Xiǎoshēng) - Bo Z. Wang (C: 王伯昭, P: Wáng Bózhāo) Alex acts as an interpreter between Mr. Chu and Martha, but he deliberately mis-translates to reduce tensions between the two parties.[3] When his father runs away from home, he trashes his house kitchen.[4]
Mr. Chu (C: 朱老, P: Zhū-lǎo) - Sihung Lung Mr. Chu is a T'ai chi ch'uan master who travels to the United States.[2] During the Cultural Revolution a group attacked his family instead of him because he was a T'ai chi ch'uan master and they feared challenging him. Mr. Chu protected Alex but his wife was fatally injured.[5]
Martha Chu (T: 瑪莎, S: 玛莎, P: Mǎshā) - Deb Snyder Martha is Alex's European American wife. Martha, who does not speak or understand Chinese, has conflicts with Mr. Chu being in the household since she cannot participate within her own family when he speaks Chinese.[2] Martha asks Alex to borrow money from her mother so he could buy a larger house that could accommodate his Chinese aspects separately. Alex refuses to do so, frustrating Martha.[6]
Jeremy Chu (C: 吉米, P: Jímǐ) - Haan Lee (C: 李 涵, P: Lǐ Hán)
Linda (T: 琳達, C: 琳达, P: Líndá) - Fanny De Luz
Mrs. Chen (T: 陳太太, S: 陈太太, P: Chén-tàitai) - Wang Lai (T: 王 萊, S: 王 莱, P: Wáng Lái) Mrs. Chen is a widow who is a cooking instructor at the area Chinese Community Center. Mr. Chu befriends her and goes on a picnic with her family and Alex, but without Martha. Wei Ming Dariotis and Eileen Fung, authors of "Breaking the Soy Sauce Jar: Diaspora and Displacement in the Films of Ang Lee", wrote that it seems like, with the absence of Martha, there is no tension.[5] The groups go hiking, but the elderly lag behind. Mrs. Chen then has a breakdown and admits to the elder Mr. Chu that her daughter does not want her to be around anymore.[5]

References[edit]
Dariotis, Wei Ming and Eileen Fung. "Breaking the Soy Sauce Jar: Diaspora and Displacement in the Films of Ang Lee." in: Lu, Sheldon Hsiao-peng (Xiaopeng) (editor). Transnational Chinese Cinemas: Identity, Nationhood, Gender. University of Hawaii Press, January 1, 1997. ISBN 0824818458, 9780824818456.
Notes[edit]
1.Jump up ^ Dariotis and Fung, p. 193.
2.^ Jump up to: a b c Dariotis and Fung, p. 193.
3.Jump up ^ Dariotis and Fung, p. 193-194.
4.Jump up ^ Dariotis and Fung, p. 194.
5.^ Jump up to: a b c Dariotis and Fung, p. 196.
6.Jump up ^ Dariotis and Fung, p. 195.
External links[edit]

Portal icon Taiwan portal
Portal icon Film portal
Portal icon 1990s portal
Pushing Hands at the Internet Movie Database


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Films directed by Ang Lee


Pushing Hands (1992) ·
 The Wedding Banquet (1993) ·
 Eat Drink Man Woman (1994) ·
 Sense and Sensibility (1995) ·
 The Ice Storm (1997) ·
 Ride with the Devil (1999) ·
 Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) ·
 Hulk (2003) ·
 Brokeback Mountain (2005) ·
 Lust, Caution (2007) ·
 Taking Woodstock (2009) ·
 Life of Pi (2012)
 

 


Categories: 1992 films
1990s drama films
Films directed by Ang Lee
Directorial debut films
Asian-American films




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Eat Drink Man Woman
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search


Eat Drink Man Woman
Eat Drink Man Woman.jpg
DVD cover


Traditional
飲食男女
Simplified
饮食男女
Mandarin
yǐn shí nán nǚ
Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
Hsu Li Kong
 Hsu Kong
Written by
Ang Lee
James Schamus
Hui-Ling Wang
Starring
Sihung Lung[N 1]
Yu-wen Wang
Chien-lien Wu
Kuei-mei Yang
Music by
Mader
Cinematography
Lin Jong
Editing by
Ang Lee
Tim Squyres
Release dates
August 3, 1994

Running time
123 minutes
Country
Taiwan
Language
Mandarin
Box office
$7,294,403
Eat Drink Man Woman is a 1994 Taiwanese film directed by Ang Lee and starring Sihung Lung, Yu-wen Wang, Chien-lien Wu, and Kuei-mei Yang.[1] The film was released on August 3, 1994, the first of Lee's films to be both a critical and box office success.[2] In 1994, the film received the Asia Pacific Film Festival Award for Best Film, and in 1995 it received an Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film.[3]
The title is a quote from the Book of Rites, one of the Confucian classics, referring to the basic human desires and accepting them as natural. Many of the cast members had appeared in Ang Lee's previous films. Sihung Lung and Ah Lei Gua played central elderly figures dealing with the transition from tradition to modernity in The Wedding Banquet, in which Winston Chao also starred. Sihung Lung played an immigrant father in Pushing Hands. These three films show the tensions between the generations of a Confucian family, between East and West, and between tradition and modernity. They form what has been called Lee's "Father Knows Best" trilogy.[4]


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Development
3 Cast
4 Reception 4.1 Critical response
4.2 Influence
4.3 Awards
5 References
6 External links

Plot[edit]
The setting is 1990s contemporary Taipei, Taiwan. Mr. Chu (C: 老朱, P: Lǎo Zhū "Old Chu"; Sihung Lung), a widower who is master Chinese chef, has three unmarried daughters, each of whom challenges any narrow definition of traditional Chinese culture:
Chu Jia-Jen (C: 朱家珍, P: Zhū Jiāzhēn), the oldest one (Kuei-Mei Yang), is a school teacher nursing a broken heart who converted to Christianity.
Chu Jia-Chien (C: 朱家倩, P: Zhū Jiāqiàn), the middle one (Chien-lien Wu), is a fiercely independent airline executive who carries her father's culinary legacy, but never got to pursue that passion.
Chu Jia-Ning (T: 朱家寧, S: 朱家宁, Zhū Jiāníng), the youngest one (Yu-Wen Wang), is a college student who meets her friend's on-again off-again ex-boyfriend and starts a relationship with him.
Each Sunday Mr. Chu makes a glorious banquet for his daughters, but the dinner table is also the family forum, or perhaps “torture chamber,” to which each daughter brings “announcements” as they negotiate the transition from traditional “father knows best” style to a new tradition which encompasses old values in new forms.
Other characters include:
Uncle Wen (T: 老溫, S: 老温, P: Lǎo Wēn "Old Wen"), chef friend of Mr. Chu
Liang Jin-Rong (T: 梁錦榮, S: 梁锦荣, P: Liáng Jǐnróng), a young single-mother
Shan-Shan (C: 珊珊 Shānshān), Jin-Rong’s daughter
Mrs. Liang (C: 梁母, P: Liáng-mǔ "Liang Mother"), Jin-Rong’s mother, who comes to live with her
Li Kai (T: 李 凱, S: 李 凯, P: Lǐ Kǎi), an up-and-coming airline executive
Raymond (C: 雷蒙), Jia-Chien’s ex-lover, with privileges
Zhou Mingdao (C: 明道, P: Míngdào), volleyball coach with a motor bike
Guo Lun (T: 國 倫, S: 国 伦, P: Guó Lún), ex-boyfriend of Jia-Ning's friend
As the film progresses, each daughter encounters new men. When these new relationships blossom, their roles are broken and the living situation within the family changes. The father eventually brings the greatest surprise to the audience at the end of the story.
Development[edit]
Ang Lee, James Schamus, and Hui-Ling Wang wrote the script.[5]
Cast[edit]
Sihung Lung as Chu
Kuei-Mei Yang as Jia-Jen Jia-Chien believes that Li Kai broke the heart of her older sister Jia-Jen, and Dariotis and Fung wrote that the event seems to have caused Ji-Jen to turn away from the world.[6] Later in film it is revealed that Jia-Jen fabricated the story, in order to "create a barrier against intimacy—even with her family" according to Dariotis and Fung.[6] Ultimately she marries a new boyfriend after being abstinent for nine years. Her family members seem puzzled when they realize he is not a Christian but Jia-Chien says "He will be."[5]
Wei Ming Dariotis and Eileen Fung, authors of "Breaking the Soy Sauce Jar: Diaspora and Displacement in the Films of Ang Lee", wrote that Jia-Jen's story is that of a "spinster turned sensual woman".[6] They wrote that her Christianity was there "perhaps to match her role as a mother-figure". She suspects Jia-Chien of disapproving of her moral system.[6] Dariotis and Fung wrote that after Jia-Chien states that she needs not a mother but sister, Jia-Jen "is able to become who she really is with all the complexity that entails" rather than being someone she believed her family needed, with "who she really is" being "a modern, conservative, Christian, sexually aggressive Taiwanese woman".[6] Desson Howe of the Washington Post wrote that of the actresses, Yang was the "most memorable".[5]
Dariotis and Fung argue that Jia-Jen's story, along with Jia-Ning's, is "not only flat but also dangerously uncomplicated."[6]
Chien-lien Wu as Jia-Chien Jia-Chien is sexually liberated. She suspects Jia-Jen of disapproving of her moral system. Dariotis and Fung wrote that the film's main focus is on the relationship between Jia-Chien and her father.[6]
Chien-lien Wu, who plays Jia-Chien, also portrays Mr. Chu's dead wife. Lizzie Francke wrote that Jia-Chien taking the role of the cook "makes manifest the various needs that bind a family by setting a mother back at the heart of it".[7] Dariotis and Fung wrote that therefore the phrase from Francke has multiple meanings since Jia-Chien takes her father's role of being a chef and therefore "is trying to be the son her father never had" and she takes the role of the mother.[7]
Yu-Wen Wang as Jia-Ning Jia-Ning becomes involved with an on-and-off boyfriend of her friend and gets into a love triangle. She unexpectedly becomes pregnant and goes off to live with her boyfriend. Dariotis and Fung wrote that the Chu family expresses "little ceremony or question" before she leaves to be with Guo Lun.[6]
Dariotis and Fung wrote that Jia-Ning's story is of "naïveté and immature love" and that the love triangle involving her, Guo Lun, and her friend "is in many ways a parody of comic book romance."[6] Dariotis and Fung argue that Jia-Ning's story, along with Jia-Jen's, is "not only flat but also dangerously uncomplicated."[6] They further state that "[t]he lack of inquiry is endemic of this storyline" and that its "superficial treatment" is "quite disturbing."[6]
Sylvia Chang as Jin-Rong
Winston Chao as Li Kai Jia-Chien believes that Li Kai broke the heart of her older sister Jia-Jen, and Dariotis and Fung wrote that the event seems to have caused Ji-Jen to turn away from the world.[6] Later in film it is revealed that Jia-Jen fabricated the story, in order to "create a barrier against intimacy—even with her family" according to Dariotis and Fung.[6]
Chao-jung Chen as Guo Lun Guo Lun reads Fyodor Dostoyevsky's works. In the beginning of the movie his girlfriend, Jia-Ning's friend, keeps standing him up and he complains about the situation.[5] He lives alone in a house because for most of the year his parents are out of Taiwan. Dariotis and Fung wrote that Guo Lun's family is "dysfunctional".[6] Desson Howe of the Washington Post describes him as "mopey".[5] Dariotis and Fung wrote that Guo Lun has "invisible financial resources that no one in the film questions."[6]
Lester Chit-Man Chan as Raymond
Yu Chen as Rachel
Kuei Ya-lei as Madame Liang Howe wrote that Kuei "steals all her scenes."[5]
Chi-Der Hong as Class Leader
Gin-Ming Hsu as Coach Chai
Huel-Yi Lin as Sister Chang
Shih-Jay Lin as Chief's Son
Chin-Cheng Lu as Ming-Dao
Cho-Gin Nei as Airline Secretary
Yu-Chien Tang as Shan-Shan
Chung Ting as Priest
Cheng-Fen Tso as Fast Food Manager
Man-Sheng Tu as Restaurant Manager
Chuen Wang as Chief
Jui Wang as Old Wen
Hwa Wu as Old Man[8]
Reception[edit]
Critical response[edit]
In her review in The New York Times, Janet Maslin praised Ang Lee as "a warmly engaging storyteller." She wrote, "Wonderfully seductive, and nicely knowing about all of its characters' appetites, Eat Drink Man Woman makes for an uncomplicatedly pleasant experience."[9]
In his review in the Washington Post, Hal Hinson called the film a "beautiful balance of elements ... mellow, harmonious and poignantly funny." Hinson concluded:

As the relationships evolve and deepen, there seems to be a surprise around every corner—for both the characters and the audience. But what is most surprising, perhaps, is how involved we become with these people. As satisfying as food can be, the fullness we feel at the end here is far richer and more complex than that offered by the most extravagant meal. “ Eat Drink Man Woman” is a delicacy but also something more—something like food for the heart.[10]
On the aggregate reviewer web site Rotten Tomatoes, the film received a 94% positive rating from top film critics based on 31 reviews, and a 91% positive audience rating based on 13,132 reviews.[2]
Influence[edit]
Tortilla Soup, a 2001 American comedy-drama film directed by Maria Ripoll, is based on Eat Drink Man Woman.
Awards[edit]
1994 Asia Pacific Film Festival Award for Best Film (Ang Lee) Won
1994 Asia Pacific Film Festival Award for Best Editing (Tim Squyres) Won
1995 Academy Award Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film
1994 Golden Horse Film Festival Award Nomination for Best Supporting Actress (Ya-lei Kuei)
1994 National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Award for Best Foreign Language Film Won
1994 National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Award for Top Foreign Films Won
1995 BAFTA Awards Nomination for Best Film not in the English Language
1995 Golden Globe Awards Nomination for Best Foreign Language Film
1995 Independent Spirit Awards Nomination for Best Cinematography (Lin Jong)
1995 Independent Spirit Awards Nomination for Best Director (Ang Lee)
1995 Independent Spirit Awards Nomination for Best Feature (Ted Hope, Li-Kong Hsu, James Schamus)
1995 Independent Spirit Awards Nomination for Best Female Lead (Chien-lien Wu)
1995 Independent Spirit Awards Nomination for Best Male Lead (Sihung Lung)
1995 Independent Spirit Awards Nomination for Best Screenplay (Hui-Ling Wang, James Schamus, Ang Lee)
1995 Kansas City Film Critics Circle Award for Best Foreign Film Won[3]
References[edit]
Notes
1.Jump up ^ Sihung Lung was credited as Lang Hsiung.
Citations
1.Jump up ^ "Eat Drink Man Woman". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
2.^ Jump up to: a b "Eat Drink Man Woman". Rotten Tomaties. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
3.^ Jump up to: a b "Awards for Eat Drink Man Woman". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
4.Jump up ^ Wei Ming Dariotis, Eileen Fung, "Breaking the Soy Sauce Jar: Diaspora and Displacement in the Films of Ang Lee," in Hsiao-peng Lu, ed., Transnational Chinese Cinemas: Identity, Nationhood, Gender (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1997), p. 242.
5.^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Howe, Desson. " ‘Eat Drink Man Woman’." Washington Post. October 19, 1994. Retrieved on November 20, 2013.
6.^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Dariotis and Fung, p. 211.
7.^ Jump up to: a b Dariotis and Fung, p. 212.
8.Jump up ^ "Full cast and crew for Eat Drink Man Woman". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
9.Jump up ^ Maslin, Janet (August 3, 1994). "Film Review: Avoiding Basic Human Desires, or Trying To". The New York Times. Retrieved July 8, 2011.
10.Jump up ^ Hinson, Hal (August 19, 1994). "Eat Drink Man Woman". Washington Post. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
Bibliography
Vick, Tom (2008). Asian Cinema: A Field Guide. New York: Harper Perennial. ISBN 978-0061145858.
Dariotis, Wei Ming and Eileen Fung. "Breaking the Soy Sauce Jar: Diaspora and Displacement in the Films of Ang Lee." in: Lu, Sheldon Hsiao-peng (Xiaopeng) (editor). Transnational Chinese Cinemas: Identity, Nationhood, Gender. University of Hawaii Press, January 1, 1997. ISBN 0824818458, 9780824818456.
External links[edit]

Portal icon Taiwan portal
Portal icon Film portal
Portal icon Food portal
Portal icon 1990s portal
Eat Drink Man Woman at the Internet Movie Database
Eat Drink Man Woman at allmovie
Eat Drink Man Woman at Rotten Tomatoes
Eat Drink Man Woman at Box Office Mojo


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Ride with the Devil (film)
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Ride with the Devil
Rwtdposter2.jpg
Theatrical release poster

Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
James Schamus
Robert F. Colesberry
Ted Hope
Written by
James Schamus
Based on
Woe to Live On
 by Daniel Woodrell
Starring
Tobey Maguire
Skeet Ulrich
Jewel
Jeffrey Wright
Simon Baker
Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Jim Caviezel
Tom Guiry
Jonathan Brandis
Music by
Mychael Danna
Cinematography
Frederick Elmes
Editing by
Tim Squyres
Studio
Universal Pictures
Good Machine
Distributed by
USA Films
Release dates
November 26, 1999

Running time
138 minutes[1]
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$38 million[2]
Box office
$635,096[2]
Ride with the Devil is a 1999 American Civil War film directed by Ang Lee. The storyline was conceived from a screenplay written by James Schamus, based on a book entitled Woe to Live On, by author Daniel Woodrell.
The events portrayed in the novel and film take place in Missouri, amidst escalating guerrilla warfare at the onset of the American Civil War. A loose dramatization of the Lawrence Massacre is depicted. Incorporated in the plot is the character of Jake Roedel, played by Tobey Maguire. Roedel, a Southern militiaman, joins a group of marauders known as the Bushwhackers. The gang attempt to disrupt and marginalize the political activities of Northern Jayhawkers allied with Union soldiers.
The ensemble cast also features Skeet Ulrich, Jeffrey Wright, Jonathan Brandis, Jim Caviezel and musician Jewel.
The film was a co-production between Universal Studios and Good Machine. Theatrically, it was commercially distributed by the USA Films division of Universal. In 2010, The Criterion Collection released a restored high-definition digital transfer for the home media market. Ride with the Devil explores politics, violence and war.[3]
Following its limited release in theaters, the film failed to garner any award nominations for its acting or production merits from accredited film organizations. On November 23, 1999, the original soundtrack was released by the Atlantic Records label. The score was composed and orchestrated by Mychael Danna and Nicholas Dodd. Singer-songwriter Jewel also contributed a musical track from her second studio album Spirit.
Principal photography began on March 25, 1998. Ride with the Devil premiered in theaters nationwide in the United States on November 26, 1999 grossing $635,096. Taking into account its $38 million budget costs, the film was considered a major box office bomb. With its initial foray into the home video market, the widescreen DVD edition featuring the theatrical trailer, scene selections, and production notes, was released in the United States on July 18, 2000.


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Production 3.1 Themes and analysis
3.2 Casting and set design
3.3 Music and soundtrack
4 Marketing 4.1 Novel
5 Release 5.1 Theatrical run
5.2 Home media
6 Reception 6.1 Critical response
6.2 Box office
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

Plot[edit]
Jake Roedel and Jack Bull Chiles are friends in Missouri when the American Civil War breaks out. During the mayhem, Chiles's father is murdered by Kansas Union Jayhawkers. The two men join the First Missouri Irregulars, also known as the Bushwhackers; informal units loyal to Missouri in 1861. They later meet George Clyde and former slave Daniel Holt, whose freedom Clyde has previously granted. The Bushwhackers battle Jayhawkers using guerrilla warfare tactics while trying to evade capture. The men manage to hide out in a coarsely-built shelter on the property of a pro-Confederacy family, the Evanses. A young widow in the household, Sue Lee Shelley, becomes romantically involved with Chiles. When Chiles dies of gangrenous wounds received during a skirmish, Roedel escorts Shelley to a refuge dwelling where another pro-Confederate kindred, the Browns family, reside. Following the collapse and destruction of a makeshift prison holding the female relatives of guerrillas, a complementary clan of Bushwhackers led by William Quantrill plot a revenge attack against the Union and raid Lawrence, Kansas.[3]
In the midst of the offense, a quarrel arises between Roedel and fellow Bushwhacker Pitt Mackeson. Roedel, a German American, was born in Germany but raised by his immigrant father in Missouri. He suffers from periodical anti-German suspicion from other Southerners, because the German population in the state is largely sympathetic to the Union. In an episode of hostility, Mackeson purposely shoots Roedel in the leg shortly after the raid on Lawrence, while retreating from a counterattack by Union forces. The perceived prejudice makes Roedel somewhat sympathetic to the plight faced by Holt, a former slave coping with racism. Meanwhile, Shelley gives birth to Chiles's daughter. Holt and Roedel, both wounded, recover at the same residence that took in Shelley occupied by the Browns folk. Under pressure from the kin who mistakenly think Roedel is the child's father, Roedel marries Shelley in an abrupt wedding. At the close of the war, Roedel gives up being a Bushwhacker and takes his new family to California, while Holt leaves for Texas to find his long lost mother.[3]
Cast[edit]



 Actor Jonathan Rhys Meyers who portrayed Bushwhacker Pitt MackesonTobey Maguire as Jake Roedel
Skeet Ulrich as Jack Bull Chiles
Jewel as Sue Lee Shelley
Jeffrey Wright as Daniel Holt
Simon Baker as George Clyde
Jonathan Rhys Meyers as Pitt Mackeson
Jim Caviezel as Black John Ambrose
Tom Guiry as Riley Crawford
Jonathan Brandis as Cave Wyatt
Mark Ruffalo as Alf Bowden
Tom Wilkinson as Orton Brown
Margo Martindale as Wilma Brown
John Ales as William Quantrill
Celia Weston as Mrs. Clark
Production[edit]
Themes and analysis[edit]



 Illustration of Southern Bushwhackers engaging in the destruction of Lawrence, Kansas in 1863.
The premise is based on the true story of pro-Confederate guerrillas who fought against Union troops under the leadership of William Clarke Quantrill. Associate producer Anne Carey had read and taken a liking to Woodrell's novel and delivered it to director Ang Lee. Lee remarked, "It's dramatic," and described how it related to "young people coming of age in the worst possible time in American history. I liked the theme of self-emancipation."[3] Quantrill gained infamy during the American Civil War for his atrocities against citizens and Union soldiers. He served the Confederacy and perhaps hoped to secure recognition and a high military rank from its leaders. But Quantrill's activities indicated that he fought for plunder and personal revenge.[4] In 1863, Quantrill undertook the great raid that made his name famous in the region. After bringing together over 400 Missouri riders for the Confederate cause in a carefully planned rendezvous on August 21 in Lawrence, Kansas, Quantrill led his men into the town, looting, burning, and executing between 150 and 200 adult males in reprisal for murderous raids conducted by Kansas Jayhawkers and Redleggers in Missouri.[5] In the North, this event became known as the Lawrence Massacre; and was vilified as one of the worst events of the war.[6]
Quantrill and his partisans staged numerous raids into Kansas during the early part of the Civil War. He was quickly labeled as an outlaw by the Union for his attacks. He was involved in several skirmishes with Jayhawkers and eventually was made a Captain in the Confederate Army.[6] Quantrill's men regularly yelled out the phrase 'Osceola'. This referred to an event in Osceola, Missouri where Federal Officer James Henry Lane, had his men burn and loot both Loyal and Confederate sympathizers indiscriminately.[6] Quantrill was later shot in an ambush by Union militia on May 10, 1865 during a raid in Kentucky, and died in a Louisville prison on June 6. However, he quickly became an admired figure of the Civil War from a southern perspective. He was a hero to his supporters in Missouri, and his fame actually assisted several other outlaw figures of the old west.[4][6] As such, in August 1864, a clash occurred by Fort Gibson between Federal troops and remnants of Quantrill's Raiders. During this skirmish, American outlaw Jesse James was deliberately shot in the right lung while attempting to surrender to Union militia.[5] Between 1888 and 1929, members of Quantrill's Raiders gathered to recount their war efforts. Today, there is the "William Clarke Quantrill Society" which was established to dedicate the study of Quantrill, his followers, and their involvement in the Civil War era border wars.[6] Director Lee summarized that Ride with the Devil was "not simply a war movie. It's more about the love and friendships that take place during a war. The film is both big and small, both epic and domestic."[3]
Casting and set design[edit]
The leading actors were required to go through three weeks of boot camp to prepare them for their roles. During shooting, Maguire hesitated under the grueling heat and 16-hour workdays, but pressed on to complete the filming. The actors first trained shooting blank loads, and then live ammunition for action conflict scenes.[3] More than 250 Civil War black-powder pistols were used during the production phase.[3] Over 140 extras played Lawrence residents, and more than 200 Civil War re-enactors were brought in to relay their style of living to the filming sequences.[3]
Principal photography began on March 25, 1998. Filming took place primarily on location in Sibley, Missouri, Kansas City, Kansas and Kansas City, Missouri.[7] Pattonsburg, Missouri also stood in as a primary filming set locale.[3] The set design production team removed telephone poles and utilized truckloads of dirt to cover existing asphalt and concrete.[3] Production designer Mark Friedberg created numerous indoor and outdoor sets of the time period to ensure and maintain historical accuracy.[3]
Music and soundtrack[edit]
The original motion picture music for Ride with the Devil, was released by the Atlantic Records music label on November 23, 1999.[8] The score for the film was orchestrated by Mychael Danna and Nicholas Dodd. Musical artist Jewel contributed vocals to the score with her song What's Simple Is True, from her 1998 album Spirit.[9]

Ride with the Devil: Music from and inspired by the Motion Picture

Film score by Mychael Danna

Released
11/23/1999
Length
53:21
Label
Atlantic Records

Ride with the Devil: Music from and inspired by the Motion Picture

No.
Title
Length

1. "Opening Credits"   3:01
2. "Miss McLeod's Reel"   1:41
3. "Jayhawkers and Bushwhackers"   3:20
4. "Clark Farm Shootout"   3:05
5. "Fireside Letter"   1:50
6. "Sally in the Garden"   1:21
7. "Settling in for Winter"   0:49
8. "Ride to the Evans/Hilltop Letter"   2:10
9. "Sue Lee/Dinner at the Evans"   1:28
10. "The Ambush"   2:52
11. "George Clyde Clears Out"   1:44
12. "Jack Bull's Death"   4:45
13. "Old King Crow"   2:06
14. "Quantrill's Arrival/Ride to Lawrence"   2:37
15. "Sacking Lawrence"   4:05
16. "Don't Think You Are a Good Man"   2:11
17. "Battle and Betrayal"   3:13
18. "Freedom"   2:42
19. "A Chicken at the End of It"   1:36
20. "Finale"   3:09
21. "What's Simple Is True"   3:36
Total length:
 53:21 
Marketing[edit]
Novel[edit]
The basis for the film, Daniel Woodrell's novel Woe to Live On (originally published in 1987) was released as a movie tie-in edition, re-titled Ride With the Devil, by Pocket Books on November 1, 1999. The book dramatizes the events of the American Civil War during the 1860s, as depicted in the film. It expands on the inner-fighting between rebel Bushwhackers and Union Jayhawkers, with civilians caught in the crossfire.[10] The story relates a coming of age experience for Roedel as he emotionally comprehends the losses of his best friend, father and comrades. On a separate front, Roedel expresses love for his best friend's widow, and learns about tolerance from his contact with a reserved black Irregular.
Release[edit]
Theatrical run[edit]
Ride with the Devil made an initial screening on November 24, 1999 in New York City, Kansas City, Missouri and Los Angeles.[11] For most of its limited release, the film fluctuated between 11 and 60 theater screening counts. At its most competitive showing, the filmed ranked in 37th place for the December 17–19 weekend in 1999.[12]
Home media[edit]
Following its cinematic release in theaters, the Region 1 Code widescreen edition of the film was released on DVD in the United States on July 18, 2000. Special features for the DVD include; Jewel music video: "What's Simple Is True", the Theatrical Trailer, Production notes, Cast and filmmakers extra, and a Universal web link.[13] Additionally, a Special Edition DVD was also released by The Criterion Collection on April 27, 2010. Special features include; Two audio commentaries one featuring Lee and producer-screenwriter James Schamus and one featuring Elmes, sound designer Drew Kunin, and production designer Mark Friedberg; a new video interview with star Jeffrey Wright, and a booklet featuring essays by critic Godfrey Cheshire and Edward E. Leslie, author of The Devil Knows How to Ride: the true story of William Clarke Quantrill and his Confederate Raiders.[14]
A restored widescreen hi-definition Blu-ray Disc version of the film was released by The Criterion Collection on April 27, 2010. Special features include; Two audio commentaries, one featuring Lee and producer-screenwriter James Schamus, and one featuring Elmes, sound designer Drew Kunin, and production designer Mark Friedberg; a new video interview with star Jeffrey Wright; and a booklet featuring essays by the critic Godfrey Cheshire and Edward E Leslie, author of The devil knows how to ride: the true story of William Clarke Quantrill and his confederate raiders.[15] A supplemental viewing option for the film in the media format of Video on demand is available as well.[16]
Reception[edit]
Critical response[edit]
Among mainstream critics in the U.S., the film received generally mixed to positive reviews.[17] Rotten Tomatoes reported that 63% of 65 sampled critics gave the film a positive review, with an average score of 6.2 out of 10.[18] At Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average out of 100 to critics' reviews, Ride with the Devil received a score of 69 based on 29 reviews.[17] The film however, failed to receive any honor nominations for its dramatics or visual aspects.
"From a technical perspective, Ride with the Devil is nearly perfect. The attention to detail invested by Lee and his crew shows. From costumes to props, everything has the unmistakable hallmark of authenticity. The only Civil War drama able to boast an equal level of historical accuracy is Gettysburg."
—James Berardinelli, writing in ReelViews[19]
Peter Stack, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, said in outward positive sentiment, "Lee's approach mixes an unsettling grittiness with an appealing, often luminous elegance (thanks to Frederick Elmes' cinematography) in picturing a patch of America at war with itself."[20] Left impressed, Stephen Hunter in The Washington Post, wrote that the film was "terrific" and that it contained the "most terrifying kind of close-in gunplay, with big, pulsing holes blown into human beings for a variety of reasons ranging from the political to the nonsensical."[21] In a mixed to positive review, Stephen Holden of The New York Times, described the film's production aspects as being of "meditative quality and its attention to detail and the rough-hewn textures of 19th-century life are also what keep the story at a distance and make "Ride with the Devil" dramatically skimpy, even though the movie stirs together themes of love, sex, death and war."[22] Wesley Morris of The San Francisco Examiner, commented that Ride with the Devil was "downright hot-blooded in the nameless violence going on west of marquee Civil War battles. Never has this war been filmed with such ragged glory. The boys grasping their rifles look like trigger-happy rock stars of the prairies, so much so that they threaten to transform the film into a great hair movie."[23] In a slightly upbeat conviction, Andrew O'Hehir of Salon.com asserted that "for all its clumsy dialogue and loose plotting, this is historical filmmaking of a high order, both visually and thematically ambitious."[24] Todd McCarthy of Variety, added to the exuberant tone by declaring, "Impressing once again with the diversity of his choices of subject matter and milieu, director Ang Lee has made a brutal but sensitively observed film about the fringes of the Civil War".[25]
The film however, was not without its detractors. Writing for the Chicago Sun-Times, Roger Ebert bluntly noted that the motion picture "does not have conventional rewards or payoffs, does not simplify a complex situation, doesn't punch up the action or the romance simply to entertain. But it is, sad to say, not a very entertaining movie; it's a long slog unless you're fascinated by the undercurrents."[26] In a primarily negative review, Lisa Schwarzbaum writing for Entertainment Weekly, called the film "an oddly unengaging one, not because of any weak performances (even crooning poetess Jewel acquits herself pleasantly in her film debut), but because the waxy yellow buildup of earnest tastefulness (the curse of the Burns school of history) seals off every character from our access."[27] Describing a favorable opinion, Russell Smith of The Austin Chronicle professed the film as exhibiting "unostentatious originality, psychological insight, and stark beauty". While following up, he stressed "There's an odd blend of stylization and extreme realism to this film. The dialogue is stilted, full of archaic $20-words and dime-novel flamboyance — all the more jarring when delivered by these teenaged bumpkin characters."[28]
"It's a film that would inspire useful discussion in a history class, but for ordinary moviegoers, it's slow and forbidding."
—Roger Ebert, writing for the Chicago Sun-Times[26]
James Berardinelli of ReelViews proclaimed Ride with the Devil "takes us away from the big battles of the East and to a place where things are less cleanly defined." He also stated that "As was true almost everywhere else, idealogical gulfs often divided families. This is the terrain into which Lee has ventured, and the resulting motion picture offers yet another effective and affecting portrait of the United States' most important and difficult conflict."[19] In consummate verbiage, David Sterritt writing for The Christian Science Monitor reasoned, "The movie is longer and slower than necessary, but it explores interesting questions of wartime violence, personal integrity, and what it means to come of age in a society ripping apart at the seams."[29] Film critic Steve Simels of TV Guide was consumed with the nature of the subject matter exclaiming, "A nicely ambiguous ending and terrific acting by the mostly young cast mostly makes up for the longeurs, however, and for the record, Jewel acquits herself well in a not particularly demanding role."[30]
Box office[edit]
Ride with the Devil premiered in cinemas on November 26, 1999 in limited release throughout the United States.[2] During that weekend, the film opened in 50th place grossing $64,159 in business showing at 11 locations.[2] The film Toy Story 2 opened in 1st place during that weekend with $57,388,839 in revenue.[31] The film's revenue dropped by almost 20% in its second week of release, earning $51,600. For that particular weekend, the film fell to 53rd place although with an increased theater count showing at 15 theaters.[12] Toy Story 2 remained unchallenged in 1st place with $18,249,880 in box office business.[32] During its final week in release, Ride with the Devil opened in 57th place grossing $39,806.[12] For that weekend period, Stuart Little starring Geena Davis opened in 1st place with $11,214,503 in revenue.[33] Ride with the Devil went on to top out domestically at $635,096 in total ticket sales through a 6-week theatrical run.[2] For 1999 as a whole, the film would cumulatively rank at a box office performance position of 219.[34]
See also[edit]

Portal icon United States portal
Portal icon Film portal
1999 in film
Quantrill's Raiders
Lawrence Massacre
References[edit]
Footnotes
1.Jump up ^ "RIDE WITH THE DEVIL (15)". British Board of Film Classification. 1999-10-20. Retrieved 2012-12-02.
2.^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Ride with the Devil (1999)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
3.^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j k Ang Lee. (1999). Ride with the Devil [Motion picture] Production Notes. United States: Universal Pictures.
4.^ Jump up to: a b "QUANTRILL'S RAIDERS". Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History & Culture. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
5.^ Jump up to: a b Wellman, Paul (1986). A Dynasty of Western Outlaws. University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 0-8032-9709-2.
6.^ Jump up to: a b c d e "William C. Quantrill: Soldier or Murderer?". About.com. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
7.Jump up ^ Ride with the Devil (1999) Movie Details. Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
8.Jump up ^ "Ride with the Devil: Music from and inspired by the Motion Picture". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
9.Jump up ^ "Ride with the Devil (1999) Cast and Credits". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
10.Jump up ^ Woodrell, Daniel (1999). Ride with the Devil. Pocket Books. ISBN 978-0-671-03648-5.
11.Jump up ^ Ride with the Devil (1999) Movie Details. Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
12.^ Jump up to: a b c Domestic Total Gross. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
13.Jump up ^ "Ride with the Devil (1999) - DVD Widescreen". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
14.Jump up ^ "Ride with the Devil DVD - Special Edition)". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
15.Jump up ^ "Ride with the Devil Blu-Ray". Barnes & Noble. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
16.Jump up ^ "Ride with the Devil VOD Format". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
17.^ Jump up to: a b Ride with the Devil. Metacritic. CNET Networks. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
18.Jump up ^ Ride with the Devil (1999). Rotten Tomatoes. IGN Entertainment. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
19.^ Jump up to: a b Berardnelli, James (November 1999). Ride with the Devil. ReelViews. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
20.Jump up ^ Stack, Peter (17 December 1999). Civil War's Toll in Microcosm. San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
21.Jump up ^ Hunter, Stephen (17 December 1999). When Johnny Doesn't Come Marching Home. The Washington Post. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
22.Jump up ^ Holden, Stephen (24 November 1999). Ride With the Devil: Far From Gettysburg, a Heartland Torn Apart. The New York Times. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
23.Jump up ^ Morris, Wesley (17 December 1999). Two new movies use Maguire as icon. The San Francisco Examiner. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
24.Jump up ^ O'Hehir, Andrew (24 November 1999). Ride with the Devil. Salon.com. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
25.Jump up ^ McCarthy, Todd (12 September 1999). Ride with the Devil. Variety. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
26.^ Jump up to: a b Ebert, Roger (17 December 1999). Ride with the Devil. Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
27.Jump up ^ Schwarzbaum, Lisa (3 December 1999). Ride with the Devil. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
28.Jump up ^ Smith, Russell (17 December 1999). Ride with the Devil. The Austin Chronicle. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
29.Jump up ^ Sterritt, David (November 1999). Ride with the Devil. The Christian Science Monitor. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
30.Jump up ^ Steve, Simels (November 1999). Ride with the Devil:Review. TV Guide. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
31.Jump up ^ "November 26-28, 1999 Weekend". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
32.Jump up ^ "December 10-12, 1999 Weekend". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
33.Jump up ^ "January 7-9, 2000 Weekend". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
34.Jump up ^ 1999 DOMESTIC GROSSES. Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
Further reading
Woodrell, Daniel (2012). Woe To Live On. Back Bay Books. ISBN 978-0-316-20616-7.
Schrantz, Ward (1988). Jasper County, Missouri, in the Civil War. The Carthage, Missouri Kiwanis Club. ASIN B001J3JKDU.
Livingston-Martin, Lisa (2011). Civil War Ghosts of Southwest Missouri. The History Press. ISBN 978-1-60949-267-0.
Tibbetts, John C. (2007). The Literature/Film Reader: Issues of Adaptation. Scarecrow Press. ISBN 0-8108-5949-1.
Marcus, Alan (2010). Teaching History with Film: Strategies for Secondary Social Studies. Routledge. ISBN 978-0-415-99956-4.
McCorkle, John (1998). Three Years with Quantrill. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 0-8061-3056-3.
Castel, Albert (2006). Bloody Bill Anderson: The Short, Savage Life of a Civil War Guerrilla. University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-1434-6.
Schultz, Duane (1997). Quantrill's War: The Life & Times Of William Clarke Quantrill. St. Martin's Griffin. ISBN 978-0-312-16972-5.
McLachlan, Sean (2011). Ride Around Missouri - Shelby's Great Raid 1863. Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84908-429-1.
Connelley, William (2010). Quantrill and the Border Wars. Forgotten Books. ISBN 978-1-4510-0194-5.
Monaghan, Jay (1984). Civil War on the Western Border, 1854-1865. Bison Books by University of Nebraska Press. ISBN 978-0-8032-8126-4.
O'Brien, Cormac (2007). Secret Lives of the Civil War. Quirk Books. ISBN 1-59474-138-7.
Foreman, Amanda (2011). A World on Fire: Britain's Crucial Role in the American Civil War. Random House. ISBN 978-0-375-50494-5.
Mills, Charles (2002). Treasure Legends of the Civil War. BookSurge Publishing. ISBN 1-58898-646-2.
Fellman, Michael (1990). Inside War: The Guerrilla Conflict in Missouri During the American Civil War. Oxford University Press. ISBN 0-19-506471-2.
Eicher, David (2002). The Longest Night: A Military History of the Civil War. Simon & Schuster. ISBN 0-684-84945-3.
Nichols, Bruce (2004). Guerrilla Warfare in Civil War Missouri, 1862. McFarland & Company. ISBN 978-0-7864-1689-9.
Collins, Robert (2007). Jim Lane: Scoundrel, Statesman, Kansan. Pelican Publishing. ISBN 978-1-58980-445-6.
Bird, Roy (2004). Civil War in Kansas. Pelican Publishing. ISBN 1-58980-164-4.
Ponce, Pearl (2011). Kansas's War. Ohio University Press. ISBN 978-0-8214-1936-6.
Toplin, Robert (2002). Reel History. University Press of Kansas. ISBN 0-7006-1200-9.
McCrisken, Trevor (2005). American History and Contemporary Hollywood Film. Rutgers University Press. ISBN 978-0-8135-3621-7.
Goodrich, Thomas (1992). Bloody Dawn: The Story of the Lawrence Massacre. Kent State University Press. ISBN 0-87338-476-8.
Benedict, Bryce (2009). Jayhawkers: The Civil War Brigade of James Henry Lane. University of Oklahoma Press. ISBN 0-8061-3999-4.
Ross, Kirby (2005). Autobiography of Samuel S. Hildebrand: The Renowned Missouri Bushwhacker. University of Arkansas Press. ISBN 978-1-55728-799-1.
External links[edit]
Official website
Ride with the Devil at the Internet Movie Database
Ride with the Devil at allmovie
Ride with the Devil at Box Office Mojo
Ride with the Devil at Rotten Tomatoes
Ride with the Devil at Metacritic


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Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
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For other uses, see Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (disambiguation).

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Crouching tiger hidden dragon poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster

Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
Hsu Li-Kong
William Kong
 Ang Lee
Screenplay by
Hui-Ling Wang
James Schamus
 Tsai Kuo-Jung
Story by
Wang Dulu
Starring
Chow Yun-Fat
Michelle Yeoh
Zhang Ziyi
Chang Chen
Music by
Tan Dun
Cinematography
Peter Pau
Editing by
Tim Squyres
Distributed by
EDKO Film (HK)
Sony Pictures Classics (US)
Release dates
July 6, 2000 (Hong Kong)
July 7, 2000 (Taiwan)
December 8, 2000 (United States)

Running time
120 minutes
Country
Taiwan
 Hong Kong
 United States
 China
Language
Mandarin
Budget
$17,000,000[1]
Box office
$213,525,736[1]
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Simplified Chinese
卧虎藏龙
Traditional Chinese
臥虎藏龍

[show]Transcriptions






















Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a 2000 wuxia film. An American-Chinese-Hong Kong-Taiwanese co-production, the film was directed by Ang Lee and featured an international cast of ethnic Chinese actors, including Chow Yun-Fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen. The film was based on the fourth novel in a pentalogy, known in China as the Crane Iron Pentalogy, by wuxia novelist Wang Dulu. The martial arts and action sequences were choreographed by Yuen Wo Ping.
Made on a mere US$17 million budget, with dialogue in Mandarin, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon became a surprise international success, grossing $213.5 million. It grossed US$128 million in the United States, becoming the highest-grossing foreign-language film in American history. It has won over 40 awards. The film won the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (Taiwan) and three other Academy Awards, and was nominated for six other Academy Awards, including Best Picture.[2] The film also won four BAFTAs and two Golden Globe Awards, one for Best Foreign Film. Along with its awards success, Crouching Tiger continues to be hailed as one of the greatest and most influential foreign language films in the United States, especially coming out of China. It has been praised for its martial arts sequences, story, and cinematography.


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Themes and interpretations 3.1 Title
3.2 Teacher-student relationship
3.3 Poison
4 Production 4.1 Filming
4.2 Soundtrack
5 Marketing 5.1 Video game
5.2 Novels
5.3 Comics
5.4 Television
6 Reception 6.1 Critical response
6.2 Box office
6.3 Accolades
7 Sequel
8 See also
9 References
10 External links

Plot[edit]
The film is set in the Qing Dynasty during the 43rd year (1779) of the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-Fat) is an accomplished Wudang swordsman. Long ago, his master was murdered by Jade Fox (Cheng Pei-pei), a woman who sought to learn Wudang skills. Mu Bai is also a good friend of Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh), a female warrior. Mu Bai and Shu Lien have developed feelings for each other, but they have never acknowledged or acted on them. Mu Bai, intending to give up his warrior life, asks Shu Lien to transport his sword, also referred to as the Green Destiny, to the city of Peking, as a gift for their friend Sir Te (Sihung Lung). At Sir Te's estate, Shu Lien meets Jen (Zhang Ziyi), the daughter of Governor Yu (Li Fazeng), a visiting Manchu aristocrat. Jen, destined for an arranged marriage and yearning for adventure, seems envious of Shu Lien's warrior lifestyle.
One evening, a masked thief sneaks into Sir Te's estate and steals the sword. Mu Bai and Shu Lien trace the theft to Governor Yu's compound and learn that Jade Fox has been posing as Jen's governess for many years. Mu Bai makes the acquaintance of Inspector Tsai (Wang Deming), a police investigator from the provinces, and his daughter May (Li Li), who have come to Peking in pursuit of Fox. Fox challenges the pair and Sir Te's servant Master Bo (Gao Xi'an) to a showdown that night. Following a protracted battle, the group is on the verge of defeat when Mu Bai arrives and outmaneuvers Fox. Before Mu Bai can kill Fox, the masked thief reappears and partners with Fox to fight. Fox resumes the fight and kills Tsai before fleeing with the thief (who is revealed to be Fox's protegée, Jen). After seeing Jen fight Mu Bai, Fox realizes Jen had been secretly studying the Wudang manual and has surpassed her in skill.
At night, a desert bandit named Lo (Chang Chen) breaks into Jen's bedroom and asks her to leave with him. A flashback reveals that in the past, when Governor Yu and his family were traveling in the western deserts, Lo and his bandits had raided Jen's caravan and Lo had stolen her comb. She chased after him, following him to his desert cave seemingly in a quest to get her comb back. However, the pair soon fell passionately in love. Lo eventually convinced Jen to return to her family, though not before telling her a legend of a man who jumped off a cliff to make his wishes come true. Because the man's heart was pure, he did not die. Lo came to Peking to persuade Jen not to go through with her arranged marriage. However, Jen refuses to leave with him. Later, Lo interrupts Jen's wedding procession, begging her to come away with him. Nearby, Shu Lien and Mu Bai convince Lo to wait for Jen at Mount Wudang, where he will be safe from Jen's family, who are furious with him. Jen runs away from her husband on the wedding night before the marriage could be consummated. She fights several warriors in an inn and is victorious.
Jen visits Shu Lien, who tells her that Lo is waiting for her at Mount Wudang. After an angry dispute, the two women engage in a duel. Wielding the Green Destiny, Jen destroys each weapon that Shu Lien wields until losing to a broken sword held at her neck. When Shu Lien shows mercy and lowers the sword, Jen injures Shu Lien's arm. Mu Bai arrives and pursues Jen into a bamboo forest. Following a duel where Mu Bai regains possession of the Green Destiny, he decides to throw the sword over a waterfall. In pursuit, Jen dives into an adjoining river to retrieve the sword and is then rescued by Fox. Fox puts Jen into a drugged sleep and places her in a cavern; Mu Bai and Shu Lien discover her there. Fox suddenly reappears and attacks the others with poisoned darts. Mu Bai blocks the needles with his sword and avenges his master's death by mortally wounding Fox, only to realize that one of the darts hit him in the neck. Fox dies, confessing that her goal had been to kill Jen, because she was furious that Jen hid the secrets of Wudang from her.
As Jen exits to retrieve an ingredient for the antidote for the poisoned dart, Mu Bai prepares to die. With his last breaths, he finally confesses his love for Shu Lien. He dies in her arms as Jen returns, too late to save him. The Green Destiny is returned to Sir Te. Jen later goes to Mount Wudang and spends one last night with Lo. The next morning, Lo finds Jen standing on a balcony overlooking the edge of the mountain. In an echo of the legend that they spoke about in the desert, she asks him to make a wish. He complies, wishing for them to be together, back in the desert. Jen then leaps over the side of the mountain and into the clouds.
Cast[edit]



 Actor Chow Yun-Fat who portrayed Li Mu BaiChow Yun-Fat as Li Mu Bai (C: 李慕白, P: Lǐ Mùbái)
Michelle Yeoh as Yu Shu Lien (T: 俞秀蓮, S: 俞秀莲, P: Yú Xiùlián)
Zhang Ziyi as Jen Yu (English subtitled version) / Yu Jiaolong (English dubbed version) (T: 玉嬌龍, S: 玉娇龙, P: Yù Jiāolóng)
Chang Chen as Lo "Dark Cloud" (English subtitled version) / Luo Xiaohu (English dubbed version) (T: 羅小虎, S: 罗小虎, P: Luó Xiǎohǔ)
Cheng Pei-pei as Jade Fox (C: 碧眼狐狸, P: Bìyǎn Húli)
Sihung Lung as Sir Te (T: 貝勒爺, C: 贝勒爷, P: Bèi-lèyé)
Li Fazeng as Governor Yu
Gao Xi'an as Bo
Hai Yan as Madam Yu
Wang Deming as Police inspector Tsai / Prefect Cai Qiu
Huang Suying as Aunt Wu
Yang Rui as Maid
Li Kai as Gou Jun Pei
Feng Jianhua as Gou Jun Sinung
Ma Zhongxuan as Mi Biao
Li Baocheng as Fung Machete Chang
Yang Yongde as Monk Jing
Zhang Shaocheng as Nightman
Themes and interpretations[edit]
Title[edit]
The name "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon" is a literal translation of the Chinese idiom "臥虎藏龍" which describes a place that is full of talented or extraordinary people who remain hidden and undiscovered, or simply means "talented or extraordinary people hidden from view". It is from a poem of the ancient Chinese poet Yu Xin's (513-581) that reads "暗石疑藏虎，盤根似臥龍", which means "behind the rock in the dark probably hides a tiger, and the coiling giant root resembles a crouching dragon."[3] The last character in Xiaohu and Jiaolong's names mean "Tiger" and "Dragon" respectively.
Teacher-student relationship[edit]
A teacher's desire to have a worthy student, the obligations between a student and a master, and tensions in these relationships are central to the characters' motives, conflicts between the characters, and the unfolding of the film's plot. Li Mu Bai is burdened with the responsibility for avenging his master's death, and turns his back on retirement to live up to this obligation. His fascination with the prospect of having Jen as a disciple also motivates his behavior, and that of Jade Fox.
Regarding conflicts in the student-teacher relationship, the potential for exploitation created by the subordinate position of the student and the tensions that exist when a student surpasses or resists a teacher are explored. Jen hides her mastery of martial arts from her teacher, Jade Fox, which leads both to their parting of ways and to Jade Fox's attempt on Jen's life. At the same time, Jade Fox's own unorthodox relationship with a Wudang master (who she claims would not teach her, but did take sexual advantage of her) brought her to a life of crime. At times, Li Mu Bai and Jen's conversations more than hint that the desire for a teacher-student relationship could turn into a romantic relationship.[4] Jen responds to these feelings, and her desire to not submit to a teacher, by turning away from Li Mu Bai when she jumps in the lake after the Green Destiny.
Poison[edit]
Poison is also a significant theme in the film. In the world of martial arts, poison is considered the act of one who is too cowardly and dishonorable to fight; and indeed, the only character that explicitly fits these characteristics is Jade Fox. The poison is a weapon of her bitterness,[5] and quest for vengeance: she poisons the master of Wudang, attempts to poison Jen and succeeds in killing Mu Bai using a poisoned needle.
However, the poison is not only of the physical sort: Jade Fox’s tutelage of Jen has left Jen spiritually poisoned, which can be seen in the lying, stealing and betrayal Jen commits. Even though she is the one who initially trained Jen, Jen is never seen to use poison herself. This indicates that there is hope yet to reform her and integrate her into society. In further play on this theme by the director, Jade Fox, as she dies, refers to the poison from a young child, "the deceit of an eight-year-old girl", obviously referring to what she considers her own spiritual poisoning by her young apprentice Jen. Li Mu Bai himself warns that without guidance, Jen could become a "poison dragon".
Production[edit]
Filming[edit]
Although its Academy Award was presented to Taiwan, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was in fact an international co-production between companies in four regions: the Chinese company China Film Co-Production Corporation; the American companies Columbia Pictures Film Production Asia, Sony Pictures Classics and Good Machine; the Hong Kong company EDKO Film; and the Taiwanese Zoom Hunt International Productions Company, Ltd; as well as the unspecified United China Vision, and Asia Union Film & Entertainment Ltd., created solely for this film.[6][7]
The film was made in Beijing, with location shooting in the Anhui, Hebei, Jiangsu and Xinjiang provinces of China.[8] The first phase of shooting was in the Gobi Desert where it would consistently rain. Director Ang Lee noted that "I didn't take one break in eight months, not even for half a day. I was miserable—I just didn't have the extra energy to be happy. Near the end, I could hardly breathe. I thought I was about to have a stroke."[9] The stunt work was mostly performed by the actors themselves and Ang Lee stated in an interview that computers were used "only to remove the safety wires that held the actors". "Most of the time you can see their faces," he added, "That's really them in the trees."[10]
Another compounding issue were the varying accents of the four lead actors: Chow Yun Fat is from Hong Kong and spoke Cantonese natively and Michelle Yeoh is from Malaysia and spoke English. Only Zhang Ziyi spoke with a native Mandarin accent that Ang Lee wanted.[9] Chow Yun Fat said that on "the first day [of shooting] I had to do 28 takes just because of the language. That's never happened before in my life."[9]
Because the film specifically targeted Western audiences rather than the domestic audiences who were already used to Wuxia films, English subtitles were needed. Ang Lee, who was educated in the West, personally edited the subtitles to ensure they were satisfactory for Western audiences.[11]
Soundtrack[edit]
Main article: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (soundtrack)
The score was composed by Tan Dun, originally performed by Shanghai Symphony Orchestra, Shanghai National Orchestra, and Shanghai Percussion Ensemble. It also features many solo passages for cello played by Yo-Yo Ma. The "last track" (A Love Before Time) features Coco Lee. The music for the entire film was produced in two weeks.[12]
Marketing[edit]
Video game[edit]
Main article: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (video game)
The film was also adapted into a video game.
Novels[edit]
Main article: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (novel)
Originally written as a novel series by Wang Du Lu starting in the late 1930s, the film is adapted from the storyline of the fourth book in the series, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
Comics[edit]
Main article: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (comics)
A comic series was developed from the plot of the film as well.
Television[edit]
A Taiwanese television series based on the original novel was produced. It was later compiled into a DVD, New Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, for the West in 2004. The DVD film was over an hour and half longer than the original theatrical film.
Reception[edit]
Critical response[edit]
"Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which is based on an early 20th century novel by Wang Du Lu, unfolds much like a comic book, with the characters and their circumstances being painted using wide brush strokes. Subtlety is not part of Lee's palette; he is going for something grand and melodramatic, and that's what he gets."
—James Berardinelli, writing in ReelViews[13]
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was very well received in the Western world, receiving critical acclaim and numerous awards. The review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes reported that 97% of critics gave the film positive reviews, based on 150 reviews,[14] while Metacritic reported the film had an average score of 93 out of 100, based on 31 reviews.[15]
Some Chinese-speaking viewers were bothered by the accents of the leading actors. Neither Chow (a native Cantonese speaker) nor Yeoh (who was born and raised in Malaysia) speaks Mandarin as a mother tongue. All four main actors spoke with different accents: Chow speaks with a Cantonese accent;[16] Yeoh with a Malaysian accent; Chang Chen a Taiwanese accent; and Zhang Ziyi a Beijing accent. Yeoh responded to this complaint in a December 28, 2000, interview with Cinescape. She argued that "My character lived outside of Beijing, and so I didn't have to do the Beijing accent". When the interviewer, Craig Reid, remarked that "My mother-in-law has this strange Sichuan-Mandarin accent that's hard for me to understand", Yeoh responded: "Yes, provinces all have their very own strong accents. When we first started the movie, Cheng Pei Pei was going to have her accent, and Chang Zhen was going to have his accent, and this person would have that accent. And in the end nobody could understand what they were saying. Forget about us, even the crew from Beijing thought this was all weird".[17]
The film led to a boost in popularity of Chinese wuxia films in the western world, where they were previously little known, and led to films such as House of Flying Daggers and Hero marketed towards western audiences. The film also provided the breakthrough role for Zhang Ziyi's career, who noted that:

Because of movies like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, and Hero and Memoirs of a Geisha, a lot of people in the United States have become interested not only in me but in Chinese and Asian actors in general. Because of these movies, maybe there will be more opportunities for Asian actors".
The character of Lo, or "Dark Cloud" the desert bandit, influenced the development of the protagonist of the Prince of Persia series of video games.[18]
The film is ranked at No. 497 on Empire magazine's 2008 list of the 500 greatest movies of all time[19] and at No. 66 in the magazine's 100 Best Films of World Cinema, published in 2010.[20]
Box office[edit]
The film premiered in cinemas on December 8, 2000 in limited release within the US. During its opening weekend, the film opened in 15th place grossing $663,205 in business, showing at 16 locations.[1] On January 12, 2001, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon premiered in cinemas in wide release throughout the US grossing $8,647,295 in business, ranking in 6th place. The film, Save the Last Dance came in 1st place during that weekend grossing $23,444,930.[21] The film's revenue dropped by almost 30% in its second week of release, earning $6,080,357. For that particular weekend, the film fell to 8th place screening in 837 theaters. Save the Last Dance, remained unchanged in first place grossing $15,366,047 in box office revenue.[1] During its final week in release, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon opened in a distant 50th place with $37,233 in revenue.[22] The film went on to top out domestically at $128,078,872 in total ticket sales through a 31-week theatrical run. Internationally, the film took in an additional $85,446,864 in box office business for a combined worldwide total of $213,525,736.[1] For 2000 as a whole, the film would cumulatively rank at a worldwide box office performance position of 19.[23]
Accolades[edit]
Gathering widespread critical acclaim at the Toronto and New York film festivals, the film also became a favorite when Academy Awards nominations were announced in 2001. The film was however screened out of competition at the 2000 Cannes Film Festival.[24]

Award[25][26]
Category
Nominee
Result
73rd Academy Awards[27] Best Foreign Language Film Ang Lee Won
Best Picture  Nominated
Best Director Ang Lee Nominated
Best Adapted Screenplay Tsai Kuo-Jung, Hui-Ling Wang, James Schamus Nominated
Best Original Song Jorge Calandrelli, Tan Dun, James Schamus Nominated
Best Costume Design Tim Yip Nominated
Best Art Direction Tim Yip Won
Best Film Editing Tim Squyres Nominated
Best Original Score Tan Dun Won
Best Cinematography Peter Pau Won
2000 American Society of Cinematographers Awards Best Cinematography Peter Pau Nominated
54th British Academy Film Awards[28] Best Film  Nominated
Best Foreign Language Film  Won
Best Actress in a Leading Role Michelle Yeoh Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Zhang Ziyi Nominated
Best Cinematography Peter Pau Nominated
Best Makeup and Hair  Nominated
Best Editing Tim Squyres Nominated
Best Costume Design Tim Yip Won
Best Director Ang Lee Won
Best Music Tan Dun Won
Best Adapted Screenplay Tsai Kuo-Jung, Wang Hui-Ling, James Schamus Nominated
Best Production Design Tim Yip Nominated
Best Sound  Nominated
Best Visual Effects  Nominated
Broadcast Film Critics Association Awards 2000[29] Best Foreign Film  Won
Chicago Film Critics Association Awards 2000[30] Most Promising Actress Zhang Ziyi Won
Best Original Score Tan Dun Won
Best Cinematography Peter Pau Won
Best Foreign Film  Won
2000 Directors Guild of America Awards[31] Best Director Ang Lee Won
58th Golden Globe Awards[32] Best Foreign Language Film  Won
Best Director Ang Lee Won
Best Original Score Tan Dun Nominated
20th Hong Kong Film Awards[33] Best Film  Won
Best Director Ang Lee Won
Best Screenplay Wang Hui-Ling, James Schamus, Tsai Kuo-Jung Nominated
Best Actor Chow Yun-Fat Nominated
Best Actress Zhang Ziyi Nominated
Best Actress Michelle Yeoh Nominated
Best Supporting Actor Chang Chen Nominated
Best Supporting Actress Cheng Pei-pei Won
Best Cinematography Peter Pau Won
Best Film Editing Tim Squyres Nominated
Best Art Direction Tim Yip Nominated
Best Costume Make Up Design Tim Yip Nominated
Best Action Choreography Yuen Wo Ping Won
Best Original Film Score Tan Dun Won
Best Original Film Song Tan Dun, Jorge Calandrelli, Yee Kar-Yeung, Coco Lee Won
Best Sound Design Eugene Gearty Won
Independent Spirit Awards 2000 Best Picture  Won
Best Director Ang Lee Won
Best Supporting Actress Zhang Ziyi Won
Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards 2000[34] Best Picture  Won
Best Cinematography Peter Pau Won
Best Music Score Tan Dun Won
Best Production Design Tim Yip Won
National Board of Review Awards 2000[35] Best Foreign Language Film  Won
Top Foreign Films  Shortlisted
2000 New York Film Critics Circle Awards[36] Best Cinematography Peter Pau Won
Toronto Film Critics Association Awards 2000[37] Best Picture  Won
Best Director Ang Lee Won
Best Actress Michelle Yeoh Won
Best Supporting Actress Zhang Ziyi Won
2000 Toronto International Film Festival People's Choice Award Ang Lee Won
Writers Guild of America Awards 2000[38] Best Adapted Screenplay Tsai Kuo-Jung, Wang Hui-Ling, James Schamus Nominated
37th Golden Horse Awards – 2000[39] Best Feature Film  Won
Best Director Ang Lee Nominated
Best Leading Actress Michelle Yeoh Nominated
Best Leading Actress Zhang Ziyi Nominated
Best Screenplay Adaption Tsai Kuo-Jung, Wang Hui-Ling, James Schamus Nominated
Best Cinematography Peter Pau Nominated
Best Film Editing Tim Squyres Won
Best Art Direction Tim Yip Nominated
Best Original Score Tan Dun Won
Best Sound Design Eugene Gearty Won
Best Action Choreography Yuen Wo Ping Won
Best Visual Effects Leo Lo, Rob Hodgson Won
Sequel[edit]
In January 2013, it was reported that a sequel to the movie would begin shooting in May, with Harvey Weinstein producing. It is to have fight choreography by Yuen Woo Ping and a script by John Fusco, which will be based on the fifth and final book of the Crane-Iron Series, Iron Knight, Silver Vase.[40]
On March 18, 2013, actor Donnie Yen confirmed rumors that he had been offered a role in the new film.[40] Around the same time, there were also conflicting reports on whether Michelle Yeoh has been approached to reprise her role of Yu Shu Lien.[40][41]
On May 16, 2013 it was officially announced that the sequel had been officially greenlit. The film, retitled Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - The Green Destiny (it was initially announced as Iron Knight, Silver Vase - the same title from its source material) will begin production in March 2014. Donnie Yen was confirmed to star as Silent Wolf while Michelle Yeoh was confirmed to be reprising her role as Yu Shu Lien.[42][43]
On August 20, 2013, it was reported that Ziyi Zhang is in talks to reprise her role as Jen Yu.[44] But Zhang's agent Ji Lingling told the media that was not true and said: "Zhang would reprise her role only if the director was Ang Lee."[45]
See also[edit]


United States film.svgFilm in the United States portal
 China.svgChina portal
 Hong Kong SAR Regional Emblem.svgHong Kong portal
 Taiwan-icon.svgTaiwan portal
 Blue iPod Nano.jpg2000s portal
 Yin and Yang.svgMartial arts portal
 

Wang Dulu
References[edit]
Footnotes
1.^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved May 3, 2010.
2.Jump up ^ Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Box Office Mojo. Accessed December 30, 2006.
3.Jump up ^ "Chinese Dictionary – Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon". Retrieved June 27, 2013.
4.Jump up ^ Jaffe, Valerie. "Fear of Flying: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", The Brooklyn Rail, Feb/March 2001.
5.Jump up ^ Fairlamb, Horace L. “Romancing the Tao: How Ang Lee Globalized Ancient Chinese Wisdom,” symploke vol. 15, No. 1-2 (2007), p.196.
6.Jump up ^ Turner Classic Movies. "CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (2000): Original Print Information". Turner Broadcasting System.
7.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Cast & Details". TV Guide. 2000.
8.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) - Production Details". Yahoo Movies.
9.^ Jump up to: a b c Corliss, Richard (3 December 2000). "Year of the Tiger". TIME. Retrieved June 29, 2011.
10.Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger (December 20, 2000). "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon". Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved 2011-06-29.
11.Jump up ^ "Interview: Zhang Yimou". MonkeyPeaches.com. Retrieved June 29, 2011.
12.Jump up ^ "Tan Dun, a Musical Journey Back to Roots". China International Information Center. 2003. Retrieved 2011-07-24.
13.Jump up ^ Berardinelli, James (December 2000). "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". ReelViews. Retrieved 2011-12-19.
14.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (1999)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 27, 2010.
15.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". Metacritic. Retrieved July 21, 2008.
16.Jump up ^ Hu, Brian (December 20, 2006). "An Accent on Acting: An Interview with Gong Li". UCLA Asia Institute. Accessed December 30, 2006.
17.Jump up ^ Reid, Craig (December 28, 2000). Crouching Tigress: Michelle Yeoh, Part 2. Mania. Accessed May 3, 2010.
18.Jump up ^ "Prince of Persia: Anatomy of a Prince", PlayStation: The Official Magazine 13 (December 2008): 50.
19.Jump up ^ The 500 Greatest Movies Of All Time. Empire. Accessed July 27, 2010.
20.Jump up ^ "The 100 Best Films Of World Cinema". Empire. Retrieved December 24, 2011.
21.Jump up ^ "January 12–14, 2001". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-19.
22.Jump up ^ "July 20–22, 2001 Weekend". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-19.
23.Jump up ^ "2000 Domestic Grosses". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2011-12-19.
24.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". festival-cannes.com. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
25.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Awards & Nominations". MSN Movies. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
26.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)". Yahoo! Movies. Retrieved May 4, 2010.
27.Jump up ^ "The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences". Oscars.org. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
28.Jump up ^ "British Academy of Film and Television Arts". BAFTA.org. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
29.Jump up ^ "The 6th Critics' Choice Awards Winners And Nominees". BFCA.org. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
30.Jump up ^ "Chicago Film Critics Awards – 1998-07". ChicagoFilmCritics.org. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
31.Jump up ^ "2000s – DGA Award Winners for: Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film". Directors Guild Of America. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
32.Jump up ^ "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon". GoldenGlobes.org. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
33.Jump up ^ "Hong Kong Film Awards History". Hong Kong Film Awards. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
34.Jump up ^ "26th Annual Los Angeles Film Critics Association Awards". LAFCA.net. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
35.Jump up ^ "Awards for 2000". National Board of Review. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
36.Jump up ^ "2000 Awards". New York Film Critics Circle. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
37.Jump up ^ "TFCA Awards 2000". Toronto Film Critics Association. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
38.Jump up ^ "Awards Winners". Writers Guild Awards. Archived from the original on 2012-05-25. Retrieved May 5, 2010.
39.Jump up ^ (Chinese) Golden Horse Awards official homepage 37th Golden Horse awards winners and nominees list Retrieved May 21, 2011
40.^ Jump up to: a b c Max Nicholson (January 24, 2013). "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Sequel: Fighting followup to begin shooting this May". IGN. Retrieved 2013-01-25.
41.Jump up ^ Cinema Online (Mar 19, 2013). ""Crouching Tiger" for Michelle Yeoh". BT Yahoo News Malasia. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
42.Jump up ^ "Michelle Yeoh to reprise her role in The Green Destiny | News | Screen". Screendaily.com. 16 May 2013. Retrieved 2013-05-16.
43.Jump up ^ "Production on Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon II - The Green Destiny Starts in March 2014". ComingSoon.net. Retrieved 2013-05-16.
44.Jump up ^ Hertzfeld, Laura. "Ziyi Zhang in talks for 'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' sequel -- EXCLUSIVE." Entertainment Weekly. August 20, 2013. Retrieved on November 16, 2013.
45.Jump up ^ "经纪人回应章子怡加盟"卧虎2"传闻：李安导一定演". chinadaily.com.cn. 27 August 2013. Retrieved 27 August 2013. (Archive)
External links[edit]
 Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
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Taking Woodstock
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search


Taking Woodstock
Taking woodstock.jpg
Theatrical release poster

Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
Ang Lee
James Schamus
Written by
James Schamus
Based on
Taking Woodstock
 by Elliot Tiber
 Tom Monte
Starring
Demetri Martin
Imelda Staunton
Henry Goodman
Liev Schreiber
Jonathan Groff
Eugene Levy
Emile Hirsch
Paul Dano
Music by
Danny Elfman
Cinematography
Eric Gautier
Editing by
Tim Squyres
Distributed by
Focus Features
Release dates
August 28, 2009
Running time
121 minutes
Country
United States
Language
English
Budget
$30,000,000
Box office
$9,930,139
Taking Woodstock is a 2009 American comedy-drama film about the Woodstock Festival of 1969, directed by Ang Lee. The screenplay by James Schamus is based on the memoir Taking Woodstock: A True Story of a Riot, a Concert, and a Life by Elliot Tiber and Tom Monte.[1]
The film premiered at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival,[2] and opened in New York and Los Angeles on August 26, 2009, before its wide theatrical release two days later.


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Production
4 Factual accuracy
5 Release and reception 5.1 Critical reaction
5.2 Box office
5.3 Awards and nominations
6 Home release
7 See also
8 References
9 External links

Plot[edit]
Set in 1969, the film follows the true story of Elliot Tiber (Demetri Martin), an aspiring Greenwich Village interior designer whose parents, Jake (Henry Goodman) and Sonia (Imelda Staunton), own the small dilapidated El Monaco Motel in White Lake, in the town of Bethel, New York. A hippie theater troupe, The Earthlight Players, rents the barn, but can hardly pay any rent. Due to financial trouble, the motel may have to be closed, but Elliot pleads with the local bank not to foreclose on the mortgage and Sonia delivers a tirade about her struggles as a Russian refugee. The family is given until the end of the summer to pay up.
Elliot plans to hold a small musical festival, and has, for $1, obtained a permit from the town's chamber of commerce (of which he is also the president). When he hears that the organizers of the Woodstock Festival face opposition against the originally planned location, he offers his permit and the motel accommodations to organizer Michael Lang (Jonathan Groff). A neighbor, Max Yasgur (Eugene Levy), provides his nearby farm land; first they agree on a fee of $5,000, but after realizing how many people will come, Yasgur demands $75,000, which the organizers reluctantly accept. Elliot comes to agreement about the fee for the motel more smoothly. Initial objections by his mother quickly disappear when she sees the cash paid in advance.
Elliot and Yasgur encounter a little bit of expected opposition. The local diner refuses to serve Elliot anymore, inspectors target the motel (and only his) for building code violations, and some local boys paint a swastika and hate words on the hotel. However, resistance quickly dissolves in the tidal wave of peace and love (and commerce) brought to the area. The Tiber family works hard serving the massive influx of visitors and become wealthy in the process. A cross-dressing veteran, Vilma (Liev Schreiber), is hired as a security guard. Elliot also struggles with hiding his homosexuality from his family, when he connects romantically with one of the event organizers staying at the motel.
On the first day of the concert, Elliot, his father, and Vilma hear the music begin in the distance. Elliot's father, transformed and enlivened by all the new life in town, tells Elliot to go and see the concert. Elliot hitches a ride through the peaceful traffic jam on the back of a benevolent state trooper's motorcycle and arrives at the event. There, he meets a hippie couple (Paul Dano and Kelli Garner), who invite him to join them on an LSD trip in their VW Bus a short distance from the crowd. Elliot has trouble relaxing at first, but gradually melts into a psychedelic union with them. When they finally emerge after sundown, Elliot watches the vast crowd and brilliant lights of the distant concert ripple with harmonious hallucinatory visuals that swell into serene white light.
Elliot returns home from his liberating experience and has breakfast with his parents. He suggests to his mother that they now have enough money to replace him, but she cannot bear to let him have his freedom. Elliot storms out, facetiously suggesting his mom eat the hash brownies Vilma has just offered. After another beautiful day at the festival, during which his friend the Vietnam veteran, Billy (Emile Hirsch), appears to overcome his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Elliot returns home to find his parents laughing and cavorting hysterically, having eaten Vilma's hash brownies. The once-brittle family (particularly Sonia) are united in joy and delirious affection.
The next morning, however, Sonia inadvertently reveals that she has secretly saved $97,000 in cash in the floorboards of her closet. Elliot is upset that his mother hid this from him while he put his own savings into helping his parents.
After the final day of the concert, Elliot packs up his life and says farewell to his father, after his father encourages him to strike out on his own. As Elliot pays one last visit to the concert and looks out over the muddy desolation of the Yasgur farm, Lang rides up on horseback and they marvel at how despite the obstacles, the event was a success. Lang mentions his next big project: staging a truly free concert in San Francisco with the Rolling Stones – the infamous Altamont Free Concert.
Cast[edit]
Demetri Martin as Elliot Teichberg / Tiber, who volunteered his family's motel to be the home base for Woodstock concert organizers which would take place on a nearby farm[3]
Imelda Staunton as Sonia Teichberg[3]
Henry Goodman as Jake Teichberg[3]
Liev Schreiber as Vetty von Vilma, a gay transvestite.[3]
Jonathan Groff as Woodstock organizer Michael Lang[3]
Eugene Levy as Max Yasgur, who owns the nearby farm[3]
Emile Hirsch as Billy, a recently returned Vietnam vet[3]
Paul Dano and Kelli Garner as a hippie couple in a VW attending the concert[3]
Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Dan, Billy's brother and in opposition to the festival
Adam Pally as festival co-organizer Artie Kornfeld
Mamie Gummer as Tisha, Lang's assistant[3]
Dan Fogler as Devon, a local theater troupe head[3]
Skylar Astin as John P. Roberts, who bankrolled the Festival
Adam LeFevre as Dave
Richard Thomas as Reverend Don
Kevin Chamberlin as Jackson Spiers
Darren Pettie as Paul, the construction worker Elliot is attracted to
Katherine Waterston as Penny
Damian Kulash (uncredited) as a guitar-playing hippie
Production[edit]
Filming took place from August–October 2008 in New Lebanon, New York and East Chatham, New York, located in Columbia County, and New York City.[1][4][5][6]
Factual accuracy[edit]



Elliot Tiber is the author of the memoir on which the movie is based (Bologna, June 2009).
Michael Lang has disputed Tiber's account of the initial meeting with Max Yasgur, and said that he was introduced to Yasgur by a real estate salesman. Lang says that the salesman drove him, without Tiber, to Yasgur's farm. Sam Yasgur, son of Max, agrees with Lang's version, and says that his mother, who is still alive, says Max did not know Tiber. Artie Kornfeld, a Woodstock organizer, has said he found out about Yasgur’s farm from his own sources.[7][8]
Release and reception[edit]
Critical reaction[edit]
The film maintains a 48% average on Rotten Tomatoes[9] and a 55% on Metacritic.[10]
Roger Ebert at the Chicago Sun-Times wrote, "[...] Lee and writer James Schamus aren’t making a historical pastiche. This is a comedy with some sweet interludes and others that are cheerfully over the top, such as a nude theatrical troupe living in Elliot’s barn, and Vilma, his volunteer head of motel security, a transvestite ex-Marine played by Liev Schreiber. How does Schreiber, looking just as he usually does except for a blond wig and a dress, play a transvestite? Completely straight. It works."[11]
Michael Phillips at the Chicago Tribune gave it 3 out 4 stars saying "Screenwriter James Schamus doesn’t do anything as stupid as shove Elliot back in the closet, but this is no “Brokeback Catskills Mountain.” It’s a mosaic—many characters, drifting in and out of focus—stitching the story of how the peace-and-music bash fell together as it bounced in the haphazard planning stages from its originally scheduled Wallkill, N.Y., location to a cow pasture in White Lake. (Eugene Levy, working hard to restrain his natural comic ebullience, plays the dairy farmer, Max Yasgur.)[12]
Stephen Holden at the New York Times wrote, "Taking Woodstock pointedly shies away from spectacle, the better to focus on how the lives of individuals caught up by history are transformed...the movie explicitly connects Woodstock to the gay-liberation movement and the Stonewall riots, which took place two months earlier that summer.[13]
Lou Lumeneck at the New York Post gave it 1.5 stars. "It turns the fabled music festival, a key cultural moment of the late 20th century, into an exceedingly lame, heavily clichéd, thumb-sucking bore. There are two main problems with "Taking Woodstock." One is the central nonperformance by the stand-up comedian Demetri Martin, who is pretty much an emotional black hole as Elliot...the movie doesn't make much of an issue of the character's gayness—which is utterly untrue to the period, 1969, even in enlightened circles."[14]
Melissa Anderson in the Village Voice wrote, "Ang Lee’s facile Taking Woodstock proves that the decade is still prone to the laziest, wide-eyed oversimplifications...little music from the concert itself is heard. On display instead are inane, occasionally borderline offensive portrayals of Jews, performance artists, trannies, Vietnam vets, squares, and freaks.[15]
Slate wrote, "After the long middle section building up to the actual Woodstock, the movie's treatment of the event is maddeningly indirect. No one's asking for a song-by-song re-enactment of the concert, but Lee's refusal to focus even for a moment on the musical aspect of the festival starts to feel almost perverse, as if he's deliberately frustrating the audience's desire."[16]
Box office[edit]
Taking Woodstock grossed $3,457,760 during its opening weekend, opening at #9.[17] After five and a half weeks in theaters, on October 1, 2009, the film's total worldwide box office gross was $8,695,829.[18]
Awards and nominations[edit]
Taking Woodstock was nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for "Outstanding Film – Wide Release" during the 21st GLAAD Media Awards.[19]
Home release[edit]
The DVD and Blu-ray were released on December 15, 2009.[20]
Special features include:
Audio commentary with director Ang Lee and writer/producer James Schamus
Deleted scenes
Featurette: Peace, Love, and Cinema
The Blu-ray features:
All the DVD features with: Additional deleted scenes
Featurette: No Audience Required – The Earthlight Players

See also[edit]
Woodstock, a 1969 concert film
Woodstock
Elliot Tiber
Max Yasgur
Michael Lang
Ang Lee
References[edit]
1.^ Jump up to: a b Novikov, Eugene (April 23, 2008). "Ang Lee Signs On for 'Taking Woodstock'". Cinematical.com. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
2.Jump up ^ "Festival de Cannes: Taking Woodstock". festival-Cannes.com. Retrieved May 9, 2009.
3.^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g h i j Michael Fleming (August 5, 2008). "'Taking Woodstock' set to start". Variety. Retrieved September 1, 2008.
4.Jump up ^ Guzman, Rafer (July 30, 2008). "Movie buzz: Ang Lee's Woodstock film". Newsday. (subscription required)
5.Jump up ^ "Ang Lee attends NY screening of 'Taking Woodstock'". Newsday. AP. July 30, 2009. (subscription required)
6.Jump up ^ Schoemer, Karen (August 20, 2009). "Turn On, Tune In, Turn Back the Clock". New York Times.
7.Jump up ^ Bleyer, Bill (August 8, 2009). "The road to Woodstock runs through Sunken Meadow State Park.". Newsday. Retrieved August 25, 2009.
8.Jump up ^ Bloom, Nate (August 27, 2009). "Revisiting Woodstock, Other flicks, His son, the rabbi". Jweekly.com. Retrieved August 27, 2009.
9.Jump up ^ "Taking Woodstock". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
10.Jump up ^ "Taking Woodstock Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More at Metacritic". Metacritic.com. December 17, 2009. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
11.Jump up ^ Ebert, Roger (August 26, 2009). "Taking Woodstock". Chicago Sun-Times.
12.Jump up ^ Phillips, Michael (August 24, 2009). "'Taking Woodstock' – 3 stars". Chicago Tribune.
13.Jump up ^ Holden, Stephen (August 26, 2009). "What I Saw at the Countercultural Revolution". The New York Times. Retrieved May 24, 2010.
14.Jump up ^ Lumenick, Lou (September 2, 2009). "Dump This 'Stock'!". New York Post.
15.Jump up ^ Melissa Anderson (August 25, 2009). "Taking Woodstock Recycles 60's Tropes – Page 1 – Movies – New York". Village Voice. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
16.Jump up ^ Stevens, Dana (August 27, 2009). "Ang Lee's slight and gentle-spirited Taking Woodstock. – By Dana Stevens – Slate Magazine". Slate.com. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
17.Jump up ^ "Weekly Box Office Aug 28 – Sep 3, 2009". Variety. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
18.Jump up ^ "Taking Woodstock (2009)". Box Office Mojo. October 1, 2009. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
19.Jump up ^ "21st Annual GLAAD Media Awards – English Language Nominees". Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation. 2010. Retrieved February 21, 2010.
20.Jump up ^ "Taking Woodstock (US – DVD R1 | BD RA) in News > Releases at DVDActive". Dvdactive.com. Retrieved July 29, 2011.
External links[edit]
Official website
Taking Woodstock at the Internet Movie Database
BAFTA Podcasts: Taking Wood Stock Film Q&A
Taking Woodstock at allmovie
Taking Woodstock at Box Office Mojo
Taking Woodstock at Rotten Tomatoes


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Lust, Caution (film)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search


Lust, Caution
Lust caution.jpg
Theatrical release poster


Traditional
色，戒
Simplified
色，戒
Mandarin
Sè, Jiè
Cantonese
sik1, gaai3
Hokkien
set, kai
Directed by
Ang Lee
Produced by
Ang Lee
William Kong
James Schamus
Screenplay by
Hui-Ling Wang
 James Schamus
Based on
Lust, Caution
 by Eileen Chang
Starring
Tony Leung Chiu-Wai
Tang Wei
Joan Chen
Leehom Wang
Music by
Alexandre Desplat
Cinematography
Rodrigo Prieto
Editing by
Tim Squyres
Studio
River Road Entertainment
 Haishang Films
 Sil-Metropole Organisation
Distributed by
Focus Features
Release dates
August 30, 2007 (Venice)
September 24, 2007 (Taiwan)
September 26, 2007 (Hong Kong)
September 28, 2007 (United States)
November 1, 2007 (China)

Running time
158 minutes[1]
Country
United States
 China
 Taiwan
Language
Mandarin
 Shanghainese
 Cantonese
 Japanese
 English
 Hindi
Budget
$15 million[2]
Box office
$67,091,915[2]
Lust, Caution is an 2007 espionage thriller film directed by Ang Lee, based on the novella of the same name published in 1979 by Chinese author Eileen Chang. The story is mostly set in Hong Kong in 1938 and in Shanghai in 1942, when it was occupied by the Imperial Japanese Army and ruled by the puppet government led by Wang Jingwei. It depicts a group of Chinese university students from the Lingnan University who plot to assassinate a high-ranking special agent and recruiter of the puppet government using an attractive young woman to lure him into a trap.
With this film, Lee won the Golden Lion Award at the Venice Film Festival for the second time, the first being with Brokeback Mountain.[3] The film adaptation and the story are loosely based on events that took place during the Japanese occupation of Shanghai. The film's explicit sex scenes resulted in the film being rated NC-17 in the United States.


Contents  [hide]
1 Plot
2 Cast
3 Release
4 Accolades
5 Controversies 5.1 Censorship
5.2 Country of production
5.3 Defamation
6 Critical reception 6.1 Anachronisms
7 Box office
8 Home media
9 See also
10 References
11 External links

Plot[edit]


 This article's plot summary may be too long or excessively detailed. Please help improve it by removing unnecessary details and making it more concise. (January 2013)
In 1940s Japanese-occupied Shanghai, a well-dressed, attractive young Chinese woman, "Mrs. Mai", is sitting in a café in a posh neighborhood. When she makes a call to a man, her seemingly innocuous dialogue is a coded signal that prompts a cell of young resistance agents to load their weapons and spring into action.
Hong Kong 1938
The film then flashes back in time to the events in 1938 that led up to the transformation of the shy, inexperienced university student Wong Chia Chi into the glamorously dressed and seemingly well-to-do Mrs. Mai, her cover role in the Chinese resistance against Japanese invasion. During the Second Sino-Japanese War, Chia Chi had been left behind in China by her father, who is going to re-marry in the United Kingdom. Chia Chi flees from Shanghai to Hong Kong and attends her first year at Lingnan University. A male student named Kuang Yu Min (Leehom Wang) invites her to join his patriotic drama club. Chia Chi becomes a lead actress in the club, inspiring both her audience and her new-found friend Kuang.
Fired up from the drama troupe's patriotic plays, Kuang urges the group to make a more concrete contribution to the war against Japan. He devises a plan to assassinate Mr. Yee, who is a special agent and recruiter of the puppet government set up by the Japanese Government in China. The beautiful Chia Chi is chosen to take on the undercover role of Mrs Mai, the elegant wife of the owner of a Hong Kong based trading company. She insinuates herself in the social circle of Mrs. Yee. She catches the eye of Mr. Yee and tries to lure him into a location where he can be assassinated. Yee is attracted to Chia Chi and once steps very close to the trap but withdraws at the last minute. It comes to light that Chia Chi is still a virgin, and she reluctantly consents to sleeping with Liang Jun-Sheng, another student involved in the plot to kill Mr. Yee, in order to play into her role as a married woman if she were to sleep with Mr. Yee. It is obvious that Kuang is upset by this, but nevertheless agrees to the two "practicing" every following night. But not long after that, Mr. and Mrs. Yee move back to Shanghai all of a sudden, leaving the students with no further chance to complete their assassination plan. With Yee gone, the university students believe there is no need to maintain the facade and therefore pack up and clean up the rented apartment. An armed subordinate of Yee turns up in their apartment unannounced and finds their sudden packing very suspicious. Spotting their university tank tops, the subordinate realises that "Mr. & Mrs. Mai" are not who they claim they are. The university students kill the subordinate and are forced to go into hiding afterward.
Shanghai, 1942
In Shanghai, three years later, Chia Chi again encounters Kuang, who is now an undercover agent of the KMT, which is seeking to overturn the Japanese occupation force and their puppet government. He enlists her into a renewed assassination plan to kill Yee. By this time, Mr. Yee has become the head of secret police department under the puppet government and is responsible for capturing and executing resistance agents who are working for the KMT. Eventually, Chia Chi becomes Mr. Yee's mistress. During their first encounter Yee is rough with Chia Chi, virtually raping her by throwing her down onto the bed and tying her up with his belt. However, over the weeks that follow their sexual relationship becomes very passionate and deeply emotional, but also very conflicted for both of them, especially for Chia Chi, who is setting her lover up for assassination.
When Chia Chi reports to her superior officer in the KMT, she exhorts him to carry out the assassination soon, so that she will not have to continue her sexual liaisons with the brutal Yee, but the officer argues that the assassination needs to be delayed for strategic reasons. Chia Chi describes the inhuman emotional conflict she is in, on one hand sexually and emotionally bound to Mr. Yee and on the other hand part of a plot to kill him.
When Mr. Yee sends Chia Chi to a jewelry store with a sealed envelope, she is surprised to discover that he has arranged for a large and extremely rare six carat pink diamond for her, to be mounted in a ring. This provides the Chinese resistance with a chance to get at Mr. Yee when he is not accompanied by his bodyguards.
The next time Chia Chi and Mr. Yee meet, she asks him to go to the jewelry store with her to collect the diamond ring. As they enter the shop, she notices several resistance agents waiting to spring the trap. But, after first demurring, when she puts on the magnificent ring, and experiences Mr. Yee's love for her, she is overcome by emotion and breaks down and urges him to "Go, now." Mr. Yee realizes her meaning, runs out of the shop and is rushed away by his driver, and escapes the assassination attempt. By the end of the day most of the resistance group including Kuang and Chia Chi herself are captured. It is revealed that Mr. Yee's deputy has been aware of the resistance cell, but did not inform Mr. Yee, both because of Mr. Yee's relationship with Chia Chi and because the deputy had hoped to use this opportunity to catch the resistance cell leader. Mr. Yee, emotionally in turmoil, signs their death warrants and the resistance group members, including Chia Chi, are led out to a quarry and executed. In the last scene, Mr. Yee sits on Chia Chi's empty bed in the family guest room, and informs his wife that their house guest is gone, and that she should not ask any questions.
Cast[edit]
Tang Wei as Wong Chia-chi/Mrs. Mai (C: 王佳芝, P: Wáng Jiāzhī／C: 麥太太, P: Mài-tàitai)
Tony Leung Chiu-Wai as Mr. Yee (C: 易先生, P: Yì-xiānsheng)
Joan Chen as Mrs. Yee (C: 易太太, P: Yì-tàitai)
Leehom Wang as Kuang Yumin (T: 鄺裕民, S: 邝裕民, P: Kuàng Yùmín)
Tou Chung-Hua (T: 庹宗華, C: 庹宗华, P: Tuǒ Zōnghuá) as Old Wu
Chin Kar-lok as Assistant Officer Tsao
Chu Chih-Ying (T: 朱芷瑩, S: 朱芷莹, P: Zhū Zhǐyíng) as Lai Xiujin (T: 賴秀金, S: 赖秀金, P: Lài Xiùjīn)
Kao Ying-hsuan (T: 高英軒, S: 高英轩, P: Gāo Yīngxuān) as Huang Lei (T: 黃 磊, S: 黄 磊, P: Huáng Lěi)
Lawrence Ko (T: 柯宇綸, S: 柯宇綸, P: Kē Yǔlún) as Liang Junsheng (T: 梁潤生, S: 梁润生, P: Liáng Rùnshēng)
Johnson Yuen (T: 阮德鏘, S: 阮德锵, P: Ruǎn Déqiāng) as Auyang Lingwen/Mr. Mak (T: 歐陽靈文, S: 欧阳灵文, P: Ōuyáng Língwén／C: 麥先生, P: Mài-xiānsheng)
Fan Kuang-Yao (C: 樊光耀, P: Fán Guāngyào) as Secretary Chang
Anupam Kher as Hali Salahuddin
Shyam Pathak as Jewellery shopkeeper
Akiko Takeshita (竹下 明子 Takeshita Ayako) as Japanese Tavern Boss Lady
Hayato Fujiki as Japanese Colonel Sato
Release[edit]
The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival, where it won the Golden Lion, the second such award for Ang Lee. It was released in U.S. theaters on September 28, 2007, where it was rated NC-17 by the Motion Picture Association of America due to some explicit sexuality. Lee stated that he would make no changes to attempt to get an R rating.[4] After the movie's premiere, director Ang Lee was displeased that Chinese news media (including those from Taiwan) had greatly emphasized the sex scenes in the movie.[5] The version released in the People's Republic of China was cut by about seven minutes (by the director himself) to make it suitable for younger audiences, since China has no rating system.[6] The version released in Malaysia was approved by the Film Censorship Board of Malaysia without alterations and was rated 18SX—those under 18 are barred from the cinema. His earlier film Brokeback Mountain is banned in Malaysia. It was released on DVD in 2008 with an R-rating since rental outlets and stores do not carry NC-17 titles.
Accolades[edit]
Won: 2007 Golden Lion International Venice Film Festival Award
The film swept the 2007 Golden Horse Awards, winning seven including Best Actor, Best Feature Film and Best Director.
44th Golden Horse Awards[7]
Won: Best Film
Won: Best Director (Ang Lee)
Won: Best Actor (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai)
Won: Best New Performer (Tang Wei)
Won: Best Adapted Screenplay (Hui-Ling Wang and James Schamus)
Won: Best Makeup & Costume Design (Pan Lai)
Won: Best Original Film Score (Alexandre Desplat)
Outstanding Taiwanese Filmmaker of the Year (Ang Lee)
Nominated: Best Actress (Tang Wei)
Nominated: Best Art Direction (Lau Sai-Wan, Pan Lai)
Nominated: Best Cinematography (Rodrigo Prieto)
Nominated: Best Editing (Tim Squyres)
27th Hong Kong Film Awards
Won: Best Asian Film (Ang Lee)
65th Golden Globe Awards
Nominated: Best Foreign Film
61st British Academy Film Awards
Nominated: Best Costume Design (Pan Lai)
Nominated: Best Foreign Film (Ang Lee, James Schamus, William Kong)
Nominated: Rising Star Award (Tang Wei)
2nd Asian Film Awards
Won: Best Actor (Tony Leung Chiu-Wai)
Nominated: Best Film
Nominated: Best Actress (Tang Wei)
Nominated: Best Composer (Alexandre Desplat)
Nominated: Best Director (Ang Lee)
Nominated: Best Screenwriter (Wang Hui-Ling and James Schamus)
The film was nominated for the Best Film in a Foreign Language BAFTA in 2008.
Ang Lee was awarded Freedom of Expression award at the ShoWest convention for his decision to release the film in the United States uncut, rather than editing the film to avoid the MPAA's NC-17 rating.[8]
Controversies[edit]
Censorship[edit]
 This section may be confusing or unclear to readers. (April 2009)
In its uncut form, Lust, Caution features three episodes of graphic sex, with full-frontal nudity. The ten minutes of sex scenes were considered by Lee to be critical to the story and reportedly took 100 hours to shoot.[9]
In a number of countries, notably the People's Republic of China and India, many of the sex scenes had to be cut before the film could be released. In Singapore, while the film's producers initially decided to release a cut version there which was given an NC-16 rating, a public outcry stating that the producers of the film were underestimating censorship standards in the country (the film was released uncut in Hong Kong and Taiwan) prompted them to eventually release the uncut version with the higher R21 rating in Singapore. The film is rated R18 and was released uncut in New Zealand.[10]
The following scenes were cut from the mainland China version:
1.Wong Chia Chi walking past dead refugees in the street
2.Stabbing scene cut to only one knife stab
3.Two of the sex scenes featuring the student, and three featuring Mr. Yee
4.A nude shot of Wong Chia Chi at window
5.Wong Chia Chi in bed after first sex scene with Mr. Yee
6.Dialogue modified in diamond ring scene so that Wong Chia Chi did not betray the resistance by warning Mr. Yee.[11]
The film's end credits ends with a 18 U.S.C § 2257 notice.[12]
Country of production[edit]
The film was co-produced by the American companies Focus Features and River Road Productions, and Chinese companies Shanghai Film Group Corporation and Haishang Films and the Taiwanese Hai Sheng Film Production Company. The director is Ang Lee, who is a naturalized U.S. citizen, and the actors/actresses are from mainland China, Hong Kong, and Taiwan as well as the United States. It was shot in Shanghai, the neighboring province of Zhejiang, Hong Kong (at Hong Kong University), and some locations in Penang and Ipoh in Malaysia used as 1930s/1940s Hong Kong.
Originally, the film's country was identified as "China-USA" by the organizers of the Venice Film Festival. However, a few days later, the Venice Film Festival changed the film to "USA-China-Taiwan, China" on its official schedule.[13] When the film premiered at the event, Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council protested the Venice event's use of "Taiwan, China" to identify films from the island and blamed China for the move.[14][15]
After the film's premiere, Taiwan submitted the film as its Best Foreign Film Oscar entry. However, the Oscars asked Taiwan to withdraw the film because some key crew members were not locals. Oscars spokeswoman Teni Melidonian said in an e-mail organizers refused to accept the film because "an insufficient number of Taiwanese participated in the production of the film," violating a rule that requires foreign countries to certify their locals "exercised artistic control" over their submission.
Defamation[edit]
On September 13, 2007, an elderly lady, Zheng Tianru, staged a press conference in Los Angeles, claiming that the movie was about real-life events that happened in World War II, and wrongfully portrayed her older sister, Zheng Pingru, as a promiscuous secret agent who seduced and eventually fell in love with the assassination target Ding Mocun (she alleges that the characters were renamed to Wang Jiazhi and Mr. Yee in the movie).[16] Taiwan's investigation bureau confirmed that Zheng Pingru failed to kill Ding Mocun because her gun jammed, rather than developing a romantic relationship with the assassin's target.[citation needed] Director Ang Lee maintains that Eileen Chang wrote the original short story as fiction.[17]
Critical reception[edit]
As of March 31, 2011, on the review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes, 72% of critics gave the film positive reviews, the consensus said "Ang Lee's Lust, Caution is a tense, sensual and beautifully-shot espionage film".[18] On Metacritic, the film had an average score of 61 out of 100, based on 34 reviews.[19]
Jack Mathews of the New York Daily News named it the 5th best film of 2007.[20] Kenneth Turan of the Los Angeles Times named it the 6th best film of 2007.[20]
The Chinese press gave generally positive reviews. In analyzing how successful Lee's film was as an adaptation of Eileen Chang's short story, literary critic Leo Lee Ou-fan (李歐梵) wrote in Muse Magazine that he 'found [his] loyalties divided between Eileen Chang and Ang Lee. But after three viewings of the film, I have finally opted for Lee because deep down I believe in film magic which can sometimes displace textual fidelity.'[21] In an earlier issue of Muse however, film critic Perry Lam had criticized Lee's direction: 'in his eagerness to make the movie appealing to a mass audience, Lee seems guilty of sentimentalism.'[22] Sentimental or not, there is certainly a palpable trace of Lee's sympathy for Chang's personal love life, “It was hard for me to live in Eileen Chang’s world...There are days I hated her for it. It’s so sad, so tragic. But you realize there’s a shortage of love in her life: romantic love, family love.” He added, “This is the story of what killed love for her.”[23]
Anachronisms[edit]
It has been noted by critics (including Bryan Appleyard[24]) that the Hong Kong sequences in the film set in the late 1930s[25] include "London taxis" of two types (FX3, FX4) that were only manufactured onwards from 1948 and 1958 respectively.[26]
Box office[edit]
Lust, Caution was produced on a budget of approximately $15 million.[27]
In Hong Kong, where it played in its entirety, Lust, Caution grossed US$6,249,342 (approximately $48 million HKD) despite being saddled with a restrictive "Category III" rating. It was the territory's biggest-grossing Chinese language film of the year, and third biggest overall (behind only Spider-Man 3 and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix).[28]
The film was also a huge success in China, despite playing only in a heavily edited version. It grossed US$17,109,185, making it the country's sixth highest-grossing film of 2007 and third highest-grossing domestic production.[29]
In North America, the NC-17 rating which Lust, Caution received is traditionally perceived as a box office "kiss-of-death". In its opening weekend in one U.S. theatre, it grossed $63,918.[27] Expanding to seventeen venues the next week, its per-screen average was $21,341, before cooling down to $4,639 at 125 screens.[30] Never playing at more than 143 theatres in its entire U.S. run, it eventually grossed $4,604,982.[30] As of August 15, 2008, it was the fifth highest-grossing NC-17 production in North America.[31] Focus Features was very satisfied with the United States release of this film.[32]
Worldwide, Lust, Caution grossed $67,091,915.[27]
Home media[edit]
In the United States, two DVD versions of this film were released: the original NC-17 version and the censored R-rated version.[33]
This film has generated more than $24 million from its DVD sales and rentals in the United States,[27][34] an impressive result for a film that only grossed $4.6 million in limited theatrical release in the United States.[27]
See also[edit]


United States film.svgFilm in the United States portal
 China.svgChina portal
 Hong Kong SAR Regional Emblem.svgHong Kong portal
 Taiwan-icon.svgTaiwan portal
 Blue iPod Nano.jpg2000s portal
 

References[edit]
1.Jump up ^ "LUST, CAUTION (18)". British Board of Film Classification. 2007-10-11. Retrieved 2012-12-02.
2.^ Jump up to: a b Lust, Caution at Box Office Mojo
3.Jump up ^ The awards of the Venice Film Festival on the Festival's site
4.Jump up ^ Goldstein, Gregg (August 24, 2007). "Focus won't sweat NC-17 for 'Lust'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved September 9, 2007.[dead link]
5.Jump up ^ "媒體猛炒性愛 李安痛心" (in Chinese). Retrieved August 16, 2008.
6.Jump up ^ "Ang Lee celebrates golden success of "Lust, Caution"". CNN. December 21, 2007.
7.Jump up ^ "Lee film sweeps Taiwan 'Oscars'". BBC News. 8 December 2007. Retrieved 25 November 2012.
8.Jump up ^ Bowles, Scott. "'Lust, Caution': Not just a movie title in NC-17 debate", USA Today, March 13, 2008
9.Jump up ^ "'Fang' Lee: cruel but true". The Age (Australia). January 11, 2008.
10.Jump up ^ http://www.nzherald.co.nz/entertainment/news/article.cfm?c_id=1501119&objectid=10488493
11.Jump up ^ Lee admits 'political edit' of film
12.Jump up ^ The notice reads: "18 U.S.C § 2257 records custodian – Joyce Hsieh, custodian of records, Mr. Yee Productions LLC, C/O Schreck Rose Dapello Adams & Hurwitz LLP, 1790 Broadway, New York, NY 10019. Date of publication: September 28, 2007.
The performers in this motion picture who are depicted engaging in sexually explicit conduct, and the characters that they portray therein, were all over 18 years of age at the time of photography. The content is inappropriate for minors and appropriate care should be taken to ensure that it is not viewed by anyone under 18 years of age. The records required by 18 U.S.C § 2257 and associated regulations with respect to the motion picture on which this notice appears are kept by the custodian of the records at the office of the manufacturer above."
13.Jump up ^ "64th Venice Film Festival – In Competition". Retrieved September 9, 2007.
14.Jump up ^ "Taiwan protests Chinese credit for Ang Lee's movie at Venice festival". Retrieved September 9, 2007.[dead link]
15.Jump up ^ "Venice Film Fest faces faux pas over Taiwan". CBC News. August 28, 2007. Retrieved February 9, 2008.
16.Jump up ^ "色‧戒」影射鄭蘋如？鄭家人不滿" (in Chinese). Retrieved August 16, 2008.
17.Jump up ^ "湯唯情欲戲被指褻瀆烈士 <色戒>遭原型家人聲討" (in Chinese). Retrieved August 16, 2008.
18.Jump up ^ "Lust, Caution – Rotten Tomatoes". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved March 31, 2011.
19.Jump up ^ "Lust, Caution (2007): Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved October 30, 2007.
20.^ Jump up to: a b "Metacritic: 2007 Film Critic Top Ten Lists". Metacritic. Archived from the original on January 2, 2008. Retrieved January 8, 2008.
21.Jump up ^ Lee, Leo Ou-fan (November 2007). "Lust, Caution: Vision and revision". Muse Magazine (10): 96.
22.Jump up ^ Lam, Perry (October 2007). "Great expectations". Muse Magazine (9): 103.
23.Jump up ^ Lim, Dennis (August 26, 2007). "Love as an Illusion: Beautiful to See, Impossible to Hold". The New York Times.
24.Jump up ^ Appleyard, Bryan (January 21, 2008). "A Protocol Problem and the Lust Caution Taxi". Thought Experiments: The Blog. brianappleyard.com. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
25.Jump up ^ See Lust, Caution (clip) (WMV) (Motion picture). Focus Features. Retrieved August 16, 2008. (5.2 MB)
26.Jump up ^ "The FX series". LTI Vehicles. 2006. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
27.^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Lust, Caution". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved December 5, 2010.
28.Jump up ^ "Hong Kong Yearly Box Office (2007)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
29.Jump up ^ "China Yearly Box Office (2007)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
30.^ Jump up to: a b "Lust, Caution – Weekend Box Office". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
31.Jump up ^ "Domestic Grosses by MPAA Rating – NC-17". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
32.Jump up ^ Sperling, Nicole (March 19, 2008). "Ang Lee and James Schamus Get Frank". Entertainment Weekly.
33.Jump up ^ Foster, Dave (December 30, 2007). "Lust, Caution (R1) in February – Artwork Updated". DVD Times. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
34.Jump up ^ Hendrix, Grady (April 23, 2008). "Dirty DVD sales". Kaiju Shakedown blog. Variety Asia. Retrieved August 16, 2008.
External links[edit]
Official website
Lust, Caution at the Internet Movie Database
Lust, Caution at allmovie
Lust, Caution at Box Office Mojo
Lust, Caution at Rotten Tomatoes
Lust, Caution at Metacritic
Proceeding with Caution
Kamiyama, Masuo (February 20, 2008). "Steamy Shanghai period flick's feisty performers show plenty of lust, not much caution". Mainichi Shimbun. Archived from the original on February 23, 2008. Retrieved February 20, 2008.
Lust, Caution Reviews – spcnet.tv
Ang Lee on making Lust, Caution

Awards
Preceded by
After This Our Exile Golden Horse Awards for Best Film
 2007 Succeeded by
The Warlords
Preceded by
Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Asian Film
 2007 Succeeded by
Assembly


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Categories: 2007 films
2000s thriller films
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