lu9603

This is overall a pleasant, and well-made film.

Yet some of the changes in the character Brian are a bit sudden and dramatic, especially in his "conservative" attitudes and "ethics".

It took Brian three weeks to overcome his "ethics" dilemma and start an affair with Arielle. Later, $6,000 gave him the "courage" to make a decision that would end Arielle's marriage, and destroy the home of her two kids. I assume that, by then, "ethics" is somehow, miraculously not an issue any more?! I wonder which was actually the "solution" to the "ethics issue", love or lust?

Other than this small debacle though, Brian has the good fortune of living among decent people (I mean, all of them), even though some are mildly annoying (e.g., his parents). In real-life though, when finding out the son's girlfriend is a married French woman with two kids, some parents may start yelling, or at least stand up and leave. Admittedly, the noticeable absence of jerks does make this movie a more pleasant experience, but it is also a reminder of how different the real world is.

This is one of the greatest movies ever made, and I enjoyed it immensely. I was planning to watch half of it, and watch the second half the next day. But I was enjoying it so much that I watched the whole movie and finished it at 1 AM in the morning. In fact, I am ordering its soundtrack online right now.

In general, Hollywood movies are good at special effects, cracking jokes, action scenes, and love scenes, if you will. In a word, most of them are very commercial, without much food for thought compared with European and even Asian movies.

But this one is a profound movie that is looking into lives of ordinary people, trying to reach for their souls, and trying to understand human nature and mistakes. If you think hard enough, you may even find traces of yourself in the characters.

Highly recommended for people who like to think about things in life.

Everybody loves "Crouching Tiger", but this movie made more than 10 years ago is a much better martial arts movie. Instead of trying to be everything like "Crouching Tiger" did, it was just designed and implemented as a martial arts movie, and nothing else. This focus made it great to begin with.

In addition to a stellar cast, great action scenes, its plot is solid and intriguing. The final fight is one of the greatest martial arts scenes ever made, especially to those who grew up reading Chinese martial arts novels.

It is interesting that those who have a problem with the imagination of Chinese martial arts movies do not have any issue with that of "Matrix". In fact, the logic is very similar. "Matrix": with hi-tech, everything is possible, including dodging bullets; Chinese martial arts movies: with kongfu, everything is possible, including running on the roof.

Having said that, I understand that those who have never read Chinese martial arts novels may have trouble with some of the scenes, especially if you are trying to find medical evidence to verify the possibility of some moves. However, this is just a movie based on a novel, so why don't you just relax and enjoy?

This is one of the few movies that I really enjoyed among the many that I rented and viewed at home. It gives you great action, makes you laugh, and almost moves you to tears when Poe finally meets his family, alive. Besides, it is unbelievable that the producers actually crashed a real plane into a real building. Furthermore, the casting of Nicolas Cage, and its music, are both among the best that I have ever seen.

I bet you will enjoy flying "Con Air".