Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: A Portrait of the Ang Lee Film

by Ang Lee, James Schamus, Richard Corliss, David Bordwell

Overview

The winner of four Academy Awards, including Best Foreign-Language Film, Art Direction, Cinematography, and Original Music.

To coincide with the Sony Pictures Classics release—this elegantly illustrated moviebook captures the beauty, spirit, and extraordinary talents behind what TimeAsia heralded as an "instant classic...a rule-bending master-piece that weds martial arts with sense and sensibility." The latest film from Sense and Sensibility director is an epic love story and a thrilling action drama set against the breathtaking landscapes of ancient China, filmed entirely on location. Based on a five-volume Chinese novel by Wang Du Lu, the project was scripted by Wang Hui Ling (Eat Drink Man Woman), James Schamus (The Ice Storm), and Tsai Kuo Jung. Marking Ang Lee's first Chinese-language feature since 1994, the film is punctuated by beautifully choreographed fight scenes and dazzling stunts masterminded by Yuen Wo-Ping, who worked on The Matrix. The actors include the two most popular Asian actors in the world, Chow Yun Fat (Anna and the King, The Replacement Killers) and Michelle Yeoh (Supercop, Tomorrow Never Dies).

The Newmarket book includes the screenplay, stunning full-color photographs before and behind the cameras, interviews and notes with filmmakers, features on the history and tradition of martial arts storytelling and filmmaking, and articles by Time's Richard Corliss and world renowned film scholar David Bordwell.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781557044570
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	12/04/2000
Series:	Pictorial Moviebook
Edition description:	1 ED
Pages:	144
Product dimensions:	8.50(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

James Schamus is the CEO ofFocus Features as well as a Professorin Columbia University's School ofthe Arts, where he teaches film historyand theory. His script for The IceStorm (which Ang Lee directed) wonthe Best Screenplay Award at theCannes Film Festival.

Ang Lee won the Academy Award^®for Best Director for BrokebackMountain and also received an Oscar^®nomination for directing CrouchingTiger, Hidden Dragon (from the scriptby James Schamus).

Schamus and Lee have also collaboratedas writer and director onLust, Caution; Hulk; Ride with the Devil; Eat, Drink, Man,Woman; The Wedding Banquet; and Pushing Hands.

James Schamus is the CEO ofFocus Features as well as a Professorin Columbia University's School ofthe Arts, where he teaches film historyand theory. His script for The IceStorm (which Ang Lee directed) wonthe Best Screenplay Award at theCannes Film Festival.

Ang Lee won the Academy Award^®for Best Director for BrokebackMountain and also received an Oscar^®nomination for directing CrouchingTiger, Hidden Dragon (from the scriptby James Schamus).

Schamus and Lee have also collaboratedas writer and director onLust, Caution; Hulk; Ride with the Devil; Eat, Drink, Man,Woman; The Wedding Banquet; and Pushing Hands.

Editorial Reviews

Newmarket's two distinct screenplay series, Pictorial Moviebook and Shooting Script, are to books what MGM technicolor musicals and hard-boiled film noirs are to movies; the former is lush with color and expansive distractions while the latter is stripped to a pure and austere form. From Taiwan, Lee's eagerly awaited stylistic treatment of an epic Chinese love story combined with fascinating martial arts action is rendered sumptuously in this giftbook-like presentation, which assembles 120 color photographs and illustrations, numerous sidebars, and interviews along with the complete screenplay. Recipient of both the Best Foreign Film and Best Director Golden Globe Awards this year, Lee's film has also been nominated for ten Academy Awards, including Best Film. Introductory essays by Lee, esteemed film critic Richard Corliss, and film scholar David Bordwell are included. This visually fetching work will attract readers independent of its cinematic interest. Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

Library Journal

Adult/High School-The heart of the book is the complete screenplay, in English, illustrated with stills from the film. The script is a valuable resource for anyone too dazzled by the images to keep up with the subtitles. In addition, there is a foreword by Ang Lee; an essay analyzing the film by Time magazine film critic Richard Corliss; an essay about wuxia pian, Chinese martial-art films; and numerous short pieces examining aspects of the film, such as weapons, working with fight choreographer Yuen Wo Ping, and the meaning of the title. There are ample quotes from the director and the stars, which provide personal perspectives on the movie. The book is rounded out by short biographies of the major production staff and complete credits. Crouching Tiger is a visual feast, a sumptuously designed book with gorgeous photos, rich color, and varied motifs. It is sure to appeal to fans of the film.-Susan Salpini, Fairfax County Public Schools, VA Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information.

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