At a Glance

He Ping, the director of the cult classic SWORDSMAN IN DOUBLE FLAG TOWN and the better-known RED FIRECRACKER, GREEN FIRECRACKER, enters the big time with WARRIORS OF HEAVEN AND EARTH, an epic battle between two heroic figures fighting for themselves and for their countries. When Li (Jiang Wen) refuses to kill innocent women and children, he becomes a rogue soldier without a land. Master swordsman Lai Xi (Nakai Kiichi) is ordered to assassinate him if wants to get back to to his home in Japan and see his mother before she dies. But first they must join together to help a caravan with precious cargo make its way safely across the desert--with a beautiful woman, Wen Zhu (SHAOLIN SOCCER's Zhao Wei), caught in between them. The gorgeous cinematography is by Zhao Fei, who shot such Asian epics as RAISE THE RED LANTERN as well as such Woody Allen films as SWEET AND LOWDOWN and SMALL TIME CROOKS. The lush look of the film is echoed by A.R. Rahman's marvelous score and outstanding costuming and set design. Ping masterfully recreates seventh-century China as horses and camels lead the protagonists down the famous Silk Road during the time of the Tang Dynasty.