ashen snow
SHADOW I Zhang Yimou’s monochrome martial arts epic is full of colour…
After his martial arts extravaganzas Hero and House Of Flying Daggers, China’s top-tier auteur Zhang Yimou is all too aware that any return to this genre will invite comparison. So it goes with his sublime latest, Shadow. “They are not the same, even if there are many common elements,” he tells Teasers. “I just wanted some images that provided sensation.”
If that’s the case, then mission accomplished, with Shadow schemed in marvellous moody monochrome. Echoing the black and white of the yin and yang symbols, the director was also inspired by the ancient art of Chinese ink painting to conjure a startling blackand-white look for the entire movie. “I think there is no other film made this way,” he smiles.
While computer wizardry was involved in creating the overall aesthetic, it wasn’t entirely thanks to the digital dark arts. “All objects on set are real. Every single object made is black and white.” Even the giant circular platform, on which opponents fight, is decorated with a yin and yang symbol. Stepping on set was like “standing in the middle of a painting”, Zhang adds. “It took us a lot of time doing this.”
Following his troubled Hollywood co-production, monster movie The Great Wall, Zhang’s return to home turf with Shadow also sees a more grounded tale set in China’s Three Kingdoms era. Deception is the order of the day, as the injured Commander Yu (Deng Chao) of the Pei Kingdom instructs a low-born lookalike to take his place in what is the first in a series of strategic chess-like moves for power.
Amid this dense story are remarkable action scenes, courtesy of stunt maestro Huen Chiu Ku – aka Master Dee Dee – whose showstopping work can be seen in The Matrix and Kill Bill. The standout is when dozens of soldiers lead an attack by using upturned metal umbrellas to slide down a sloping, rain-drenched street, firing out blades as they go.
“It’s my own creation,” says Zhang, “but it’s based on the tradition of Chinese kung fu films. In many kung fu films, you might see ordinary objects used as weapons, like fans, a glass, whatever. I decided to adopt the umbrella.” Again, the director eschewed CGI. “I told people I wanted to have real umbrellas in the film – only this way does the audience have this feeling of something real. This is what I like.”
It makes you wonder if this is a reaction against his time on The Great Wall, with its excess of CG beasties. What did he learn from that? “Well, that was a Hollywood movie. I had the chance to see how films are made in Hollywood, but it’s not something I can use directly in making films in China.” Spoken like a master diplomat.
ETA | 16 SEPTEMBER / SHADOW IS AVAILABLE ON BLU-RAY AND DVD NEXT MONTH.