One of the best most awarded films and one of the most deep explorations of loneliness and sorrow, justly ranking among the best produced Hong Kong films of the 90's, this mysterious and sensual portrayal of sadness and melancholy is often mistaken for the typical swordplay action film, disappointing and even boring the fans of the genre. But make no mistake: This is an Art film in capital letters, a profound and oblique vision within the human soul, based on a non-linear development, flashbacks and voiceovers, with total character emphasis, expressionist camera and enveloping soundtrack, about the pain and intense regrets of the past and memories. The Wuxia film people expects, happens to be only the scenario for this striking epic tale about the meditation of love and the scars of the soul. Never the less, the mysticism provided by the ancient period and the arid landscapes, added to the skilled but tormented master swordsmen stereotype, is the essence and main appealing of the film. The action sequences by Sammo Hung are few and registered in a very particular and hard to digest fashion, like slow motion or kinetic blurry sequences, serving only the purpose of proving dramatic consequences or graphic portrayals of some characters.

Wong Kar Wai's sole intrusion in the popular Wuxia genre and recasting to the martial arts conventions, transcends the usual plot about honor, revenge, or the interminability of the spirit as a mere vehicle for showdowns and violent climax and vindication. Instead, he uses his incredible talent in creating a beautiful, dreamlike and stylized composition about memory, the irretrievability of the past and the consequent impossibility of love and happiness. The affecting enigmatic performances, the atmospheric stirring music, and the mesmerizing imagery of sterile alienating landscapes, are beyond known emotional levels for the genre, and the names of Kurosawa and Leone come out as a possible influences, mostly because of Christopher Doyle's gorgeous and lyrical cinematography providing lavish visual poetry, as composer Frankie Chan (known as the Manchu prince in "The Prodigal Song") creates the definitive Wuxia soundtrack, painting the atmosphere with delicate and sad sound layers accompanying the moments of deep revelations, or the loud rhythmic war fanfares of the epic battles.

The flaw of this otherwise perfect masterpiece, is that it requires more than one view to integrate the amount of apparently diffuse elements of the non-linear and flashback style of the movie, as it is intellectually demanding and highly stimulating. After the second or third viewing or a previous study of the plot, the experience can finally be rewarding, and once you're there, there's no turning back, as this movie steals your heart. Because this movie lacks of a single storyline, but it's based instead on different but connected characters and their memories, I would like to provide a short profile on each one for better understanding of the plot and the degrees of profundity:

- Ouyang Feng (Leslie Cheung): Once known as Evil West, Feng ekes out a lonely existence as a hired sword and agent for other assassins in a remote desert abode. Getting on years and tormented by memories of lost love, he's the main narrator of the story and the connection between other characters. Cinic and Haunted by the past.

- Huang Yaoshi (Tony Leung): Evil East, Ouyang's old friend and fellow swordsman, the emotionally crippled hero appears one day in Ouyang's home with a bottle of magic memory-erasing wine, as he drowns his lovelorn misery in it. Lonely and northless.

- Murong Yan / Yin (Brigitte Lin): A woman with a split personality (Yan, the brother and Yin, the sister) and a wounded soul, Yan hires Ouyang Feng to kill Huang Yaoshi as he betrayed his sister. Later, Yin also tries to hire Feng to kill her brother Yan, in a fair display of insanity and despair. Hungry for affection.

- The Girl (Charlie Yeung): One day, the shy but determined Girl visits Ouyang Feng to ask him for revenge against the soldiers who killed his brother, with nothing to offer but a basket of eggs and an old mule. Feng declines, so she stays outside for days waiting for someone who can help her. Sad and vulnerable.

- Blind Swordsman (Tony Leung): A colleague of Feng and Yaoshi, this enigmatic and sad character is looking for work as an assassin to raise money to return to his hometown and see the peach blossoms before he goes completely blind. Nostalgic and abandoned.

- Hong Qi (Jackie Cheung): A barefoot beggar with incredible fighting skills, he is often used by Feng in some dirty works. He is in searching of his old self before he got involved with Feng's business and cynicism, and he found in The Girl outside Feng's house, the opportunity for redemption. The only optimistic character despite the circumstances.

Those are the basic characters, and their stories and relationships are developed as the movie moves forward in several climaxes for each one, as well as other secondary but also important appearances of Maggie Cheung and Carina Liu as abandoned lovers, bring some sense and connection to the drama.

Finally, please don't get me started on any DVD, VCD, or even VHS edition of this outstanding classic. The only decent edition of "Ashes of Time" is the MEI AH Hong Kong DVD, actually the Laser Disc translation with imbedded English/Chinese subtitles , 1.0 mono, and not even a scene selection. Now wait, you think that's bad, the US edition is a total mess.

GOOD NEWS!!!!!! On October 10 2008, Sony Pictures will release "Ashes of Time REDUX", a new remastered version with extra footage and new soundtrack. I've heard it's quite amazing, as it was already released in other countries.