'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny' A Review

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny is a martial arts movie, a sequel to the 2000 original. After the death of Sir Te, steward of the fabled sword Green Destiny, Yu Shu Lien(Michelle Yeoh) has come out of seclusion to pay her respects. A blind enchantress(Eugenia Yuan) convinces local warlord Hades Dai(Jason Scott Lee) that now's the time to go after the fabled blade, he sends Wei-Fang(Harry Shum, Jr.) who is quickly captured by Lien's new student Snow Vase(Natasha Liu Bordizzo). Silent Wolf(Donnie Yen), a former lover of Lien's who she thought dead, comes along with a group of warriors to bolster defense against the warlord's inevitable follow up attack.

The most jarring thing about all the performances is that they're in English. Although mostly passable the fact the dialogue isn't in Chinese is incredibly distracting and makes for some odd tonal inconsistencies. Yeoh is decent in a return to her role from the original and the remaining actors are serviceable however there's a lack of inspiration and energy running throughout the entire cast. This may be a direct result of the erratic nature of the script which jumps from melodrama to action to broad comedy with no seeming motivation or purpose.

The action sequences are staged with appropriate and pleasing flourish but they lack the poetry of the original, more functional than cinematic. They are further diminished by the lack of depth in the characters who participate in them. The plot is but a thin regurgitation of the original without any of the balletic visuals or emotional depth.

Pedestrian and plodding.

Don't See It.