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      Shadow

      Released May 3, 2019 1 hr. 56 min. Action Adventure TRAILER for Shadow: Trailer 1 List
      94% 104 Reviews Tomatometer 80% 500+ Ratings Audience Score To finally achieve victory over a rival kingdom, a brilliant general devises an intricate plan involving his wife, a look-alike and two kings. Read More Read Less Watch on Fandango at Home Premiered Feb 20 Buy Now

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      Shadow

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      Critics Consensus

      Beautifully filmed and inventively choreographed, Shadow is a thrilling and visually sumptuous wuxia epic that finds director Zhang Yimou near peak form.

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      Audience Reviews

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      Alec B There is a lot of set-up for the first hour or so but the imagery is always engaging even when it relies on obvious symbolism. Hard not to love those umbrella weapons. Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 02/21/24 Full Review Bluecam68 The techniques for battle in this movie were unlike anything I've seen before. It was captivating. Definitely great visuals. Rated 4.5 out of 5 stars 02/19/24 Full Review Andrei D Some solid fights but kinda dumb Rated 3 out of 5 stars 12/06/23 Full Review Jim S VisuLly dull therfore disappointing. Almost completely devoid of color, with exceptions being severely muted. The choice makes no sense since the lighting is shadowless, no pun intended. So, capitalization on the potential virtues of a gray scale for cinema. All falls flat with foreground, mid, and background without dimension. Every exterior is shot in pouring rain to no discernible purpose. The story is uninspiring and the rendering of on screen is painfully slow. Needless repetitios shots to over-tell the action. The hero is conflicted but not heroically so. The acting by the hero and his mentor is overwrought rather quiet and dignified. Nothing to see here; give this one a pass. Rated 2 out of 5 stars 03/31/23 Full Review Nguyen D Stylish and unpredictable. Pure joy to watch. Rated 5 out of 5 stars 03/04/23 Full Review Audience Member This one required another go 'round to grasp more fully what was happening with the dual characters of Commander/Jing, the shifting presences of Madam and Princess, and just much of the first half of the film. This part is largely setup and very slowly paced machinations and dialogue that will set the framework for the second half of the film. "Shadow" is a film built largely on dualism, as the protagonist is two characters played by the same character; one deeply embroiled in the political and military maneuvering of the day, and one a meer commoner 'shadow' of the other. The structure is built around two roughly equal parts, with the first half a complex political drama and the second half a wuxia action movie. I still struggle with the acting in the more period piece, wuxia/xinxia Asian movies. I find find the acting often contrived and over the top, and I believe if Western films had acting of this manner that critics would lay into them for it. Maybe this is too ethnocentric of me, but it's honest; it takes me out of the world of the movie to some degree. The laughing of the king (and Lu Yan), is supposed to show him as a spoiled, egocentric (even sociopathic, maybe) figure who is untouchable, but instead seems forced and fake. But more than anything else, even more than the fantastic action/fight sequences, this is a beautiful film to look at. It was shot in digital color but it's almost all hues of black, white, and gray, with the one glaring exception being human flesh and blood. The sets, costumes, weaponry and natural scenery are all varying shades (or shadows) of black and white, with even the riverbank apparently desaturated. So give this one a second try if it was overly confusing, frustrating, or the first half poorly paced for you. I believe it will be a noticeably improved experience the second time around. 3.8 stars Rated 3.5 out of 5 stars 01/20/23 Full Review Read all reviews Post a rating

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      Shadow

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      Critics Reviews

      View All (104) Critics Reviews
      Chris Stuckmann ChrisStuckmann.com A masterpiece, one of the best martial arts films I've ever seen. See it in theaters, it will not be the same at home. Rated: A- Jun 15, 2019 Full Review Sara Michelle Fetters MovieFreak.com Shadow is a masterful spectacle of human frailty and intellectual dishonesty that only grows in resonance as it goes along. Rated: 3/4 May 22, 2019 Full Review Randy Myers San Jose Mercury News You've gotta see it to believe it. May 21, 2019 Full Review Brian Eggert Deep Focus Review Palace intrigue and ornate martial arts duels are just the surface of Shadow, Zhang Yimou's stunning 2018 period epic of doppelgangers, zither duets, double-crosses, and monochrome colors splattered with blood. Rated: 4/4 Feb 12, 2022 Full Review Carolyn Hinds Atom Insider The fight choreography in the third act is unique and beautiful. Jul 30, 2021 Full Review Dennis Harvey 48 Hills Building rather slowly towards climactic action, this is a corpse-strewn sort of Jacobean revenge drama, its violence staged with considerable panache. Oct 15, 2020 Full Review Read all reviews

      Movie Info

      Synopsis To finally achieve victory over a rival kingdom, a brilliant general devises an intricate plan involving his wife, a look-alike and two kings.
      Director
      Yimou Zhang
      Screenwriter
      Yimou Zhang, Wei Li
      Distributor
      Well Go USA
      Production Co
      Tencent Pictures
      Genre
      Action, Adventure
      Original Language
      Chinese
      Release Date (Theaters)
      May 3, 2019, Limited
      Release Date (Streaming)
      Aug 13, 2019
      Box Office (Gross USA)
      $521.4K
      Sound Mix
      Dolby Atmos, Dolby Digital, DTS
      Aspect Ratio
      Scope (2.35:1)
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