Saturday 27th February 7:00 PM - Alhambra
The Assassin
Details
Director: Hsiao-Hsien Hou Country: TaiwanCert: 12A Year: 2015 Length: 105 minsLanguage: Mandarin
Synopsis
Ninth-century China: 10 year-old general's daughter Nie Yinniang is abducted by a nun who initiates her into the martial arts, transforming her into an exceptional assassin charged with eliminating cruel and corrupt local governors. One day, having failed in a task, she is sent back by her mistress to the land of her birth, with orders to kill the man to whom she was promised - a cousin who now leads the largest military region in North China.
Critics
The movie is a distillation of the assassin’s life of watchfulness, survival and fear. At other times, it has a dreamlike quality: a floating hallucination. ‘The Assassin’ baffles, but more often it quietly captivates and astonishes
Peter Bradshaaw