Several years ago, some friends and I noted that there appeared to be “final” editions of a few genre films surfacing. For example, after Eastwood’s Unforgiven, there is little reason to make another serious Western film.

Acclaimed Taiwanese director Ang Lee (The Wedding Banquet, Eat Drink Man Woman, Sense and Sensibility, The Ice Storm, Ride with the Devil) has probably finished off a lump of genres in the beautiful Wu hu zang long, released in the US as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. IMDB lists this as “Fantasy / Action / Adventure / Western / Drama / Romance (more);” that about covers it — maybe. It’s the best thing I’ve seen since I don’t know when (American Beauty comes to mind).

Lee manages to juggle a reasonably complex plot, at least two romantic entanglements, fight scenes that defy description (think Bruce Lee meets The Matrix), a magic sword, and flying heros without seeming cheesy or contrived. Veteran Hong Kong actors Chow Yun-Fat (Anna and the King, Hard Boiled, The Killer) and Michelle Yeoh (Tomorrow Never Dies) lead the cast, but Ziyi Zhang (the otherwise betrothed Jen) and Chen Chang (the bandit Lo, Jen’s actual love interest) are just as charming and compelling. Do not miss this, even if subtitles aren’t your favorite thing. By ten minutes in, you’ll forget you’re reading. Wow.