A lady fugitive on the run from corrupt government officials is joined in her endeavors by an unambitious painter and skilled Buddhist monks.A lady fugitive on the run from corrupt government officials is joined in her endeavors by an unambitious painter and skilled Buddhist monks.A lady fugitive on the run from corrupt government officials is joined in her endeavors by an unambitious painter and skilled Buddhist monks.
- Awards
- 2 wins & 1 nomination
- Director
- Writers
- All cast & crew
- Production, box office & more at IMDbPro
Storyline
Did you know
- TriviaDirector King Hu had a full village constructed for the opening half of the movie, and then left it alone for nine months to give it a weathered look.
- GoofsThe film is set in the 14th century AD. However, the Gu family have maize (corn) drying outside their house - this crop is American in origin and did not reach China until the 16th century.
- Quotes
Ku Shen Chai: Have you seen Miss Yang, the lady who lives here?
General Shih Wen-chiao: No, I'm blind.
Ku Shen Chai: Forgive me.
General Shih Wen-chiao: Miss Yang and her mother are gone.
Ku Shen Chai: Mr. Shih! She said you should run for your life too. Do you know where she went?
Ku Shen Chai: I have to find her!
[Shih pulls out a sword as two soldiers fly down from the sky and attack, but are quickly killed in a few brief strokes of the sword]
Ku Shen Chai: Mr. Shih! Mr. Shih, who are you really?
General Shih Wen-chiao: I'm not blind, that's for sure.
- Alternate versionsA Touch Of Zen was originally released in Taiwan in two parts with a total running time of 3 hours 20 minutes. However, the bamboo forest sequence which ended part one was reprised at the beginning of part two, adding over 20 minutes to the total running time. When the two parts were combined by King Hu without any repeated scenes in 1975, the resulting total time was 3 hours. The 2015 4K restoration from the original negative runs 2 hours 59 minutes.
- ConnectionsFeatured in La Menace (1977)
Blending different genres seamlessly together and paving the way for many movies to come, everything here is well balanced and thought over. The story that begins as a ghost story starts slowly but rewardingly layering up, developing and getting more dimensions, moving into Wu Xia styled action and politics drama, then leaping into the territory of Seven samurais -style tactical warfare depiction, finally getting some deeply mystical aspects in the end. Settings and photography are stunningly beautiful, and all the visuals are breath-taking timeless.
Looks like time simply cannot touch this movie, and that's why I compare this one to the works of Sergio Leone. Definitely one of the best movies I have ever seen. Now, if only my wish come true and we had some day better than watchable DVD release of this true classic, preferably fully restored from original film. One can only hope...
This is my truth. What is yours?
- The_True_Meller
- Jun 29, 2007
- How long is A Touch of Zen?Powered by Alexa
Details
- Release date
- Countries of origin
- Language
- Also known as
- Ein Hauch von Zen
- Filming locations
- Taroko National Park, Hualien, Taiwan(monastery and river canyon)
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
- Runtime3 hours 20 minutes
- Sound mix
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1