THE ASSASSIN

China in the 9th century, Tang dynasty. Nie Yinniang (Shu Qi) was abducted as a child by a nun and trained as an assassin who kills corrupt officials on her mistress’s orders. When she spares a victim because he is playing with his young son, her mistress sends her home as punishment: she is to kill the governor of Weibo (Chang Chen) – her cousin, to whom she was once close and almost betrothed. “The Assassin” (Nie Yinniang, Taiwan 2015) by Hou Hsiao-hsien loosely follows a 9th-century tale by Pei Xing.

A wuxia film that reduces the genre to landscape, silence and waiting: the fights are short, the courtyards and forests long, and the assassin is a woman who hesitates. It premiered in competition at Cannes on 21 May 2015, where Hou received the award for Best Director. The film was shown at Around the World in 14 Films in Berlin in 2015.

Shown at the 2015 edition of Around the World in 14 Films.

All films 2015 · Film Archive