Subscribe to watch - 14-day free trial, then £6.99 a month
A Touch of Zen
King Hu's epic swordplay saga combines ghost story, martial arts mastery and Buddhist mythology to stunning, hypnotic effect.
Director: King Hu
Overview
King Hu's epic swordplay saga combines ghost story, martial arts mastery and Buddhist mythology to stunning, hypnotic effect. An unambitious painter lives with his mother in the vicinity of an abandoned “haunted” mansion. In actuality, it has become a hiding place for the warrior Yang and her mother, taking refuge following the assassination of their father by the wicked Wei. After an army is sent to pursue the escapees, the group fortify the mansion with traps and false intimations of the terrifying ghosts within. But even after, things take yet more unsettling turns...
Famed for its iconic set pieces, including the central bamboo forest battle, A Touch of Zen is one of cinema’s truly peerless action sagas and the precursor par excellence of such modern wuxia classics as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and House of Flying Daggers. Ranked joint 225th in the 2022 Sight and Sound Great Films of All Time poll.
Related
Hapkido Hapkido
Action and Adventure 1972 98 mins Director: Huang Feng
Two martial arts schools battle it out in Huang Feng’s action classic (aka Lady Kung Fu), starring long term collaborator and combat master, Angela Mao.
Project A Project A
Action and Adventure 1983 106 mins Director: Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan’s rip-roaring action-adventure about a coastguard hot on the trail of a ruthless band of pirates in late 19th century Hong Kong.
China O'Brien China O'Brien
Action and Adventure 1991 91 mins Director: Robert Clouse
Cynthia Rothrock stars as the tough city cop and martial artist on the trail of a local crime boss, in this action classic from the director of Enter the Dragon.
Point Break Point Break
Action and Adventure 1991 122 mins Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Kathryn Bigelow’s pulse-pounding action thriller and heady bromance, with Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze.
A Bittersweet Life A Bittersweet Life
Action and Adventure 2005 120 mins Director: Kim Jee-woon and Doo Hong Jung
A hitman becomes the target in this ultra-stylish neo noir from Kim Jee-woon.
Heroes Shed No Tears Heroes Shed No Tears
Action and Adventure 1984 89 mins Director: John Woo
Master action director John Woo presents this ferociously violent tale of a group of mercenaries sent to capture a drug baron.
Fish Tank Fish Tank
Drama 2009 118 mins Director: Andrea Arnold
Andrea Arnold's BAFTA winner and coming-of-age story starring newcomer Katie Jarvis as disaffected teen Mia and Michael Fassbender in one of his earliest film roles.
Lady Macbeth Lady Macbeth
Period drama 2017 89 mins Director: William Oldroyd
Florence Pugh shines in this exceptional British debut of a young wife's need for freedom, whatever the cost.
Clemency Clemency
Drama 2019 112 mins Director: Chinonye Chukwu
Alfre Woodard is quietly devastating as a weary prison warden presiding over her twelfth execution, in this Sundance-winning death row drama.
Naked Naked
Drama 1993 131 mins Director: Mike Leigh
David Thewlis stuns as the motormouth predator of Mike Leigh's divisive masterpiece.
Clouds of Sils Maria Clouds of Sils Maria
Drama 2014 124 mins Director: Olivier Assayas
Juliette Binoche, Chloë Moretz, and Kristen Stewart star in this moving drama about a veteran actor struggling as the allure of her fame fades.
God's Creatures God's Creatures
Drama 2022 100 mins Director: Saela Davis and Anna Rose Holmer
Paul Mescal and Emily Watson star in this gripping Irish psychological drama that asks how far you might go to protect someone you love.
Watership Down Watership Down
Animation & Artists Moving Image 1978 92 mins Director: Martin Rosen
An apocalyptic vision pushes a group of rabbits to abandon their warren in search of a new home, in this landmark British animation.
Tchaikovsky's Wife Tchaikovsky's Wife
Biopic 2022 144 mins Director: Kirill Serebrennikov
Award-winning director Kirill Serebrennikov (Petrov's Flu) charts the tumultuous relationship between the 19th-century composer and his wife, in this poignant and powerful biopic.
Nezouh Nezouh
Drama 2024 104 mins Director: Soudade Kaadan
Enchanting feminist coming-of-age drama, from award winning Syrian director Soudade Kaadan.
The Turin Horse The Turin Horse
Drama 2011 155 mins Director: Béla Tarr
Béla Tarr’s devastating, starkly pared-down final feature, inspired by Nietzsche.
Werckmeister Harmonies Werckmeister Harmonies
Drama 2000 147 mins Director: Béla Tarr
A stuffed whale sparks social apocalypse in this haunting cinematic masterpiece from Béla Tarr and Ágnes Hranitzky.
The Man from London The Man from London
Drama 2007 139 mins Director: Béla Tarr
Tilda Swinton stars in this profoundly nocturnal Georges Simenon adaptation.