Combining many martial arts conventions and amazing special effects choreographed by Yuen Wo-Ping, the man who made The Matrix rock, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is an intoxicating and utterly delightful adventure. In between amazing, graceful lightning quick action sequences, Crouching Tiger is quiet and thoughtful, a film about honor, duty, tradition and societal expectations. Lee infuses the film with the humor found in the bar room brawls of Westerns and martial arts movies and also with touches of Taoist philosophy that stress the internal energies of the martial arts as a path to transcendence. As the warriors dance across roof tops and tree tops, it seems they have transcended at least the laws of gravity. Lee also turns Chinese conventions around by making several of the most powerful warriors women, not a Chinese tradition.

Ang Lee has said that Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is his “dream of China, a China that probably never existed, except in my boyhood fantasies.” For American audiences this is probably ideal because in general we don’t know enough about China to have any qualms about Lee’s combining language, fighting styles, historical details, traditions and philosophies into one glorious romantic historical epic. (Some Chinese audiences are laughing at the stars’ mangled accents.)

Chow Yun-Fat stars as Li Mu Bai, a famous warrior who wants to retire. To symbolize this change in his life he wants to give his 400-year-old sword, Green Destiny, to respected elder Sir Te. He asks Yu Shu Lien, his beautiful warrior friend, played by Michelle Yeoh, to deliver his gift. Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien love each other, but because Yu Shu Lien’s husband lost his life protecting his best friend Li Mu Bai, out of respect, they remain just friends.

Green Destiny is stolen from Sir Te’s house, and Yu Shu Lien knows very quickly that the culprit is probably Jen Yu, a young princess also visiting Sir Te’s house. Jen Yu has studied to be a warrior, in secret, under the tutelage of the evil Jade Fox. As Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon unfolds, it is very much the story of Jen Yu trying to understand herself and where honor and duty intersect with desire.

Jen Yu is a passionate, headstrong young woman, not out of her teens, readying herself for a prepared marriage, trying to resign herself to this dull fate. She is played by Zhang Ziyi, a tiny lovely actress. When she and Chow Yun-Fat have their big battle scene, as Chow Yun-Fat tries to convince her to become his student and they dance through the tree tops in a lush green bamboo forest and run up and down the slender trees, she appears so light and spirited, it is easy to believe she could dance in the clouds.

Jen Yu is confused and wants guidance. She greatly admires Yu Shu Lien for her tremendous warrior skills and her many adventures and wants particularly to hear stories about her adventures with Li Mu Bai. Jen Yu understands, as everyone seems to, that there is a powerful romance between the two.

Jen Yu needs to know about love, because she has had her own romantic adventure with the outlaw Lo (Chang Chen.) He and his band of thieves attacked Jen Yu’s caravan as it crossed the desert. Lo stole Jen’s jade comb. Jen chased Lo on horseback, and they spent several weeks alone together falling in love in the remote caves and dramatic landscapes of a Chinese wilderness that bears remarkable similarity to the American West. These scenes, and the entire film, were shot in China. This romantic interlude is shown in flashback and is marked by its gentleness and humor and glorious visuals.

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a bit confusing because few films even attempt to mix so many diverse elements. The film is subtitled which will give some people an excuse to stay home. You can watch Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and get a full movie’s worth of pleasure from the cinematography, from the costumes and other production elements, from the romances of the young couple or the older couple, or from the dancing, almost musical martial arts sequences. The ending is ambiguous, but just remember, Lee and his characters are recreating their dream of China. They are retelling a myth and a legend, just as they are making a milestone in modern cinema.