Zhang Ziyi has been one of the biggest Chinese actresses that has managed to crossover into the world of Hollywood, making her a well-known name outside of her native China. Born and raised in Beijing, Zhang was educated at the prestigious Central Academy of Drama, and was scouted by director Zhang Yimou when she was still in school. In 1999, he cast her in his award-winning movie The Road Home, which won Zhang Ziyi acclaim abroad and in China. It was her very first role as an actress in a film. Not even a year later, Zhang was cast in Ang Lee’s epic wuxia movie Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, which escalated her newfound fame to all-new heights.
She continued to appear in several big Zhang Yimou films in the years to come, and then traversed into Hollywood movies, making her one of the most successful actresses of her generation, giving her the moniker of being one of the Four Dan Actresses with several other big Chinese actresses. Throughout the years and decades to come, Zhang continued to appear in movies in China and the United States, making her filmography extensive. These are Zhang Ziyi’s best movies throughout the years as we wait for her next big project.
12 The Wasted Times
Released in 2016, The Wasted Times is a historical Chinese film set in the period in which Shanghai was occupied by the Japanese. Although the movie is not told in chronological order, it focuses on the stories of a Chinese gangster, Lu, and his Japanese-brother-in-law, Watabe. The story begins with the invasion of Shanghai by the Japanese, and Lu is betrayed by someone he trusts and finds out his entire family has been slaughtered in the process. The film then jumps through time to show how it led up to this moment, filling in the blanks to give a holistic picture.
11 The Climbers
2019’s The Climbers had its premiere at the Cannes Film Festival, and literally tackles a massive subject: Mount Everest. The film is about a group of Chinese climbers and their dream of getting to the top of Mount Everest from the north side. As those who know anything about getting to the top of Everest, this is an extremely difficult task, and the film takes place across 1960 and 1975 to show how two different generations are trying to achieve this goal. Full of danger and drama, The Climbers takes real situations and applies them to the big screen.
10 The Cloverfield Paradox
Julius Onah’s The Cloverfield Paradox hits theaters back in 2018, and was the third installment in the Cloverfield franchise. In 2028, Earth is struggling with finding ways to power humanity. An international operation to find out a way to power the planet with energy from space is being prepared, but some fear the implications of what this could cause. A crew is sent to try and make this dream a reality, but when they find themselves in a peculiar situation, where many different strange events start happening, and the crew is actually in a parallel universe.
9 Dangerous Liaisons
A movie that came out in 2012, Dangerous Liaisons is based on a 1782 French novel that’s also known for its 1988 Hollywood adaptation. Directed by Hur Jin-ho, this film takes place in 1930s Shanghai and stars Jang Dong-gun and Zhang Ziyi in the lead roles. Jang is Xie Yifan, a young wealthy playboy who is introduced by his family to Du Fenyu (Zhang). He decides to make the quiet girl from Northern China his next conquest, as he makes a bet with someone else that he can woo her over. What happens next turns this affair into a risky game where he could lose quite a bit if he doesn’t succeed.
Related: Best Chinese Historical Dramas, Ranked
8 Forever Enthralled
Based on the life of one of China’s biggest opera performers, Forever Enthralled came out in theaters in 2008. Leon Lai portrays Mei Lanfang, who played the dan roles in Beijing opera, which means he played female roles. The film tracks his life and rise to the top, as he was considered one of the best dan actors of his generation, if not throughout Chinese opera history. Zhang Ziyi portrays Mei’s wife Meng Xiaodong, who played male roles in the opera. The film was directed by Chen Kaige, who previously did a similar movie decades before with Farewell My Concubine.
7 The Road Home
The Road Home came out in 2000, but when Zhang Ziyi was first cast in it in 1999, it marked the first time she would officially appear in front of a movie camera. She portrays the lead role of Zhao Di when she is young, as she is a country girl who lives in love with a teacher. The film begins with the death of her beloved and the return of her son for the father’s funeral, then it goes back in time to show how their love story began. The movie won the Jury Grand Prix at the Berlin International Film Festival.
6 Memoirs of a Geisha
Based on the 1997 novel of the same name, Memoirs of a Geisha starred Zhang Ziyi in the lead role, and featured the likes of actresses like Michelle Yeoh and Gong Li before they were popular in the West. Zhang is Chiyo, who, with her sister Satsu, is sold off by their family because they cannot afford to keep the sisters. Chiyo is taken in by an okiya to receive the training to become a geisha, while her sister is sent off to a brothel. While she initially resists her destiny and does not want to become one, Chiyo ultimately accepts the circumstances of her situation, which changes her life completely.
Related: Best Chinese Movies of the 21st Century (So Far), Ranked
5 The Grandmaster
Hong Kong director Wong Kar-wai came out with The Grandmaster in 2013, which marked his return to the big screen after several years. Tony Leung stars as Ip Man, who is reflecting upon his life throughout the film. Adopted as a young man into the art of Wing Chun, he is sucked into a leadership void for the South and is decided upon as the next leader. However, things aren’t determined that easily, and he has to prove his worth. The film was a massive success in the Chinese-speaking world.
4 House of Flying Daggers
House of Flying Daggers was released in 2004, and is considered one of Zhang Yimou’s best wuxia movies despite it deviating from the traditional themes of wuxia films. This film is set during the end of the Tang Dynasty, and rebel groups are forming throughout the kingdom. The House of Flying Daggers is one of them, and two police officers are tasked with finding out who the mysterious leader of the organization is and taking him out. When a blind dancer (Zhang) comes onto their radar as a connection to the rebels, one of the cops betrays the other and joins the rebels.
3 2046
A continuation of two of his films, Wong Kar-wai made an unofficial sequel with 2046 — previous knowledge of In the Mood for Love and Days of Being Wild is not required to understand this film, although it may inform one’s perspective. The male lead from In the Mood for Love, Chow Mo-wan, returns to Hong Kong and dwells upon his lost love Su. He looks to Room 2046 as a place where people come and go, and in a series of vignettes, he encounters many different women and people experiencing love and hardship. He also begins writing a science fiction story based on his own experiences, finally confronting his emotions.
2 Hero
Zhang Yimou’s Hero is one of his most famous wuxia movies, and that’s because of many good reasons. Set during the Warring State period centuries ago, the king summons a man named Nameless (Jet Li). Nameless has supposedly slain the assassins who have come after the king, and he recounts the experience of taking them down to the king, who cannot believe this man has done what is seemingly impossible. What happens next is up for interpretation — depending on who is telling the story.
Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is the movie that put the wuxia genre on the map for international attention, and was based on a serial Chinese novel of the same name from the 1940s. Set in the Qing Dynasty, a famed swordsman and a female warrior find themselves caught in a new kind of situation. A thief steals a legendary sword, kick-starting an epic adventure that has so many complicated layers to it. With stunning fights, cinematography, and acting, everyone has to see Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon at least once.
