Hero Worship; Already a Hit in China, Jet Li's Latest Movie Is Tipped to Become a Global Smash. But, Finds Graeme Virtue, Its Star Wants to Become More Than Just an Action Man

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SUMPTUOUS cinematography. A feudal Chinese setting. Characters who defy gravity, stepping lightly into the air on a whim. Oscar nominations. And a hell of a lot of dazzling swordplay. Is all this sounding familiar? Maybe, but it would be wrong to dismiss Hero - which has its UK premiere at the Edinburgh International Film Festival this week - as a sly attempt to replicate the global success of Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.

In some ways, it's got a head-start over its illustrious predecessor; while Crouching Tiger was critically adored in the West, Chinese audiences, perhaps hardened after years of watching similar wuxia period dramas, weren't quite so blown over. On its release in 2002, however, Hero quickly became the most successful Chinese film ever. That's down to one man: Jet Li.

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Hero Worship; Already a Hit in China, Jet Li's Latest Movie Is Tipped to Become a Global Smash. But, Finds Graeme Virtue, Its Star Wants to Become More Than Just an Action Man

"This is the most important film I've ever made," explains Li. If you've only seen his Western output - his debut as a baddie in Lethal Weapon 4, followed by kinetic but formulaic action fare such as Romeo Must Die and The One - you wouldn't find that hard to believe. But what's interesting is that Li chose to...

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