Shadow

Original title: Ying

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

19K

YOUR RATING

In a kingdom ruled by a young and unpredictable king, the military commander has a secret weapon: a "shadow," a look-alike who can fool both his enemies and the King himself. Now he must use this weapon in an intricate plan that will lead his people to victory in a war that the King does not want.

Play trailer1:53

4 Videos

99 Photos

Wuxia Action Adventure Fantasy History War

In a Chinese royal court, an army commander secretly trains a "shadow" to retake a city against the wishes of the king.In a Chinese royal court, an army commander secretly trains a "shadow" to retake a city against the wishes of the king.In a Chinese royal court, an army commander secretly trains a "shadow" to retake a city against the wishes of the king.

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

7.0/10

19K

YOUR RATING

See production info at IMDbPro

Awards
- 38 wins & 60 nominations

Captain Tian
(as Wang Qianyuan)

Jingchun Wang

Minister Lu
(as Wang Jingchun)

Jun Hu

General Yang
(as Hu Jun)

Xiaotong Guan

The Princess (The King's Sister)
(as Guan Xiaotong)

Lei Wu

Ping (General Yang's Son)
(as Leo Wu)

Bai Feng

Director
- Yimou Zhang
Writers
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
The film is shot in color with all the sets and costumes designed in the tones of black and white, to illustrate the interplay between light and dark and to follow the style of Chinese ink wash paintings.

Quotes
Zi Yu: Without the real, there can be no shadow. A principle no one's understood.

Connections
Featured in Chris Stuckmann Movie Reviews: The Best Movies of 2019 (2019)

User reviews105

Review

Featured review

8/10

One of Zhang's Best in Recent 2 Decades

I'm never a big fan of Mr. Zhang Yimou especially in recent two decades. To me his all time best movie is "To Live"(1994). After 2000, since "Hero", his movies seems only focused on creating pretty images but all have very weak stories and most of the characters were too simple and tedious. But this time "Shadow" is not a weak story, it looks like a simple story but in fact is a complicated one which have several storylines and everybody in this movie have multiple character sides, every characters has strong personalities and strong thoughts. Although there are still some symbolic things which are kinda weird but I have to say this is one of his best in recent two decades.