Ang Lee's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) explores the complexity of love, especially that of forbidden love. Instead of delving into the complexities of the plot of this movie, I wish to address the ultimate message of the film: love endures even in the face of disapproval, despite societal pressures and nuances of culture. The principal story arch that supports this is that of Li Mu Bai and Yu Shu Lien. Because they are both Wudang warriors, it is against societal customs for the two of them to be together romantically, so they instead choose to remain platonic friends while each separately longs for the other. The tender moments of their friendship is amplified by this hidden desire and it is not until Li dies (at the end of the film) that they are able to truly admit their admiration for one another. This unrequited love amplifies the emotional impact of Li's death, and we as an audience feel Yu's pain in the final moments of Li's life. It's truly heartwrenching to think about never getting to say "I love you" to the person you've wanted all your life, therefore this scene plays out like a deep, heartfelt sigh of relief even in the face of death. Despite losing him, Yu finds solace in having admitted her love, in having it reciprocated for even a moment, and I believe this is the true breadth of how it feels to truly love someone.
On the other side, Jen (the daughter of Governor Yu) forsakes her love of her admirer Lo (after he chases her across the desert) in order to prove herself as a noble warrior. It is only after seeing the love Yu and Li share (even in Li's final moments) that she returns to the Wudang training grounds to be with her beloved for one more night. The next day, she stands on the edge of a mountain with him, asks him to make a wish (he wishes for them to be together as they were, in the desert), then jumps off the cliff as per an old legend of unrequited love. This "leap of faith" indicates the extreme measures it would have taken for them to be successfully together (because class and rank both work against them). It's tragically beautiful, this sacrifice, because even in her death, we can see that Jen loved Lo.
In either side of the story, Ang Lee accurately captures the hardships of love in Feudal Japan. It endures, though, even in the darkest of circumstances, proving love's enduring quality, it's ability to transcend time and space and the expectations a society places upon the individual. Love is possible, in all things.
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