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Sunday, April 14, 2013

Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon


At the end of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Shu Lien spares the life of Jen, who was the one responsible for the theft of the Green Destiny sword, and for leading Li Mu Bai to his death. Instead, she thought of how Li Mu Bai deeply desired to teach her the ways of Wudan, and now that Jade Fox was dead as well, she saw no need of her death. Shu Lien instructed her to live out the rest of her life being true to herself and to go to Wudan Mountain. This really means having a faithful heart. Standing atop Wudan Mountain, Jen recalls the legend she heard in the desert from Lo: "Anyone who dares to jump from the mountain, God will grant his wish. Long ago, a young man’s parents were ill, so he jumped. He didn’t die. He floated away, far away, never to return. He knew his wish had come true. If you believe, it will happen. The elders say a faithful heart makes wishes come true." Jen invites Lo to make a wish. He replies, "To be in the desert, together again." Then she jumps, floating down into the mists, disappearing from view. This scene symbolizes Jen’s change of heart. She is throwing away her past wrongdoings and is accepting a new life. Her floating down instead of falling shows that she has a faithful heart is in fact being true to herself. One could say that she has now completed her Wudan training.

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