Hidden Man (2018) // Is This Movie Worth The Watch?

Our Complete Review of Hidden Man // Learn Chinese Online

If you are thinking about learning Chinese as a second language, watching Chinese films and TV shows are a great way to learn.

BONUS INTRO – How to Learn Chinese Online?

ADDITIONAL BONUS – How To Learn Chinese Online with Movies?

Hidden Man: Plot

Hidden Man: Jiang Wen

Hidden Man: Main Characters

Hidden Man: Words to Know

Hidden Man: Useful Dialogues to Learn Chinese

Hidden Man: Where to watch

Hidden Man: FAQ’s

How to Learn Chinese Online?

Firstly before we get stuck into the movie we want to make sure you are fully clued up on the best ways to learn Chinese Online.

Have a look at the link here to find out more about how to learn Chinese online.

Or alternatively, if you prefer watching videos…

How to Learn Chinese Online with Movies?

If you want to learn Chinese online through watching movies, here are some suggestions and tips for you:

  • First, try to get familiar with the plot of the film or read a brief introduction to the movie beforehand.
  • Second, find out what type of movie you like. Once you’ve watched a few different Chinese movies you’ll be able to see what genre you enjoy the most.
  • Third, try to watch the movie seriously and pay attention to the Chinese that is being spoke. Maybe for the first time, you want to be more relaxed and just enjoy the film, that’s okay there’s no rush. I am sure that after watching the movie, you will be able to pick up some useful Chinese knowledge.
  • Fourth, now try to watch the movie using pause and try to repeat some of the lines that are spoken. If you want to fully understand everything it may mean that you have to pause a lot so that you can look up words. You may want to have a Chinese dictionary app like Pleco downloaded so that you can translate words as you watch.
  • Fifth, share and practice what you’ve learnt from the movie with friends or your Chinese teacher if you have one. You can use video to record what you say or you can write it down to test how much you learn.

Practice time and time again until you can remember several lines.

During the labor holiday, I went to Dongjiaominxiang Alley with two of our students at LTL.

There is a famous scene in the movie Hidden Man (邪不压正 xié bù yā zhèng) which takes place at a hotel on this alley, which made me want to share this movie with you.

Dong Jiao Min Xiang (东郊民巷 Dōng jiāo mín xiàng), lined with elegant historic buildings, is the longest alley (胡同 hútòng) in Beijing. It’s also known as Former Legation Quarter.

It was once home to the former 11 foreign embassies including UK, France, Germany, Japan, the US, Russia, Italy, Spain, Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands.

Hidden Man: Plot

To help the Japanese grow opium, Zhu Qianlong (朱潜龙 zhūqiánlóng) betrays his master and kills his master’s whole family.

However, Li Tianran (李天然 lǐ tiānrán) manages to escape and is saved by Lan Qingfeng (蓝青峰 lán qīngfēng).

Hidden Man Trailer

Fifteen years later Li, who has been living in San Francisco, returns to China and is seeking to kill Zhu for revenge.

But, Zhu has become the city’s police chief and is now seen as a good guy.

So, what happens now, will Li be able to get his revenge and kill Zhu?

Hidden Man: Jiang Wen 姜文

The director of Hidden Man is Jiang Wen (姜文 jiāngwén) and he also plays Lan in the movie.

Hidden Man is seen as the third instalment of Jiang Wen’s “gangster trilogy”. The first instalment was the movie Let The Bullets Fly, have a look at this blog for some more information about Jiang Wen.

Hidden Man: Main Characters

Here are some of the main protagonists in the Hidden Man:

  • Zhu Qianlong (朱潜龙 zhūqiánlóng) – played by Liao Fan (廖凡 liào fán), murders his master’s family but then becomes a respectable police officer.
  • Li Tianran (李天然 lǐ tiānrán) – played by Eddie Peng (彭于晏 péngyúyàn). He shares the same master as Zhu and escaped being killed, all he wants is revenge by killing Zhu.
  • Lan Qingfeng (蓝青峰 lán qīngfēng) – played by Jiang Wen (姜文 jiāngwén). He is very rich and owns a lot of courtyard houses in Peiping (the name for Beijing in the 1930s). He saves Li and wants to use him to against Zhu.
  • Guan Qiaohong (关巧红 guān qiǎohóng) – played by Yun Zhou (周韵 zhōuyùn). She is a tailor and encourages Li in his plan for revenge and also helps Li grow up.

Zhu Qianlong was raised by his master and he goes by his family name of Zhu, because that’s the emperor’s family name in the Ming dynasty.

Hidden Man: Words to Know

Some words for you to have a better understanding of the movie Hidden Man.

  • 六国饭店 Liù guó fàndiàn – Six Kingdoms Hotel
  • 裁缝 Cáiféng – tailor
  • 复仇 Fùchóu – revenge
  • 体面 Tǐmiàn – respectable
  • 房顶 Fáng dǐng – roof

In the movie they go to The Grand Hotel or Six Kingdoms Hotel for dinner, this is one of the most famous scenes of the film.

If you come to Beijing and visit Dongjiaominxiang, you can still see the grand hotel which is now called 华风宾馆 (huá fēng bīnguǎn).

There are two worlds in the movie. There is the world “on the roof” where everything is romantic and the world “under the roof” which is all about violence.

Hidden Man: Useful Dialogues

There are so many famous quotes/dialogues in the movie, here is one example and you can find more when you watch the movie.

If there is anything you don’t understand you can always comment below and ask us, we are always happy to help.

你不要报仇了 nǐ bùyào bàochóule – “Don’t seek revenge,”
你的仇人不用你杀 nǐ de chóurén bùyòng nǐ shā – “you don’t need to kill your enemies,”
老天爷会惩罚他们的 lǎotiānyé huì chéngfá tāmen de – “God will punish them.”
他说的有道理 tā shuō de yǒu dàolǐ – “What he said makes sense,”
是的 shì de “Yes, it does.”
你怎么说? nǐ zěnme shuō? “What did you reply to him?”
我说 你滚 Wǒ shuō Nǐ gǔn– “I replied: get lost.”

Here is another interesting line you can learn:

我们是异父异母的亲兄弟啊 Wǒmen shì yì fù yì mǔ de qīn xiōngdì a We are real brothers even though we have a different father and mother.

Hidden Man: Where to Watch

  • You can watch Hidden Man on the Chinese streaming platform Youku or iQiyi for free, however these only have Chinese subtitles.
  • You can also watch Hidden Man for free on YouTube with only English subtitles.

You will see Li and Zhu fight together using Chinese kung fu which is great.

Just remember, this movie does have quite a lot of violence in it so it has been given an age certificate of age 15+.

Hidden Man: FAQ’s

When was Hidden Man released?

It was released in 2018.

What can I learn from the Hidden Man?

Hidden Man is a great movie to see what Beijing looked like in the past, whilst also learning some famous lines in Chinese.

Can I watch the Hidden Man with English subtitles?

Yes, it can be found with English subtitles on YouTube.

If you want to test yourself though, the movie doesn’t have any English subtitles on Youku or iQiyi, but some characters do speak English.

Is the Hidden Man a good movie?

Like any movie, whether you think Hidden Man is good or not depends on your personal preferences.

Jiang Wen has some really big fans who believe that all of the movies he makes are great.

However, some people think that he is too personal in his movies.

Want more from LTL?

If you wish to hear more from LTL Mandarin School why not join our mailing list.

We give plenty of handy information on learning Chinese, useful apps to learn the language and everything going on at our LTL schools!

Sign up below and become part of our ever growing community!

I'm interested in:
.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *