* AdaptationDisplacement: Started out as the fourth book in a pentalogy {{Wuxia}} novel series, written by Wang Dulu. It's evident in the film since there are assumed events and relationships that give the film a sequel tone.
* AmericansHateTingle: Despite being one of the most iconic and beloved {{Wuxia}} films of all time [[GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff in the West]], the film is mostly disliked in China, where many audiences perceived it as an unremarkable Americanized copycat of a venerable Chinese cinematic tradition. It doesn't exactly help that the main stars were from different regions of East Asia (Creator/ChowYunFat is from UsefulNotes/HongKong, Creator/MichelleYeoh is [[UsefulNotes/{{Malaysia}} Malaysian]], Creator/ZhangZiyi is from Beijing, and Creator/ChangChen is [[UsefulNotes/{{Taiwan}} Taiwanese]]), resulting in the four of them having very distinct regional accents (despite the film ostensibly being set in and around Beijing during the reign of the Qin Dynasty), making much of the dialogue sound [[{{Narm}} unintentionally ridiculous]] to viewers who actually speak Mandarin.
* BrokenBase: Wuxia fans were quite divided on it. Some thought it was excellent, while others thought it paled in comparison to other films in the genre.
* FridgeBrilliance: Li Mu Bai only really unabashedly smiles while sparring with Jen. Was it the sword he really craved -- or was it ''teaching''?
* GatewaySeries: Many a Westerner's first exposure to {{Wuxia}} films and fiction.
* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff: Asian audiences mostly found it overrated and not outstanding in terms of wuxia stories. Western audiences loved it to death.
* ItsPopularNowItSucks: Go on the Internet and you will find many wuxia fans who don't consider this a "real" wuxia movie, and say that it only became popular because it was made specifically for American audiences and not the more wuxia friendly UsefulNotes/{{China}}.
* MagnificentBitch: Jade Fox once posed as a nun to infiltrate the Wudan school. Becoming the lover of its master, Jade Fox grew resentful of how he refused to see her as a student for her gender. Poisoning him, Jade Fox stole the Wudan manual to become a capable martial artist and fled, leaving a legacy of villainy behind her. Later infiltrating a noble household, she became the master to its daughter Jen, who later surpassed her. Fleeing after killing a policeman and realizing Jen's true abilities, Jade Fox returns to save Jen and use her to bait a trap for her enemies with her final act being to attempt to kill Jen with poison, calling her one-time apprentice "My only family. My only enemy."
* MemeticMutation: "Crouching X, Hidden Y."
* SignatureScene: If any scene is remembered from this movie, it's the fight between Shu Lien and Jen, where one of China's greatest armsmasters takes on the woman wielding the Green Destiny. The entire movie up until the moment the fight begins sets up this scene by showing Shu Lien's blossoming friendship with Jen and Jen's gradual downfall becoming addicted to the Green Destiny, and the intensity they fight with demonstrates just how much the two have lost coming to blows. The fight itself is a masterclass in choreography, with Shu Lien ''expertly'' wielding two fu tao, a spear, a kanabo, and more as she demonstrates true mastery in combat. The Green Destiny destroys ''all'' of the weapons, but in the end, Shu Lien manages to prove that training and diligence can overcome even a sword that powerful by ending the fight victorious.
%%* TooCoolToLive: [[spoiler: Li Mu Bai.]]
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