THE ASSASIN

The film is set in 8th century China during last years of the Tang Dynasty.[16][17] The film centers on Nie Yinniang (played by Shu Qi), an assassin who is directed to slay corrupt government officials by her master, Jiaxin, a nun who raised her from the age of ten. When Yinniang displays mercy by failing to kill during her duties, Jiaxin punishes her with a ruthless assignment designed to test Yinniang’s resolve: she is sent to the distant province/circuit of Weibo in northern China to kill its military governor Tian Ji'an — her cousin to whom she had once been betrothed.A female assassin receives a dangerous mission to kill a political leader in eighth-century China.

Director: Hsiao-Hsien Hou
Writers: Cheng Ah (screenplay) (as Zhong Acheng), T'ien-wen Chu (screenwriter) | 3 more credits »
Stars: Qi Shu, Chen Chang, Yun Zhou