We got this trailer when I was working as a projectionist at the KOIN center cinemas downtown. Part of my role as a proj was the watch the new trailers and let the counter staff know what was worth checking out and which films it was playing on. Sometimes it was exciting (like the first teaser for Star Wars: Episode I which had A DOUBLE-BLADED LIGHTSABER) and sometimes it was your generic art house crap.

For a good week I hadn’t bothered watching past the first fifteen seconds of this trailer; it was filled with long boring shots of some Chinese Historical Drama I knew none of us would care about. Listening to the narration (the projection booths had speakers to make sure the sound was synching up right) while I took care of other business didn’t help; who wanted to see “an extraordinary romantic adventure” from Ang Lee?

Then, by chance, I happened to look into the theater while it was playing and saw the shot of Chow Yun Fat pointing into the air and wire-fu-ing into the sky. I ran down to the counter and screamed OMG IT’S NOT WHAT WE THOUGHT IT’S A WU-SHU EPIC!!! and as soon as the next showtime started we abandoned the counter and like five of us ran into the theater to watch the best trailer evar.

To this day, I think that shot is one of the most electrifying images in film. SO AWESOME.