DRAGON INN
King Hu | 1967 | Taiwan | 111 min | Mandarin with English subtitles
Before CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON, before HERO, before KILL BILL, there was DRAGON INN. King Hu’s 1967 wuxia landmark helped redefine how martial arts could look and move on screen, turning swordplay into something precise, rhythmic and cinematic rather than simply functional.
Set during the Ming dynasty, the film begins after the emperor’s minister of defence is framed and executed by a powerful court eunuch. His children are sent into exile, but assassins are dispatched to kill them before they reach safety. Their journey leads to the remote Dragon Inn, where several mysterious travellers begin to gather and where loyalties, identities and intentions slowly reveal themselves.
What makes DRAGON INN special is the way King Hu builds tension before the violence starts. Characters enter the inn, study one another, test loyalties and quietly shift the balance of power. When the sword fights finally arrive, Hu often keeps the fighters fully visible within the frame, using wide compositions, precise movement and editing heavily influenced by jingju, or Peking opera.
The film was a major commercial success across Asia and became one of the defining works of the wuxia genre. Its influence can be felt across decades of martial arts cinema, while its reputation has only grown through restorations, retrospectives and revival screenings.
There is also a very specific reason we’re opening Asian Film Week with it. Two hours later we’ll screen Tsai Ming-liang’s GOODBYE, DRAGON INN, set during the final showing of this very film inside a closing Taipei cinema. Watching the original first turns Tuesday into a conversation between two completely different eras of Taiwanese cinema.
ABOUT ASIAN FILM WEEK
Asian Film Week is exactly the kind of programming FOMO exists for: major classics, cult discoveries and films you rarely get the chance to see on a cinema screen in Tbilisi. This week has been curated with Denis from Ukraine, a FOMO Film Club lifetime member with a real passion for Asian cinema, whose recommendations helped fill some gaps in my own knowledge and pushed the programme in directions I might not have reached alone.
A lot of care has gone into making the week feel broad, balanced and genuinely worth exploring. You’ll find landmark films from directors already well known in the West alongside stranger, more underground work that deserves a much wider audience. If Asian cinema is already your thing, I hope there are still a few surprises here. If it isn’t, I hope this week gives you a great place to start.
10% OFF FOOD, PLUS GROUP DEALS
Dinner before a film at FOMO is now sorted! We’ve arranged special offers with our two favourite places to eat in Bazari Orbeliani, both right next door to FOMO:
10% off at La Focacceria
20% off at Potato Factory
Potato Factory 2+1: buy two and get one free
Potato Factory 3+2: buy three and get two free
Simply show your Fienta ticket when ordering.
You’re welcome to eat in the Sherekilebi Bar at FOMO Secret Cinema or upstairs at FOMO Open-Air Cinema. Tell them where you’ll be sitting and they’ll bring your food to you.
FOOD AND DRINK POLICY: SHEREKILEBI Bar in FOMO Cinema opens 1 hour before the first screening of the day and closes at 01:30, serving a wide selection of beer, wine, cocktails, and non-alcoholic refreshments, as well as fresh hot popcorn! Outside food is allowed in the bar but not in the cinema. No alcohol or drinks from outside allowed. All guests are invited to arrive early and stay late!
LOCATION: FOMO Secret Cinema, Bazari Orbeliani, Tbilisi. A five minute walk from Liberty Square metro.
HOW TO FIND FOMO: Enter Bazari Orbeliani via Atoneli St above Carrefour and take the stairs on your left to Level 1. Signage on the door. You can also check our Instagram story highlights for a video showing exactly how to find us: https://www.instagram.com/s/aGlnaGxpZ2h0OjE3OTMzMTA2Mjk0MDI5MjM1
REFUND & CREDIT POLICY: If FOMO cancels a screening, all ticket holders will receive a full refund. If your plans change and you can no longer attend, we’ll issue you a credit for the value of your ticket, which can be used for any FOMO film screening within the following 30 days.
TICKETS are also available to purchase over the bar if not sold out.
FOMO Secret Cinema • Bazari Orbeliani, 0105 Tbilisi, Georgia
