Zhang's own loyalties are difficult to surmise. On one level, he is now the official poster boy of Chinese cinema. Both Hero (his previous martial arts film) and House of Flying Daggers have been huge hits in Asia. Hero, meanwhile, has broken box-office records in the US. Zhang has travelled widely to promote the films. He has talked about them repeatedly in aesthetic and philosophical terms. The one subject he won't mention is politics. The Guardian reports.