While the action is spectacular -- after all, the choreography was handled by kung-fu master Yuen Woo-ping, whose credits include Drunken Master and most recently The Matrix -- what really makes Crouching Tiger a gem is the wonderful blend of nostalgia, stunning cinematography, a fast-paced plot, and -- yes -- a good story.
The narrator becomes a young boy (alternately played by Noah Radcliffe and Jack Broderick) who wanders into a nearby forest to escape a family argument and gets swept up in the fast-unfolding plot, in which Cinderella, Little Red Riding Hood, Rapunzel and Jack (the one who brought down the beanstalk) run collectively afoul of a witch, a wolf and a giant.
Don't let the book's length fool you, both plot lines are thrilling and fast-paced, stretching from the snow-swept prairies of Minnesota to the skyscraper heart of New York City.