《刺客聶隱娘》主角身份是刺客，這使得影片處於一種「窺看」與「被窺看」的照看關係。鏡位取捨有「上對下」與「外對內」兩種調度方式，顯示刺客視野。同時，侯孝賢也有意識將這些敘事時空塑造為抒情性的感受時空，也就是說，這些鏡頭具有一種揭示性，它們像一扇窗，談論著人的本質與狀態。這種思考，使得《刺客聶隱娘》異於一般武俠類型電影。它談論人的孤獨處境。這種辯證結構，否定了「觀者注視武者」、「觀者讚賞武力」的認知。在這個脈絡下，生命經驗的超越是俠客的新命題。它顛覆了我們對於武俠的所有想像。

The character in The Assassin is assassin, which provides the film in being peeked and the opposite relationship. The film from the up and down as well as inside and outside perspective to highlights the assassin's point of view. Hou Hsiao-hsien consciously builds the narrative space-time in a literary perception form, which made the film as a disclosure window delineating the nature and state of human beings. In this way, The Assassin is different from the martial arts films because it talks about people's loneliness. In this narrative structure the focus subtly shifts from the martial prowess of the warrior, to the idea of self-negation, wherein the warrior's true mission becomes the transcendence of one's personal life experience. In this way, The Assassin subverts all our preconceptions about martial arts films and the traditional warrior class.