With the rapid development of photoelectric communication, biomedicine and aerospace technologies, parts and dies featuring in high performance, high precision and high integration are emerging constantly. These parts and dies are characterized by complex structure, and demanding machining accuracy and surface quality. Moreover, most of them are hard-brittle intractable materials, which makes it difficult to machine in conventional polishing methods. Allowing for the above problems, the polishing technology based on controllable flexibility concept provides a new idea for high-efficiency and high-precision polishing of the above-mentioned parts, and becomes a new development direction of ultra precision polishing. Firstly, basic concept of controllable flexible polishing (CFP) technology was introduced; and a review was made with regard to flexibility control principle, structural characteristics and research status at home and abroad of flexible actuator, flexible “polishing mold” and flexible control system, respectively. Then processing principle, material removal and polishing precision of above CFP methods were thoroughly analyzed and compared, advantages and disadvantages of various polishing methods were further expounded. Finally, future development trend of CFP methods were prospected in terms of systematic study on basic theory, improvement of polishing accuracy and effi-ciency, polishing process compounding and intelligentizing as well as application of intelligent materials.