Fist of Legend: Eastern Productions/ Miramax Films Rating: USA: R/ UK: 18
As a hardcore Hong Kong cinephile, I’m a bit torn over Jet-Li. Yes, he’s one of the most gifted film martial artists I’ve ever had the pleasure of watching (right up there with the master—Bruce Lee—to be honest), yet I don’t always enjoy his performances. I suppose it’s because I don’t find Jet to be all that great an actor—he certainly lacks the charisma and grace of a Chow Yun-Fat, the cool Eurasian looks and the intensity of an Anthony Wong, the charm of a Simon Yam, or even the clownish good humor of Jackie Chan. Jet’s performances just seem flat to me—too reserved to draw me in and make me adore his work in the same way I do the aforementioned performers. Does this mean I dislike Jet-Li? No, not at all. I continue to check out his films on a regular basis and I enjoy them for what they are…modern day chop socky flicks, basically.
Which brings us to Fist of Legend, a 1994 Kung-Fu flick that is widely regarded as one of the greatest martial arts films ever.
FOL is an updating of Bruce Lee’s 1972 film Chinese Connection AKA Fists of Fury—another film widely regarded as a martial arts masterpiece. Unlike some of the recent abominably bad horror film remakes (The House on Haunted Hill, The Haunting), Fist of Legend actually improves upon the first film while staying true to the original storyline.
Jet-Li (Lethal Weapon 4, Bodyguard From Beijing, Romeo Must Die) is Chen Zhen, a young Chinese student studying abroad in Japan during the early 1900’s. When he learns of his master’s death at the hands of a rival Japanese martial arts school, he returns home to his temple to find out what happened. He soon learns that his master lost the battle only because he’d been poisoned—and sets out to find out who did it and why.
Now, if that sounds like your typical Saturday afternoon kung-fu flick plotline, that’s because it is. However, there’s more going on here than the standard 'student must avenge the death of the master' storyline. As mentioned above, the film is set in the early 1900’s (apparently around the 1920’s or so). China is occupied by the Japanese, and there’s a great deal of anti-Japanese sentiment running rampant amongst the Chinese and vice versa. Further complicating things is Chen Zhen’s girlfriend, Mitsuko. Mitsuko is Japanese—something that doesn’t sit well with the students at Chen’s old school. So, basically, the whole film plays as a variation of West Side Story or Romeo and Juliette (even moreso than Jet-Li’s latest, Romeo Must Die)—which isn’t something you find in your standard martial arts film.
The girlfriend angle is a new addition to FOL (Fists of Fury had no such character) as is the more realistically drawn Japanese characters. Sure, the Japanese are still portrayed as the heavies, but the portrayal isn’t nearly as xenophobic as it was in Bruce Lee’s film. And more importantly, all of these changes actually work to enhance the film.
Director Gordon Chan (Beast Cops, Fight Back to School) does a decent job helming the film, although a few of the 'between action' segments drag a bit. One gets the distinct impression that the film could have been edited down without compromising the story—thereby making it a leaner and meaner film. On the plus side, the film has an amazingly detailed period look to it—one that really draws you in and makes you believe you’re watching a movie set back in the early 1900’s.
The acting is about what you’d expect from a modern day chop socky flick…meaning it’s better than those old films you find on the local channels on Saturday afternoon, but it’s hardly Oscar winning material. Jet-Li is fantastic in the fighting scenes, displaying an incredible amount of martial arts prowess. The performance mirrors Lee’s in many ways (the way Li moves in some scenes, or even his expressions) yet it’s also distinctly his own—meaning you never get the impression that it’s Jet-Li trying to be Bruce Lee. Unfortunately, though, Li isn’t all that good in the non-fighting scenes. He just seems to stoic and reserved—making you wish he’d bust out and do something at least semi-inspiring, but it never happens.
On the other hand, Yasuaki Kurata (Mishima) is fantastic as the evil Japanese general. Kurata chews the scenery big time, and is a great deal of fun to watch—plus he’s a tough guy, having his men break cinderblocks over his head and never flinching. The film’s worth seeing for his performance alone.
Of course, no one sees a film like Fist of Legend for the performances anyway—you see it to watch Jet-Li kick butt—and he more than delivers here. Yuen Woo-ping (The Matrix) handles the fight choreography and demonstrates why he’s the master. I have a feeling that a wider American audience will soon be discovering what us Hong Kong fans have known all along: Yuen is one of the greatest fight choreographers of all time. If you saw The Matrix, then you’ve had your first taste of Yuen’s work. There’s very little wuxia (aka wire-fu, the effect where fighters jump high into the air to do battle) yet the film never suffers because of it. Instead, Yuen gives us some good old-fashioned martial arts mayhem—fists flying, legs kicking, and scenes filled with amazing physical feats. If you’re at all a fan of martial arts films, you’ll want to own this one—the fight sequences are that good.
Fist of Legend has been released here in the States on DVD, and while the picture looks great, I can’t help but wish they’d have included a subtitled version. The film is presented in an English dubbed format, and while it’s better than most dub jobs, I hate the way everyone in the film ends up sounding British. The disc itself is pretty skimpy, offering very little in the way of extras—you basically get the movie, and that’s it.
With Fist of Legend Gordon Chan and Jet-Li have done the unthinkable—remade a Bruce Lee film and made it even better than the original. And while it does improve upon the source, it also respectfully pays homage to one of the greatest martial arts films ever made in the process. Li isn’t a great actor, but then again, neither was Lee. Yet both have an incredible ability for making the act of beating someone up look like art. There’s enough butt-kicking mayhem here to satisfy the hardcore martial arts film crowd and there’s enough story to please those who like a film with some plot between the mayhem. It’s not the breakout performance from Jet-Li that I’m still waiting for (the one that will catapult him into the upper echelon of Hong Kong film stars alongside guys like Chow Yun-Fat) but it is a solid effort. If you’re an action fan, then Fist of Legend is well worth seeing…be sure to check it out.
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