01-07-2015, 10:39 AM
This is the 2014 reboot of the longest film franchise ever - Wong Fei Hung. Taking over the lead role is Eddie Peng, who won accolades in Unbeatable, which was kind of like a Chinese version of The Fighter, if I were to make a pithy comparison.
I enjoyed this film thoroughly. I look forward to seeing it again with subtitles and hope it gets U.S. release soon. My version was Mandarin only, and there was a lot of plot - I couldn't keep up. I really wish I could have seen it in 3D as there were several eye-popping scenes that were clearly orchestrated for that medium. It's hard not to compare RotL to Batman Begins as not only is it a reboot, but it's a much darker vision of the franchise. Set on the docks of Guangzhou, it's world is that of gambling halls, prostitute boats, opium dens and human trafficking. It's sanguineous.
But like Unbeatable, there's a lot less martial arts than I would have liked. The fights choreography is by Corey Yuen, who I usually think of as a cartoonish choreographer - in a good way. His stuff exemplifies Kung Fu physics, defying logic like a Looney Tunes cartoon, but it still works. The fights are one-move/one-shot, heavy on the wirework and CGI, an absurd, all qualities I usually disdain in fight choreography, but somehow, Yuen makes it work. This is some of the best work he's done in years. The opening fight sequences are great - at first, I thought the initial rain fight was poached off The Grandmaster, but then it took on a life of its own. Actually, there's some homage to precedents (or maybe I'm just getting jaded that way nowadays as some readers have commented on my Taking of Tiger Mountain review). I wasn't sensitive to any callbacks the original Kwan Tak Hing series, but there are some clear nods to OUATIC and even more so for Iron Monkey. Like Casino Royale, the Wong Fei Hung theme is withheld until just before the finale battle, and that works well. It's only then where Eddie shows a little Hung Gar-ish flair, but by then, RotL has become its own new thing.
The film gets off to a rollicking start, but then there's a lot of plot development before the action comes back, perhaps too much for most fans of the genre, but it might work as a cross-over. That's the downside. It could have really used more fights, especially in the middle of the film. Sammo is freakin huge, larger than life, so big that his gravitas might be actual gravitational pull from his massive girth. But he's still got the moves. And Angelababy's impossibly long neck is still like a bug-lite for nuzzling.
Where this film really shines is it's cinematography. Not only are the fight scenes shot with a new visionary feel, the whole film is spectacular. The CGI backdrops of old Guangzhou are stunning and the set pieces are well worn and textured. It's a beautiful film and that's probably what hooked me in more than anything else. It's got style. There's an opening scene that's an amazing continuous shot as the camera navigates the serpentine environment of the bustling docks that reminded me of Birdman (which you cinephiles here are totally slacking on not seeing yet - see it NOW while it's still on the big screen). So many sweeping crane shots and bird's-eye views, it made the film a visual treat. I hope to see it on the big screen.
And yea, lots of sword fights. Some amusing slicing off of heads and hands. Lots of ratchets and hatchets, Chinese gansta style.
This joins my top three films of 2014 - the other two being Raid 2 and Kung Fu Jungle.
I enjoyed this film thoroughly. I look forward to seeing it again with subtitles and hope it gets U.S. release soon. My version was Mandarin only, and there was a lot of plot - I couldn't keep up. I really wish I could have seen it in 3D as there were several eye-popping scenes that were clearly orchestrated for that medium. It's hard not to compare RotL to Batman Begins as not only is it a reboot, but it's a much darker vision of the franchise. Set on the docks of Guangzhou, it's world is that of gambling halls, prostitute boats, opium dens and human trafficking. It's sanguineous.
But like Unbeatable, there's a lot less martial arts than I would have liked. The fights choreography is by Corey Yuen, who I usually think of as a cartoonish choreographer - in a good way. His stuff exemplifies Kung Fu physics, defying logic like a Looney Tunes cartoon, but it still works. The fights are one-move/one-shot, heavy on the wirework and CGI, an absurd, all qualities I usually disdain in fight choreography, but somehow, Yuen makes it work. This is some of the best work he's done in years. The opening fight sequences are great - at first, I thought the initial rain fight was poached off The Grandmaster, but then it took on a life of its own. Actually, there's some homage to precedents (or maybe I'm just getting jaded that way nowadays as some readers have commented on my Taking of Tiger Mountain review). I wasn't sensitive to any callbacks the original Kwan Tak Hing series, but there are some clear nods to OUATIC and even more so for Iron Monkey. Like Casino Royale, the Wong Fei Hung theme is withheld until just before the finale battle, and that works well. It's only then where Eddie shows a little Hung Gar-ish flair, but by then, RotL has become its own new thing.
The film gets off to a rollicking start, but then there's a lot of plot development before the action comes back, perhaps too much for most fans of the genre, but it might work as a cross-over. That's the downside. It could have really used more fights, especially in the middle of the film. Sammo is freakin huge, larger than life, so big that his gravitas might be actual gravitational pull from his massive girth. But he's still got the moves. And Angelababy's impossibly long neck is still like a bug-lite for nuzzling.
Where this film really shines is it's cinematography. Not only are the fight scenes shot with a new visionary feel, the whole film is spectacular. The CGI backdrops of old Guangzhou are stunning and the set pieces are well worn and textured. It's a beautiful film and that's probably what hooked me in more than anything else. It's got style. There's an opening scene that's an amazing continuous shot as the camera navigates the serpentine environment of the bustling docks that reminded me of Birdman (which you cinephiles here are totally slacking on not seeing yet - see it NOW while it's still on the big screen). So many sweeping crane shots and bird's-eye views, it made the film a visual treat. I hope to see it on the big screen.
And yea, lots of sword fights. Some amusing slicing off of heads and hands. Lots of ratchets and hatchets, Chinese gansta style.
This joins my top three films of 2014 - the other two being Raid 2 and Kung Fu Jungle.
Shadow boxing the apocalypse
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