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+----- Thread: The Great Magician (2011) (/showthread.php?tid=6482)
The Great Magician (2011) - Drunk Monk - 08-24-2021
I thought I might watch some Tony Leung films in the wake of Shang-Chi and this has been in my queue forever. It's a Hong Kong farce, a period comedy martial arts romance war film. It's hard to grok in that very HK way.
Leung plays a great magician dealing with a warlord named Bully Lei (Lau Ching-wan) who wears a cowboy hat and has a fancy six shooter and 7 wives, one of whom is Leung's fiancee, played by Zhou Xun. She's a martial arts master and her father is held captive by Bully. Bully also has a tank.
It's one of those HK films that has cute cameos. This one includes Tsui Hark and much to my surprise, Daniel Wu. He's only in the beginning though, for a scene with a flying guillotine.
I dunno about this film. It's nonsense but with that ol' HK style. I found myself amused at times, confused at others, and drifting off wondering what it all meant. There were some mildly funny bits - I particularly liked the shuriken scenes - and the ending surprised me, even though I was barely engaged anymore.
Leung and Zhao Xun are great as always as they trod through the silliness with their usual panache.
Sword fights. Well, sort of. There's a nunchuk scene and twin short swords versus double ham hocks, plus an assortment of magic fights and odd combat scenes. Not particularly DOOM recommended unless you have a high tolerance for HK shenanigans (I'm looking at you, cf).
RE: The Great Magician (2011) - cranefly - 08-28-2021
Noticed you looking at me, DM. Have now watched it.
A big mess of a movie. Lots of outrageous action and CGId magic tricks, yet it still seemed way too talky. Tony Leung is one of my favorite Asian actors, yet I wondered if he phoned this one in. I don't think so. There was so much over-acting by everyone else that it made his performance seem flat. He obviously put in a lot of effort giving the sleight of hand a lot of flair.
But I wondered at times if it was really him. There were enough close-up shots where you could clearly see his face, but he was awfully good waving that sword around. Wushu-good. He doesn't have a martial background, does he? He was wearing an outfit with a high collar, which would have made it easier to CGI his head onto a stuntman's body. Whether that was done, I just don't know. He just seemed uncommonly athletic in some close-up shots where it was clearly his face.
Overall a bit too noisy and chaotic for me, but still enjoyed seeing Tony in an unusual vehicle (referring to this movie, not the tank).
RE: The Great Magician (2011) - Drunk Monk - 08-28-2021
Leung has been doing movie martial arts forever. He's been in some of the most recognized Kung Fu cinema of all - Ashes of Time, Hero, The Grandmaster - so he's got skills. He delivers some nice fights in Shang-Chi, however there he is clearly deep-faked (as is Michelle). But that's an MCU where most of the fights are CGI anyway.
Beyond that, I share your opinion on this. I did like Zhou Xun here too. She's one of my fav actresses as well.