So Hak-Yee

I recently bought this from my local video franchise which was closing it's store. It had a similar title and design to a Jet Li film I had seen called "The Legend of the Red Dragon". Of course I thought it was a sequel to the Li action flick I liked so I bought it, especially seeing it was starring talented Donnie Yen and the action choreographed by Yuen Woo Ping. Though this was a period actioner and did feature a lot of comedy like the Li movie, this one isn't a sequel. It was actually made before "Legend of..." but it's not a prequel either. Just a clever DVD design. And like that one, we never find out who or what the red dragon is. Also my version unfortunately didn't include either a cantonese or mandarin audio track. English and French only with subtitles. The English dubbing was terrible. But it made the comedy all the more funny, embarrassingly so.

Can't say I was too impressed after watching it. The action was OK but not the high standard I was used to from Ping. Too much silly wirework and a lot of the camera tricks were too obvious like the speeding. The fight with the Fire Lotus ladies at the temple was very good though as well as Donnie's fight with the prince in the finale. Not one of Ping's better movies, however.

The story played like an after school special about the dangers of opium and alcohol. Boy refuses drug, boy is seduced by drug, boy is addicted, boy is saved and seeks revenge and redemption. Unfortunately a lot of the subplots were left open-ended while it jumps from one action scene to another. I could swear this played more like a comedy than an action period piece. The two actors playing Yen's father and aunt were hysterical, especially Sheila Chan. I almost wanted to see more of their story than Yen's but then that little subplot gets pushed aside and we're back with the action.

This was a pretty good period kung fu movie. Once again, Yuen Woo Ping and Donnie Yen team up in this OUATIC-esque story about Beggar So and Wong Fei Hung teaming up to fight opium dealers. Donnie Yen is excellent, his skills are superb. The actor who plays Wong Fei Hung is talented as well. I wish that Donnie Yen had more fighting time in the movie. His fight against Xiong Xin Xin was good, but it seemed a bit short. I also thought that the movie was too bloody at times. Setting that aside, it is an entertaining movie.

Ye, simple good kung fu, both Yen and Wong is displaying some really good moves, though i personally belive Yen drew the longer straw in kickassness. The spirit of the movie has a feel of Jackie Chans better 80's/90's movies, though very few movies can compete with those.. All in all, dont expect anything groundbreaking, but you get a good 1½ hour solid kung fu entertainment from this!

What can I say? Donnie Yen has made a fan out of me. Yes, he was in Iron Monkey. This movie started out with the fight scenes being mediocre and all of a sudden the film reeled off one killer fight scene after another. This movie is a classic and any Kung Fu fan should see this. I was only the 39th person to vote on this. That surprised me because this movie is awesome. Musa the Warrior was a killer movie as well. I look for top quality fighting and this movie does the trick. Oh yeah, the plot of the movie is about stopping the distribution of Opium. My brother rented this at Blockbuster and I was skeptical until I saw Donnie Yen's name. I give this movie a 10/10 as far as Kung Fu is concerned!!!!

The only meat a priest could eat on Sunday was Nun!!!

"Su Qi'er" : Some arts are very well documented by loving admirers, like the old blues records.... Unfortunately, HK 'fu films haven't been so lucky.

I have a hard time believing this was released in 1993, let alone made that year. The Donnie Yen of this film still looks very young. And the same sources that insist this is a 1993 film also insist that the film released as "Iron Monkey II" is actually a sequel to Iron Monkey, and that it was made a year after Iron Monkey - which is patently absurd.

Add to this the fact that Stephen Chow released a film titled Wu zhuang yuang: Su Qi Er (King of Beggars)in 1993, and the fact that the recent Columbia-Tristar re-releases of HK 'fu films (including this one) have been sabotaged by gutless Hollywood hacks, and what you have is an unerring formula for confusion.

Oh, well. Whenever this film was made, it remains a minor classic of the genre. For one thing, the Wong Fei Hung depicted in this movie is the hero of the legend, not overly bogged down with story or "humanizing" faults - this is a real hero that draws good work and good feeling towards himself like the North Pole draws compass needles.

There are also remarkable bits of post-modern humor, especially the brief but hilarious jibe at Bollywood musical numbers, of all things.

The story is strong, the acting superb, and all the kung fu is top-notch. Receptive viewers will have many reasons to see this more than once.