Kung Fu Jungle

KUNG FU KILLER - aka KUNG FU JUNGLE - is the latest slice of martial arts madness from Donnie Yen, here playing a tough-as-nails convict who's released by the police in order to track down a serial killer who's been making it his business to kill Hong Kong's top martial arts fighters. What we have is a slim police procedural plot enlivened by tons of hard-hitting and well-choreographed kung fu fights.

What you see is what you get, and there's little to disappoint here. The production values make for a glossy, high-spirited production, and there's also plenty of the human drama you'd expect from the storyline. Donnie Yen always plays himself, really; whether he's a cop or a criminal, he's always the good-natured, good-moral hero who you're rooting for throughout. Charlie Yeung's female detective provides a good opponent for him to butt heads with though.

Really, though, the plot is just an excuse for the action, and it's plentiful indeed. Most of it consists of one-to-one bouts, although there's time for a riotous interlude inside a prison. All of it builds up to an extended finale in which Yen and the sneering villain beat seven shades of hell out of each other for what seems like an enternity, and it's all very entertaining, although not quite up there with the best of this genre (aka FLASH POINT and KILL ZONE).

Kung fu instructor Hahou Mo (Donnie Yen) is serving a prison sentence for the accidental death of an opponent during a duel. When he sees a news report on the prison TV about the murder of a top martial artist, he believes that he can help the police to find the person responsible (who turns out to be a highly skilled fighter with a gimpy leg, as played by Baoqiang Wang).

While not exactly boasting the most inspired or original of plots (the story is reminiscent of all those old school kung fu films in which a villainous martial artist kills the good guys to prove he's number one), Kung Fu Killer is still a case of Donnie Yen proving to his detractors that he's still got it. Almost two and a half decades after he wowed audiences in In the Line of Duty IV, he is more than capable of choreographing and performing jaw-dropping scenes of martial arts mayhem.

I admit I was a tad doubtful at first, the initial fight scenes not grabbing me in the way I had hoped, but with each successive battle getting more and more elaborate and increasingly brutal, the film eventually won me over, the final showdown on a busy freeway being an incredible tour-de-force of kung fu excellence (with a truly wonderful spot of pole fighting midway). Admittedly, the fights are not without their use of CGI and wirework, but that's become fairly standard for modern action films, and the technology is used well in this instance. I for one am just happy to see Donnie still leaping about and doing what he does best. May he long continue to do so.

if you're a big fan of old-school kung fu flicks (i.e, stuff with Shaolin monks, Iron monkey, people doing fancy kung fu moves) you'll probably enjoy this movie. If not, your mileage may vary, and this movie may be a 6 or 7 out of 10 for you. Don't expect the more "realistic" fight scenes we've seen lately out of stuff like "the Raid", Bourne flicks, or Jason Statham. Even though this movie takes place in present day, it's in many ways a homage to classic kung fu movies of the past.

Donnie Yen plays an imprisoned martial artist who's released on the condition that he helps the police apprehend a serial killer hunting kung-fu masters. The plot develops like something you'd expect from a kung-fu film taking place centuries ago. The villain chooses his victims based on their mastery of the arts. He wants to defeat the best kicker, the best grappler, the best weapon user, etc.. in order to prove he is the greatest fighter in the land. The action scenes are pretty good - fast and frenetic, minimal apparent cgi/wirework, and well choreographed. I should also note the producers do a nice job finding and designing creative set pieces for the action, with various scenes taking place on a busy freeway, inside a dinosaur museum, etc...

Another plus is the characterization and portrayal of the villain (played by Wang Baoqiang). He's given enough depth and backstory to separate him from the typical one-dimensional baddies we've all seen, and Wang's earnest (although somewhat melodramatic) performance is one of the highlights of this movie.

I think it's apparent from watching this that the filmmakers put a lot of effort into making this a quality kung-fu movie. Sure, maybe it falls prey to some of the usual action movie tropes (this ain't high art we're talking about after all), maybe there's cheesiness here and there, and Donnie Yen isn't a great actor, but it's easy to appreciate the little details and work invested into this film that elevate it above random xyz action movies that have good fight scenes, but are otherwise unmemorable.

Old school style narrative for contemporary times.

A physically challenged man who could be an inspiration to anyone (if he was not the bad guy) over comes his uneven legs to become a super strong Kung fu master with the goal of killing seven of the greatest masters of their styles.

The legendary action movie star, Donne Yen plays a prisoner released from jail to find him and stop his killing spree.

The movie is a who's who in Hong Kong action cinema with cameos from some of the biggest and best in the business like Raymond Chow, who was the only one I really recognized by face to go oh wow! (Some of these cameos are from action stars who date back to the 1960s, so they don't look the same)

It's a real modern take on a classic style of Kung fu storytelling, with the Kung fu killer going from land to land village to village to find the masters and kill them, but now the village is the urban jungle of china.

One of my favorite scenes is when the kung fu killer goes up against the master swords man, who is an action hero faking his blade skills on camera. Possible the best example in the movie of how contemporary the village has become.

Everybody's Kung fu fighting, but it's also a cool police drama about hunting one the most interesting serial killers in cinema history. The Don does it again!!

Very fun to watch specially if you like Kung Fu martial arts flicks. KungFu style and moves used here are very surprisingly jaw dropping stunts. It may look bit unrealistic but just for the fun and imagination that Kung Fu is a whole lot on a different level of fighting style you will definitely love it.

If there's one thing I am missing on this movie is more challenging and long rival fights than easy to the top final match. Other rivals deserves something more too.

Anyway but still this is really a good one from Donnie yen. A must watch.