Fei lung gwoh gong

Enter the Fat Dragon is obviously a pun on the famous Bruce Lee film but completely unrelated to it. It's also unrelated to the movie of the same title starring Sammo Hung. This movie here is however a quirky return to Hong Kong action-comedy cinema of the late eighties and early nineties. The story follows a cop who destroys half his city while trying to arrest a group of robbers and gets transferred to a static desk job. His overambitious fiancée also leaves him and attempts to become a popular actress despite an obvious lack of talent. The protagonist starts feeling depressed and gaining lots of weight in the process. Many years later, he gets a chance to redeem himself as he is asked to escort a criminal to Japan. Things quickly spiral out of control when the criminal escapes during a rest stop. The protagonist gets some help from Chinese emigrants in Japan to fix the problem but he soon realizes that influential groups and even police force are in on the coup. Things take a turn for the worse, when his former girlfriend, who happens to be in Japan for a publicity stunt, gets kidnapped. The chubby cop must fight his powerful opponents with his grit of yore.

This movie obviously has a rather nonsensical plot with a few too many exaggerated coincidences. The idea to make fun of overweight people also seems somewhat old-fashioned these days. Despite those minor flaws, Enter the Fat Dragon is however a highly entertaining action-comedy revival film. The characters are unique, quirky and diversified. The plot has numerous unexpected twists and turns. The locations are splendid and especially the Japanese Chinatown has been crafted with much detail in the studio. The humorous elements are over the top. The action scenes are dynamic and find the right balance between amusing and gritty components. The fact that this action-comedy movie includes dramatic, romantic and suspenseful elements makes for a wild ride.

If you are craving for Hong Kong action-comedy cinema of the late eighties and early nineties with Jackie Chan and the likes, Enter the Fat Dragon will bring that golden era back to life in a nostalgic but quirky way. The movie won't win any awards for creativity but is entertaining from start to finish and will keep you on the edge of your seat. Invite your friends, grab your popcorn, pour a few drinks and enjoy this movie to the fullest over and over again.

Seems movie was to be made for Jackie Chan, but director gives this chance to Donnie Yen. Movie is totally Jackie style type. Entertainer and some really comical scenes. Donnie perfects his role and a brilliant make over for fat inspector. Easy fights for him and acting for comical situations makes us this movie watchable till end. Climax is good and end is expected. Watchable for Donnie yens' lovers for kung fu fights with comedy story. .

ENTER THE FAT DRAGON shares a title with a Sammo Hung kung fu flick of 1978 but there the similarities end. This is notable for being a typical Hong Kong action comedy with Donnie Yen, with the twist that Yen plays the role (for the most part) in a fat suit. It's an unusual bit of spectacle for sure, although never quite convincing as the suit looks too rubbery for that. The plot involves Yen's cop heading off to Japan to escort a criminal while at the same time trying to restart a failed romance. The female roles are criminally underwritten (including Teresa Mo's) but there's a fun role for producer Wong Jing who even gets to fight. There are fun film references, some dodgy comedy that doesn't really work too well, and plenty of well choreographed action that generally hits the mark.

EtFD is a descent action/ comedy and Donnie Yen is pretty funny, he is a good actor for comedy too. Some pretty good fighting, it reminds me of Kung Fu Hustle. Worth a watch if you like action comedies and Donnie Yen!

Granted, this 2020 version of "Enter the Fat Dragon" (aka "Fei lung gwoh gong") from director Kenji Tanigaki wasn't as original as the 1978 movie starring Sammo Hung, it was still an entertaining enough movie for what it turned out to be.

If you haven't seen the 1978 original movie, then I am sure that you might enjoy this 2020 re-make or homage - whatever it is supposed to be - more than you will in comparison if you have seen the original.

Personally, I found it a nice that Donnie Yen would actually star in a movie such as this. While he does carry himself nicely and the prosthetics are good at making him obese, he is no Sammo Hung, and it wouldn't be much of a contest to put the two next to one another.

For an action comedy then "Enter the Fat Dragon" proved to be entertaining and enjoyable. And it definitely is worth a watch, although the storyline tends to be a bit dragged out at certain points through the movie. And the final showdown scene was just unnecessarily cluttered by putting the helicopter aspect into the equation - it simply made the movie dumber than it had to be.

Now, the movie doesn't really boast a lot of overly famous performers, but worry not. Because the cast actually performed quite well with their given roles and characters.

My rating of this 2020 movie is a six out of ten stars.