Siu Tai Gik

Donnie Yen's breakout role comes at the tail end of the old school martial arts boom in Hong Kong. Under the direction of Yuen Woo Ping it could go one of two ways: A kung fu based movie in the vein of Drunken Master and Snake in Eagle's Shadow or an even sillier excursion like Miracle Fighters or Shaolin Drunkard. This lands somewhere in the middle. I won't go over the plot, you can find it on other reviews.

This is mainly a goofy comedy with the fighting for the most part played for laughs. Puppets, fireworks, break dancing, bicycles are used as gags through the fights with the last couple fights displaying more of traditional styles. So is it any good? Let's get one thing straight: there is no drunken tai chi. I'm guessing the title was chosen to cash in on the drunken boxing craze that was on its last leg at the time. There is some great Tai Chi on display here. The training sequences are fun and the application is great. Donnie Yen also has a couple scenes using the rope dart which are stand outs.

If you are a big fan of Donnie Yen or just very goofy comedies with the Yuen clan's usual weirdness this will be up your alley. If you are looking for something more packed with fights and less goofy comedy I'd recommend Magnificent Butcher, Knockabout, or Legend of a Fighter, all classic Hong Kong films directed by Mr. Yuen.

Donnie Yen's first movie with Yuen Wo Ping. RE: similarities between this film and DRUNKEN MASTER -- there is so much crossover between their casts and crews, and HK filmmaking in general was so homogenous at the time, I find any similarities not only forgivable, but forgettable.

Donnie wasn't much of an actor at the time, but his performance is bolstered by a supporting cast which includes two of Yuen Wo Ping's brothers: Sunny Yuen as the villain, Killer Bird, and Yuen Cheung Yan as the Master. I have a lot of affection for both actors. You might remember Yuen Cheung Yan as Jet Li's mentor in TAI CHI MASTER, or as police Captain Jie in FIST OF LEGEND. Sunny Yuen played a similar villain in DREADNAUGHT opposite Yuen Biao, the brave-but-bumbling Chief Fox in IRON MONKEY, the protagonist Shang in BUDDHIST FIST... and if you look closely you'll notice him getting clobbered by Hwang Jang Lee in the opening battle of DRUNKEN MASTER.

Anything Donnie lacked in the acting department was more than made up for by his martial arts skills. DRUNKEN TAI CHI is an enjoyable first look at a promising new action star.

One of donnie yens first. It is pretty funny, the obligatory training sequence is well done and the fight scenes are pretty decent. Its one of the last of the Shaw Brothers style films. No wire work and the like.

If you really need a reason to see this film check out the practice scene, set to 'Love is the drug' by Roxy music. Very funny.

I have to start off by saying that after seeing Iron Monkey, I went out and looked for every Donnie Yen movie I could find. And after all of that hard work, I realized that they all sucked! From his John Woo-like flop Ballistic Kiss to his numerous appearances (and subsequent deaths) in films like Highlander, Blade 2, and Shanghai Knights, on thing is apparent: Mr. Yen has got to get a new agent. His ability in martial arts is virtually unsurpassed, but the only other movie I've seen that challenges his abilities like in Iron Monkey was Drunken Tai Chi. With a goofy storyline of revenge (surprise!) and training to become stronger than the bad guy, Yuen Woo Ping has expertly melded comedy and action to create a fantastic party movie, something that anyone with a sense of humor can appriceate. Donnie is in top form, which is surprising given that this was his first starring role. He shows fantastic flexibility and a certain charisma that's hard to explain. I seriously hope that Donnie gets together with Yuen Woo Ping and creates another masterpiece soon, because getting killed in every film you're in is no way to make a legacy. (Ask Sean Bean.)

Donnie Yen does a pretty good job in this movie, both in acting and in the fight scenes. Theres some wire work here and there, which is expectable when you watch ANY martial arts movie anyway. The fight scenes are really well done(Donnie Yen is obviously really good at Tai Chi and a great kicker!)Theres also a lot of comedy in this movie(better than that in Drunken Master with Jackie Chan). People shouldnt compare this to Jackie Chan's Drunken Master, it has a different plot and theres not a focus on drunken boxing(theres pretty much none!). Some of the Yuen Brothers are also in this movie like the Tai Chi Master and Killer Bird. Overall a good fun kung fu film and one of Donnie Yen's best! Overall: 9/10