Tai Chi Master

Twin Warriors succeeds as a martial arts film because it keeps us entertained with almost a constant stream of highflying action sequences. However, due in part to poor dubbing; the drama scenes between the fights are laughable.

The story follows that of two friends, Chin Bo and Juanbo (Siu-hou Chin and Jet Li), two monks that becomes friends at, and later get thrown out of a Shaolin Temple. After this, they meet up with the leader of a group of rebels (Michele Yeoh), and Juanbo joins them, while Chin Bo goes off to join the emperor's army. Naturally, they meet up again along the way and their friendship is basically the main plot point of the film. As I mentioned, though; the dubbing is awful, and the script is no better. The characters talk as if they're from an upmarket part of London, and when they're both of Asian origin; it makes it very hard to take seriously. It's hard to tell whether the script is bad, or if it's just that it has been lost in translation. Because some of the lines of dialogue are cringe worthy, but that could be due to English translation; I don't know. It's the same story with the acting; none of the cast excels in the drama sections of the film, but their performance is masked by awful dubbing. Everyone deserves credit for their martial arts, however. The action sequences are generally imaginative, well crafted and entertaining; although they do have a tendency to go over the top at times; the prime example of this being when two characters are fighting in a dining hall, and a table falls apart and somehow manages to become stilts for one of the characters to stand on while fighting. I admit that it's entertaining...but come on.

Credit to the cinematography department; this film does look very nice. And it does keep the audience entertained for it's duration, but that's all this film is; a crowd pleaser. It's just too silly to really be taken seriously.

As a t'ai chi player, I watched this film hoping to see a lot of t'ai chi (I'd already started running scenarios in my head where the brash young Jet Li learns t'ai chi from Michelle Yeoh). In this respect, and only in this respect, I was disappointed, as this is not a t'ai chi film but a story about how t'ai chi came to be. In every other respect, I was supremely satisfied. This is first class wuxia, alternating crazy fights with goofy humour, with a little tragedy and philosophy thrown in. Of course this mix will probably be insufferable to anyone who isn't into wuxia, but if you like the kind of martial arts films where combatants call out the name of the move they're about to do, you'll love this. Incidentally, you'll notice the inspiration for a fight in Charlie's Angels in one of the early scenes: "And this one's called knocking you on the head."

One of my favorite Hong Kong actors, Jet Li, does what I call his best film in "Tai Chi Master." Starring alongside Michelle Yeoh and a dozen other folks whose name I forgot, Li plays Junbao, a monk whose best friend betrays him and becomes a ruthless whacko. This leaves him only one option: grab a pole and start clubbin' baddies. While some parts are just too cheesy to mention, i.e. people flying around and some ridiculously hokey-looking effects (you can see the cable attached to a guy's back at one point), the best fights take place with just good ol' Jet Li, a pole, and an army of bad guys, where there is no room to fly around or do the ultra-powerful Buddhist Palms. Give Tai Chi Master a try. It's a love-hate thing for most people, and in my case, it's a love thing. This movie is one of the five best kung-fu flicks ever made, in my opinion.

"Twin Warriors" is one of my favorite Jet Li movies. It is about two monks who grow up together and befriend one another. After getting kicked out of their temple, they have to live in the world outside of the temple for the first time of their lives. Unfamiliar with the real world and how it works, they end up choosing different paths. In the end they end up fighting one another and throw their long friendship out the window. Also joining them is Michelle Yeoh, famous for "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon", and does a good job as well. The story is pretty good, and it even has some funny moments. There is no sexuality or hard language which is good for this film. The action in it is over the top and non-stop. It is definitely why you would want to see this movie, all different kinds of combat and martial arts. You have one on one fights, huge wars, hand to hand combat, weapon combat, and even the grab anything and use it as a weapon combat. The dubbing is pretty decent, and I don't think you can even find it in the States with the original voices. There are some minor flaws, like a times you can see wires, or things just look really fake, but it doesn't really take anything away from the film and is very entertaining. If you are a martial arts, Jet Li, or action fan, you should like this one. It has an R rating, but really could be PG-13 as there isn't anything very gory or sexual.

Twin Warriors is without a doubt Jet's Li's finest Shaolin movie. This movie has it all: friendship, love, betrayal, corruption, murder, and comedy, not to mention the kung fu Style of Shaolin which will never cease to amaze, bewilder, and captivate the viewer.

The plot itself is simple and easy to follow. Junbao and Chin Bo are misfit friends inside a Shaolin temple. Feeling both ambitious and outcast form the others in the temple, these two secretly practice kung fu while performing menial tasks such as sweeping the temple floor and doing laundry. Things come to head when Chin Bo takes things a little too far during a kung fu initiation, attacking a master with some of the master's own secret kung fu moves.

Forced to leave the temple Junbao and Chin Bo are forced to live as street entertainers, demonstrating their kung fu and ability to absorb punishment for money. That is until the Government wants a cut of that money. It's at this point that that the yin and yang relationship develops between Junboa and Chin Bo, one sticking to the virtues of Shaolin, while the other becomes a corrupt power hungry officer of the provincial army. The struggle between good and evil that rips two old friends apart is masterfully captured in this movie. Thankfully there are two key elements of the movie that save it from being a depressing tale about a friendship gone awry.

The first element of relief is comedy. While this is by no means a funny movie, there is a fairly long segment where Junbao becomes insane and partakes in some hilarious shenanigans. First he believes he is a duck and hides underwater in a fountain. Then he believes a pillar that holds up a building is his long lost Shaolin master. He even get mad when at a weeble-wobble `Mr. Tao' doll when it will not answer his questions. This comic relief is much needed, saving the film form being depressing.

The second element that makes this film a must see: The incredible martial arts sequences. From beginning to end this movie is packed with the best kung fu I have ever seen in a movie. So many different styles and techniques are used, and jet Li makes them all look as if they were child's play. Fight sequences are beautifully choreographed putting the ART back into martial Arts. I highly recommend this film for any casual or die hard fan of Jet Li, he is simply amazing in this film 10/10 stars!