Notable Cast: Tiger Xu, Huang Weiting, Xu Shaohang, Wang
Jiusheng, Wang Hongqian, Ye Xinyu
As of recently, the online, streaming exclusive releases in
China have been plentiful. I briefly mentioned it in my piece on The
Emperor’s Sword HERE, but properly conveying the number of titles being
unleashed on various services can easily rival the breaking dam of titles in
the US. Fortunately, a handful of streaming services in the US and other
western countries have picked up a few of these titles for release, and, after
seeing some overall positive reactions to Fist of Legend, I dove into
Hi-Yah! to check out this kung fu flick.
At a wickedly fast 70+ minutes, Fist of Legend is
precisely what the doctor ordered. It’s not one of those films that genre fans
will feel like they missed out on because they didn’t see it in theaters -
thanks to its smaller scale and limited budget. However, it’s still a
relatively solid film, entertaining enough, and features plenty of ass-kicking
beatdowns to keep kung fu fans appeased.
Granted, it should be noted, that while it shares the same
title as the Jet Li starring Chen Zhen film from 1994, this film is not
inherently a remake. The original Fist of Legend was a remake itself,
telling the story of Chen Zhen when he returns home from studying in Japan to
fight off a conspiracy by the Japanese military that left his teacher dead.
This version, however, is a prequel of sorts that tells of the time when Chen
Zhen was studying in Japan and the trouble he gets into there. So while the
title remains a bit confusing, it serves in some way as a prequel/reboot - or
preboot if you will.
With that in mind, Fist of Legend does intend to
recapture the fun of the 1990s Jet Li film, but doing it on a budget. For some
fans, this film will just serve to remind them of how incredible that version
of Chen Zhen is and perhaps get them to throw that on instead. However, I
implore people to give this one a chance because it’s delivering the same
formula. Chen Zhen, now played by Tiger Xu who has been in a ton of big budget
action flicks and weirdly looks like Jet Li in this film at times (??), crosses
paths with some ambitiously assholish Japanese fighters and military men, kicks
a lot of ass, and finds just enough time for a thin romantic subplot.
Fist of Legend is not throwing any spins, twists, or
surprises into that formula, for better or worse. It doubles down on just being
a fun kung fu flick. The performances are solid enough, with a secondary cast
that are delivering Acting in some fun and over the top ways, and the thin
origin story of Chen Zhen’s love interest serves as the heart to the matter to
balance out its discussions about keeping Chinese martial arts alive and being
proud of your heritage even when you’re not living in your own country.
The biggest surprise though is the action. It’s opening
fight sequence, with a black masked (oh yeah, that makes a return in this one
too) Chen Zhen ripping apart some Japanese guys in the rain for sexually
assaulting a Chinese woman, sets the stage. Despite its limited budget and,
let’s say, proficient run time, this film delivers a lot of great little
fights. The audience will never, ever feel as though Chen Zhen is in danger -
thanks to it being a prequel and the propaganda jingoism that runs rampant in
most Chinese films now, but the choreography and visuals that go along with the
fight work are pleasantly entertaining.
Sure, Fist of Legend 2019 isn’t going to wow a lot of
folks looking for the next big thing in action cinema, but it is a shiny little
gem for kung fu fans who might stumble across it on streaming. It’s fun enough
to be enjoyable and with its short run time it’s not a huge burden to watch. Go
in with expectations to enjoy it for what it is and that’s what you’ll get.
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