Movie Poster

Now you listen to me. I'll only say this once. We are not sick men.

# Review

Perhaps one of the most iconic Hong Kong films, it stars kung fu legend Bruce Lee as the main character, Chen Zhen, a fictional student of the real-life martial artist Huo Yuanjia. Huo Yuanjia, also known as Junqing, is a legendary figure in Chinese martial arts as he won many highly-publicized matches against fighters from foreign imperial powers, at a time when Chinese sovereignty was being eroded by said powers.

This story of the film takes place in the early 20th century in Shanghai, where Chinese citizens were being discriminated against by foreign imperialists, namely by the Japanese and to a certain extent also by the British and the Russian. The story feels like a revenge film where Chen Zhen and his fellow students from Junqing’s martial arts school gets constantly harassed by the Japanese, and Zhen finally snaps and delivers swift justice through his martial arts.

The fight scenes are incredible and showcase Lee at his peak. The story feels generic, one-dimensional, and lacks nuance, with clear heroes and villains slotted in. The Japanese are depicted as pure evil, almost comically so, and there are some strong racial undertones. It’s clear that the story is written around the action sequences and designed to be emotionally charged as it deals with dramatic themes such as grief, injustice, and revenge.

Surprisingly, this film did pretty well in Japan, as the Japanese viewed the characterization of the Japanese within the film as ridiculous and they also identified with Zhen’s warrior spirit which was much akin to bushido. Jackie Chan was also a stunt double for one of the Japanese villains.

# Conclusion

An iconic Hong Kong kung fu movie with a basic plot and amazing fight scenes.

# Overall rating: 7.4

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