What a waste of my time!!!

I was totally surprised at how great this film.You could feel your paranoia rise as the film went on and as you gradually learned the details of the real situation.

This is a dark and sometimes deeply uncomfortable drama

True to its essence, the characters remain on the same line and manage to entertain the viewer, each highlighting their own distinctive qualities or touches.

I'm not usually a fan of '90s-era Hong Kong action cinema, which is inevitably over-reliant on wirework and over the top style, but I can make an exception for IRON MONKEY, which is in itself an exceptional film. It's a retelling of the Wong Fei Hung story with a twist: this time around, Fei Hung is a child who plays a supporting role to the central thrust of the storyline which is about a Robin Hood-style freedom fighter battling corrupt politicians.The great thing about IRON MONKEY is the action, of which there is plenty. It's ably directed by Yuen Woo Ping and, put simply, it kicks ass – despite the plentiful wirework. Donnie Yen is a past master at this kind of material and delivers an action-oriented performance that never lets you down, while the real surprise is Rongguang Yu, a very familiar face in Hong Kong cinema who proves his worth in the kung fu stakes.The narrative is fast-paced and fuelled with conflict and action and the whole film has a colourful, old-fashioned vibe that keeps it moving merrily along. There's humour in spades, some truly devious villains, a decent script and quality performances. But it always comes back to the action, and for once IRON MONKEY deserves the hype. It's a keeper.

excerpt, full review at my location - Tales of folk heroes and legends saturate the fabric of Chinese history and culture. Re-released and discovered by a wider audience after Yuen Woo-ping's astonishing success choreographing Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Iron Monkey is a notable addition to the extensive list of historical legends committed to film. Directed by The Matrix choreographer and action master, and featuring Hong Kong and China's most vaunted action star of the moment, Donnie Yen, Iron Monkey proves to be a short but well-crafted story.Iron Monkey may not be amongst the best of Yuen Woo-ping's enviable filmography, nor of the ever-growing list of historical hero endeavours, but it is a short and fun exponent of the historical hero genre.

You pay to see a movie to be entertained, and this movie delivers. The so-called "wire fu" isn't anywhere as obnoxious as in other movies. There is a decent amount of character development spread among the action sequences. There are some pacing problems and subplots that don't execute well, but no major defects. This works as both a date movie and a family film.There is a prologue, First Act, Second Act, Third Act with Climax, and an epilogue. No more no less. I certainly enjoyed it more than Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, so thank you Mr. Tarintino for getting this distributed in a wide release. Please continue to do so.

I love this movie! Don't ask me why, just see it. And you will understand. The fights are most spectacular I've ever seen. The story is almost perfect, it's better than most of the Hollywood action movies. I have seen so many kung-fu movies but this is one of my favorites. If there is a god of kung-fu movies, it should be Yuen Wo Ping. See this movie and you will know why. If you like great fights and great movies, you will like this one. Well, if you expect to see something like "Hero" or "Crouching Tiger Hidden Drgaon", you will be disappointed. You will be disappointed not because "Hero" and "Crouching Tiger..." are better than "Iron Monkey" but because the movies are too different. "Iron Monkey" is a great martial arts action but the other two movies are more dramatic, they are not action movies. Well, that's it. What else could I say?