The Legend of Drunken Master
The Legend of Drunken Master
R | 03 February 1994 (USA)
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Returning home with his father after a shopping expedition, Wong Fei-Hong is unwittingly caught up in the battle between foreigners who wish to export ancient Chinese artifacts and loyalists who don't want the pieces to leave the country. Fei-Hong must fight against the foreigners using his Drunken Boxing style, and overcome his father's antagonism as well.

Reviews
SunnyHello

Nice effects though.

GrimPrecise

I'll tell you why so serious

LouHomey

From my favorite movies..

SpunkySelfTwitter

It’s an especially fun movie from a director and cast who are clearly having a good time allowing themselves to let loose.

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Riley Porter

So this film is fairly uneven. On one hand, its story is either lacking in tonal coherence or is generally scatter brained. On the other hand, the fight choreography and stunt work is genuinely breathtaking.The story isn't necessarily incomprehensible, though it seems to try very hard to be. I get the distinct impression that there was either difficulty in getting all the coverage required for the plot, or that the editor had a very fuzzy understanding of how to put all the scenes together in a way which made sense, mostly it feels like the former. At a certain point it literally feels like scenes are missing from the film. It doesn't ruin the experience, but it makes it difficult to be especially invested in the characters and their motivations. Speaking of characters, they're mostly fine I guess. Jackie Chan at least represents some kind of arc or emotional conflict that the audience can get involved in. For the most part though, a lot of characters feel underdeveloped to the point of being sort of place-holders. I guess the main takeaway is that this film would be kind of bad if not for the martial arts. The martial arts and accompanying stunt work in this film is of the highest caliber. It's sort of to be expected of a Jackie Chan feature, but even so, there are some fights in this film which seem to defy all conventions of action and the laws of physics. Admittedly, a lot of it is pretty cornball. The sort of levity which is characteristic of a lot of the action is very fitting I think. It better compliments the light comedic tone of this film than more serious encounters might have. I mean, the fighting can often be a lot funnier than the sort of weird attempts at humor that come during the "down time". I'm not trying to undermine the legitimate tension that comes during some of the fighting. I'm just saying that the tone of the action fits very well into the rest of the film. Despite the largely messy story, the martial arts action in this film is executed with absolute mastery. It's worth checking out by virtue of its highlights. Go for it, it's good.

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patomartinezfgo

This movie is seen as one of the best martial arts movies, and for a very good reason. This movie is everything you expect from a Jackie Chan martial arts movie.Let me start with the fighting, the martial arts and stunts in this movie are great. I was really impressed by all the things Jackie Chan is able to do over his 40. Jackie Chan has a very distinctive style of martial arts in which he combines slapstick with fighting as he uses his environment as means to defeat his enemies.The comedy in this movie was great. I was laughing out loud through many parts of the movie, specially when he uses the now famous Drunk Boxing, which is hilarious to see. Jackie Chan's acting really sells all the crazy things that are happening. And the rest of the characters are equally entertaining.One thing I was not expecting was this movie to have serious moments. But surprisingly, it did. When Jackie Chan was not drunk or fighting, there were some very interesting scenes with his father.The only downside I can think of with this movie is the story. The story, in my opinion, is not really that interesting and it is hard to be hooked in it. It is the most generic story and I believe the first one has a much more interesting story.

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eric262003

Next to Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan stands out as one of my favourite action movie stars in cinematic history. "The Legend of Drunken Master" truly showcases just how flexible and high-flying Chan is in one of his best martial arts action films out there (even better than the "Rush Hour" series). You have to see this with your own eyes if you want to catch my drift. This movie has one enjoyable scene after another. The simplistic display of storytelling will keep you intrigued along with the heart-pumping action, wonderful comical moments and a very tantalizing plot. The characters are very rich and vibrant like the comical performance from Anita Mui as Wong's (Chan) step-mom Ling to the insanely antagonistic bad guy Ken Lo as Jon/John. The casting decisions were well put together that adds dimension to the story and the characters. The story is about an iconic folk hero named Wong Fei Hung, a well- meaning, but naive student in the art of Drunken Boxing also known as Zui Quan. Even though he tries not to get involved when trouble is on the horizon, he becomes a witness to British thieves who are robbing rare priceless Chinese artifacts out of the country. Wong feels it his destiny to use his unorthodox fighting skills to prevent this happening.I know the concept of Drunken Boxing sounds utterly ridiculous, but it's anything but. When it comes to surreal fighting fight scenes, Jackie Chan is a master in this parameter. He makes these fight look real and very easy. And with all his movies, street-fighting appears all the time. But here, Chan's fighting is more aerial and flamboyant than compared to his other films and it's equally believable as the stuff he's done before in the past and present. The final showdown at the factory has lots of wonderful action, it's enough to make any action junkie's mouth water. Jackie Chan is not alone in this movie. The supporting cast turn in some very enthralling performances as well. Wong's parents Ling (Anita Mui) and Wong Kei Ying (Ti Lung) are exciting to watch because they are very contrary to one another. Ti Lung is loving and caring father who wants best for Wong, but still believes he must inflict tough love on him. Meanwhile Ling is the more spontaneous step-mother who has good sense of humour, while still protects her son from getting into trouble with his father. The polar opposites between each other balance the movie quite substantially. The fight scenes are some of the most intense I have scene in martial arts action films in cinematic history. One of the most memorable fighting scenes in this movie is when Wong and an associate take down every member of a large gang of hoodlums known as "The Ax Gang". I could elaborate further with this scene, but it's the exciting climax at the factory that really cranks up the heat as Wong takes down an army of bad guys before taking down the main kingpin. Jon/John is played by Ken Lo. This guy is equally talented of a fighter as Chan and was great formidable opponent for Wong. His kicking ability is enough to put his own arms out of commission. Most of the fight Lo is kicking Chan's can all over the place. At one point his kicks lands Chan into some flaming coals and like every time Chan succeeds in keeping it real.That scene along will likely make your jaw drop. Then like when Popeye eat spinach, Jackie consumes some industrial beverage and regains his composure and manages to finish off his evil adversary which makes you wonder if fighting dunk has a better advantage than when you are sober. The final scenes are just truly amazing and exciting. I guess the drunken fighting is to take your opponent off his mark but are at par with the drinker. Chan pulls this stunt off without a hitch. The fight scenes were beautifully crisp and well choreographed so much that you only wished those scenes lasted for days. If you like martial arts action movies and you have never seen this one, what the hell are you waiting for? This is a high-ranking action film up there with other action movies of this calibre like "Enter the Dragon" and "Iron Monkey". Lots of well orchestrated stunts and fight sequences, this movie will keep you entertained the whole way through.

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david-sarkies

This is a Jackie Chan movie made by his Hong Kong producers. Jackie Chan directed this movie himself (as he seems to do a lot) so all the bizarre stunts that he does, he does because he chooses to do them. This movie is not a movie sponsored by American money, as was Rumble in the Bronx, and thus has all of the typical quirks of Hong Kong Cinema.Jackie Chan, his brother, and his father go into China to get hold of some ginseng. As they come to the border post they realise they must declare the goods so they smuggle it on board through a British ambassador. They then must get it back so they sneak into first class and take the package. Unfortunately there are two similar packages and they take the wrong one. They also confront another martial artist who wants the other package. Through this they uncover a plot by the British to overthrow the Chinese Emperor (or so it seems).As with typical movies of this sort, there is little in the way of deep, in-depth thought. Jackie Chan is about stuns and martial arts, and you get plenty of that here. The interesting thing in this movie is the portrayal of the British. They have their guns while the Chinese have their martial arts. Even with their skill, they are under the yoke of the gun. But when the Chinese get the guns, they discard them in favour of the martial arts.The specific martial art that Jackie Chan uses here is what is called Drunken Boxing. He is reasonable, but very beatable sober, but when he gets drunk he becomes invincible. Thus, when he finds that he is fighting a fight that he probably will not win, he seeks as much alcohol as possible and becomes blind drunk.This is a reasonably good movie, and as typical for Jackie Chan, quite funny as well. When you watch it though, make sure that the version you have has reasonable subtitles, because it is really annoying watching a movie when you don't know what is going on because you cannot understand the dialogue.

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