Last Hero in China (1993)

Fantastic!

Expected more

Better Late Then Never

Exactly the movie you think it is, but not the movie you want it to be.

Jet Li reprises his role as martial arts legend Wong Fei-Hung in this movie that is not part of the original series featuring Li, but a film that gives a comedic twist to the story where Fei-Hung stumbles upon a kidnapping scheme after unknowingly opening a martial arts school next to a brothel.Like previous Fei-Hung movies, this film has plenty of martial arts action and breathtaking battles, including the fight between the lion dancers and the giant human-controlled centipede. While Jet Li stays true to form as the serious, wise and powerful Wong Fei-Hung, this film also has a good dose of humor, courtesy of actor Chan Pak-Cheung, who plays pimp-turned martial arts wannabe Mass Tar Cheung, and actress Kingdom Yuen, who plays the brothel madam. A host of other all-star actors can be seen included Sharla Cheung, Anita Yuen, Dicky Cheng, Gordon Liu and members of Sammo Hung/Jackie Chan's stunt team - all giving us some top-notch acting performances. The plot is pretty solid and gains momentum as the movie progresses, with a captivating story and classic good guy vs. bad guy elements. Just about everything is thrown in this movie - action, adventure, drama (which the story could use a little more of), comedy and period costumes/settings - all resulting in pure entertainment.Grade B+

This film produced by mythic Golden Harvest is based on a legendary Chinese character : Wong Fei-hung, basic figure in the Chinese folklore. He was a famous practicing of ¨Hung gar Kung Fu¨and ¨Tai Chi¨ and his character served as starring in various film from art martial history. Here is well played by Jet Li, Wong has changed his art- martial school in Canton but results he has just moved near a brothel. Wong is worried and a prostitutes attempt to lure him. Soon he's fighting exaggerated nasties, corrupts authorities, judge and a monks from a weird temple dedicated to slave-trading where are kidnapped beautiful girls for human traffic. Meanwhile, Wong is poisoned and turned deaf but is healed by acupuncture by a traveling artists. Ultimately, there take place the parade the lion against centipede dance-fight with a spectacular and breathtaking struggle with hyperbolic Kung Fu, plenty of kicks, bounds and leaps.The Wong character, both a doctor and professor of martial art, served as starring in various movies from arts-martial cinema history. Wong figure reflects the Chinese cultural identity facing foreigner invasion that submitted China, especially during XIX century (Boxers war, Opium war). Wong was played by Jet Li in six occasions, and appears in the Jackie Chan's ¨Drunken master¨films, besides appears as secondary character in the new version of ¨Iron Monkey¨ also titled ¨Wong Fei Hung¨ with Donnie Yen. Here, Jet Li reprise splendidly his role who became him as a real star in Asian markets . Li is the biggest Asian movie star after Jackie Chan, he won Chinese national championship in the acrobatic martial art, Wushu. Jet Li, lights in his fighting , using Kung Fu special slicks : drunken boxing, tiger or crane technical though many confronting are filmed with goofy humor and silly comedy. The fights are choreographed by means of cables by Woo- Yuen Ping, author of choreography of hits as Fearless, Kunfu hustle, Danny the dog, Kill Bill and Matrix, among others.

this movie is very easy & nice to watch, bringing the parody/comic moments to the forefront, reaching grotesque levels at times. Won Fei Hung, the level headed virtuous master, is entrusted the leadership of some civic group on the ground of his unbridled virtue. While running his kung-fu school & medical practice he runs out of money and is evicted from his premises. A goofy fellow comes along offering them ample room for the school in exchange for kung-fu training. The only problem is the goofy fellow's "nieces" keep distracting kung-fu practitioners...and soon we learn the school shares its premises with a...brothel. Wong fei Hung is outraged but must defeat a gang trafficking women, and deal with his goofy disciples and evil martial artists, besides trying a poisonous drink on himself. This movie made me laugh. It isn't rocket science or award-winning stuff, but I liked this comic take. Plot is paper thin and garbled at times. Action moves are good, but of the moves-on-wires extravaganza kind. Recommended for unpretentious fun, taken for what it is.

This film is amazing. The choreography work by Yuen Woo Ping is simply breath taking. Gnong Kau Chai as Legate Officer Lui in my view steals the film as possibly the best bad guy ever. His maniacal laughter and dialogue is but one of many good things in this film, another of which is Jet Li's gracious and best performance as Wong Fei Hung. Tak-Hing Kwan who for so many films had played the same character could feel as if he has successfully passed on his mantle to Li. The comic aspects of the film elevate this from Li's other films as Wong Fei Hung. The use of Wong's theme song ("Under the General's Orders") is my favourite thing about the film, especially when used by the hookers whose brothel is nest to Po Chee Lam (Wong Fei Hung's martial arts school). In a year in which Li made Fong Sai Yuk 1 and 2, Tai Chi Master. If Jet Li was a fine wine people would say 1993 was en excellent year.