Iron Monkey
Reviewed by YTSL
That which can be suitably viewed as a prequel
to the "Once Upon a Time in China" series of films did not fare too well
at the local box office in 1993, ranking as only the 58th "best" performer
of 143 domestically produced releases that year and lasting but a mere
12 days in Hong Kong cinemas. Perhaps it was due to the market then
being overly-saturated by dramatic action pieces; what with its coming
out in the same year as "The Bride with White Hair", "Fong Sai Yuk", "The
Heroic Trio", "Project S", director Yuen Woo Ping's "Tai Chi Master" and
producer Tsui Hark's "Once Upon a Time in China" III & IV, "The Magic
Crane", "Green Snake" and "Swordsman III: The East is Red".
It also may be that the stars of this Film Workshop production -- Yu Rong-Guang
(who had supporting roles in "Project S" and "The East is Red"), Donnie
Yen (who was quite impressive in "Once Upon a Time in China II"), Jean
Wong (who made a short but very memorable appearance in "The East is Red")
and Tsang Sze-Man (who may have played the boy who grew up to be the Leslie
Cheung character in "The Bride with White Hair") -- just do not have the
audience drawing power of, say, Brigitte Lin and Jet Li.
Although it may not have truly big names in
front of the camera, IRON MONKEY still is an extremely watchable as well
as complex piece of work, which thoroughly deserves the cult status it
possesses in Western Hong Kong movie fan circles. This is not least
because the movie does contain Yuen Woo Ping's trademark wire-fu touches
(the sight of Yu Rong-Guang and Jean Wong's characters gracefully gathering
up pieces of flying paper in their clinic gives a hint of what was to come
– think re Michelle Yeoh's actions in the "tofu scene" -- in Yuen's 1994
"Wing Chun") and set-piece spectacles (as in "Tai Chi Master", there are
those involving human heads and wooden logs but the ante is raised here
with regards to the latter by some of them being ablaze!). Then there's
the additional layer of meaning possessed by the film whose title refers
to a sort of Chinese Robin Hood (in terms of his robbing the corrupt rich
to help the poor): Which comes by way of the kind of indirectly flighted
yet on target -- like a particular style of arrow utilized by the East
Chamber in "Dragon Inn"! -- political commentary at which Tsui Hark (who
co-wrote the script) excels.
It also helps a tremendous lot that the characters
in this at times quite touching movie are amazingly well fleshed out and
presented for a primarily historical action effort. Effort has really
been made to show more than one side to the man who is Dr. Yang during
the day and Iron Monkey by night (Yu Rong-Guang impresses with his acting
as well as martial artistic abilities). The woman whose baby Dr.
Yang was unable to keep alive but who he was able to save from a continued
life as a prostitute is shown to be his valuable aide as well as competent
student (Jean Wong charms as Miss Ho). Wong Kei-Ying is shown to
be a loving father and good cook as well as righteous man, a(nother) skilled
medical man and expert martial artist (Donnie Yen capably performs all
that the role requires). It is a relief and unexpected pleasure to
have the young Wong Fei-Hung depicted here as neither an annoying brat
nor entirely precocious child (Tsang Sze-Man is amazing both in terms of
HER fighting skills and dramatic portrayal of a boy trying hard to become
a man!). While the chief villain is 100% evil and another predominantly
farcically so, IRON MONKEY does additionally benefit from having at least
one character whose loyalties are not entirely certain – and feelings are
appropriately mixed -- for much of the proceedings.
Bey Logan is absolutely right though in stating
that: "The film is memorable for having as much heart as it has martial
art" (In Stefan Hammond's "Hollywood East", 2000:93). The warm emotions
that IRON MONKEY engenders are what really make this a standout movie for
this (re)viewer. Apart from being a spirited tale of good versus
evil, this at times deceptively tonally light offering also contains stories
of the love between a father and son along with a generous patron and grateful
woman. Also part of the narrative equation are the friendship between
good men, their mutual respect for each other, the care that they possess
for their fellow humans and the loyalty as well as admiration that they
can bring out in other people.
At film's end, when the camera focuses on the
boy who would become a legendary hero and freezes for a few seconds on
his smiling face, I can pretty much guarantee that the viewer will feel
shivers going down his or her spine. What will then follow is an
almost irresistible urge to hum the Wong Fei-Hung tune (which can be heard
in IRON MONKEY as well as Tsui Hark's "Once Upon a Time in China" but is
illuminatingly wistfully rendered in this movie while rousing in that popular
series) and either rewatch or spread the good word about an effort that
deserves a larger audience, or follow it up with a viewing of the first
"Once Upon a Time in China"! While this work will not be everyone's
cup of tea (I'm thinking here of those people who like their action straight
up and wire-less, others who just will never like any movie with some amount
of fighting in it and still other individuals who might be a bit insulted
by its alternately inserting wicked, ironic and just plain playful humor
into certain otherwise serious situations), it surely will be greatly appreciated
by those who go for this multi-layered, genre-blending kind of cinematic
experience and impact.
My rating for this film: 9.5.
Reviewed by Brian
Other than the emotionally powerful threads
that run through the film, Iron Monkey is also a dazzlingly choreographed
action film. It is imaginative and mindboggling throughout and somehow
Yuen Woo Ping manages to make each action scene stand on its own merits
as a distinct gem. True, the action is speeded up and the wirework is at
times obtrusive, but it is done with so much flair and passion that the
viewer simply begins to overlook it and to take it as reality.
All the characters get their share of wonderful
action sequences and Yuen makes them all look so good. Jean Wong has a
terrific fight against a gang of ruffians in which she has some lovely
graceful moments and Tsang Sze-Man is simply incredible in a few fights
as she fights off numerous adults with various instruments at hand. Needless
to say both Donnie Yen and Yu Rong-Guang (why didn't this guy become a
huge star?) have a number of powerful conflicts – against each other, against
a group of treacherous monks and against the wonderfully evil Yam Sai-Koon
(Heroic Trio).
As good as the fights were that preceded it, the
finale surpasses them. It has to be seen to be fully appreciated. It is
simply a stunning set piece. Yu and Donnie match up against Yam and most
of the fight takes place on top of a number of wooden poles with a fire
raging down below. The three of them leap from pole to pole all the time
delivering vicious blows and attempting to knock each other into the fiery
death that awaits them below. It is one of the more brilliant action scenes
I have come across in HK films. You sit there thinking – how the hell did
they do this?
My rating for this film: 9.0