Fist of Legend

I've been waiting years for this release. The Dimension, English-dubbed only version was a tragic distortion of all the subtle Chinese dialogue elements that make this recent release, beyond the excellently choreographed fight scenes, a true classic of its genre. It corresponds to my longtime reference, the Mei Ah VCD version (with embedded, and sometimes hard to read subtitles--bit still better, I think than the Dragon Dynasty version).

The transfer, I concede, was dark in some places and fluttery in others, as another reviewer notes. The digital remaster of another great Jet Li film, The Tai Chi Master, suffered the same shortcomings which, in this day and age, I find difficult to justify. I, too, would have liked a DD5.1 Cantonese sound track, which is why--coupled with the somewhat disappointing video transfer--I deducted one star from an otherwise solidly 5-star offering.

For Jet Li subscribers, this one is worth getting! : )

FIST OF LEGEND is not a mere remake of the Bruce Lee film FIST OF FURY (called THE CHINESE CONNECTION in the U.S.) I don't think there was one Bruce Lee movie I didn't like, but FIST OF LEGEND is not, in my opinion, a straight remake of Bruce's film.

And in truth, FIST OF LEGEND doesn't have much to do with FIST OF FURY, other than than the basic plot (a martial artist avenging his master's murder) and the Chinese vs Japanese element, so no, I don't consider this a remake of FIST OF FURY. In fact, I'd classify it more as an Asian martial arts version of ROMEO AND JULIET (two people from warring factions fall in love, with the Romeo seeking revenge for the death of a loved one.) But even if you do consider this a remake, you'll probably agree that FIST OF LEGEND is the better film.

The movie begins in 1937, during the Japanese occupation of Shanghai. Chen Zhen (Jet Li) is attending college in Japan when he learns that his master, or as Chinese call them, Sifu, was killed in a match with the Sensei of Shanghai's Japanese school. Though Chen Zhen does not hate the Japanese (his girlfriend Mitsuko, played by the lovely Nakayama Shinobu, is Japanese), he returns to Shanghai, and challenges the Sensei who beat his Sifu to a match. Chen Zhen easily wins, and therefore deduces that since he won, his Sifu should have as well. Chen Zhen has an autopsy performed which reveals that shortly before the match, his Sifu was poisoned.

The poisoning is the work of the evil Japanese Genral Fujita, who wants to lead Japan into conquering China. Fujita had the Sifu poisoned because he was the leader of a Chinese resistance movement against the Japanese occupation of Shanghai. Now Chen Zhen is out for one thing: revenge.

Yes, vengence is a typical, almost traditional element of kung fu movies, but FIST OF LEGEND also focuses on the romance between Chen Zhen and Mitsuko, such as the disapproval of Chen Zhen's fellow Chinese towards him romancing a Japanese. When she arrives in Shanghai, she is immediately cast out as being an evil, almost less than human, person simply for her nationality. But Chean Zhen comes to her defense.The message appears to be racial tolerance must always prevail, even in times where one race mistreats another.

But martial arts action is still what audiences are looking for here, and those not wanting wire-fu will be pleased. Two drawn-out confrontations stand out in this film. One is a match between Chen Zhen and Funokoshi Fumio, Mitsuko's uncle. The other is the final battle between Chen Zhen and Fujita, in which you can almost literally feel it as both men punch and kick the hell out of each other.

So the next time your in the mood for a real action-packed kung fu film, FIST OF LEGEND should come to mind.

This Movie is one of the best martial arts films that I have seen in a long time. Jet Li has proven to the world that he can live up to the name of the "legend". The action was unbelievable and without a doubt, one of the best martial arts film that I've ever purchased. I've only owned this movie for less than a month now and have already watched it like 5 times. My friends who are martial arts instructors were really impressed. I don't think there was a disappointing "fight scene" in the entire movie. Well worth having in my collection of movies.

I just found out about this movie recently. This is also my first exposure to Jet Li. I am impressed. I also didn't know this was a remake or tribute to Bruce Lee's movie. Fist of Legend is packed with awesome fights and actually has a decent story. Thanks to this movie I really want to see more. Martial arts fans need to see this. I'm glad I saw this.

Fist of Legend is the tribute film to Bruce Lee's The Chinese Connection aka Fists of Fury. Jet Li(Chen Zhen) hears the news of his masters death. He returns to his school and later feuds with his masters killer. He then learns, there was more to his masters death than first believed.

I don't look at Fist of Legend as a tribute film. I see it simply as the borrowing of an idea(to make money), which there is nothing wrong with that. Especially in a world where no idea is original. But, I'm glad to see this twist on a classic was very well pulled off. I'm also glad to see this film remastered. Hopefully, this means at some point it must have reached classic status as well.

I really do like this film and I do like it better than Fist of Fury. Not only based on the fight scenes but the deeper meanings that are touched here. Unlike FoF, the japanese aren't all painted as an evil power hungry and abusive race. There were good ones perfectly portrayed by the characters played by both Nakayama Shinobu and Kurata Yasuaki. There is a whole lot that I would love to add but I'm aware everyone hasn't seen or heard of this film.

The storytelling is very well done and I never found myself waiting for the next fight. Now the fights, well get yourself ready for some of the best fight scenes out there. The fights are pretty long and the choreography is so fluid. One fight in particular standouts the most because of the story being told during the battle.

The icing on this release is definitly the features. Now I don't always review the extras. But this release demands it. There are five interviews that last around the 30 minute mark and I feel four must be seen.

I'll just list the extras(I changed my mind), no spoilers included;

The Man Behind The Legend: Gordan Chan
Brother in Arms: Chin Siu-Ho
The Way Of The Warrior: Kurata Yasuaki
The School of Hard Knocks: A screen fighting seminar at the celebrated Kurata action school
A Look At Fist of Legend: Brett Ratner & Elvis Mitchell

The language settings are the only mixed bag for me. The english cast dub is ok but I prefer the mandarin language. It also has a better soundtrack to me.

If your only Jet Li exposure is his amercian hollywood releases. Then do yourself a favor and pick this up. I'm very happy with this release even though I was very disappointed with Tai Chi Master. I do hope if The Legend of Fong Sai Yuk is ever remastered. It gets the same treatment and the soundtrack isn't messed with.