It's going down in Chinatown... (Kung Fu Hustle (DVD))

Member Name: l-m-n-o-p

Product:	Kung Fu Hustle (DVD)
Date:	19/08/07 (134 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great action, humour and special effects

Disadvantages: Extremely silly

Stephen Chow isn’t a name I’d come across before, but after this film, expect to be seeing a lot more of him in years to come. As a comedy actor, he’s been amusing Hong Kong audiences for years, but it’s his last two films, Shaolin Soccer, and this, Kung Fu Hustle, which have earned him worldwide fame.

Although at 42 he’s a bit old to be called the next Jackie Chan, the resemblances are there, with his films being a mix of comedy, martial arts and action. And like Jackie Chan, as well as acting and doing all his own stunts, he also writes, produces and edits his own films!

In Kung Fu Hustle, set in 1940s China, a city is being terrorised by the Axe gang, a sophisticated yet deadly group of fighters who kill their victims with - yep, axes. The only place which is safe from the gang is Pig Sty Alley - partly because they’re so poor they have nothing for the gang to steal, but also because the street is filled with martial arts masters, most important amongst them a big, rude landlady with a scream that literally blows you away.

Chow plays a kung fu wannabe, Sing, who dreams of joining the axe gang because “the good guys never win”. However, fate has a different agenda, and Sing ends up defending the street against not just the gang but also the world’s top killer, known only as The Beast. Perhaps that Buddhist Palm Kung Fu booklet he was given on the street as a child will come in handy at last…

Although it’s not the most thought-provoking or demanding of films, Kung Fu Hustle does actually get a little bit more complicated than that; there’s a subplot involving a girl he was friends with as a child, and there are a couple of twists and turns along the way.

It is a bizarre film, seemingly stitched together from equal parts of The Matrix, Gangs of New York, Crouching Tiger… and Looney Tunes. In fact, a lot of the best scenes are quite obviously parodies of previous movies - especially the concluding fight scene in which Sing takes on the whole gang of black-suited Axes in an extremely Matrix Reloaded Burly Brawl-esque manner.

That’s not to say that Chow doesn’t have a few original ideas of his own up his sleeve - most notably the way he throws in CGI to spice things up a bit. As if the exquisitely choreographed and surprisingly violent fight scenes weren’t cartoonish enough, he chucks in a fantastic speeded-up roadrunner-style foot chase, and gives his hero a pair of oversized snake-stung lips. It works really well in taking the typical wirework martial arts film just a little bit further, and into more contemporary waters.

It’s also strange in that for the first half of the film Chow’s character isn’t even the main focus; the adventures of him and his overweight buddy are more of a side plot to the main events.

The film looks brilliant, if you’re willing to accept that the CGI is supposed to be over the top and unbelievable, and if you agree that seeing people fly through the air in slow motion is always cool.

Basically, all I need to tell you about this film is that it’s riotously entertaining. Don’t come into it expecting an elegant martial arts period film, because it’s not that at all. Also don’t expect award-winning performances or a complex Infernal Affairs-style storyline. Come into it expecting to see lots of baddies get their butts kicked in thrilling and over-the-top fight scenes, and to enjoy a few silly visual gags while you’re at it. It may not be high-brow stuff, but it’s very well made, surprisingly funny and -most of all - it sure is fun.
_________________________________________________ ______

You can purchase Kung Fu Hustle (also known simply as “Kung Fu”) for £4.95 delivered, from www.dvd.co.uk.

Directed by: Stephen Chow

Starring:

Stephen Chow … Sing
Qiu Yuen … Landlady
Wah Yuen … Landlord
Suet Lam … Axe Gang Boss
Siu-Lung Leung … The Beast

Running time: 95 minutes

Classification: 15 (sequences of strong stylized action and violence)

Year: 2004

My rating: 4 stars

Summary: Fun fun fun