8. ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA (1991)
Tsui Hark reinvented the Wong Fei-hung movies that had been a bench post in Hong Kong cinema from the late 1940s to the mid-eighties. Casting Jet Li in the lead role he also managed to reinvent Li’s career which had waned since his success in the Shaolin Temple series of the early eighties. Though a Wong Fei-hung was a real life folk hero, Hark consciously references the screen version creating superb action sequences to the very end.
Li’s strength in acting, to play reactive, rather naive characters strikes a chord as a man with deadly martial art abilities who will only use them as the last possible resort. There’s also some great romantic comedy between Li and costar Rosamund Kwan, who plays his ‘Aunt’ Yee – quickly pointing out that they are not actually related! Yuen Biao and Jacky Cheung also appear.
Yet there’s also an underlying anti-european feeling throughout, not unusual for Hark. Once Upon A Time is set at a point when europeans had split China up between them, Wong Fai-hung is the hero who wants to reunite his mother country. Yet not all European’s are the enemy, a Catholic priest comes to Wong’s aid. Definitely this was made at a time when the end of Britians ownership of Hong Kong was too close to ignore.
ALSO RECOMMENDED
Once Upon a Time in China 2 (1991)
This time Wong faces Donnie Yen as a corrupt police chief, and his wet laundry!
Once Upon a Time in China 3 (1992)
Perhaps the most enjoyable of all the series, serious pretensions are dropped to have fun with the characters. When Wong announces his engagement to ‘Aunt’ Yee, even his father seems confused as to whether he is gaining a daughter-in-law or a brother-in-law.
Peking Opera Blues (1986)
Hark brings Chinese Opera to life with the help of Brigitte Lin, Sally Yeh and Cherie Chung in an action packed tale of politics, farce and love.
Zu: Warriors from the Magic Mountain (1983)
Tsui Hark kick started the new wave of HK movies with this one, creating a vivid fantasy world of perpetual night. Full of magical immortal characters not unlike the Japanese Monkey series of the seventies… except far madder! An all star cast includes Sammo Hung, Brigitte Lin, Yuen Biao and Moon Lee.
Legend of Zu (2001)
Nearly twenty years after the original Hark returns to the world of Zu with the technology now available to him. Little more than eye candy, but worth a viewing.
