| Special
Features: |
Cast: Jet Li, Shido Nakamura, Nathan Jones, Brandon
Rhea
Action Choreography: Yuen Wo-Ping
Director: Ronny Yu
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| Review:
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FEARLESS is as successfully close as we may get to the
energy, themes and messages that were so common and expected
from Hong Kong cinema in the late 80's and early 90's. Save
for a few grand aerial shots of Shanghai and a few CGI enhanced
shots during the fight scenes (more on this in a moment),
this could have very well come out during that time period.
***
Jet Li stars as Huo Yuan-Jia, a man who began his life
as an arrogant fighter who wished nothing more than to be
the number one fighter no matter the cost, and became a
Chinese folk hero much in the same vein as Wong Fei-Hung,
as he rallied to support Chinese culture at the beginning
of the British occupation and Western influence in general.
***
Ronny Yu, who should be no stranger to both fans of
Hong Kong cinema and U.S. fans of horror, directs with a
fluid movement that matches Jet Li's own Wuxia style. He
takes his time during the dialogue scenes to give depth
to the characters interactions and relations, which acts
as a strong contrast to the fast paced rhythm of the fight
scenes. Yuen Wo-Ping, who has at this time become synonymous
and the very definition of fight choreography, once again
provides innovative and visually exciting combat sequences.
***
It is these sequences which will be the main draw to
this film, though they should certainly not over shadow
the philosophical themes that permeate the storyline. The
fight sequences will conjure up memories from IRON MONKEY,
ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA, and CROUCHING TIGER HIDDEN DRAGON
to name a few. For the most part, the fight sequences use
all in-camera tricks and true choreography, which is a breath
of relief from more recent action fare. There is plenty
of wire work here, as well as adjusting the speed of the
shot to heighten the action. The minimal use of noticeable
CGI does take away from the action, and it is a shame that
it was used at all, as the scenes would have suffered nothing
without these added effects. ***
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