Kung Fu Killer hits select theaters in NY/LA April 24th, 2015 from Well Go USA Entertainment
Kung Fu Killer is a great fight flick that suffers from a very unfortunate name. The film otherwise known as Last of the Best and Kung Fu Jungle, stars Donnie Yen as Hahou Mo, a martial arts master who is incarcerated after accidentally killing another martial artist in a duel. After a string of deaths begin to appear in the news Hahou Mo is pulled from prison to aid in the investigation when he alerts the police he spots a martial arts connection in the killers pattern, since masters are being killed in their preferred fighting style. As we soon find out the killer’s true motives, we find a strange connection between Hahou Mo and the killer.
Kung Fu Killer is a love letter to the old-fashioned fight film. The premise itself is just a great excuse to incorporate as many martial arts styles as the filmmakers could, by bringing some of the best fighters and stunt men they could. The film is literally a who’s who of martial arts cinema with cameos and choreography by some of the best there is. Of course this all leads up a great final fight, as you would expect from Yen, which doesn’t disappoint.
The film definitely takes some time to get warmed up with the first and second acts being more of a police procedural, which eventually transitions into a full out fight film. The killer is unmasked fairly early so there is more of a focus on his motivations and what his connection to Yen’s character is as they make their way to their inevitable confrontation. Yen’s struggle is also interesting as well, when we find out what landed him in prison in the first place. I just wish the relationship with Sinn Ying (Michelle Bai) a was a bit more deveolped since I found it hard to tell if she was his wife or daughter until the end of the film.
My main qualm, however, with Kung Fu Killer is in a film that is paying tribute to a practical art, there sure are a lot of poorly executed CG effects. While it makes sense from a budgetary standpoint I feel it really detracts from the overall mission of the film when you have SyFy Channel level CG during a beautifully crafted action sequence. Yen carries on, however, giving his best in every sequence, since he is not only acting and fighting, but choreographing the scenes as well. I have to give a mention to the Killer played by Wang Baoqiang who manages to effortlessly slip into each style he is faced with up until squaring off with Yen and combining all the styles used throughout the film.
Kung Fu Killer is ultimately a great throwback to the old school fight film. While the first two acts struggle to keep the plot going, once we get to the third act the film hits its stride and we get to see Yen do what he does best. While fun, this offering lacks the philosophy of some of Yen’s previous films, leaving his character feeling a bit superficial at times. That said, as far as fights go, it delivers the goods with the film’s final confrontation, which is well worth the price of admission alone. Kung Fu Killer rises above its almost goofy moniker to deliver a genuinely decent action film that won’t disappoint fans of Donnie Yen.