Directed by Peter Chan, Dragon, also known as Wu Xia, is a martial arts detective story that feels like a mash up of Sherlock Holmes, Star Wars and any movie where a criminal lives a reformed life and tries to hide his past from everyone else. In Dragon, Donnie Yen plays Liu Jin-xi, a simple papermaker living with his wife and kids in the countryside in 1917 China. One day, two vagabond thugs roll into town eager to cause trouble but when left with no choice but to defend himself, Yen ends up having the two leaving in body bags. Cue Detective Xu (Takeshi Kaneshiro), a Sherlock Holmes lawman who uses science and medicine to solve his crimes. Through his investigation he determines that Liu Jin-xi is a martial artist but that he also might be a former leader of the 72 Demons clan that murdered a ton of people, including women and children.
As Xu continues the investigation, Liu’s wife (Tang Wei) begins to learn who her husband actually is and when word gets out that Liu is alive, the members of the 72 Demons attempt to hunt him down per the request of its Master, Liu’s father. It’s at that point where Liu must fight to protect his identity, family, newfound life principles and more as he tries to keep his new life separated from his horrible past.
Dragon starts off with a beautiful opening scene showcasing the luscious green landscape of the Chinese countryside and then introduces us to our main character, Mr. Donnie Yen. Soon after we get our first dose of action and rather than using flashy martial arts, it plays like a hilarious street brawl with comedic elements that you would see in Drunken Master. Then the movie transitions into Sherlock Holmes for a bit, utilizing mediocre CGI to show how bones and ligaments were broken during the fights, similar to the Fight Club video game. The movie takes its dramatic turn due to the allegations against Jin-xi followed by Yen’s coming out party when he has to reveal his identity if he wants to save his fellow townsmen from the hand of Kara Hui, an assassin with deadly knife skills. From there we witness daddy drama followed by one armed swordsman play and an epic fight between Yen and The Master.
Even if the movie didn’t completely win me over, Dragon has a lot going for it that Asian film fans and martial art buffs will love. The movie doesn’t take itself too seriously, it incorporates humor throughout the picture (especially in the first fight), has three awesome action pieces, a not-so st
andard story and a bit of drama that makes it a complete package. While the second major action scene was intense, the climactic battle between Yen and The Master is one for the ages, a great father son showdown.
Furthermore, Donnie is such an exciting guy to watch on the screen but what elevates everything about him and his fights in this movie is the kick-ass music that gets your adrenaline pumping. I know the music was my favorite part because in my notes I wrote “awesome music” three times, yeah it’s that badass and couldn’t compliment the story and action any better.
SPOILER My main issue with the film is the ending, particularly the way Liu Jin-xi’s father is killed. As the fight between father and son rages, what ends up taking the strong Master down isn’t his son, but a bolt of freaking lightning. I mean, come on, that’s a big copout and such an anti-climatic way to end an epic battle like the one between Yen and Jimmy Wang Yu. END SPOILER
In the end, Dragon ends up being a pretty enjoyable action drama that Donnie Yen fans will eat up. It’s another movie that proves that a criminal’s past will always come back to haunt them no matter how hard they try. If you’re looking for a martial arts movie with a little bit of everything then look no further than Peter Chan’s latest.
Rating: A martial arts party mix, it’s got something for everyone (6.8/10)
This review is based off of my screening during the 2012 New York Asian Film festival
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