Plot
This kung fu classic weaving fact and myth earned a theatrical release in the U.S. from Miramax eight years after it was produced, following a successful retrospective screening at the 2001 Los Angeles Film Festival. Wong Kei Ying (Donnie Yen) is a master of the Hung Gar style of boxing in mid-19th century China. His son, Wong Fei Hung (Sze-Man Tsang), though still just a boy, will grow up to become a martial arts legend, a nearly mythical figure in Chinese history. When Wong Fei Hung is kidnapped, his father is forced to use his daunting skills in the service of the abductor, a dishonest politician plagued by the Robin Hood-style thief known as Iron Monkey, a mysterious masked avenger stealing from the rich, delivering the spoils to the poor. Wong Fei Hung's only allies are the kindly Dr. Yang (Yu Rong Guang) and Yang's assistant, Orchid (Jean Wang), who are protecting an important secret. Iron Monkey (1993) director Yuen Wo Ping is also the masterful martial arts choreographer behind The Matrix (1999) and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000); his father served as action choreographer on a series of popular, long-running films centered around the Wong Fei Hung character in the 1950s. ~ Karl Williams, RoviReview
Originally released in 1993, Iron Monkey finally arrived in the States on the heels of the success of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Yuen Wo-Ping, who did the stunt choreography for that film as well as for The Matrix, directed this high-flying take on the Robin Hood story, in which an amiable country doctor (Dr. Yang, played by Yu Rong-guong) spends his evenings chasing across rooftops and stealing from the corrupt local lord. Produced by Tsui Hark, the prolific director of, among other things, the fabulous Once Upon a Time in China series, Iron Monkey has all the action of a kung-fu action flick -- as you might expect -- and all the grace and poise of an expertly staged musical. Donnie Yen, as itinerant doctor Wong Kei-ying, plays his role with understated elegance. Wong's son, who turns out to be the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hong, is here embodied by Tsang Sze-man with a lively animation that makes her a delight to watch. As is usual for any film where Yuen's involved, the plot here is merely something upon which to hang the nonstop action, culminating as it does in one of those unlikely kung-fu balancing acts for which Yuen is renowned. Not exactly high drama, perhaps, but it hangs together better than most movies of the genre, and it's great fun. ~ Genevieve Williams, RoviCast
- Yu Rongguang - Dr. Yang/Iron Monkey
- Donnie Yen - Wong Kei-Ying
- Jean Wang - Miss Orchid
- Tsang Sze Man - Wong Fei Hong
- Yuen Shun-Yi - Chief Fox
Credit
Raymond Lee - Associate Producer, Yuen Cheung-Yan - Consultant/advisor, Keiko Koyama - Coordinator, Raymond Lee - Co-producer, Bo Bo Ng - Costume Designer, Anthony Wong - First Assistant Director, Hester Yip - First Assistant Director, Lai Kai Keung - First Assistant Director, Yuen Woo Ping - Director, Mak Chisin - Editor, Angie Lam - Editor, Chan Chi-wai - Editor, Raymond Chow - Executive Producer, Wang Ying-Hsiang - Executive Producer, Mary Stuart Welch - Executive Producer, Yuen Cheung-Yan - Fights Choreographer, Yuen Shun-Yi - Fights Choreographer, Ku Huen Chiu - Fights Choreographer, Ng Yuk Ho - Hair Styles, Lee Ching Lam - Hair Styles, James L. Venable - Composer (Music Score), Chan Kwok Hung - Makeup, Wong Chun Fai - Makeup, Ringo Cheung - Production Designer, Arthur Wong - Cinematographer, Tam Chi Wai - Cinematographer, Ho Lai Sheung - Production Manager, Tsui Hark - Producer, Celia Hallquist - Producer, Chu Yen Ping - Set Designer, Cinefex Workshop Co. - Special Effects, David C. Hughes - Sound/Sound Designer, Philip Carbonaro - Supervisor/Manager, Tsui Hark - Screenwriter, Tang Pik-yin - Screenwriter, Lau Tai-Muk - Screenwriter, Cheung Tan - Screenwriter, Elsa Tang - Screenwriter, Wan Chi Fuk - Production Assistant, Ko Chi Wai - Production Assistant, Ng Ka Wing - Production Assistant, Joseph Grossberg - Visual Effects Supervisor, Brad Kuehn - Visual Effects Supervisor, Chau Lam - Gaffer, Ng Man Ching - Gaffer, Carl Sealove - Music Editor, Venus Wong - Post Production Supervisor, Tunis Chow - Post Production Supervisor, Steve Barnett - Post Production Supervisor, Susan Bendana - Production Coordinator, Lai Pak Shing - Properties Master, Randy Thom - Re-Recording Mixer, Michael Semanick - Re-Recording Mixer, Jurgen Scharpf - Re-Recording Mixer, Sze Oi Ling - Script Supervisor, Ho Tim - Script Supervisor, Kevin Sellers - Sound Effects Director, E. Larry Oatfield - Sound Effects Director, Addison Teague - Sound Effects Director, Chan Kam Chuen - Still Photographer, Christopher Ryan - Supervising Animator, Tim Holland - Supervising Sound Editor, Wendy Grossberg - Visual Effects Producer, Tom Bellfort - ADR Editor, Sina Oroomchi - ADR Mixer, Sharpe Sound Studios - ADR Recordist, Lau Lai Lai - Assistant Costume Designer, Aura Belle Gilge - Assistant Sound Editor, Chow Shui Hung - Best Boy Electric, Law Wing Tong - Best Boy Electric, John Zeitler - First Assistant Editor, Kevin Bartnof - Foley Artist, Ellen Heuer - Foley Artist, Fred Burke - Foley Editor, Don Mink - Post Production Accountant, Stephanie Johnson - Second Assistant Editor, Peter Kuran - Visual Effects, Pixel Magic - Visual Effects, Metrolight Studios - Visual Effects, Discope - Visual Effects, Vce.com - Visual Effects, Vivian Hengsteler - Negative Cutter| Iron Monkey (1977 Film), Iron Maze (1991 Film) | |
| Iron Monkey 2 (1996 Film), Iron Mountain Trail (1953 Film) |
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