R E V I E W :   Once Upon a Time in China III  

Reviewed 12/16/00 | Background | Movie Review | DVD Review | Recommendation

   

Background 

Mega Star / 1993 / 106 minutes
Directed by Tsui Hark
Written by Tsui Hark, Cheung Taan, Chan Tin-Suen

The Hong Kong film industry knows a good thing when it sees it, and tends to churn out sequels to box office hits as quickly as possible. Hollywood does the same thing, but always becomes bogged down with disputes with the stars and the search for a "good" script (usually a fruitless search).

After the first two films in this series were such big hits, the inevitable sequel was not long in coming. A Chinese New Year's release in 1993 (February), OUATIC III made almost as much money as each of the first two films.

The next two sequels (without Jet Li as Wong Fei Hung) did poorly at the box office. Star Jet Li returned for 1997's Once Upon a Time in China and America (directed by Sammo Hung), and that film was another financial success.

Movie: plot, performances, production, rating

As with the first two films, a pre-title sequence establishes the basic plot line. In this case, the basic theme of how China will deal with foreigners is again introduced. This time, however, President Li and the Empress Dowager decide that China should stage a martial-arts tournament to build national strength and show the foreigners that China is a powerful force. The champion of the tournament will be crowned the "Lion King."

Certainly there are some beautiful shots in this film - a quick one that comes to mind is when Wong Fei Hung rescues Aunt Yee (subtitled as "Aunt 13") and they glide to the ground in a long and graceful shot. The concluding lion dance sequence is incredibly colorful. Much of the film seems tired, though, as if everyone involved was straining to make something good out of a sense of obligation The film's pacing lacks any urgency, and as a result the plot seems to meander here and there. Was Tsui Hark perhaps bored, ready to move on to something else?

Jet Li (as Wong Fei Hung), Rosamund Kwan Chi-Lam (as Aunt Yee/"13"), and Max Mok Siu Chung (who I am guessing plays the constantly picked-upon Foon) are reliably effective, as is Lau Shun as Wong's father and Hung Yan Yan (as the unfortunately subtitled "Club Foot"). On the other hand, the chief villain is played quite broadly as a cartoonish buffoon and lacks any real menace.

The action director was Yuen Tak, who previously had worked with Clarence Ford (The Iceman Cometh, Chicken a la Queen, The Dragon From Russia) and Corey Yuen Kwai (Shanghai Shanghai, Saviour of the Soul, Fist of Fury 1991). His work on this film is alright, but nothing stands out. The cinematography is by Andrew Lau Wai-Keung, in the days before Young and Dangeous and The Storm Riders.

The film is rated as Category II. The violence is plentiful, with one explicit and bloody shot of a severely-damaged leg.

DVD: look, sound, subtitles, and features

The DVD's widescreen (2.35 to 1) image quality is very good. The nighttime scenes look better than the daytime scenes, which look just a bit washed out, but overall a good job.

The remastered Dolby 5.1 sound is loud with plenty of unwarranted echoes and generally poor sound effects work. Both Cantonese and Mandarin language tracks are here. The white removable English subtitles are easy to read. Although plenty of mistakes are evident, none are too distracting. Subtitles are also provided in traditional and simplified Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Bahasa (Malaysia), and Spanish.

The original trailer is included along with trailers for OUATIC I and II. There are 9 chapters along with a full-motion chapter menu. A brief synopsis and a cast and crew listing are supplied. Filmographies for Tsui Hark, Jet Li, and Rosamund Kwan are included.

As with the first two films, text information about the historical Wong Fei Hung is provided (this time explaining Tsui Hark's intention in making the films), along with classic footage of three films starring this legendary character (1968's Wong Fei Hung: The Duel Against the Black Rascal, 1981 's Dreadnaught, and 1970's Wong Fei Hung: Bravely Crushing the Fire Formation).

Buy, rent, or pass?

Suffers from comparison to the first two films in the series, but well worth a rental.

 

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