Donnie Yen has been the go to guy for great martial arts films for the last few years. He is one of the few in the industry that delivers great acting performances alongside some remarkable action. His latest film Dragon aka Wu xia looks to continue his tradition of great epic films, but with a bit of a drama suspense aspect, but will this new direction hurt the film or just deliver another great addition to his already brilliant resume?
Dragon follows a martial arts expert trying to live in peace, but after a couple of criminals attempt to rob a store and are killed, a determined detective sets out on a hunt to solve the case and reveal the secret he has been trying to leave behind. This is a bit of a different type of film than Yen’s previous endeavors. Make no mistake, there is plenty of action here, but it’s separated by mystery story that is simple yet cleverly crafted. The film plays as a homage to the classic martial arts film One Armed Swordsman in both story as well as having the legendary star of the film Jimmy Wang in a major role in the film. In addition it almost feels like an Asian remake of History of Violence with the story being the exact same direction. There is some brilliantly clever layout to the way this film is crafted taking out of the realm of average to something a bit more special. Seeing the events unfold in numerous ways throughout this film adds a new dimension that keeps you guessing and wondering where things are going and how it will be revealed. Yen gives another great performance with one of the widest ranges he has had to deliver in some time. Jimmy Wang, while not in the movie a lot, delivers some great moments of pure evil as well as an epic fight scene that any hardcore martial arts fan will surely get sucked right into.
Dragon is a great entry into the martial arts genre and one that shows you can deliver the awesome action with a great story and performances. If you are a fan of Yen or the classic One Arm Swordsman then this is a must see film. Understand though, this is not a remake of that film, but does pay homage in a big unexpected way that you will not want to miss. In addition to this great martial arts film the Blu-ray includes featurettes with Donnie Yen, “Lost in Jianghu” music video, and a making of.
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