...the documentary does have some cool moments, as with the demonstration of the fight choreography or Jet Li’s take on the ladder fight.
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"Chop Socky: Cinema Hong Kong" (2004) is the latest documentary, written and directed by Ian Taylor, to chronicle the popularity of Hong Kong Cinema and its unique vision in the world of action films. For the casual viewer, the brisk 55-minute length is more than enough time for a decent summary of the martial arts legends that would change the face of action cinema. However, for the diehard fan, the documentary provides very few, if any, new insights into the genre.
What the film does well is give the viewer a brisk glimpse into the world of Kung Fu cinema and its evolution, focusing primarily on the period between the late 1960s until around the early 1980s. The journey begins by looking at the earliest incarnations of martial arts cinema through early silent era films and gradually progressing to the emergence of, and focusing on, directors Cheng Cheh, King Hu and Lau Kar Leung. The film offers interesting clips from some of these filmmaker´s earlier works, interspersed with interviews from the likes of Cheng Pei Pei, Jet Li, Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan, John Woo, and others.
The documentary touches upon the various techniques used by Cheh, Hu and Leung to distinguish themselves from their predecessors and contemporaries. Their films emphasize the use of negative (empty) space, rhythm, choreography, poses, music, suspense, poetic romance, and ideas of righteousness–all of which are touched upon in some fashion. The film explores how the genre´s fight scenes came to be influenced by a mixture of Japanese sword play and Chinese martial arts.
There are some great clips from films like Cheh´s "One-Armed Swordsman" , Hu´s "Come Drink With Me" (1966), and Leung´s "36 Chambers of Shaolin" (1978), and clips from other flicks like "Dirty Ho" (1979), "Chinese Connection" (1972), "Golden Swallow" (1968). The clips from many of these classic films are particularly fun moments that really help to pique your interest. What isn´t discussed is how Cheh´s "One Armed Swordsman" was the first breakout film with a male lead, with a hero that rebels against the status quo (much like most other youth around the world at the time). Nor is any real time spent on the acclaim given to Hu´s "A Touch of Zen" (1971), which was nominated for best picture at Cannes and earned a special technical award.
Of particular interest are some interesting choreography demonstrations by Leung and the always-impressive Gordon Liu, who provide insight into the different methods employed by Hong Kong filmmakers to film their fight scenes. Jet Li amusingly discusses one of his most memorable fight scenes, the ladder fight in the climax from "Once Upon a Time in China" (1991), recounting the process by which the fight evolved. According to Li, the climactic fight sequence took Eight weeks to shoot. Interestingly enough Li also claims that the idea was based on a video game from the 1980s, where a character had to climb one ladder after another to fight the enemy and save the day.
Despite some interesting moments, the documentary fails in its attempt to show the influence Hong Kong cinema, particularly the martial arts genre, has had on Hollywood. Part of this stems from the fact that the documentary doesn´t even explore the later boom in Hong Kong cinema´s popularity from the mid to late 1980´s until the mid 1990´s, often argued as the 2nd half of the Hong Kong New Wave. It´s during this period that the genre was revitalized by the likes of Jackie Chan and Jet Li and given new life with innovators like Tsui Hark, Yuen Wo Ping (who is barely mentioned at all), and many others. They even recycle the clips for the same Bruce Lee interview that has been seen in virtually every documentary on Bruce Lee.
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[release]15962[/release]