Tai ji: Zhang San Feng (1993)

Director:

Woo-ping Yuen

Writer:

Kwong Kim Yip (screenplay)

Release Date:

18 November 1993 (Hong Kong)

Genre:

Action | Comedy | Drama | Thriller

Tagline:

Une rencontre de légende

Plot:

Jet Li was a monk in Shaolin. In a friendly competition for a higher place in Shaolin, his childhood...

Plot Keywords:

Shaolin | Tai Chi | China | Revenge | Martial Arts

Cast

Jet Li	...	Junbao
Michelle Yeoh	...	Siu Lin
Siu-hou Chin	...	Chin Bo (as Chin Siu Ho)
Fennie Yuen	...	Miss Li (as Fannie Yuen)
Cheung-Yan Yuen	...	Rev. Ling (as Yuen Cheung Yan)
Shun Lau	...	Master Jueyuan (as Lau Shun)
Hai Yu	...	Head Master

Also Known As:

Twin Warriors (UK) (USA) (DVD title)
The Tai-Chi Master (Hong Kong: English title)

MPAA:

Rated R for martial arts violence.

Runtime:

96 min

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1

Sound Mix:

Mono

Certification:

Singapore:PG | South Korea:15 | Singapore:NC-16 (DVD rating) | Argentina:13 | Canada:13+ (Quebec) | Canada:14A | France:U | Germany:16 | UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

China

Company:

Eastern Productions

Goofs:

Revealing mistakes: In the scene where Junbao and Siu Lin attack Governor Lu while he's on his way to Beijing, the wires they "flew" in on, and in the fight, are visible.

Quotes:

Junbao: Enough! Stop living in your past! What do you think you're doing here? Stop shoving me away! The past is what makes up who we are. Don't let it become your burden.

Movie Connections:

Referenced in "HBO First Look: Making 'Romeo Must Die' (#7.3)" (2000)

Cool, cheesy kung-fu fun

One of my favorite Hong Kong actors, Jet Li, does what I call his best film in "Tai Chi Master." Starring alongside Michelle Yeoh and a dozen other folks whose name I forgot, Li plays Junbao, a monk whose best friend betrays him and becomes a ruthless whacko. This leaves him only one option: grab a pole and start clubbin' baddies. While some parts are just too cheesy to mention, i.e. people flying around and some ridiculously hokey-looking effects (you can see the cable attached to a guy's back at one point), the best fights take place with just good ol' Jet Li, a pole, and an army of bad guys, where there is no room to fly around or do the ultra-powerful Buddhist Palms. Give Tai Chi Master a try. It's a love-hate thing for most people, and in my case, it's a love thing. This movie is one of the five best kung-fu flicks ever made, in my opinion.