Based on a Hong Kong comic book, 'A man called Hero' details the cursed life of a man who gains mastery of a martial art after his Master dies in a duel with the movie's central villain. The majority of the film deals with Hero's past as his son and his best friend travel to America in search of him. Along the way, they meet up with Hero's senior who, himself, is in search of Hero. The other slant to the story revolves around the issue of Chinese immigrants and the lives which they led when they journeyed to America in search of gold, only to find slavery. The slave masters unite with the villains and out of this struggle, Hero appears to save the Chinese immigrants from being annhilated. The final battle between Hero and Invincible, the villain who duelled with Hero's Master before his death, thus takes place.
'A Man called Hero' is the second film that utilises the same computer-generated effects in 'Storm Riders' (which was another movie adapted from a comic book). There are less effects in this feature which probably means a lower budget commitment. Instead, the film dwells a lot on hero's past and how he came to becoming a self-exile. The acting is not particularly great IMHO with Ekin Cheng playing a mediocre hero. I felt that an actor who could display a better sense of emotion should've been casted for the role of Hero but I guess that Ekin Cheng was selected for his popularity. Moreover, the female lead is played by xxx xxx who was Ekin's sweetheart in 'Storm Riders'. I'm not quite sure as to the story's focus on the subject of racism. It's quite normal for a Hong Kong film to dwell on the history of America's Chinese immigrants in the early part of the last century, but this film goes far deeper into the darkness of that era, and even involves the Ku Klux Klan. By the way, Yuen Biao makes an appearance as the innkeeper whilst Shu Qi (popular Taiwanese actress) plays a villainess who falls for Hero after he spares her life.