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Jing mo gaa ting (2005)

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11 out of 15 people found the following comment useful :-
Mediocre Sophomoric Release, 12 April 2005

Author: Lee Alon

Leading a normal life as a herbalist and practitioner of traditional medicine, Master Yue's past comes back to haunt him before long, much like Anthony Wong's advancing years have accumulated to make the cherished thespian look a tad odd in a fast paced actioner. One can't help liking Wong, but at his age it may be prudent to rethink career strategies and maybe concentrate on character roles, where the man's unique style and skill can be better realized.

Yue, done by Wong, has raised quite the superhero family, and even keeps mementos from his James Bond-like history in service of Queen and Country stashed away in a Batmanish hideout behind the med shop. Indeed, House of Fury at least comes to terms with Hong Kong's British background, treating it as a respectable aspect of the city's identity rather than something to avoid.

But lest anyone be beguiled into thinking this Jackie Chan-supervised martial arts escapade a History Channel docudrama. Things quickly turn to focus on Yue's little troupe of gong fu supremo's, comprising son Nicky (Stephen Fung, who also directed) and daughter Natalie (Gillian Chung). The three, a mite reminiscent of the Avengers in their snazzy little Mini with the Union Jack all over the car's roof, face a brutal cavalcade of vindictive retribution from seriously disturbed Rocco (Michael Wong of Magic Kitchen, New Option series and Women from Mars). The latter blames Master Yue and his martial arts progenitor for becoming wheel-chair bound, and has traversed the world for 12 years in search of payback.

What follows qualifies as Yuen Wo Ping's best choreography since as far back as Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, consisting a myriad bewildering moves that make the most of locales and environments. In addition, Yuen injected some of the trademark splits, rebounds and kick combos so often associated with his work, and we have to admit all cast members have done well in carrying out their action duties. Too bad HOF has little to offer beyond its excellent fight sequences. The story doesn't challenge the intellect of a five year old, even with supporting characters trying to flesh out goings on. Charlene Choi steps in as Natalie's best friend from school, and together they aim to relive some of that awfully cute Twins shtick. Breathe easy, though, for Steve Fung at least knows enough to keep those two at bay, so the damage remains minimal. And Chung even does great as a believable fighter.

Then you have your Daniel Wu guest appearance, which seems plain lackluster following superb contributions to similar action product New Police Story, not to mention leading 2004's remarkable One Nite in Mongkok. Daniel portrays Jason, a suspiciously nice Natalie suitor with more of an agenda than you may suspect. But then again you probably won't notice, since Wu gets too little a presence in HOF to have any impact. Same can be said of Michael Wong, who we've seen do more impressive roles in low-budget flicks like Super Car Criminals. Still, he pulls off a moderately likable villain, abetted by young performer Jake Strickland as bad guy Rocco's son and fanatical Street Fighter aficionado. Fourteen year old Strickland adds two very impressive fight segments, almost eclipsing the rest of the minion gang. Among these cronies feature prominently professional martial artist Wu Jing (Legend of Zu, Drunken Monkey) and sultry, eclectic Josie Ho (Naked Weapon, Butterfly). To Director Fung's credit, House of Fury contains smooth editing and plenty of inventive camera use, not to mention artsy montages that succeed in lending the movie a more thoughtful air, instead of just coming across as pretentious. On second thoughts, HOF may be too polished for its own good. Then again, this reviewer just watched 1993 no-holds-barred classic Butterfly and Sword, so go figure. At any rate, like most HK action titles in recent years, this one too keeps blood and other expressions of "mature" content in check, hence don't expect to be shocked, wowed, or otherwise flabbergasted. Of course, cerebral taxation has no place in House of Fury. The film culminates in an ending lame even for a textbook mindless mayhem HK number, resulting in a product worthy of attention almost exclusively from those who enjoy watching quality fight choreography, even if it has hardly any meat to back it up. While not offensive, Stephen Fung's second major foray as a director shows ample technical and managerial prowess with barely any creative oomph. We can only hope he improves later on.

Rating: * * *

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8 out of 10 people found the following comment useful :-
It's all about Gillian Chung - amazing actress and fighter, 18 May 2005

Author: Samnang Eav from Kanata, Canada

Woah, Gillian is not only hot but she really can kick some serious butt with her amazing choreograph kungfu moves (one of the best you'll ever see in modern kungfu movies today). Throughout the story, the scenes are all connected with minimal confusion, except for maybe the role of Daniel Wu , who seems a bit unbelievable but gives the movie a little twist. If you enjoyed Gen X Cops and Gen Y Cops I highly recommend this movie cause what's better than a high octane action pack movie with the coolest young HK stars together in one movie. Please don't take this movie seriously when watching it, just enjoy the roller-coaster ride. I love Gillian.

- Sam

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6 out of 7 people found the following comment useful :-
A Spy Kids Chinese Style is a Good Popcorn Film, 28 May 2005

Author: dbborroughs from Glen Cove, New York

Sue me I liked this.

You've heard the story before: two kids who don't believe their dad's way out tales find he was telling the truth when he's kidnapped and they have to go rescue him. Its been the story of countless films most recently in films like Spy Kids. Here its done with an Asian flair and for the most part it works. Its not the be all and end all of action films but as a 100 minute lark its quite nice (even with tongue in cheek this film does contain some graphic violence and blood of the PG 13 variety). The fights are incredible even if the wire work is far from believable. I liked this film a great deal, my only complaint is that the pacing at times is a bit slow, considering this is the directors second time out of the box I'll cut him some slack. In reading reviews on this film I was struck by the intense dislike for the director. I'm not familiar with him or his earlier work as actor or director but I can't see why the knives have been drawn, its just a harmless movie.

If this film passes your way give it a shot. Turn you mind off and grab some popcorn and you'll have a good time.

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2 out of 2 people found the following comment useful :-
Another popcorn Hong Kong actioner, 20 May 2005

Author: Tony Ryan (tpr007) from United Kingdom

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

The fights aren't by JC as mentioned by another user - his company is just the producers.

*********{some minor spoilers below}**********

Anthony Wong stars here as widowed father Yue Siu-bo, an ex-secret agent who is now retired and alone, looking after his 2 children Nicky (Stephen Fung) and Natalie (Gillian Chung). His relationship with his children is noticeably strained as his constant stories about his illustrious former career come across more as the fanciful tales of a mid-life crisis, constantly causing them embarrassment. However, little do they know that their father's supposed penchant for Jackanory should actually turn out to be true, when an enemy from his past resurfaces and takes Siu-bo hostage. It is inevitably left up to the 2 teen idols to save the day, in what is essentially another popcorn blockbuster from the current crop of HK movie talent.

House of Fury is clearly a lightweight adventure, and makes no pretences at being a grand dramatic exercise. An hour and a half of over the top action, less than subtle comedy and a fair sprinkling of in-jokes and parody are what is on offer. Ultimately, it delivers on this promise.

First and foremost this is a modern day actioner, and as such, there are a number of fight scenes peppered throughout the running time. Most of these are solidly choreographed by (the now world-famous) Yuen Wo-ping, along with his less well-known associates Yuen Shun-yi and Ku Huen Chiu. The execution of their typically tight stylings is pretty good considering the cast are not stunt people of the 80's mould. Wirework is used to enhance spins and kicks, as well as some of the more OTT moves, but otherwise the fisticuffs are grounded and realistic. In terms of comparing the action to other contemporary films, it holds up well, and anyone familiar with the current trends will know what to expect. Overall the fights are good, and sometimes impressive, but not revolutionary.

The comedy in this feature is less broad than I expected it to be from an overt HK parody. There are moments when it is truly silly (such as seeing Wu Ma flying across the rooftops or Anthony Wong's impression of Bruce Lee complete with skeleton nunchaku) but otherwise the comedic element is restrained, taking a backseat to the fast moving, but simple plot.

Away from the action and comedy elements, almost all of the cast still perform well. "Almost" being the operative word here. As in 99% of his roles Michael Wong has yet again managed to confuse me. I am confused because I just do not understand why he is ever cast in any film. Here, he is typically stilted with his dialogue, and has no action to perform at all. He speaks English, even when being spoken to in Chinese, and no-one has a problem understanding him at all?! Anyone could have played his role in this film, and I fail to believe that anyone could do a worse job.

Aside from the usual Michael Wong grumbles, House of Fury does an excellent job of distracting you for 100 minutes. It doesn't rank up there with the best of any genre but for a lightweight action-comedy it is worth a watch. After his full directorial debut with "Enter the Phoenix", Stephen Fung has shown a lot of promise and I'm surprisingly looking forward to his next attempt behind the camera.

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4 out of 6 people found the following comment useful :-
Hell Hath No Fury Like A Family Scorned, 31 May 2005

Author: himboy32 (himboy32@yahoo.co.uk) from Newcastle, England

The story tells of Yue Siu Bo(Anthony Wong, The Medallion) who lives in Hong Kong running his own Chinese Health clinic. Here he raises his two children High school student Natalie(Charlene Choi, The Twins Effect) and Ocean World Dolphin instructor Nicky(Stephen Fung,The Gen-X Cops, also the film's director). who he also taught martial arts. Both of them have grown weary of their father because of his constant bragging of how he's defeated many opponents in battle, they have just believed he is always lying.

Then one fateful day, a wheel chair bound man by the name of Rocco(Micheal Wong, First Option) arrives at Siu Bo's clinic looking for a man by the name of Tai Chi-Lung, the man responsible for Rocco's condition. When Siu Bo tells him he has no idea who he is talking about, Rocco leaves and later that night send his henchmen to capture Siu Bo.

When Nicky discovers his father has been kidnapped, he goes to the clinic to investigate only to discover that his father was once in fact a secret agent for British Intelligence.

Soon, Rocco finds out that the information he is looking for is hidden inside two charms worn by both Nicky and Natalie, he dispatches his team of lethal martial arts assassins to retrieve them.

Now Nicky and Natalie, with th help of Natalie's Boyfriend Jason(Daniel Wu, Around The World In 80 Days) and her best friend Ella(Charlene Choi, The Twins Effect) whom Nicky has a crush on, must use the martial arts skills they learnt from their father to defend themselves and save Siu Bo before it's too late.

Phew, now thats a synopsis.

This is the second directorial outing for Star Stephen Fung, who's previous film, Enter The Phoenix, was a fun look at the gangster genre which dominated the box office during the 1980's, so his second film was an eagerly awaited film and boy let me tell you it was worth it.

This movie was so fun, it's probably one of the best movie to come of Hong Kong in 2005. Firstly I'll comment of story and acting.

The story is probably the films weakest point, mainly due to Anthony Wong's character being very open about his past as a secret agent, you thin being part of British Intelligence he'd know the meaning of discretion. The plot as well as an action movie is also in some ways a domestic comedy, with the characters many conflicts being due to the fact that the children think their father is a lair and the father thinks he is no longer fit to look after them.

This is where some of the humour stems from in a way, although the humour is little weak, it did give me a few chuckles here and there. Now plotting and story aside, let's talk about the acting. For a film like this not much is really called upon of the actors. It's worth noting that this was executive produced by Jackie Chan so the end product is very family friendly, so no graphic violence or bad language of any kind, which isn't a bad thing in this case. Anthony Wong gives the strongest performance in the movie giving some much needed gravitas to what is really a flawed character. Stephen Fung does a good job as always as the frustrated and weary Nicky, while Gillian Chung has improved greatly since her performance in The Twins Effect.

Daniel Wu gives fine support considering he does very little in the movie but the worst performances come from Charlene Choi, who is given some of the worst lines, and Micheal Wong, who was just too wooden to make the character seem menacing in anyway. Also veteran Hong Kong actor/producer/director Wu Ma provides strong support as Uncle Chiu.

Now lets get to the good stuff, the martial arts fighting. Which has to be said is the best thing about the movie. They where directed by martial arts action supremo Yuen Woo Ping(The Matrix Trilogy, Kill Bill 1 & 2) who has once again proved why he's one of the best in the business. He does a great job of making everyone who fights in the movie look highly skilled, even thought most of the actor are not martial artists. Each fight is a joy to watch and recalls the glory days of martial arts action cinema in the 70's and the 80's.

To finish off, this is an extremely fun film and I highly recommend that if your a fan of Kung Fu action movies you go and buy the DVD without hesitation as you will not be disappointed.

I gave this film 5/5 stars!

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1 out of 1 people found the following comment useful :-
"Spy Kids" Hong-Kong-Style, 10 March 2007

Author: the_diceman from Germany

Pacy as hell Kung-Fu-Comedy with "Twins Effect"-like humor, but tighter and funnier in every possible way. If you thought, Wire-Fu can't be exciting, think again: Yuen Woo-Ping has put together some incredible powerful and extensive choreographies employing wide-ranged techniques, while still giving his actors enough groundwork in order to make them seem believable. Even darling Gillian Chung gets her legs high enough in the air to make a scary opponent for her enemies. Anthony Wong's roguish imitation of a Bruce Lee-like Fighting-Style had me cracking up in an instant, and that Caucasian kid's high-velocity handling of the Pole was nothing short of awesome. "House of Fury" is Prime Exampel of how a modern day Kung-Fu-Flick should look like.

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2 out of 3 people found the following comment useful :-
Anthony Wong as Mr Incredible, 22 May 2005

Author: yan_widjaya from Indonesia

I think House of Fury is Hong Kong movie version of an animated popular movie, Mr Incredible (about retired of family superheroes). Indeed, Anthony Wong is my favorite Hong Kong actor, and in this movie he playing as a retired secret agent from China. The son, Cao, playing by young actor Stephen Fung, and the daughter, Lei, playing by Gillian Chung (the sweetiest from The Twins duet). The handsome actor Michael Wong as Mafia boss with bald head and sitting in wheelchair. The veteran actor Wu Ma as the Old Dragon. The casting is okay, the kung fu fighting by Yuen Woo-ping of course good. Some scene is funny, but the script is too childish and lame ...

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Why Can't More Movies Be Like This?, 1 July 2006

Author: Encyclopedia Brown from Hollywood, CA

House of Fury is a fun, neat flick that doesn't waste time with any of the usual junk that gets thrown into most movies these days.

I knew nothing about this movie when I rented it, but I'm very glad I did. It's one of the coolest movies I've seen in years. House of Fury works as sort of a Big Fish/Spy Kids mash-up. But in this film the "Kids" in question are a girl in her late teens and her adult brother. The film opens with a visually innovative fight sequence that segues into an efficient set up: the siblings are routinely embarrassed by their father's nonstop tall tales of his past as a secret agent.

However, the brother and sister discover too late that they were not tall tales at all when their dad goes missing at the hands of a revenge driven former soldier. From here out, the siblings are quickly schooled on their family's secret history before rushing off to save the day in a string of brilliant fight scenes.

Anyway, I don't want to spoil anything. Just rent House of Fury.

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Gorgeous Gillian kicks butt, 5 January 2006

Author: sarastro7 from Denmark

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Being a fan of the Twins Effect movies, of course I had to catch the Twins in 'House of Fury', too. It's an okay movie. It starts out with a great fight sequence, pitting Anthony Wong against a pack of ninjas (incl. one that teleports, bamfing around like Nightcrawler from the X-Men). It proceeds to become a Spy Kids style lighthearted martial arts action adventure, with a bad guy trying to abduct and kill some retired secret agents to get revenge.

Out of the two Twins, the less interesting one, Charlene Choi, isn't in the movie very much. Deliciously, the focus is on Gillian Chung, who has the superior looks and fighting skills. The story isn't great, and many details that would be necessary to make it believable are just not there (like, seeing the brother and sister train a bit would have been nice, to explain how they are suddenly better fighters than their secret agent parents and mentors). The fight scenes themselves are technically not great, but certainly very entertaining and action-filled; definitely the high points of the movie.

Since the fights were pretty serious, however, I missed seeing something a bit more deadly and powerful. When the bad guys want to kill the main characters, why do they just push each other around and always letting each other get back on their feet before continuing the fight? I must say that I was looking for some slightly harsher fighting here - it would have been the realistic thing in a series of fights that were supposed to be deadly serious. But I guess it was a family-friendly movie, and so they didn't want to show anything nasty. That's too bad. I'm not usually a fan of extreme violence, but this was so un-extreme that it was almost silly, everything considered.

The ending wasn't very good, either; they just left the bad guy alive. What's to stop him from just continuing where he left off, and sending his assassins to kill them all over again?? But, since the big main thing about the movie was to ogle Gillian Chung, I have to say I found it pretty satisfying, overall. I was also very impressed with Stephen Fung, the 31-year-old director, who also played Gillian's older brother, being passed off as a teenager, and pretty believably, too. And he could fight! Well, not like a real pro, but passably. I liked him a lot and hope to catch him in other movies as well.

My rating: 7 out of 10.

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2 out of 4 people found the following comment useful :-
Promises Much But Delivers Little, 17 May 2005

Author: jmaruyama from Honolulu, HI

*** This comment may contain spoilers ***

Like many other HK Cinema fans I was hopeful that "House of Fury" would deliver what it seemed to promise (cool action, dynamic fighting and fun story). With tantalizing (and deceptive) poster art, action provided by action choreographer master Yuen Woo-Ping with Jackie Chan producing and Stephen Fung directing, I thought this should be a sure thing. Boy was I wrong.

Granted, "House of Fury" is not a bad movie but as many other viewers have noted in their reviews, the movie is pretty mediocre.

The casting was a mixed bag to say the least.

Anthony Wong is very good as former secret agent Siu Bo who has since retired and is now trying to fit into normal civilian life while caring for his two teenage children.

The "Twin's" better half Gillian Chung, who portrays the spunky daughter Natalie, while better here than in "Twin's Effect" is still a bit too ditsy for my taste. Gillian fights better than she acts and may replace Ziyi Zhang and Vicki Zhao as HK Cinema's cutest hellcat.

Director Stephen Fung, who plays the other sibling Nickie, is also okay in the acting/fighting department but doesn't really bring anything special to his role.

Many have criticized model turned actor Michael Wong's "non-acting" skills but I didn't think he was that bad here albeit his portrayal of Rocco, a CIA Assassin wronged by one of Siu Bo's colleagues, was pretty lethargic to say it kindly, it was none-the-less atypical of most HK Cinema foreign bad guys.

Surprisingly, the other "Twin" Charlene Choi has only a small role in the movie as Natalie's schoolmate and love interest to Nickie. Maybe that's a good thing.

"House of Fury" was trying to emulate the style of the similar but vastly more inventive "Spy Kids" but ended up being more like a watered down version of "Agent Cody Banks" with neither the satire of "D.E.B.S." nor the bite of "True Lies".

A definite missed opportunity.

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