Kung Fu League (2018)

Fei Ying Xiong, an indigent comic book artist, is romantically interested in Bao'er, but the head manager of their company, who also has a interest in Bao'er, prevents that from happening. ... See full summary »

Director:

Jeffrey Lau

Writer:

Jianhong Huang

Stars:

Ashin, Danny Kwok-Kwan Chan, Jay Chou

Cast

Credited cast:
Ashin	...	Fei Ying Xiong
Danny Kwok-Kwan Chan	...	Chen Zhen (as Kwok-Kwan Chan)
Jay Chou	...	not Jay Chou
Madina Memet	...	Bao'er
Andy On	...	Huo Yuan Jia
Yu-Hang To	...	Ip Man
Wenzhuo Zhao	...	Wong Fei-hung

Storyline

Fei Ying Xiong, an indigent comic book artist, is romantically interested in Bao'er, but the head manager of their company, who also has a interest in Bao'er, prevents that from happening. So, he summons four legendary Kung Fu masters to learn the highest level of martial arts and help him get his girl.

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Genres:

Action

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Certificate:

TV-14

User Reviews

Humourous references to martial arts masters and movies

Kung Fu League is a quirky Hong Kong action-comedy movie that goes back to the genre's golden era in the late eighties and early nineties. You will only fully appreciate this film if you are familiar with those movies as the four characters from the past who help the protagonist are obviously inspired by historical figures but also popular movies such as the Once Upon a Time in China and Ip Man franchises.

The story itself is rather nonsensical. A shy comic book artist has a romantic interest in a cute colleague and former school pal but their head manager also has an eye on her and humiliates the artist quite often. The depressed protagonist summons four legendary martial arts masters from his stories to help him. They arrive in present-day Hong Kong and are quite confused by contemporary customs. Upon meeting the shy artist, they want to help him participate in a martial arts tournament to face off against his bully and impress his love interest. The bully however has no intention to give his opponent a chance and turns out being even nastier than expected as he attempts to reach his goals by any means necessary. Things also start getting complicated among the four martial arts masters as three of them have a relationship with the same woman while the other one is an untalented impostor.

This movie convinces with excellent situation comedy and numerous quirky allusions to Hong Kong cinema classics. The fight sequences are intriguing and especially the final duels are truly intense. The clumsy protagonist and his innocent love interest are sympathetic and it's easy to root for them to get together.

On the negative side, the movie overuses special effects from time to time which gets particularly obvious in the final duels. A more natural approach to those scenes would have made them even more energetic. Not all the slapstick jokes work particularly well as some scenes are rather silly but the film's steady pace makes you forget those minor inconveniences rather quickly.

Invite your friends, switch your brain off and enjoy this nostalgic but energetic Hong Kong action-comedy movie to the fullest. It might not win any awards for creativity but it's thoroughly entertaining. Kung Fu League is a feast for genre fans and much better than its negative reputation.

Details

Country:

Hong Kong

Language:

Cantonese Mandarin

Release Date:

19 October 2018 (China)

Also Known As:

功夫聯盟

Box Office

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,577,213

Company Credits

Production Co:

United Entertainment Partners

Technical Specs

Runtime:

102 min

Color:

Color