The Grandmaster of Kung Fu
The first thing you cannot help but appreciate about “The Grandmaster of Kung Fu” is how devoid of fat the film is. At 74 minutes, co-writer and director Cheng Si-Yu has paired this story down to its basics, aware that there’s enough to a film like this when you focus on essentials of the plot, rather than trying to tell an epic story all its own. The fact is, the story of a husband, and father, who seemingly comes out of nowhere to be the savior of a country is enough, and Si-Yu’s film gets to the heart of that effortlessly, and in a way that is energetic and entertaining.
The setting is the end of the Qing Dynasty, and China is being forced into military conflict from other countries, and struggling to preserve their way of life. In the village of Tian Jin Wei, which is a stronghold of Chinese martial arts, they find themselves having to name a new grandmaster. As the process progresses, a farmer and family man (Huo, played by Du Yuhang) puts his talents in the ring, and shows unexpected strength and ingenuity against the best the school has to offer. He doesn’t take the title of master, but when Japanese forces attack, Huo must become Master Huo, even as his wife is concerned about his responsibilities as a provider for his family.
If both sides of the narrative- the family tensions, and the larger conflict- weren’t balanced properly, Si-Yu’s film would fall apart. But the film is as much about Huo being a family man as well as the unexpected hero of a nation, and it balances those things well, telling a complete hero’s journey that has enough emotional connection to keep us engaged as well as the action involved in the story. The choreography of the fights is terrific, and the production values are very good. There’s not really a lot to say about “The Grandmaster of Kung Fu” except, if you are an action and martial arts fan, it’s a rock-solid entry in both genres.
