Laughing Tai Chi
Aka: Drunken Tai-Chi / Xiao tai ji
Director: Woo-ping Yuen
Starring: Donnie Yen / Yuen Cheung-yan / Shum Tin-ha
Release Year: 1984
Language: Cantonese
Production. Country/Region: Hong Kong
imdb link: tt0088423
Synopsis ------
This is the first movie starring Donnie Yen after Yuen Woo-ping discovered him. Perhaps Laughing Tai Chi can be considered the last traditional kung fu movie made in Hong Kong, a costume comedy.
A rich kid, who is taken in by a drunken Tai Chi master, a puppeteer, and his shrewd and capable wife after his entire family is murdered, learns kung fu and avenges his death. Donnie Yen plays Chen Chun-choi, the youngest son of a wealthy salt merchant. Chun-choi's father always favored his young son when he was alive, and Chun-choi's elder brother loved his younger brother so much that he was willing to do anything for him. The young master of another rich family in the village has always had a hard time with Murakumo, and has always tried to compete with him, but has failed every time. On the night of the Lantern Festival, the young master sets up an ambush against Murakuma and his elder brother, but he ends up being beaten by Murakuma and the others, and the firecrackers and concealed weapons that he had prepared for Murakuma are all for his own use. After this battle, the unlucky man was blown into a fool, his powerful father has a grudge, so he hired a killer Iron Emotionless to take revenge. Murakumo was out of the house when his father and older brother were killed, and escaped, but he soon learned the terrible news.
Murakumo helps a street performer, who is in fact a master of Tai Chi, and takes the homeless man in, where he and his wife use different training methods to improve his kung fu. The movie devotes a good deal of time to detailing the training process, and it's only by chance that Murakuma becomes good friends with the child of the assassin, Tie Rouge, after he thwarts an abduction attempt. However, when Tie Rouge sees Murakumo taking the child back to the orphanage, Murakumo is hunted down and killed. After a series of events, Tie Rouge finds Murakumo in the countryside courtyard of a Tai Chi master, and the story ends with Murakumo taking care of Tie Rouge's child instead of the dead Tie Rouge.
Besides the spectacular action sequences, Donnie Yen shows his comedic genius in many parts of the film, especially in the birthday celebration scene, where he creatively puts on a masterful puppet show, which is applauded by the public while subtly satirizing the rich and powerful bully. As an action actor, Donnie Yen's unquestionable control and agility over his body parts is evident everywhere in the film, such as his one-horse, break-dancing moves, Michael Jackson's space steps, and high-flying leaps. Of course, there are also Donnie Yen's rich facial expressions and playful eyes (in and out of the movie), which the audience can y appreciate, in spite of the heavy make-up on his face for the doll. The audience can y appreciate the comedic elements he is trying to convey.
Additionally, the sequence in which the tai chi master teaches Murakumo kung fu is a lot of fun and is filmed in great detail, ranging from push hands to tai chi, from the concept of rigidity and flexibility, from the tail of a sparrow to kung fu basketball. Murakumo's teacher's wife also joins in and teaches Murakumo martial arts through little things like popping cotton and making quilts. There are also some great action scenes, such as the first half where Murakuma uses a rope tied to a brush to perform a rare rope dart, and mischievously draws a crying face on his opponent's belly. The big wooden wheel that Iron Ruthless gets out on the drawbridge in the second half when he's chasing Murakumo is reminiscent of a scene from Indiana Jones. Donnie Yen also demonstrates his martial arts talent in the scene where the bully is mistakenly killed by his idiot son, using a nine-section whip to show off his prowess when fighting the bully. Finally, in the fierce fight with Tie Ruoxing, Donnie Yen puts his best foot forward and brings everything he has learned from his master into full play, resulting in a spectacular duel at the top of the heap.