Wen | Min Sijia
MFA in Cancer, China Film Archive
There's at least one thing I admire about Jackie Chan.
Kung Fu Yoga is, of course, one of those standard Jackie Chan action-comedies, directed by Jackie Chan's longtime partner Jilly Tang, and returning to the treasure-taking theme that they both know so well.
When we think of Raiders of the Lost Ark movies, the classic Raiders of the Lost Ark series with Steven Spielberg and George Lucas comes to mind. To this day, the daemon that emerges from the French cabinet and kills a circle of people is still one of the most memorable movie scenes from my childhood.
The Raiders of the Lost Ark movie was quickly resurrected and rebuilt a well-established genre narrative formula through the windy adventures of Dr. Indiana Jones - so much so because the 'Raiders of the Lost Ark movie' wasn't original to Raiders of the Lost Ark, it was in fact a very old-fashioned category of film that had since declined, and Spielberg and Lucas revitalized it.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Raiders of the Lost Ark movies usually feature an archaeologist like Dr. Jones, or Professor Jack in Kung Fu Yoga. The adventure always takes place in a mysterious, exotic location, where a treasure linked to a historical mystery is discovered, excavated, and fought over.
Kung Fu Yoga is certainly one such story. Jackie Chan plays Jack, an archaeology professor who has been trying to find the remains of a missing Tang Dynasty-era army, and to find his explorer friend William, who has gone missing because of that army. It's an internal conflict and motivation for the character of Jackie Chan.
Driven by such a knot in his heart, Jack gets the map in the hands of the Indian princess and begins to search for the treasure. And in the process of searching for the treasure, he leads the team (and the audience) through exotic wonders such as Dubai and India, and starts a fierce conflict with the enemy under different environmental conditions.
The reason why India was chosen is of course related to the development of national relations between China and India. It must be said that Jackie Chan is a very worldly-minded person, and such a mindset can be said to be unique in the Hong Kong film industry. Or it can also be said that even if other people also possess the chest, he does not have the strength to do the same thing.
Jackie Chan, who just won the Oscar for lifetime achievement, is the only Chinese movie star who has the ability to export his entertainment products. From "The Greatest Showman" to "Jedi Outcast" and now "Kung Fu Yoga," if you thread together the messages that all of these films have attempted to convey, we know that Jackie Chan is trying to do more than just make a few movies.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Moreover, each of the 'exotic locales' in Kung Fu Yoga are fully utilized for their function as exotic spectacles.
Episodes such as the dancing snakes in the marketplace, the iguanas kept in the prince's house, and the Indian square dance have become those Indian memories and Indian elements that are most labeled in the memories of the audience.
Yoga, which originated in India, has also become a deeper, more ideological and idealized extension of Indian elements in the film. If the kung fu in the title represents China, then the yoga in the title represents India itself.
Kung Fu and Yoga are not only the difference between two visual styles of martial arts, but also between two worldviews.
A final word about the film's director, Tang Jili. We often overlook who the director of a Jackie Chan movie is, as if we think it's pretty much the same whoever it is?
But that's not true. Directors who often work with Jackie Chan, such as Moses Chan, Ding Sheng, and Tang Jili, all have their own styles. Tang Jili is known for his action-packed thrills and expansive vision, but of course you can't expect Jackie Chan to still go jumping off buildings like he did in "Red Band" two decades ago. Kung Fu Yoga has a car chase in Dubai that features dozens of multi-million dollar supercars, and that's about it for The Fast and the Furious.
There's also the fact that Tang was also the director of 2005's The Myth, and if you count Tang's executive producing for Zodiac, we immediately realize that it's surely no coincidence that the collaboration between Cheng and Tang is all about adventure and treasure theft.
It's not explicitly stated in Kung Fu Yoga that it's actually sort of a sequel to The Myth. Think back to The Myth, remember? It's about Jack, an archaeologist played by Jackie Chan, who, torn between the past and the modern day, breaks into the tomb of the First Emperor of Qin and discovers Kim Hee-sun, who has taken the elixir of immortality.
Kim Hee-sun in "Myth"
And "Kung Fu Yoga," which is also about Jackie Chan as Jack, an archaeologist who travels around the world and eventually finds a mysterious treasure in India.
By no coincidence, Jackie Chan also has a portrait of Kim Hee-sun in his office ......
Who is Jones (George Lee), who travels with Jackie Chan? He is the son of William (Tony Leung), who was once seen in "Myth" and later disappeared for tracking down the army, and who stole the diamonds in "Kung Fu Yoga" to fulfill his father's dying wish.
George Lee as Jones
So I wouldn't be surprised if in the future Jackie Chan wants to continue Jack the Archaeologist as an Indiana Jones-like treasure theft series.
This is Kung Fu Yoga, and it brings you every element that a Jackie Chan movie should have, and definitely not if you're expecting more. It's been a familiar bite for so many years, you wouldn't be used to anything else!