Iron Monkey (1993)

"...a superior example of its genre...  Roger Ebert, Chicago Sun-Times
"...not only visually brilliant (but) funny, too.  Desson Howe, Washington Post
"...the final duel...is dazzling  Dennis Lim, Village Voice
"More fun than Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon  San Francisco Chronicle
"Two thumbs up!  Ebert & Roeper

Editor's Note Yuen Woo-Ping's exhilarating martial arts film stars Yu Rong Guang as Dr. Yang, a kind family doctor who charitably provides medicine and care to impoverished villagers, along with his assistant, Orchid (the lovely Jean Wang). Yang, however, also masquerades as the crime-fighting Iron Monkey, who robs gold from the rich and gives to it the poor, much to the dismay of the corrupt local governor (James Wong). When famed fighter and physician Wong Kei-Ying (Donnie Yen) and his young son, Wong Fei-Hung (crossdressed actress Tsang Sze-Man), wander into town, the cowardly ruler captures the boy and pits his father against the elusive Iron Monkey. Eventually, the heroes must unite to face an even greater foe--a renegade Shaolin master (Yen Yee Kwan) and his treacherous lackeys. This Chinese variation on the legend of Robin Hood is a good-natured (and often funny) action movie that features numerous outstanding fight scenes (including a battle fought on poles over a raging fire) and a surprising amount of cooking (yes, cooking). The film is the prequel to Tsui Hark's ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA series, which follows the adventures of folk hero Wong Fei-Hung as an adult. IRON MONKEY is particularly revelatory due to the amazing action sequences directed by Woo-Ping, who went on to choreograph the intricate fights of THE MATRIX and CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON.

	Donnie Yen
	James Wong
	Rongguang Yu
	Sze-Man Tsang
	Arthur Wong - Cinematographer
	Yuen Woo Ping - Director
	Richard Yuen - Musical Score
	Tsui Hark - Producer
	Cheung Tan - Writer
	Hark Sui - Writer
	Tai-Muk Lau - Writer

Entertainment Weekly
"...Damn if it isn't crackling fun....There's no resisting..." -- Rating: B 08/20/1999 p.133

USA Today
"...The action is consistent..." 03/29/2002 p.5E

Sight and Sound
"...[With] ingeniously choreographed, gravity-defying fight sequences..." 07/01/2001 p.64

Los Angeles Times 9 of 10
If Asian martial arts movies interest you even a little bit, you're going to want to see Iron Monkey. Not only that, you're going to want to see it more than once. ...the action rarely paused to take a breath. - Kenneth Turan