- English name：Last Hero in China
- Broadcast time：April 1, 1993
- Starring：李连杰（Jet Li）、张敏（Cheung Sharla）、张卫健（Dicky Cheung）、陈百祥（Chan, Natalis）、梁家仁（Ka-Yan Leung）、刘家辉（Gordon Liu）、徐忠信（Alan Chui）、朱铁和（Jue Tit-Woh）、袁咏仪（Anita Yuen）、苑琼丹（Kingdom Yuen）、梁佩瑚（Isabel）、贾天怡（Tin Yi Ku）、张兰英
- director：王晶（Jing Wong）、袁和平（Woo Ping Yuen）
Introduction
Today,we are going to talk about a 1993 Hong Kong film, Last Hero in China(黄飞鸿之铁鸡斗蜈蚣Huáng Fēihóng zhī tiějī dòu wúgōng). It is written and directed by Wong Jing(王晶Wáng Jīng). It is a derivative of the Once Upon a Time in China film series, and unlike other imitations, it can be considered a spin-off or parody to some extent. It was released after the first three films in the Once Upon a Time in China franchise. The film starred Jet Li as Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung(黄飞鸿Huáng Fēihóng) and the action choreography was done by Yuen Woo-ping. However Last Hero in China differs greatly in tone from the Once Upon a Time in China films as it contains stronger elements of violence and broader, more slapstick, comedy.
Plot
Due to economic pressures, Wong Fei-hung(黄飞鸿Huáng Fēihóng) is forced to move his martial arts school and Po-chi-lam clinic to a new location but unknowingly re-opens next to a brothel. Wong comes into conflict with a corrupt police chief who is helping evil monks from a nearby temple to kidnap young women and sell them into prostitution in distant lands. Whilst investigating the temple, Wong gets into a fight and is subsequently accused of an unprovoked attack on the monks. He is also poisoned and becomes temporarily deaf. In a later fight, Wong intervenes in the police chief’s attempts to assassinate a foreign official.
In one scene, parodying traditional lion dances, Wong dresses up as a rooster, compete with an iron beak and claws. He clucks as he battles his enemies, who are shrouded in a giant metallic centipede. This scene has its roots in the 1956 film Huang Fei-hong tie ji dou wu gong (Huang Fei-hong: The Iron Rooster vs. the Centipede), which starred Kwan Tak-hing as Wong Fei-hung. In the final fight against the police chief, Wong uses drunken boxing after his toes are broken while attempting to execute a Shadowless Kick on his opponent. The film concludes with Wong and his companions marching away victorious, but not before Wong rebukes the foreign official for selling opium and causing young children to go deaf.
Professional evaluation
Positive reviews
In the film, except for Huang Feihong who still maintained his performance style of being concerned about the country and the people and being mature at a young age, almost all the others were able to be funny. In addition, the script of the film also has a strong comedic color, making the film not only lively but also entertaining. The theme song was adapted and written by Huang Zhan to become “Wandering in the Rivers and Lakes”. In addition, Yuan Heping served as the action director, so the martial arts design was extremely exciting. Jet Li not only showed his shadowless kick and drunken boxing in the film, but also performed swordsmanship, which is rare in Huang Feihong’s films. In short, “Wong Feihong: Iron Chicken Fighting Centipede” is a “Wong Feihong” drama with different styles and great viewing value.
Negative reviews
The film was purely made to suit the occasion, with random jokes and a patchwork plot. The villain in the film turned out to be the eldest brother of the Boxers, which made it even harder for mainlanders to accept. Wong Jing’s “Iron Chicken Fighting Centipede” was starred by Jet Li, with action design by Yuan Heping, and was a traditional martial arts film routine. At the end, Wong Fei-hung’s Foshan Shadowless Kick was injured by the enemy, and he had no choice but to fight back with the “Drunken Fist”, which was more exciting than “Drunken Master”. Wong Jing’s films are always pornographic and theft-inducing. The “General’s Order” sung by a group of prostitutes played by Yuan Yongyi was really unbearable to the ears.
