REVIEW:
Fong Sai Yuk is best described as somewhat of a parody of the Wong Fei Hung films. It has a similar main character and does a similar (obviously far more comical) combination of two plotlines. I like to call it the "Dude, Where's My Car?" of traditional martial arts fims (yes, that includes the implied lack of quality). Fong Sai Yuk may be a fun one-time run-through with a few solid jokes and some decent fighting, but overall the film has more cringe moments than laughing moments.

I get the immediate impression upon watching this film about just how much Wong Jing has influenced Corey Yuen (and I do believe Wong Jing himself was involved in the production of this film). This film is very "Wong Jing-ish", although decidedly more restrained about it (thankfully). Unfortunately, as you have likely seen in all my reviews of Wong Jing material, I don't care for his approach to the action-comedy. I find the jokes most of the time to be a little too ridiculous and over-the-top to be funny and the action often finds itself suffering from similar style. These bits of comedy are usually strung together by nothing more than a flimsy, generic plot. This film certainly suffers at least a little bit from all these aspects, although I can luckily comment that it doesn't do so as much as something like New Legend of Shaolin.

Most of the comedy is pretty ridculous and a lot of it is particularly cringe-inducing. But, there are a definite few bits here that will get a legitimate laugh out of viewers. When Tiger Lu's wife inadvertently falls for Mother Fong (posed as a male) there are a number of goofs that come out. And, for the most part, Josephine Siao's reactions and expressions pin a much needed sense of real comedy. Jet Li, on the other hand, just looks like a plain old idiot for most of his comedy and I honestly couldn't get past his goofy compusure during the entire film. I almost felt like he was holding back the giggles for half the film.

Fight scenes are a mixed bag. While a few of them have some nice, though heavily wired, kung fu remniscent of much of Yuen's better work - a number of them go beyond a joke. In particular, the gags during the martial arts tournament made that entire fight scene feel like nothing more than a big gag with little fighting value. And, the wirework at these points gets beyond a resonable artistic liberty.

I leave plot til last because it really is the last thing you should be looking at this film for. As the type of film it is, it begs to be judged on its comedy and martial arts (for better or worse) and the plot is nothing more than a way to jump between these segments. As such, it's a pretty generic plot, though it does seem to take the OUATIC route of blending two plotlines together as the film goes on. But, this film is not trying to be OUATIC and doesn't use that dual plotline to any more advantage than it could have used a single plotline.

Fong Sai Yuk is watchable and it has its small share of decent comedy. Overwhelmingly, though, the film is disappointing and as a whole feels very empty. It's only a slightly more restrained version of the Wong Jing style of comedy we all know, so you should keep that in mind when making a decision on this fim. This is certainly no vehicle for the martial arts comedy genre or for an example of Jet Li's HK work. There are better martial arts films and better comedies out there. But, if you really have an evening to kill, it won't kill you to take in a viewing of this film and enjoy some of the comedy.

And that's this film's main problem. Everything in it is done well -- it's just that there's really nothing new here. There is one standout scene where Jet takes on Sibelle Hu while having to stay off the ground, which has the duo using people's heads as pedestals. But even this kind of gave me a feeling of déjà vu as they also fight on a big wooden tower -- a gag which other movies have used as well. At any rate, Fong Sai Yuk is worth a look, especially if you're a Jet Li fan. Just don't expect anything earth-shattering or on the level of Jet Li's better movies, most notably Once Upon a Time in China.

REVIEW:
This is a better than average martial arts picture that has plenty of humor and creative fights but the plot becomes too scattered and the line between humor and drama is uneven.

The pace of the film is set right at the beginning with scenes of Red Flower Society members skimming across the water on rafts to attack the Chinese Emperor. Corey Yuen, a veteran Hong Kong choreographer who frequently works with Jet Li keeps the action coming and manages to pull off some truly unique imagery. Probably the most memorable scene occurs when Jet Li engages in a fight with Sibelle Hu while hopping on the heads of the spectators. The common use of powder or chalk layered on weapons and clothing for added explosive effect when making contact on screen was over done. Also, the increasingly common quick camera editing during close shots of fighting could have been toned down. Those are minor complaints though since the fighting is the best feature of the film.

The plot is not as evenly paced. The first half of the film is more of a comical version of Once Upon a Time in China. Jet Li even lampoons his own role in the film when Sai Yuk and his friends are released from incarceration, he tells them that he changed their names so as not to have their parents discover their arrest. As Sai Yuk begins to say his name, "Wong...", the familiar Wong Fei Hung music chimes in the background and he promptly finishes with "Jing". Josephine Siao, a long time Hong Kong actress steals the show as Sai Yuk's mischievous mother. Siao and Li have great chemistry onscreen as mother and son who seem to be more like brother and sister constantly getting into trouble behind father's back. The tone grows more dark in the second half when the heavy, Oryeetor catches up with Sai Yuk's family as Sibelle Hu's character is wounded and Sai Yuk's father is captured. Like most kung fu films, the revenge factor creeps up and not until the very end do we see a change in the film's mood.

This is a generally fun movie that is worth seeing. The choreography is well done and the characters are interesting, despite a fragmented plot.