I'm always up for a good old Hong Kong martial arts action film, so when I found the Blu-ray for this movie in my library, I snatched it up. But as I said in my summary line, I found the movie somewhat of a letdown. It's not a BAD movie; it does have some genuine merit. The production values are excellent, from the cinematography to the sets. And the fight sequences, particularly the climatic bout, do have some genuine excitement. But all the same, I felt the fights weren't as good as they could have been. They have the unfortunate trademark of many modern day Hong Kong martial arts movies - quick editing and the camera zoomed in really close. The best Hong Kong martial arts movies step back to see the performers in long takes. Another problem was that I didn't think that there were quite enough action sequences - a couple of more would have helped. This may explain why I often thought the plot to be slow moving, as well as lacking urgency. Die hard fans of Hong Kong martial arts movies might get enough out of this (not just with the many cameos of famous Hong Kong movie figures), but I would not recommend the movie to more casual viewers of Hong Kong filmmaking.
Review of Kung Fu Jungle
