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What to expect in a movie called Drunken Monkey? A wild Friday night at the zoo? Well, it turns out to be a martial arts film. The premise involves an uncle and his nephew (roughly of the same age) searching for a legendary kung fu master. They have no idea the trouble theyre in for. And when theres trouble, you know that there are going to be some arms and legs violently flailing for sure.
The movie is really a showcase for Lau Kar Leung, who not only directs but also plays the kung fu master. At 66, the old man exhibits agility and robust strength to the tip of his fingers. The fighting style however is a bit bizarre. The actors do monkey poses and silly faces. Their secret weapon is wine. Come to think of it, that makes sense. Alcohol does make a monkey out of you. With its mixture of kick-ass action and goofy Chinese comedy, this cocktail of a movie is a punch. Drunken Monkey is a passable entertainment that might be more fun if you watch it inebriated. Have yourself a simian party.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/12/23
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I really liked the action-packed opening sequences but the film falters in its lame comedic moments which take up a good chunk of the middle portion of the film. Good fight scenes but I wish there was more of those.
Rated 2.5/5 Stars •
Rated 2.5 out of 5 stars
01/18/23
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Audience Member
Over the last few years a pile of DVDs that I've bought but never gotten around to watching has grown.... if its something I REALLY want to see I'll usually buy it right away after buying it. In an effort to reduce the size of this pile, I put one in the other day and watched it over a few sittings:
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Its the 2002 release '[url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drunken_Monkey_%282002_film%29"][b]Drunken Monkey[/b][/url]' ([url="http://www.wu-jing.net/drama/drunken.htm"]îÍàÍ[/url]) starring our old pal Wu Jing! Actually its also directed by [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lau_Kar_Leung"]Lau Kar-leung[/url], who you may remember from 'Drunken Master 2'... he stars in the movie as does his adopted brother and frequent collaborator Gordon Liu.
From what I understand, after he did his first big screen role 'Tai Chi 2' in the late 90s, he got stuck doing a LOT of Mainland TV series for like 5 years before finally being able to do this film as his second feature film. The /main/ plot is that a famous imperial courier is double crossed by his brother who sells him out to drug smugglers, so he enlists the aid of his daughter and two enthusiastic students to get revenge. Lau plays the master and Wu Jing plays one of the two students he takes on. He teaches them the super powerful /drunken monkey style/ of wushu.
Its not a really great movie... some of the scenes are quite silly of course (i mean as you can guess from the title... it contains quite a bit of 'monkey being drunk').
But the martial arts is pretty decent at least and its great to see a relatively young Wu Jing on the screen. The picture quality is pretty decent, but the subtitles were pretty crappy (they refer to it as 'monkeyish fist' actually).
I'll give it a 6/10. Since I only paid like HK$20 for it, it was worth it, but I guess I don't regret waiting a year or two to get to it. :-P
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/01/23
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Audience Member
An average martial arts that is rather cheesy at points and the acting is almost terrible. It's not all bad but nothing that makes this stand out from the others.
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
02/09/23
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Audience Member
A fun low budget martial arts movie directed by Director Chia-Laing Liu with 70s action styles.70s action style wont attract today audience anymore,unless he or she likes classic martial movies.But still,Director Chia-Liang Liu's direction is great as always and the action is well choreographed.If there is less annoying jokes,make the movie more serious and better sounds effect,it will be better and I may gave it more stars.Actor Wu Jing should play more movie like this,he's a good martial arts stars..I'm sure he will be a new Jet Li in future.Drunken Monkey is an average and fun low budget movie,worth a watch.:)
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/12/23
Full Review
Audience Member
Bill is respectable, hard working, ethical, and proud of his Chinese heritage. However, his brother, Man Pao, has mixed with Master Yu to traffic opium into his country. When Bill discovers this he confronts his brother only to get stabbed in the back, thrown off a bridge, and left for dead. Two kung fu students who obsess over Monkey Kung Fu look to find Bill to finish a book they are putting together. Bill is living in hiatus with a young female student, Mandy. Bill reluctantly decides to take these two students as his own. Once the two new students are trained, combined with Mandy, the four seek revenge for the injustices conducted on Bill.
Someone told me you always gamble and whore.
Chia-Liang Lu, director of Seven Swords, Drunken Master 2, Eight Diagram Pole Fighter, My Young Auntie, and Instructors of Death directs Drunken Monkey. Drunken Monkey was the first film Lu had directed in eight years, and marked the triumphant return of Shaw Brothers. Disappointingly, the film did neither. The storyline was interesting, and possessed intriguing characters. The action scenes were top notch, but the film possessed limited star power.
A cunning dog does bite without prior notice.
Choreography during the opening and closing credits, the surprise from the dead body in river, painting scene, baseball scene, fight to save Mandy, drawings, training with boards, Fight in hallway after cunning dog conversation, and the ending fight sequence were my favorite portions of the film. The legendary Gordon Liu plays Hung Yat Fu; however, his character is under utilized and only has one fight sequence.
I wish Id be drunk forever.
Drunken Monkey was a film that I received many inquires about in several martial arts circles. I had read mixed reviews on the film. I purchased it on a whim as I am a fan of the director. I left the viewing of this film disappointed. Having watched it twice now I like it a little more then the previous viewing, but it is still a disappointment. A Jet Li protégée appears in this film; well, he is not Jet Li. The script was clever, entertaining, action packed, and funny. Overall, the film lacked a character with presence or that had an aura to him.
Wine can raise your energy.
Grade: C+
Rated 3/5 Stars •
Rated 3 out of 5 stars
01/19/23
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