True Legend

TRUE LEGEND (2010) - June 24, 2011
A well made martial arts film about a man who is betrayed by his adoptive brother, and who must train in order to rescue his son from his evil brother's clutches.  Oh, then there's some extra stuff about the same man, now a drunken hobo, fighting Russians in a tournament.  Basically, the movie ends (or so you would think) and then about half an hour of extra stuff is crammed onto the film.  It's extremely clunky, and easily the most blatant case of a false ending that I've ever seen.  Yes, this film has problems -- aside fromt he aforementioned third act issues (or fourth act, more accurately), it opens with a CGI-heavy action sequence that feels slightly incongruous with the rest of the film, and it drags in the fairly uneventful mid-section.  But it's skillfully directed by legendary action director/choreographer Yuen Woo-ping, who does an expectedly fantastic job with the action sequences.  The fighting here is well-choreographed and exciting; Woo-ping allows it to unfold in satisfyingly long takes, never muddling it with excessive close-ups or quick-cuts.  It's pretty great.  ***