Once Upon A Time in China, Part 1

Once Upon a Time in China

Mandarin, English subtitles

1991, 134 Minutes

5 Stars

This story, based on the life of Wong Fei-Hung (Jet Li), takes place when the Foreign Devils (Europeans) are moving into China and carving it into their own colonies. The story is from the Chinese perspective of this era, and shows how fiercely they wanted to preserve their culture against the onslaught of Westernization. If you are an aficionado of Martial Arts movies, this is one to watch! Wong Fei-Hung was a martial artist, a physician, an acupuncturist and a revolutionary. Jet Li has one of the best lines (and all of the really good fights) when he says, "You can't fight guns with kung fu!" Marvelous costuming, fantastic fight scenes, and, of course, Jet Li;-) (Rainy Day likes Jet Li, can you tell?) Part 2 & 3 are in her queue!

For a 3 minute trailer of Part 1, click here. There are several sites with information about this national hero, click here for the Wong Fei-Hung site.