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Screening at Golden Shadows at Kino on 8 December 2002: After the tremendous success of The Storm Riders, director Andrew Lau had the Hong Kong film industry at his feet, and a movie going public eagerly awaiting his follow-up film. Utilising most of The Storm Riders cast and crew, Lau produced a finely crafted, superb epic drama with a number of set-piece fantasy-action sequences which easily eclipse the CGI work of his previous movie. Director Lau is, obviously, a big fan of Italian master film-maker, Sergio Leone. Much of A Man Called Hero has the look and feel of a classic Leone movie (in particular, Once Upon A Time In America). Add to this a lush Ennio Morricone-like score (by Kwong Wing-Chan) and A Man Called Hero is a Cantonese movie in search of a world audience. Based on the HK comic book series, The Blood Sword, by Ma Wing-Shing, we watch as the fate of Hero Hua (Ekin Cheng) unfolds. From an early age, Hua is destined for greatness - but greatness can be a double-edged sword, especially if you have been born under the Star of Death. After avenging the murders of his parents, Hero Hua flees to America and begins a new life in the land of the brave. Director Lau and screenwriter Manfred Wong (Young and Dangerous films) take a very unsentimental view of this "coming to America" story, as we are shown a new land where the age old persecutions and exploitations of the past are still a way of life. Some Chinese migrants are sent to slave labour mining camps whilst others are left in big city ghettos to face the hatred of a white population who fear these newcomers. If this isn't enough, Hua must contend with a team of ninja killers who are intent on stealing the "China Secret" - a mythical martial arts heirloom that has been passed down to Hua. The film is split by a parallel narrative that has Hua's son, Sword (Nicholas Tse), fifteen years later, arriving in New York and searching for his father. Most of the story comes together as different characters tell Sword about this legendary figure. Ekin Cheng as Hero Hua gives, arguably, his best screen performance as a man ever fearful of the future but driven to it by the phantoms of his past. Kristy Yang is Jade, Hua's wife, in a role not dissimilar from her Storm Riders character. The bespectacled Sheng is played by Hong Kong journeyman actor Jerry Lamb (Young and Dangerous series). Ken Lo (Drunken Master 2) is impressive as a Shaolin monk who befriends Hero in the Steel Bull mining camp. A curious masked person called Shadow (Dion Lam, voice by Jordan Chan) pops up at crucial moments of the movie. One of the standout players is Shu Qui (So Close, The Transporter) as a Japanese woman named Mu ; she looks absolutely radiant in this picture - the gawky, pigtailed teenager of The Storm Riders is a past memory. Fans of 1980s and early 90s Canto action cinema will enjoy seeing Yuen Biao (Dragons Forever, Righting Wrongs, On the Run) back on screen as the proprietor of New York's China House. Biao is in fine form and regularly kicks racist gwailo butt. Hero's main enemies in this movie are Invincible, a truly crazed Japanese swordsman played with a sneering malevolence by Francis Ng (Bullets Over Summer, Full Alert), and Jin (Mark Cheng), the head of the ninja hit squad who strikes a mortal blow at the heart of Hua's existence. Also, keep an eye out for cameos by Sam Lee (an orange haired ninja), Anthony Wong (a master swordsman) and famous mainland actor Cheng Pei Pei (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon) as Hua's brave mother. A Man Called Hero looks a treat and hundreds of hours of post production are on display. The China-based digital effects company Centro (The Storm Riders, Shaolin Soccer) is fast becoming Asia's equivalent to Lucasfilm. This is a beautifully made movie that works visually and emotionally. Small moments and scenes, like oversized raindrops hitting the ground and Shu Qui playing a flute at night, add a memorable lustre to this film. When myth and reality finally meet with a father and son reunion - this scene brings much of the film's drama and tragedy into a tight focus. The latter leading into the fantastic (on all counts) showdown between Hero Hua and Invincible, atop the Statue of Liberty where Chinese honor takes on Japanese fanaticism. A Man Called Hero is a first rate companion piece to The Storm Riders, and is seen by many as being the second instalment in Andrew Lau's ongoing Hong Kong fantasy series. - JOHN SNADDEN |
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