Once Upon a Time in China 2 (1992)
Starring Jet Li, Donnie Yen, Rosamund Kwan, Max Mok, Zhang Tielin, David Chiang, Hung Yan-Yan, Yen Shi-Kwan
Directed by Tsui Hark
Expectations: High. I haven’t seen it in a while and I’m really looking forward to the Jet Li / Donnie Yen fight.
So back when I started this site in April, I wrote up some of my thoughts after revisiting one of the classics from my youth, Once Upon a Time in China. I’ve wanted to get down to business and watch the much-loved sequel since then, but only recently got around to it. Wow, I gotta say… this one is even better than the first. It’s possible that I feel this way because I recently watched the original and I had less of an adjustment period, but whatever, Once Upon a Time in China 2 is a damn pleasing film.
While the recently reviewed Ip Man was set during the Second Sino-Japanese War, Once Upon a Time in China 2 takes place just after the First Sino-Japanese War. Taiwan has been handed over to Japan and outside influence is getting stronger. The White Lotus clan is angry that Westerners have come to China and brought all their nasty wares with them. They wish to kill the foreigners and rid the land of everything related to them. Led by the Immortal Kung (Hung Yan-Yan), they are ultra-nationalists and will stop at nothing to achieve their goals.
The second half is where most of the action resides, including the excellent fight within the White Lotus lair, one of most fantastic, fun sequences to watch in recent memory. Jet Li absolutely annihilates the competition with style, humor and a real flair for the dramatic. He skillfully defends himself from the clan and then calls out the Immortal Kung, who backflips his way to the top of five teetering tables in true kung-fu film form. If you thought the fight against the entire clan was good, wait till you see the masterful piece of work that is Fei-Hung vs. Kung. The wirework is very well done and the hits are hard. Wong Fei-hung systematically destroys everything in Kung’s playbook and we are left to simply laugh at how badass it all is when Fei-Hung jumps to the Lotus clan sign and poses, taunting the supposed immortal leader into following. This is my favorite sequence in the film. It is a non-stop chunk of around fifteen minutes of pure inventive action.
Incredibly well directed by Tsui Hark, Once Upon a Time in China 2 is not only one of the greatest martial arts sequels of all-time, it is one of the true greats of the genre, sequel or not. I defy any martial film fan to watch this and not be so pumped up that they sing the Wong Fei-Hung theme as they practice their shadowless kicks on the way to take this DVD out of the player. Highly recommended.