The past several years have been insanely busy for actor Donnie Yen. He hit hard with films like Big Brother, Iceman: The Time Traveler, and the brilliant and emotional Ip Man 4: The Finale. If those weren’t enough, he’s also part of Disney’s mega-budgeted live action adaptation of Mulan which is still awaiting release due to delays caused by the current pandemic. Believe it or not, it’s one of my most anticipated films of the year (or maybe next year, who knows anymore). I’ve been a long-time fan of the Chinese/Hong Kong film industry and this film will bring together heavy hitters like Yen, Jet Li (Hero), Cheng Pei-Pei (Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon), and Gong Li (Curse of the Golden Flower). Not to mention Asian actors who have made their mark in American cinema such as Tzi Ma (Rush Hour), Jason Scott Lee (Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story), and Roger Yuan (Showdown in Little Tokyo) to name a few. Yen still found time to do a remake/reimagining of the Sammo Hung classic from 1978, Enter the Fat Dragon.
Fallon Chu (Donnie Yen) is one of the top agents for the Hong Kong Police Special Task Force. He’s the type of officer that all of his peers aspire to be. In fact, he’s so obsessed with his job that it’s beginning to interfere with his relationship. His fiancée Chloe (Niki Chow), is growing tired of coming second to the job and begins to resent him for it. She breaks off the engagement and Fallon is demoted at work, leaving him broken. So broken, he resorts to food for comfort and quickly balloons up to two hundred and fifty pounds. He’s given the opportunity to extradite a Japanese fugitive back to Japan, which could be a chance at redemption and a chance to win his love back.
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Enter the Fat Dragon only borrows elements from the 1978 original, mostly coming up with a whole new narrative. I never really thought comedy was a strong point for Yen but after seeing this, I have to admit, I thought wrong. Sure, most of the humor comes from the fact his character is supposed to be overweight, but it’s not mean-spirited like it could have easily gone. At times, the movie felt like it was dragging a bit, but the action scenes never disappoint. In fact, it gets a little creative and interesting because Yen donned a fat suit for the role. If you’re familiar with the way he fights on film, it’s cool to see how he adapts his style to fit the suit. We all know Yen is a huge Bruce Lee fan, and he pays homage once again in Enter the Fat Dragon. He even hilariously references one of his own action scenes from the film SPL, aka Kill Zone, which turns out to be a film highlight. It also helps that the chemistry between Yen and Chow is strong and their interactions are entertaining.
The story can be a bit disjointed at times and, as I mentioned before, it does drag in pacing a little as well. It doesn’t take too much away from the fun, though. This film may not be meant to wow you, as Enter the Fat Dragon just ends up being a good time. Directed by Kenji Tanigaki with a script by Wong Jing, Chan Kin-hung, and Lui Koon-nam.
Available now on DVD and Blu-ray from Well Go USA.
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