REVIEW: ‘Last Hero in China’ (1993)

This semi-spoof of the Once Upon a Time in China series concerns Wong Fei Hung’s attempt to stop female slave traders while putting up with his misfit students.

Due to space constraints and rising rental costs, an admirer of Wong Fei Hung convinces him to relocate his kung fu school and clinic next to what turns out to be a brothel. While trying to shield his followers from immorality, Wong finds himself at odds with a new, corrupt police chief who is secretly helping a local group of monks to kidnap young women and sell them as slaves in Southern Asia. Wong finds himself investigating their temple after two martial arts masters, Tin Yin-er and her father discover the monks intentions. Despite an attempt to frame Wong for attacking the monks without just cause and poisoning him which leads to a temporary loss of hearing, Wong tries to stop the police chief who also part of the Boxer Rebellion from assassinating a foreign official.

Coming after the success of the first three films in the Once Upon a Time in China series, Jet Li was tapped by director and writer Wong Jing to play the role of the legendary folk hero Wong Fei Hung again. By pushing the props, outrageous action and humor beyond Tsui Hark’s original vision for the character, Last Hero in China becomes a hugely entertaining, if even more improbable episode in the Wong Fei Hung franchise.

Wong Jing and Jet Li who would collaborate on the even more outrageous “Kung Fu Cult Master” the same year came together after Li had fallout with Golden Harvest. The practice of creating an unofficial sequel to a film by a competing studio is not uncommon in Hong Kong and Wong gladly combined his own brand of wacky humor with Li’s trademark role and ran wild with it.

In the film, Li plays his character straight while his goofball assistants cause all sorts of trouble. Although the humor veers towards slapstick which allows Fei Hung’s drooling, bare-chested students to ogle prostitutes who break into song, the film does feature some incredible choreography from the peerless action director, Yuen Woo Ping. There is sort of a grab bag feel to the film which helps and hinders it. The manic opening sequence of young women running from the closing grasp of Gordon Liu (The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter) that includes a shot of one of them being ripped in half (sounds worse than it looks) sets the tone for a darker film that is at odds with the humor elements. Yet, Wong is consistent with his over-the-top hybrid style and it mostly works. Clearly, the standout scene is a duel between a giant centipede and Li dressed as a chicken. Yes, he’s wearing a chicken suit. Of course, this is no team mascot here. He’s sporting an iron beak and claws that Li uses to tear into the metal segments of the centipede. The whole scene is a terrific lampooning of the traditional lion dance that usually accompanies a Wong Fei Hung story.

Thanks to outstanding choreography and the creative humor of the director, Last Hero in China is more entertaining than it probably should be. Some of the jokes may be lost on viewers unfamiliar with either the Once Upon a Time in China series or Journey to the West. Even so, the sheer energy propels the viewer forward and with less confusion than found in Kung Fu Cult Master. And where else will you find the legendary kung fu star, Gordon Liu trade blows with Jet Li?