KUNG FU HUSTLE
I must admit, I was never
into the low budget martial arts movies. They were the Asian version of the B
Westerns and the serials that came out of Monogram Studios in the thirties or B
gangster movies of the late forties. Those films ran on TV in the fifties with
enough regularity to have influenced the generations of filmmakers that
followed. Serials like “Flash Gordon” with Buster Crabbe were an
inspiration to George Lucas while the
thrill of the chase and narrow escapes from countless others provided fodder
for Steven Spielberg’s imagination as
witness the “Star Wars” and “Indiana Jones” sagas. Likewise, the low budget chop socky movies made in
“Kung Fu Hustle” is
written/produced/directed/and starring Stephen Chow of whom I know little about
and yearn to learn more.
Initially, it was hard to
tell where “Kung Fu Hustle” was headed after watching the fearsome members of
the Axe gang, dressed like the Men in Black, violently take over a police
station and then go into a dance routine like the Rockettes while wielding
their axes. At the center of the movie is Sing (Chow), a low level thief intent
on making a name for himself by pretending to be a member of the Axe gang.
Chow introduces an
assortment of stock characters in a tenement village called Pig Sty Alley
identified by their social position, occupation and later by their particular
martial art skills. The Landlord appears to be a bully who extorts food from
the vendors, and ogles, and gropes the ladies. His wife looks like a low rent
Ma Barker in a dilapidated housedress, a cigarette constantly dangling from the
side of her mouth with a sneer and temper to match. The village is not what it appears to be as Sing finds out when
he tries to bully his way from one shop to the next with his Sumo wrestler
sized sidekick. His presence and comical defeat not only brings out the best in
some of the shop keepers but also attracts the Axe gang.
The Axe Gang decide to take
over Pig Sty Alley after being routed. They unleash a Pandora’s Box of super villains to confront
the surprising number of Martial Arts Super heroes who live in Pig Sty Alley.
Amidst all the mayhem, Sing finds his true calling.
Many of “Kung Fu Hustle”s
heroes turn out to be legends hell bent on retirement. They are like the old
gunslingers forced into action when confronted by the bad guys who won’t leave
well enough alone. They all run at lightning speed and possess skills like
Mutant X-Men. One uses his baking staff like a pugil stick, another tosses
curtain rings like a boomerang. The most legendary inhabitants possess the
Scream of Death. They are called upon to fight equally legendary criminals like
the blind killers who summon deadly spirits with the strum of their
instruments. The more feverish they
play, the more deadly the spirits, like the knives formed by notes in the air
that sever heads. The most feared villain is The Beast who takes everything Pig
Sty Alley’s heroes can throw at him. The
combatants destroy everything in their path in a battle that is right out of
“Superman II.” Once again, Sing is caught up in the fervor of the fight and his
latent skills as a heroic fighter rise to the surface for a battle to end all
battles.
The hints to Sings gifts are
revealed in flashbacks in the stories of his prepubescent love, and the peddler
who sold him a book that cryptically foretold his destiny.
“Kung Fu Hustle” is a unique
blend of action, farce and parody that flashes its influences with the
brightness of a neon rainbow. It is wildly entertaining.
Copyright 2005