Retro Review: Drunken Master [1978]

Aug 112010

Yes, that is a bamboo shoot under his ass.

Like any red-blooded American dude, I enjoy watching a good ass kicking.¬† However, Kung Fu movies are a special treat; they are a form of visual poetry, a testament to the potential of human kinesiology and served up with a healthy dose of kitsch from our nation’s point of view.¬† And if a good story were to accompany said action, to watch a good Kung Fu movie is to be impressed in most basic of ways.¬† Ten years ago, I wouldn’t have known this movie, Drunken Master, existed.¬† I was aware of Jackie Chan and that he was the main character in a movie released here in the states as The Legend of Drunken Master but was ignorant to the fact that it was a 1994 sequel to this 1978 original.¬† I pretty much fell in love with what I now know as part 2, so Drunken Master – Drunk Monkey in the Tiger’s Eye as it’s known in Hong Kong – has to be just as good right?

Fair warning to all Kung Fu movie buffs: I’m in no way one of you.¬† I’m sure my Kung Fu movie watching resume would read something like a best sellers list or if there are any Kung Fu hipsters out there, I’d get the “I was into those before I knew they existed” trash talk but I make no apologies for my Kung Fu movie pedigree.¬† I simply like what I like from what I’ve seen.

I watched this dubbed from Netflix.¬† I’m sure this alone made this movie way more hilarious than it should’ve been but still, Drunken Master is an action comedy, one of Chan’s earliest, and I feel the dubbing brought something special to it.¬† For example, having seen the sequel first, knowing that Chan’s character’s name was “Wong Fei Hung” served only to make the dub’s “Freddie Wong” that much more funny.¬† There are similar instances of great name localization – calling Yan Ti San “Thunderleg” instead was a great move – but the comedy doesn’t derive simply from an American attempt at making the script more accessible; Drunken Master is a great example of early physical comedy.

Tea sucks.

Sticking with the dubbed version’s name, Freddie Wong is as an impressive fighter as he is a bumbling klutz of an asshole.¬† The son of a prominent Kung Fu master, the first third of the film deals with his misadventures in and around his town that include him hitting on girl only to have his mother kick his ass and him suffering punishment by his father by having to stand, balancing tea cups on his head and shoulders, knees bent, over a sharpened bamboo shoot directly under his asshole.¬† It’s interesting to note that through these two early scenes, not only are we presented physical laughs and sweet fight choreography but we get to know a well rounded character.¬† Freddie’s kind of jerk off in a lot of ways that could turn the audience away from him but we are shown early on that he has a sense of justice and even though he might shoot his mouth off while doing it, he’s not beyond standing up for the weak.¬† The comedic nature of this genre probably calls for such a juxtaposition but it still makes Freddie feel more real than any hard-assed hero with their unwavering boner of infallible character always pointing their moral compass north.¬† So yes, Freddie is very likable.

For his likability, you feel almost bad for him when his shenanigans have his father order him a year’s worth of training from his infamous uncle, So Hi (Beggar So, originally).¬† The middle third of film is Jackie Chan’s face perpetually winced in comedic pain under the sadistic weight of So Hi’s training.¬† Whether it’s the push ups that see Freddie flipping his hands palms down to palms up or water barrel balancing or the vertical tea cup sit ups, you’ll be hard pressed deciding whether to laugh or gasp in awe of his physicality; Jackie Chan is goddamn machine in this flick.¬† This is also where Freddie starts “leveling up” so to speak, with a couple of encounters with minor fighters that display some interesting and creative (Head Fu) fighting styles.

I think it’s important to note something about the fight choreography in that it’s exceptionally impressive.¬† I probably shouldn’t have been surprised considering it stars a young Jackie Chan but what was refreshing about the choreography was that it was largely dependent on the performers fighting each other as opposed to elaborate set pieces as is common practice today.¬† Not that elaborate set pieces are at all unwelcome by yours truly; it just happens to be real thrill to see these artists working with just each other in expertly conceived fight scenes.

Then there’s Thunderleg.

The final boss of this little gem is easily one of my new favorite movie villains.¬† I can only imagine what this dude sounds like in this movie’s native tongue.¬† The dub clearly makes this guy a bad ass giving him some of the best lines in terms of delivery, corniness and general assholery.¬† The performance, from a visual standpoint, by master Tae Kwon Do practitioner and actor, Hwang Jang Lee, makes large amounts of awesome explode from the screen.¬† When I wasn’t busy being impressed by cold stares, the mocking smiles, and all the little mannerisms that serve as the icing on this cake of kick ass, I was watching slack-jawed as Thunderleg demonstrated the the ability make it look as though he could dislocate his hip joints at will when serving up his kicks.¬† And the best part of all this?¬† He manages to impress with very little screen time.

There's also a Thunder 'stache.

I suppose I should tell you about how this one thing in the movie really drove me up the wall but it really didn’t do that.¬† Some of the music cues seemed oddly placed but I chalk that up to cultural differences as I’ve noticed the same thing in a few other Kung Fu movies.¬† So considering that, I’ll say there’s not a damn thing wrong with Drunken Master and if you find something wrong with it, you might be an asshole.¬† The story is simple and sweet, it’s funny both intentionally and unintentionally, the fight choreography is top notch and to say that it holds up by today’s standards would be a new, more powerful version of an understatement.¬† Like an √ºberunderstatement or something.¬† Approved and highly recommended.