MovieChat Forums > Jung wa ying hong (1999) Discussion > It could've been better.

It could've been better.

posted 16 years ago by metisou
1 reply | jump to latest

For being made in 1999 this was a rather low budget film. The CG was horrible and so was the acting, however the story line was absolutely amazing. Great plot though it was a bit choppy while jumping to scenes. It gave too much insight on the part in which Hero got to America and not enough on the events that happened thereafter or even before that. Such as the fued between Chinese and Japanese martial arts masters. Sword over-reacted on the roof top and Hero didn't show enough emotion. As well, Hero didn't express any real concern for his daughter other than knowing where she is, so he blows up Bigot? which... his acting was horrible as well, so I'm glad he did. If I were to direct this movie I would have done much better. Though it was probably not the directors fault. Oh well. I know some people will not agree with me and that's just fine. But if you liked this or kind of liked it, then you will really like Wind and Cloud: The Storm Riders. Not the US cut version with horrible english dubs, but the actual voices with english subtitles. And preferably the uncut Japanese title.

If this could be remade it would make an excellent movie. It would probably be even better than Wind and Cloud: The Storm Riders.

[–] cliff_niblr031 12 years ago

The film version itself may have been a little choppy, and for those not already familiar with the story it might even be really confusing.

I used to read Mr. Manfred Wong's original comic book version of A Man Called Hero when it was titled The Blood Sword and the Blood Sword Dynasty (The U.S. English equivalent of the Chinese titles I imagine) when they were published by Jademan Comics back in the 1980s.

The comic books were very entertaining with their superior artwork, thrilling, action packed martial art battles, complex characters and engaging storylines.

When I viewed A Man Called Hero I was pleasantly surprised that I was already familiar with the story and characters having read them in the 80s. Watching it on screen with many of the characters from the comic book series brought to life was a real treat. This is probably WHY I can't really bash this film.

Did the film have some definite problems. Sure. But as someone who enjoyed these characters and the stories from where they were derived I can overlook most of the faults.

As for the CG being "horrible" and "so was the acting".. I beg to differ. Go look at most of the crap being churned out on the SyFy channel currently, then come back to this thread.

The point about Hero not showing "enough emotion" is debatable. His character's entire demeanor is very stoic. The actor playing Hero was trying to emulate Hero's mannerisms and did a nice job.

Storm Riders I have also seen and thought it was an okay film. Personally, I liked Dragon Tiger Gate (U.S. English titled version) better. This film was also based on Mr. Manfred Wong's comic book series Oriental Heroes.