I suppose I should blame films like Crouching Tiger and House of Flying Daggers for my general disappointment with Jet Li films. I don't dislike Li even though I'm mostly dispassionate about his films, my favorite one having been that traffic accident known as Romeo Must Die but somehow he manages to keep doing material that I find, well, not worthy of his superstar status. And sadly, Fearless is no different.
Li plays Huo Yuanjia, a Chinese martial artist who lived in the second half of the nineteenth century and who founded the Jin Wu Sports Federation, a competitive martial arts arena that accepted all forms and favored none. Huo's story is somewhat familiar in this genre; growing up he sees his father shamed in a fight and vows to be the greatest fighter in the land. Through hard work and discipline he achieves that goal, but then it goes to his head, his whole world becomes fighting, and soon his ego and reputation mean everything to him blah blah blah, we've seen this before. And just like most protagonists, Huo has a third act revelation and spends the rest of his life trying to atone for his sins and his pride (you don't even have to dip in the martial arts films to get this story. See also The Last Samurai). Huo then uses his skill and newfound humility as an example to others on how not to use fighting as an end unto itself (some 30-odd years ago Bruce Lee summed up this outlook as "the art of fighting without fighting").
So the story's really nothing new, but that's hardly why you go to a Jet Li picture now, is it? Yes, the fights are pretty good; one match set on a high platform is a real eye-opener, though the match where pride overcomes Huo is set in a restaurant and flashes the viewer back to the similar but better sequence in Crouching Tiger. What Fearless does have going for it is a nice dose of Chinese pride; set in an area of enforced modernization and encroaching westernism (nicely reinforced in a subtle way through costuming and a hilarious but where Huo tries coffee), Huo's insistence on remaining true to his Chinese roots and his belief in them give a nice lift to an otherwise tired concept.
Though Li has said this is his last martial arts epic, by now you know enough about him and his movies to know whether you'll enjoy them or not. Fearless isn't bad enough to sour anyone on Li, but it's also nowhere near strong enough to bring him any converts either. This is pretty much martial arts by the numbers here, except in a few moments where the film flares to life. But it hardly ever thinks outside the box, and it ends up leaving you wanting more the more that films like House of Flying Daggers delivers.
Li plays Huo Yuanjia, a Chinese martial artist who lived in the second half of the nineteenth century and who founded the Jin Wu Sports Federation, a competitive martial arts arena that accepted all forms and favored none. Huo's story is somewhat familiar in this genre; growing up he sees his father shamed in a fight and vows to be the greatest fighter in the land. Through hard work and discipline he achieves that goal, but then it goes to his head, his whole world becomes fighting, and soon his ego and reputation mean everything to him blah blah blah, we've seen this before. And just like most protagonists, Huo has a third act revelation and spends the rest of his life trying to atone for his sins and his pride (you don't even have to dip in the martial arts films to get this story. See also The Last Samurai). Huo then uses his skill and newfound humility as an example to others on how not to use fighting as an end unto itself (some 30-odd years ago Bruce Lee summed up this outlook as "the art of fighting without fighting").
So the story's really nothing new, but that's hardly why you go to a Jet Li picture now, is it? Yes, the fights are pretty good; one match set on a high platform is a real eye-opener, though the match where pride overcomes Huo is set in a restaurant and flashes the viewer back to the similar but better sequence in Crouching Tiger. What Fearless does have going for it is a nice dose of Chinese pride; set in an area of enforced modernization and encroaching westernism (nicely reinforced in a subtle way through costuming and a hilarious but where Huo tries coffee), Huo's insistence on remaining true to his Chinese roots and his belief in them give a nice lift to an otherwise tired concept.
Though Li has said this is his last martial arts epic, by now you know enough about him and his movies to know whether you'll enjoy them or not. Fearless isn't bad enough to sour anyone on Li, but it's also nowhere near strong enough to bring him any converts either. This is pretty much martial arts by the numbers here, except in a few moments where the film flares to life. But it hardly ever thinks outside the box, and it ends up leaving you wanting more the more that films like House of Flying Daggers delivers.