Legendary martial arts hero Wong Fei-Hung fights against foreign forces' plundering of China. When Aunt Yee arrives back from America, Wong Fei-Hung assumes the role of her protector.Legendary martial arts hero Wong Fei-Hung fights against foreign forces' plundering of China. When Aunt Yee arrives back from America, Wong Fei-Hung assumes the role of her protector.Legendary martial arts hero Wong Fei-Hung fights against foreign forces' plundering of China. When Aunt Yee arrives back from America, Wong Fei-Hung assumes the role of her protector.
- Awards
- 5 wins & 4 nominations
Shi-Kwan Yen
- Iron Robe Yim
- (as Yee Kwan Yan)
Storyline
Did you know
- Goofs(at around 54 mins) A 31-star US flag is seen shortly after an adult Wong Fei Hung attempts to defend the Po Chi Lam clinic from a fiery attack. The 31-star flag was used from July 4, 1851 to July 3, 1858. Wong Fei Hung was born on July 9, 1847, and so could not have been older than a few days shy of his eleventh birthday when this flag was still in use. Also, the rows of stars shown on the 31-star flag are inverted. The flag shown has rows of 7, 6, 6, 5, and 7 stars respectively (from top to bottom). The actual flag has rows of 7, 5, 6, 6, and 7 stars top to bottom.
- Alternate versionsA version distributed by 'Made in Hong Kong' UK has a running time of 140 mins. with a extra 10 minutes previously unreleased on video.
- ConnectionsFeatured in The Art of Action: Martial Arts in Motion Picture (2002)
Featured review
There's more to martial arts cinema than arthouse self-indulgence or slapstick comedy
Watched this again as an antidote to "The One". Jet Li's done some good films, some TERRIBLE films, and then again he's done a few genuine epics, like the Once upon a time in China series. These films are also among the best work of Tsui Hark.
The modern Wong Fei-Hung series contains elements of humour without being just broad slapstick (if you want kung fu comedy, rent a Jackie Chan film), but are mostly films about a troubled China where traditional values are being overwhelmed by Western style and influence. Iron-Robe Yim's line "you can't fight bullets with kung fu" resonates achingly with the failed boxer rebellion, during which chi-gung practitioners mistakenly believed they were protected from foreign guns.
Wong Fei-Hung's struggle to find an honourable, peaceful path through the collision between cultures should strike a chord with anyone who has moved on from chop-socky and realises that a kung fu movie can feature a great story as well as great cinematography.
The modern Wong Fei-Hung series contains elements of humour without being just broad slapstick (if you want kung fu comedy, rent a Jackie Chan film), but are mostly films about a troubled China where traditional values are being overwhelmed by Western style and influence. Iron-Robe Yim's line "you can't fight bullets with kung fu" resonates achingly with the failed boxer rebellion, during which chi-gung practitioners mistakenly believed they were protected from foreign guns.
Wong Fei-Hung's struggle to find an honourable, peaceful path through the collision between cultures should strike a chord with anyone who has moved on from chop-socky and realises that a kung fu movie can feature a great story as well as great cinematography.
- Fox in Socks
- Jul 15, 2002
- Permalink
Details
- Release date
- Country of origin
- Languages
- Also known as
- Once Upon a Time in China
- Production companies
- See more company credits at IMDbPro
Box office
- Gross worldwide
- $3,826,459
- Runtime2 hours 14 minutes
- Color
- Aspect ratio
- 2.35 : 1
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