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| Fearless |
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  (7/10)
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Runtime: 105 |
| Public Rating: 9.35 (26 votes) |
Director: Ronny Yu |
MPAA Rating:  |
| Genre: Action |
Year: 2003 |
| Writer(s): Wang Bin, Chris Chow, Christine To & Li Feng |
| Distributor: Rogue Pictures |
| Reviewed by: Le Apprenti |
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Dubbed as "Jet Li’s most important movie ever", and unofficially referred to as his last martial arts movie – because he wants to move to dramatic roles to be taken seriously as an actor – Fearless is a mythical account of Huo Yuanjia (1868-1910), wushu master and founder of Jin Wu Sports Federation. It was – in Li’s own words – intended to be a public statement to the International Olympic Committee to include wushu as an Olympic sport in Beijing 2008, except it was 143 minutes long and felt too slow. So director Ronny Yu, in agreement with Li, trimmed it down to 105 minutes, discarding among other things Huo’s fight with a Thai kickboxer, and Michelle Yeoh’s cameo as an Olympic official narrating the story of Huo Yuanjia. The result is a briskly paced, almost non-stop action of a martial arts flick.
Fearless the movie is basically key details of his life tailored to the plot formula of a hero’s rise, fall and subsequent rise again. A skeletal framework accommodates the fight sequences, which seem to come on every 5 minutes or less and form the bulk of the film. Act I briefly traces Huo’s childhood during which his ambition to be undefeated is forged, and into his adulthood where the ambition gets the better of him with tragic consequences. The short Act II shows Huo fleeing civilization to a life of a farmhand in an idyllic remote village where he learns humility, integrity and character. Then Act III brings him back into the urban world several years later to witness his country 'polluted' with all manner of European and American culture, and a condescending attitude by those cultures towards the Chinese ala "Sick Men of Asia".
The serene Act II provides the only 'wind down' moment from the barrage of fight sequences of the preceding and succeeding acts. The village scene brings forth an entire culture untouched by urban and social ills – including martial arts rivalries. Workers work hard and welcome the breath of fresh air at the appointed moments. Huo strikes a relationship with the blind village girl Yueci (Betty Sun) with potential for romance. The scriptwriting in this scene does not raise any bars but allow a short moment for viewers to catch their breaths.
Li's deep roots in wushu makes him a perfect fit in the role of Huo Yuanjia. But that is not saying much given Fearless’ form of a standard wu-xia flick as opposed to being a biopic. The galore of fight sequences, choreographed by the incomparable Yuen Woon-Ping, makes it the ultimate treat for wu-xia fans. The action kicks off right from the start, opening with a trio of Huo vs. foreign-bred-champions matches pitting Huo Yuanjia, representing China, against the supposed best fighters of the world. From Jean Claude Leuyer as British boxing champion, to Brandon Rhea as European champion spearman, and then to Anthony De Longis as Spanish champion swordsman. (Yes, Huo beats them all. Shouldn't he?) Fast, furious and galvanizing, they are collectively a foretaste of what is to come. Among the highlights, first is a clash between Huo’s father and his rival, which is then answered by a return match between their sons. The latter fight, executed on a wooden platform of at least 50 feet high, while thrilling looks fake in parts. The wirework is awfully conspicuous, especially when Li (as Huo) suspends or leaps around off the edge of the platform. Following that is a series of squash matches, the last of which harks to the battle between Neo versus a hundred Agent Smiths from Matrix: Reloaded.
Huo's fight against Master Qin is a thrilling battle of swords followed by hand-to-hand, and the last fight sequence before the serene Act II takes over. Then Act III returns full throttle with the most interesting match of the film, pitting Huo against a colossal American boxer Hercules O'Brien (Australian powerlifter and wrestler Nathan Jones). This match has a distinction of being the least one-sided. However, the finale match proves to be the sole disappointment. The story returns to the opening Huo vs. European champions venue, with being Shido Nakamura as Japan's champion Tanaka being Huo's final opponent. Huo has to take a fall for the sake of the storyline, which thereby takes away what could have been a potentially thrilling Sino-Japanese clash. Never mind how Huo could have known if it is a poison or a sedative drug that takes him out, but that he continues fighting in spite of that and have his hand raised in victory (by a Japanese to boot, even though he clearly lost) take away all sensibility. All for the overly sentimental ending that displays cultural and nationalist pride. If by this point you still think Fearless is a true story, this part removes all doubts. (See also the "Companion Guide".)
Huo is prepped in the film to be a vain, self-centered top fighter of his town of Tian Jin. That means defeating, which includes crippling and even killing, every opponent that challenges him. However, no actual insight is made into Huo’s actual life. No exploration of what drives him or makes him tick, only what he represents as a symbol of China’s rich martial arts heritage. It is akin to using the likeness of a celebrity to promote a product. Act II provides the setting for Huo’s 180-degree change of character so that he returns in Act III humble, wise and of every good virtue you expect in a heroic figure. A cliché approach that seemingly disavows his vain, prideful actions of Act I. Clearly, Fearless is not a biopic (unless the Chinese filmmakers have a rather propagandistic definition of a biopic), so the issue of retribution that could be taken by the guys (if not friends of theirs) Huo whooped can be disregarded.
Yet this stark drawback is more than compensated by the preceding action sequences, each one every bit as exciting. Fearless is a terrific wu-xia flick, and that is an understatement. Collin Chou plays Huo’s father Huo Endi, Bao Qijing as Huo’s mother, and Masato Harada in a sort-of reprise role from The Last Samurai as conniving Japanese businessman Mr. Mita.
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 Printable Version
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Given the obvious mythic account of Huo Yuanjia as presented in Fearless, the film and its filmmakers are subjects of a lawsuit filed by Huo's actual surviving kins on March 7, 2006. According to Huo’s grandson Huo Shoujin, among the film's "untruthful details" include:
- Huo Yuanjia had no surviving descendants. Fact: He is survived by 7 grandsons and 11 great-grandchildren.
- Huo was wealthy. Fact: He came from a working class family in which farming was their primary source of income.
- Huo’s uncharacteristic arrogance and self-centeredness as presented in the film were contrary to the actual person.
- Huo is an only child. Fact: He is the fourth of ten children.
In addition:
- Nong Jinsun ran a pharmacy in real life. He did not own a restaurant.
- The entire Act II – Huo is rescued and works as a farmhand in a remote village – never actually happened.
- O’Brien was a British (not American) boxer but he never fought Huo. Even though O’Brien did taunt the Chinese, and a match between him and Huo had been scheduled, O'Brien reportedly was so intimidated by Huo's show of courage that he did not show up.
- When Huo Yuanjia founded it on June 1, 1910, the original name for the Jing Wu Sports Association was "China Jing Wu Gymnastics Association".
- The cause of Huo Yuanjia's death is not clear. He did die of poisoning, but not during a match. According to one version, it was by a combination of jaundice contacted a few months earlier and medicine laced with poison prescribed by a Japanese physician. In another account, it was the poison alone – by causing his lung tissue to break down. In the Bruce Lee film Fist of Fury (1972), Huo was poisoned by a housekeeper and a cook, both Japanese moles sent by the competing Japanese martial arts school.
- Some disagreement over the year of his death. Some sources stated 1909 (at the age of 41), while others – including the film – had 1910 (at the age of 42).
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