Brother Act

I thought Tai Chi Master looked familiar. I had already seen the English dubbed version, Twin Warriors. No matter, it's a great movie, and even better in the Mandarin (?) dub.

Two little monks play and grow up together. They both love kung fu, and practice and fight all the time. The smaller, more gentle monk grows up to be Jet Li, his friend Siu Hou Chin. The first scene I was sure I'd watched shows them sitting down to eat with their legs crossed - but with no chairs, just sitting over thin air. Then they start a fight with their feet under the table, eventually destroying the table. It's a virtuoso set piece, one of many in this movie.

Soon, Chin gets in serious trouble and the boys are kicked out of the monastery. To make money, they let people hit them for a penny. As a crowd pummels them, they pick up the coins - "This is the easiest job ever!" But the boys grow apart. Jet Li makes friends with some revolutionaries, including drunk Michelle Yeoh and cute Fennie Yuen. How come Michelle Yeoh is always paired with a "cute" young actress? I guess it accentuates her more mature good looks.

Meanwhile, Chin has decided to throw in with the corrupt eunuch governor. He becomes more and more brutal and power-crazed. His attack on Li's friends drive Li insane. The scenes of the mentally distracted Jet Li have a lot of humor and a little poignancy. When he discovers the principles of Tai Chi, he is restored to mental equilibrium.

This is definitely a classic. It's got great fights, a little humor, Michelle Yeoh getting drunk. What else could you ask for?