Jet Li does not disappoint in his final martial arts epic, Jet Li's Fearless. I'd rank it as one of the best Li films I've seen, and the guy's been in a lot.
But before I get into why this movie is awesome -- and it is -- I should clarify what Li's retirement signifies. He's not done making films or even done making action films (he just wrapped on action thriller Rogue with Jason Statham), he's just done doing the particular genre of historical kung fu flicks know as the martial arts epic: Films like Hero and Once Upon a Time in China. This is sad in its own right, but at least Li hasn't totally retired.
Fearless has a lot going for it, aside from its allure as Li's farewell to the genre. First of all, there's the action. It's choreographed by Woo-ping Yuen who's best known for his work on Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The action of Fearless is in a similar vein, which isn't a bad thing, but the film also refreshingly maintains a level of bone-crunching intensity sometimes lost in movies that employ lots of wire fighting. Li is on point and throws out some of the most acrobatic and controlled fighting of his career (if only we could all kick so much ass at 43). Supporting fighters offer some impressive physical performances as well, especially Shido Nakamura, who plays a Japanese swordsman, and the superhumanly-huge former world's strongest man Nathan Jones.
What may surprise audiences about Fearless is the quality of its storytelling. To a certain extent, the film is a standard redemption story. Huo Yuanjia (Li's character) starts things off as an arrogant and power-hungry young man obsessed only with winning. Without giving too much away, Yuanjia's pride leads him to tragedy, and the crux of the film deals with him atoning for the mistakes of his past and finding a "better way." What sets Fearless apart is the level of emotional resonance found in its characters. Li's performance makes you care about more than how many people he kicks in the face. His acting and fighting offer a unique combination of brutality and emotion that makes for a genuinely powerful cinematic experience. At the end of Fearless, I looked at my fellow audiences members and many were actually teary eyed -- a rare thing to see after a martial arts movie.
Fearless isn't without its flaws. It lacks some of the high-quality visual texture found in films like Hero and House of Flying Daggers. There are also 40-plus minutes cut from the American release of the film. This was apparently done to keep things more action-oriented, but at certain points, it does feel as if Fearless has been truncated (I guess there's always the inevitable extended DVD).
All things considered, however, these are fairly minor quibbles. Fearless isn't just a good kung fu movie, it's a good movie in general. It's arguably Jet Li's best dramatic performance and definitely one of his better physical showings. Fans of Li and martial arts films should appreciate this well-crafted farewell.
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