The Tai Chi Master (2022) Review

“The Tai Chi Master” Poster

Director: Lin Zhenzhao
Cast: Wu Yue, Zhang Kai, Zhang Ming Can, Ada Liu, Zhang Chunzhong, Yu Hai, Lemon Li
Running Time: 90 min.

By Paul Bramhall

During the Chinese web-movie boom of the 2010’s many of them were regarded as cheap and disposable entertainment, often justifiably so, with most of them falling either into the category of cheap kung-fu flick, or even cheaper monster movie. However it’s not an industry which has stood still, and in the 2020’s the output has reached a certain level of respectability, so much so that the term ‘web-movie’ seems to have become obsolete, with the same movies now being referred to as China’s equivalent of direct-to-streaming. Not a significant upgrade, but an upgrade none the less! It’s the kung-fu flick which has led the charge, with new blood directors like Qin Pengfei, Huo Suiqiang and Bingjia Yang upping the ante of what can be done on a limited budget, populating their productions with recognisable names like Andy On, Xia Miao, Xing Yu, Tony Jaa, and Iko Uwais.

One director who’s successfully continued to crank out the heady mix of kung-fu flicks and monster movies that populated the 2010’s is Lin Zhenzhao, who’s lasting legacy will likely be the (so far) quadrilogy of Snake movies spanning 2018 – 2023 (and if you’re wondering, I recommend Snake 3: Dinosaur vs. Python). Zhenzhao was also responsible for reviving Vincent Zhao into the role of Wong Fei Hung in 2018’s Unity of Heroes, and in 2022 he gave Wu Yue the opportunity to headline a wuxia with The Tai Chi Master. Yue is one of the few actors who’s the real deal when it comes to martial arts, and first came on my radar when he fought Shawn Yu in 2015’s From Vegas to Macau 2. Since then he’s taken on a number of memorable supporting roles, with 2017 being a highlight year in which he’d show off his talents in the hattrick of God of War, Paradox, and The Brink, so to see him headlining a movie as the star feels well deserved.

Of course the elephant in the room for any fans of kung-fu cinema with a movie titled The Tai Chi Master will be if it’s connected to Yuen Woo-Ping’s 1993 classic of the same name, which starred Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh. The short answer is – yes. Yue is playing the same character that Jet Li played, with Zhang Kai (Wolf Hunters, Trivisa) playing the character that Chin Siu-Ho portrayed in the original. However that’s essentially where the similarities end, with Zhenzhao’s version transferring the shaolin backdrop of the original to a more fantasy wuxia themed take on the material. Indeed it’s a relevant question to ask how the original could be topped, and Zhenzhao’s answer appears to be by throwing in a cute kung-fu kid (played by Zhang Ming Can – Restart the Earth) and a gigantic CGI Tremors inspired silkworm.

The closest we get to Michelle Yeoh’s character is Ada Liu (The Four 3, Jian Bing Man), who it’s revealed the silkworm has been tasked with protecting, both of them residing in the forbidden territory of Insect Valley. When Yue accidentally pursues a couple of enemy soldiers into the valley he not only gets to utter the classic line “I’ll fight this big earthworm”, but he also crosses paths with Liu, becoming smitten with her mysterious aura. Of course, relationships are difficult to develop when the person you’re trying to court has an overly protective gigantic CGI silkworm never far from their side.

Sure, it may be easy to mock the latter, but then again it’s hardly the first time for a fantasy wuxia to throw in a random animal companion. From Andy Lau and his killer whale in 1992’s The Moon Warriors, to Anita Mui and her oversized crane in 1993’s The Magic Crane, so watching a massive CGI worm spitting balls of silk to neutralize the bad guys isn’t really such a stretch. In Zhenzhao’s reimagining of the source material, Yue plays a happy-go-lucky drunk who also happens to be skilled at martial arts, and hence has been entrusted by his clan with the key to the tianji iron box. The box in question is in fact an armour encasing, which is being used to imprison the villainous head of the Netherworld Clan due to his powerful qi, played by Zhang Chunzhong (Once Upon a Time in China III, Kung fu Cult Master). However when Yue’s carelessness leads to him being freed, the very fate of the Song Dynasty hangs in the balance.

Credit has to go to Zhenzhao for not only bringing in a stalwart of kung-fu cinema like Chunzhong, but also enlisting one of the original Tai Chi Master’s cast members in the form of the legendary Yu Hai (Shaolin Temple, Yellow River Fighter). Playing a senior member of the clan Yue is a part of , Hai was 80 at the time of The Tai Chi Master’s release and would sadly pass away the following year, making it his final acting role, so it’s a bittersweet experience to see him onscreen for the last time.

More than anything Zhenzhao seems to be aiming for a homage to the early 90’s new-wave wuxia period, with a cast of imaginative villains, and references to techniques like “ancient corpse immortality”. The action is handled by Chen Chao, who worked on the likes of Hidden Blade and co-directed the Fan Siu-Wong starring The Bravest Escort Group, along with go-to web movie action director You Gaofeng, who’s talents can be seen in the likes of Land Shark and Open the Tomb. Anyone expecting grounded action from a fantasy wuxia is understandably in the wrong place, however for those who like their martial arts action with a heavy dose of wirework, there’s plenty to enjoy. In the opening scene assault on a heavily fortified village the attackers use massive catapults to send winged swordsmen over the defences, recalling the crazy kite ninjas from Ching Siu-Tung’s 1983 classic Duel to the Death.

A character called the Yin Yang Judge is another highlight. An oversized man mountain who wears a 2 faced mask that can rotate 360 degrees, he carries around a huge paint brush used to gather up leaves, which after doing so sees him fire them towards his opponents in the shape of a Chinese character. He’s usually accompanied by Lemon Li (Sharktopus, Snow Monster) in a role that’s clearly riffing on Brigitte Lin’s iconic turn in Swordman 2, with her ability to project deadly strands of string that entangle and slice into anyone who gets caught up in them. While the blatant CGI rock destruction and flimsy props are never going to match the unparalleled energy of the movies that inspired The Tai Chi Master, the action has enough creativity behind it to make it enjoyable, and Yue’s eventual discovery of tai chi allows for some brief moments of grounded action.

If there’s one aspect of the production that could actually be considered superior to the original when compared in context (and I know it’s almost sacrilegious to say this), it’s that Zhenzhao’s version successfully escalates the action to an entertaining finale. My one gripe with Yuen Woo-Ping’s 1993 classic has always been that it peaks when Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, and their comrades get ambushed 2 thirds of the way through, with the final third culminating in an underwhelming fight between Li and Chin Siu-Ho. I’m in no way saying that The Tai Chi Master blows it out of the water, but with its comparative production values and narrative, Zhenzhao gets the pacing right by going with a big finale that goes all out (and by go all out, I mean, we never got Jet Li and Chin Siu-Ho battling it out within a cocoon of freshly spat silk in 1993).

Like most Chinese direct-to-streaming movies, The Tai Chi Master was never going to revolutionize the kind of wirework fuelled wuxia’s that dominated Hong Kong cinemas in the early 1990’s, but like the best of these productions, it’s content with recreating the feel of them for a modern audience. Wu Yue makes for a likeable lead and an action scene is rarely more than a few minutes away, whether it be the power of tai chi propelling someone across the screen, or a giant silkworm mercilessly devouring a helpless lackey. Cheap and disposable? Maybe, but also entertaining, and can never be accused of outstaying its welcome.

Paul Bramhall’s Rating: 6/10