Barnes & Noble

After starring in a string of contemporary urban action hits such as Super Cop and Crime Story, Hong Kong martial arts hero Jackie Chan returned to his roots, so to speak, with this kinetic comedy set in 19th-century China. The result is one of Chan’s best films of the '90s -- and one that was unavailable in the States until Miramax, which bought the rights years ago, released this dubbed, reedited version. Reviving the character of his 1978 hit Drunken Master, Chan plays a kung fu fighter who can only unleash his true power when thoroughly tanked. The plot, involving stolen Chinese artifacts and evil British industrialists, gives the seemingly ageless star numerous opportunities to pull off some of the most intricately staged and spectacular fights of his career. The drunken buffoonery adds to the slapstick element, a delightful throwback to the innocent antics of silent-era comedy. The film gets an extra boost from leading lady Anita Mui, the regal star of Stanley Kwan’s exquisite ghost story, Rouge. Here, Mui does a terrific comic turn as Chan’s feisty young stepmother, who urges him to greater heights of boozy brawling. Sumptuous sets and costumes give Legend a lush period feel that is somewhat undercut by Miramax’s cheesy English dubbing, apparently a bid to attract subtitle-shy American audiences. The studio needn’t have worried: The Legend of Drunken Master is a winner in any language. Kryssa Schemmerling

All Movie Guide

Jackie Chan returns in one of his greatest roles in this action-comedy sequel to his 1978 Hong Kong blockbuster Drunken Master. Wong Fei Hong (Chan) is a young master of the martial art of "drunken boxing," in which fighters use alcohol to blind themselves to pain and release the angry brawler within; with the right amount of drinks under his belt, Hong can become a furious one-man army. Hong accompanies his father (Ti Lung) on a voyage to China, where they purchase a precious supply of ginseng. When Hong discovers thugs stealing from their luggage, he leaps into action to get their belongings back. Instead, he winds up with a box of valuable Chinese artifacts, which criminals are hoping to smuggle to England at a tremendous profit. Hong sets out to fight the gangsters and give the artifacts back to their rightful owners, but while his stepmother (Anita Mui) encourages him to use his drunken boxing skills, his father feels his boozy antics bring shame to the family. Jackie Chan brought some of his most elaborate stunt work to Drunken Master 2, including a remarkable fight on a bed of hot coals; Chan also directed part of the film, after Lau Kar Leung was fired after a number of disagreements with his star. Six years after it became a box office hit in Asia, Drunken Master 2 earned a theatrical release in the United States; the film was re-titled Legend Of The Drunken Master (in part because the original Drunken Master never had a proper theatrical release in America), re-edited, and dubbed into English, with a new score by Michael Wandmacher. Mark Deming

Product Details

• UPC: 786936790023
• Source: DIMENSION
• Region Code: ABC
• Presentation: Wide Screen
• Time: 1:42:00
• Sales Rank: 25,255

This DVD is also available as part of a box set:

• Legend of Drunken Master & Jackie Chan's Project a 2
• Ultimate Force of Four

Features: