If The RZA set out to make a fairly cheesy, campy,
over-the-top kung-fu action film with some cringe-worthy performances and
dialogue, then he succeeded in droves.
And I’m fairly certain that that is the point of The Man with the Iron Fists.
For the most part that vision shone through, with some incredibly
well-executed fight set-pieces featuring copious amounts of blood. There are two issues with Iron Fists that keep it from becoming
something special (a la Black Dynamite):
an uneven tone and a story that is just all over the place.
I have no problem with films that are intentionally bad; the
aforementioned Black Dynamite is a
personal favorite – it knows exactly what it is and what it’s trying to do and
embraces it wholeheartedly. The issue
with Iron Fists is that some of the
time the film’s self-awaredness shines through during insanely terrible
dialogue and acting. Then, halfway
through the film, it gets very serious during a flashback to the Blacksmith’s
(The RZA) past as a slave in America. The
flashback is actually very cool; it’s shot in black and white with splashes of
color here and there. The problem is
that the film grinds to a complete halt during this sequence. The pacing and editing was pretty fast-paced
during the first half when the focus wasn’t on the Blacksmith. After the focus shifts back from the
Blacksmith to other events, the film picks up its pace again. This sequence is one of the more “serious”
moments in the film; the rest is relatively light-hearted and fun. I take no umbrage with introducing serious
elements, but when it’s the only part of the larger film…well then it just
feels out of place.
The story itself is just all over the place. One would assume that a film called The Man with the Iron Fists would be, in
fact, about a man with iron fists,
and that he would be the main protagonist.
In reality, there really isn’t a main protagonist. There’s more a collection of good guys that
we’re rooting for. We aren’t really
introduced to the Blacksmith until that flashback sequence. Before that he was just a character that we
saw make some weapons. The real focus of
the narrative revolves around a shipment of gold being transported to northern
China. Several factions want the gold,
with the Blacksmith getting caught in the middle. The veritable iron fists don’t show up until
the last 30 minutes of the film, and even then they aren’t the main focus. Yes, they’re featured in a cool fight against Brass Body (Dave Bautista) in the finale, but I honestly cared more about the gold
and Russell Crowe’s Jack Knife than the Blacksmith and his mission of revenge.
The film really should’ve been called Jack Knife, because Crowe’s character is the most interesting and
intriguing character in the film. And he
carries a ridiculous spinning knife/gun thing.
He’s a lone gunman who just shows up and eviscerates a dude to free up a
prostitute. We don’t really know who he
is and why he’s there until the third act, and even then he was still the best
character in the film. There should’ve
either been an entire film devoted to his character OR the Blacksmith’s, not an
amalgamation of several storylines that just get jumbled together.
Don’t get me wrong, I had a blast with Iron Fists. It’s cheesy and over the top in all the best
ways; Crowe just chews scenery as Jack Knife.
The kung fu set pieces are akin to something like Kill Bill; heads are uppercutted off of their torsos, chest
cavities ruptured, and arteries severed ad naseum. Rick Yune’s Zen Yi wears a badass black suit of
armor that has retractable spikes on almost every surface. Lucy Liu gets in on the action, decapitating
bad guys with a spinning blade-tipped fan.
There is just so much fun to be had with this movie if you don’t take
any of it seriously (except the parts where they want you to take it seriously).
If you’ve seen any of the trailers then you know pretty much
what you’re getting into here. Despite
some major hang-ups with its jumbled story and iffy acting, Iron Fists is just plain, gory fun. Check your higher brain functions at the door
and just sit back and enjoy.
The Man with the Iron
Fists is a flawed but incredibly fun kung-fu action film.
The Bearded Bullet
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