Customer Reviews

The Master

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

This movie definitely does not meet any expectations. The acting is horrible, the plot is simplistic, the action leaves a lot to be desired. Not Jet's best work. I would consider this a D movie, let alone a C or B movie.

Definitely check out any/all of the following: 1). Fist of Legend 2). My Father is a Hero (The Enforcer in USA) 3). Fong Sai Yuk 4). Once upon a time in China (all 4 of them) 5). Swordsman II

Some of his other descent works: Hitman, The New Legend of Shaolin, High Risk, Black Mask,

i know that a few people thought this movie didnt have enough fight scenes or what they were looking for. you cant expect fight scenes every 10 minutes in every single movie he was in. if you relax and just enjoy a good movie....then i think you can appreciate this movie for what it is. i thought it had a good amount of fight scenes with great humor. i laughed through out the whole movie. for those of you who does understand cantonese would probably understand the humor more....but to those who doesnt...there is english subtitles. the quality of the movie is not that great...it looked like it was transferred from vhs..because this is kind of an older movie. this movie is about a sifu(kungfu teacher)who gets challenged by his ex-white student who had no respect for his teacher and wanted to take over. when the sifu gets attacked....jet li. his student from hong kong comes to america and finds out what happened and teaches them a lesson. jet li is awesome as always. this movie really showcased some of his wu shu style...his real fighting skills that are masked up by newer movies like romeo must die, etc. i wish hollywood would make a movie with him showcasing his real skills to the american audiences who have never seen his real fighting abilities. i love this movie....and i plan to buy the dvd. i recommend to all to watch even if you dont plan to buy the dvd. jet li is hot as alway ;D

It was an interesting movie but lacked the Jet Li spark that I love so much. The story line was too straight forward and predictable. The fighting sceens were to basic and still Jet Li looked flawless as he proformed. If you are a big Jet Li fan then you should buy the movie but if you just a action fan you shouldn'n.

This DVD The Master, with Jet Li, is wonderful. Admittedly it may initially disappoint, but this should only happen on first viewing. It is a movie that requires attention to detail (as all masterpieces do) and knowledge of other martial arts movies and legends. Nonetheless, after first viewing (during which time the proverbial penny should drop and deeper understanding commence), there are amazing viewing rewards! In fact, if you should ever want to show off your knowledge to others of the deeper purpose of martial arts and/or Jet Li, well, this is definitely THE movie to have!

First, though, to find the deeper story! So, to help the penny drop and to help find full appreciation of the consummate mastery of this Tsui Hark movie (especially its script), consider the possibility that the Master = Bruce Lee, the first internationally-recognized master of martial arts. On another level, to move closer to the story's higher purpose, consider the Master as the true spirit and/or reason for the practice of martial arts.

Second, consider the possibility that the movie is an extremely respectful criticism of the post-Bruce-Lee commercialism of martial arts (and the resultant use of martial arts in street violence).

Finally, consider the possibility that the martial arts people of the East saw a need to reinforce (via another master: Jet Li) the true spirit and/or reason of martial arts to the people of the West. This last point helps explain why the movie is set in modern-times and why it deliberately avoided the high-wire tricks; the movie is introducing to America the real martial arts mastery of Jet Li. In so doing, it is dealing with real social/cultural issues in a real way with a real and meaningful answer; for that answer watch the non-preaching and non-judgmental corrections to violence in this specific movie!

Now, to match the above viewing suggestions to the movie! The Master opens with the master as a doctor who is physically healing and attempting to mentally heal/warn/correct a macho streetfighter type. In fact, the movie actually links this doctor (via the Po Chi Lum herbal medicine shop) to Wong Fei-Hung. Wong Fei-Hung, you may recall, was the master from Once Upon A Time in China: an all-but-divine hero in Chinese martial arts history who was born in 1849 and who inherited a herbal medicine shop call Po Chi Lum, a shop where he also taught Kung Fu! The dimension and breadth of the movie should now start to tease sensibilities into a state of alertness! Jet Li, of course, had already starred as Wong Fei-Hung in earlier movies (and how!) but, because there is a higher purpose to this story than pure commerce-driven martial arts entertainment, Jet Li does not play the role he immortalized for cinema-goers. Instead, Jet Li plays one of this master's students! Why? Well, in brief, Jet Li is paying homage to the mastering spirits and legacy of martial arts. Why? Well, in brief, that's the lesson the West needs to re-learn; otherwise, the martial arts can be used for violence and destruction, not personal and community peace and safety.

At this point, consider the role that Jet Li plays in this movie: like his master, he is a healer (i.e. of the policemen's ulcers, which also suggests the authorities have not quite learned how to correct and stomach street violence! So, the movie has a social critique at work too! Truly, this story gathers to a giddying greatness the more it is meditated upon! It's great! Then, of course, Jet Li is a man of peace despite, and because of, his great martial arts skills. This is why he won't teach the Latino gang the martial arts (because they will use such skills violently for personal ends, not to help ensure personal and public peace; later in the story, Jet Li teaches them enough to protect themselves. This is a very fine edge of difference; but a critical difference! Jet Li is also a worldly innocent (as beautifully and humorously demonstrated by the one-sided romance).

Of course, all Jet Li's don't-call-me-master positive qualities are in sharp contrast to the call-me-master "bad" student's ego-driven mistakes (including the mistake of never having learned what the true purpose of martial arts actually is i.e. mastery over self and the resultant increasingly-perfected personal path to peace! So, as the bad student very capably shows, to challenge and/or kill a master = to lose directions to the true meaning of martial arts = to not be a master; regardless of physical prowess = to be killed by the self as a martial arts exponent). To become a true master (and, thus, find the invisible hands of non-terrestrial-power making you effortlessly invincible), this movie suggests, requires a full willingness to place martial arts in the service of humanity ....!

Actually, enough ... it is time to stop! It will take a book or two to explain this movie ... it is great! There are problems for viewers, certainly, because both before and after this specific movie, Jet Li starred in some of the most sublime action/martial arts movies in the history of world cinema; nevertheless, The Master is also an awesome achievement once the deeper story starts to become visible! Be patient with this movie, it will reward ... a masterpiece is patiently and respectfully waiting to speak to you! Be warned: when the glory of the story starts to gather momentum, your eyes will widen and smiles will arrive like a thousand chuckling sunrises! A masterpiece of reverence for life and community spirit has been scripted here and, as is clear from the fact that he doesn't play Wong Fei-Hung (the master), Jet Li clearly demonstrates his accord with the spiritual values offered by the infinitely disciplined, fully loving immortal heart of martial arts!

Some people had strong criticisms of this film. I thought the film was entertaining though. Yeah sure, I'd agree that there was no wire work, and that the fight scenes wern't quite as spectaculor as his more recent films. But that dos'nt make it a bad film.

It's set in the late eighties and in LA. Why should it have wire work? It would'nt fit. The fight scenes are filmed fairly well and look down to earth. The plot is fun and quite humourous. Especially Jet Li's American counterparts. Jet Li is his usually respectable self looking out for the under dogs.

There's a skilled American villan, Jonny, with a signature late eighties hair cut. He does a good job of playing the over confident jerk. (similar to the cocky kid in the Karate Kid) There's several confrontations between Jet's crew and Jonny's student lackies until the finale at the end.

In the end this film should be viewed as a fun down to earth Kung Fu flick. It was'nt meant to be the next kung fu master piece. If watched in the right light it should be a fun and familiar(if from the US and LA in particular) addition to your Jet Li collection.

This is a showcase of Jet Li's brand of martial arts...fast and furious. While this is no Fist Of Legend the movie has enough action to keep the exitement going. What I did'nt anticipate was the humor. Absolutely lots of laughs to pick up where the action stops. Once persons are prepared to judge this movie on it's own merit they will see that this movie was worth buying.

In 1989 one might have asked, "who is Jet Li?" But if you asked me, I would have boasted that he is a great martial artist. I could say this because I Also Starred with him in this movie. I played the part of Ruben (the short Latino gang member) :-). Let me first start off my critique of this movie by saying that I'd like to thank all those who took the time to share their thoughts with this forum. I personally thought the movie was full of down-to-earth, believable action. The overall acting is not that great, but the fights scenes are awesome. This movie could be enjoyable if you look pass the Hong Hong style of acting.

Although, Jet Li has better movies out on video and VCD, I thought this movie was entertaining and funny. Any Jet Li fan would like this movie for it's simple story line, yet awesome fight sequences. It was funny to see the 3 L.A. pseudo- street gangsters following Jet Li around after they failed to steal his luggage. It's entertaining to watch.

This film is ridiculous, and can't be taken seriously. Terrible actors working with a poorly written script makes for some pretty funny moments... "Dig this pops, it's time for me and you to throw down." Throw in a few mullets, some bad guys wearing leather jackets with no shirts on underneath, and a dude with gold beaded braids that actually shoots himself in the chest 3 times with a single pump shotgun while trying to kill Jet Li... and you've got, "the master". Most of the fighting is also sub-par, so yeah pretty much the only redeeming feature of the movie is how terrible it is.

"The Master" is definitely one of the less-venerated Jet Li vehicles. To a casual viewer, it's kind of neat to see an earlier film of his that's not an overt period piece, but serious fans will know better. What we have here is an easy-to-watch, easy-to-forget fish-out-of-water story similar to Rumble in the Bronx but not nearly as good. At this point in his career, Li was only beginning to form his own style of action movie and was still prone to the strange whims of his directors, and in this case, it's Tsui Hark (Zu Warriors) who's responsible for some of the questionable weirdness that kept this movie from shining.

The story: martial arts student Jet (Li) travels to America to find his master (Yuen Wah, Kung Fu Hustle) missing. In the process of trying to find his teacher and adapt to American life as a tourist, he must confront the evil intentions of dojo leader Jonny (Jerry Trimble), who's responsible for his master's disappearance.

Champion kickboxer Jerry Trimble was an interesting choice for a lead villain in a Jet Li movie. Not a very tall man, he nonetheless towers over Li, bearing a mullet and an arrogant smirk fit only for a Caucasian villain in a Hong Kong film. He'd later pursue a solo career in B-movies like Live by the Fist, but I think it's safe to say that he looked most impressive while trading blows with Li in this one. He certainly compliments Li, Wah, henchman Steven Ho (fight double in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II), and several other boisterous fighters of the movie who'd rarely be seen again, but the reason he's not better known these days is probably due this one's fights not really standing out from Li's other fare. Though roundly competent and quite bloody, these aren't the fastest, most creative, or tightly-edited matches Hong Kong has to offer: while you'll get your fix, there's nothing here to make your mouth drop in awe like in, say, Once Upon a Time in China 2.

The non-fighting aspects of the flick are interesting in their own regard. Have fun guessing for yourself the reason behind Jonny's desire to attack all the martial arts masters he can find and why he's so determined to go after Jet's teacher in particular - that part's left very ambiguous. Co-stars include Anne Rickets as a motorcycle-riding tomboy who shacks up the old master in her trailer home, and three young Latinos (the most notable of which is Derek Annunciation of Mad Dog and Glory) who rob Jet and then follow him around obsessively, trying to get him to teach them kung fu. He doesn't, per se, but teaches them to hit dodgeballs with sticks, and somehow this makes them worthy opponents against Jonny's gang. Crystal Kwok, whose sole claim to fame is a small role in Dragons Forever, is featured as a reporter who has limited importance to the story but nonetheless gets into a quasi-romantic angle with Jet. Amusingly, the film is a mini-opus of how goofy the Chinese thought Americans acted back in the 80s, so prepare yourself for plenty of head-shaking.

There are enough differences between the Hong Kong release and the American "Jet Li Collection" version to warrant an examination. The Hong Kong version is uncut, featuring a few scenes not shown in the other, but also features instances of debilitating "pan & scan" image cropping during fight scenes. I'm not sure if the American release is also reformatted, but it replaces some of the soundtrack for a more bombastic score (I prefer this one, actually) and, while only featuring an English language track, dubs the voices of the American characters better. The humor definitely makes more sense in the Hong Kong edition, but don't let that be a determining factor for you - you're up for a very goofy movie, either way.