★★★½
“Mulan with a Bow”
This movie was inspired by a Chinese Opera story, The Iron Bow Romance, though obviously action’d up for the cinema. The heroine is Xiuying Chen (Meng), the feisty daughter of a former soldier, killed in no uncertain fashion, during the heroic defense of his country during the Ming Dynasty. She and her widowed mother now run a tea-shop, and her father’s heavy bow still hangs on the wall. Xiuying has vowed not to marry anyone, unless they can draw that bow. However, she comes to the attention of the slimy Lun Shi (Pan), the entitled son of a local commander. A conveniently passing martial artist, Zhong Kuang (Wang), helps her escape – in the process drawing her father’s bow.
Xiuying and Zhong have to flee, but discover proof that Lun’s father, Xulong (Li), is in bed with the enemy, diverting supplies which should go to the troops. Turns out he was also responsible for the death of Xiuying’s father. The couple – because, let’s face it, we know exactly where this is going – split up, with Xiuying taking refuge in Erlong Mountain, a hideout for all manner of rebels and outlaws. Here’s where the Mulan comparisons particularly kick in. For Xiuying disguises herself as a man in the bandit stronghold, in order to gain control of its troops and take revenge on Xulong Lun. In the original opera version, the bandit leader’s daughter falls in love with “him”; that doesn’t seem to happen here.
Indeed, even the inevitable romance between our leads is very much pushed to the background. They both have issues of their own to handle, and I was impressed that it’s Zhong who gets captured by the Luns, and dangled from the battlements like a novelty Christmas decoration. Consequently, it’s Xiuying who must rally the troops and has to face off against the enemy. Admittedly, it’s quite a small face-off, and this is where the film’s budget probably hampers it most. I’ve a feeling this was a made for TV/streaming film, rather than a theatrical releaase. Consequently, there’s maybe 15-20 people on each side. However, the emotional intensity here is top-notch, as Xiuying finally gets to confront Xulong Lun.
It provides a thoroughly satisfying finale, which certainly kicked the rating up at least a half-star. Until then, it had been a little pedestrian, and the action falls into the “competent” category, rather than offering anything too memorable. However, I liked the performances, which are all suitable for the roles, and in general, the production values are decent enough to pass muster. In another world, Disney might have chucked two hundred million dollars at a live-action remake of this legend, instead of deciding to remake Mulan. Would probably still have been underwhelming though. The entire movie is available legally on YouTube (well, I’m going to presume that’s the case for now, until proven otherwise!), and is embedded below for your entertainment.
Dir: Guoliang Wang
Star: Ke Meng, Yukai Wang, Yang Pan, Yunkai Li
a.k.a. The Legend of the Iron Bow