Director: Yuen Wo-Ping
Screenplay: Kim Yip Kwong-Kim
Starring: Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, Chin Siu-Ho, Fennie Yuen Kit-Ying, Hai Yu, Yuen Cheung-Yan, Shun Lau, Chow Gam-Kong
Country: Hong Kong
Running Time: 95 min
Year: 1993
BBFC Certificate: 15
Tai-Chi Master (a.k.a. Twin Warriors or Tai gik Cheung Sam Fung) is a film I first saw back in the early 2000s, when I was beginning to delve into the world of martial arts movies, following the boom that came after the successes of The Matrix and Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.
The only version of Tai-Chi Master available to me back then though was the slightly edited, rescored English dub version under the Twin Warriors name. I know a lot of kung-fu fans prefer dubbed versions of the films, but I don’t get on with them. I find the poor lip-syncing and usually ropey delivery far too distracting. As such, whilst I loved the action on display in Tai-Chi Master, the presentation soured me slightly on the film as a whole.
Subsequent releases have rectified the problem, reinstating the Cantonese dialogue and music. However, for whatever reason, I never upgraded my DVD copy.
Now that 88 Films have announced they’re releasing Tai-Chi Master on Blu-ray and UHD though, I felt it was finally time to watch the film in its original form. My thoughts follow.
Tai-Chi Master centres around two young monks, Gwanbou (Jet Li) and Tienbou (Chin Siu Ho), lifelong friends who are expelled from their Shaolin Temple for Tienbou’s violent actions. They venture into the outside world, where they encounter and befriend two women named Miss Li (Fennie Yuen) and Siu-lin (Michelle Yeoh) and become involved in local conflicts.
Gwanbou and Tienbou’s paths diverge, however, as Tienbou seeks wealth and power, while Gwanbou remains loyal to his principles. Tienbou joins the army under the corrupt governor Liu Jin (Sun Jian-kui) and swiftly works his way up the ranks, while Gwanbou fights alongside Miss Li and Siu-lin for the people against the oppressive regime.
It’s a classic tale of brotherhood and the corruption of power and greed. In this sense, and its grand period setting, Tai-Chi Master has the feel of a Chang Cheh film in places. With Yuen Woo Ping at the helm, however, more fantastical and humourous flourishes are added to make for something very much his own.
Whilst the drama here is rather broad in comparison to American and European cinema of the era, I feel it works nicely in a grand, operatic fashion, even if not all the emotional beats connect.
What did connect for me was Yuen Woo Ping’s choreography. The fights here won’t appeal to everyone. It’s very much a ‘wire-fu’ film where many of the moves are enhanced by physics-defying flourishes. As such, those looking for bone-crunching realism will be sorely disappointed.
However, Yuen ensures that the titular martial art is respectfully represented amongst the superhuman leaps and bounds. Plus, if you can get past the clearly wire-assisted enhancements, you’re treated to some stunningly inventive and dynamic choreography that cleverly uses props, weapons and sets, whilst showcasing the skills of its stars.
The film is also one of the more handsome Hong Kong productions of the era. There’s some atmospheric lighting, aided by good use of the elements, as well as some interesting camera shots. Some large-scale battles with plenty of extras add to the film’s epic quality too, on top of bold uses of colour, particularly reds.
Overall then, Tai-Chi Master is a grand period kung-fu melodrama with superb wire-fu fight scenes laid out on a handsome canvas. I enjoyed it a great deal, even if it might not be to everyone’s tastes.
Film: 
Tai-Chi Master is out on 7th October on UHD + region B Blu-ray, as well as a solo Blu-Ray package, released by 88 Films (pre-order it here). I watched the Blu-ray version and I thought the film looked good. There’s a fairly thick grain, particularly the darker scenes, but this looks natural and colours are pleasing. I’ve used screengrabs throughout this review to give you an idea of how it looks. It sounds great too. Some may complain about the lack of English dub but I’m glad to be rid of it after only having seen that poorer version previously.
SPECIAL FEATURES:
– Brand new 4K Remaster from the Original Negatives in original 1.85:1 Aspect Ratio
– Presented in High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray
– Cantonese Mono
– Optional English Subtitles
– Nemesis: Interview with star Chin Siu-Ho
– The Birthplace of Tai Chi: On Location in Chen Village
– Twin Warriors: Director Brett Ratner and Critic Elvis Mitchell on stars Jet Li
and Michelle Yeoh
– Export Opening Credits
– Theatrical Trailer
– Reversible sleeve featuring new artwork by Sam Green & original poster
LIMITED FEATURES
– Slipcase, booklet and poster
– Booklet notes from Tom Cunliffe & Paul Bramhall
In his interview, Chin Siu-Ho begins by talking about how he first got into martial arts and filmmaking, describing his early work at Shaw Brothers under the great Chang Cheh. He then goes on to talk about making Tai Chi Master and working with Yuen Woo-Ping. He’s honest on saying how he personally prefers the less ‘enhanced’ fighting in the martial arts movies of directors like Sammi Hung but how he still appreciates Yuen’s approach and enjoyed working with him a great deal. It’s a decent piece.
‘The Birthplace of Tai Chi’ is a nice little featurette that looks at the development of the martial art and demonstrates its qualities. It’s worth watching for those interested in Tai Chi itself.
The piece with Brett Ratner and Elvis Mitchell is, to be honest, not of great value. It sees the filmmaker and critic both acting like fanboys, singing the praises of Jet Li and Michelle Yeoh but not saying anything particularly illuminating on either subject.
So, it’s not one of 88 Films’ more loaded releases but the film looks great and I’m very happy to finally have it on Blu-ray and 4k.
Disc/package:
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