I get that The Man with the Iron Fists is supposed to be a homage to the badly dubbed martial arts films that aired on Saturdays, but for me, it was a waste of time until 45 minutes when it gained focus and picked up momentum. The anachronistic moments didn’t stick-neither jarring, nor enhancing. Before that, only the Geminis were semi-intriguing. The story itself is simultaneously filled with predictability, stereotypes and unanswered questions such as what is Madam Blossom’s deal and does Russell Crowe need money or is he building a castle like Jeremy Irons. When Lucy Liu is responsible for coming up with one of the best fight sequences and probably only because she worked on Kill Bill, perhaps RZA should have worked with different collaborators. I belong to the Fred Astaire school of filmmaking: I’m against chaos cinema and prefer to see as much of an uninterrupted fight as possible. I know that it is not realistic, but it should be enjoyable and beautiful. The majority of the filmed choreography was choppy and brutal, which is fine, but not my cup of tea. Give me Michelle Yeoh in her early days. Don’t get me started about all the brothel scenes-they are there to work, not have fun so the infantile idea that all the girls are just constantly in orgiastic pleasure got ridiculous after the zillionth time so for one stereotype to be switched to SPOILER
a vagina dentata reference, though more fun to watch, was equally silly. If they’re all skilled assassins, why do they have a front as a brothel? Am I missing something or was it a plot hole? I get that they had to strike BEFORE they were attacked, but if they could do that, then…. Oh well, ever since seeing Revenge starring Madeline Stowe, Kevin Costner and Anthony Quinn, I’ve always hated the elaborate trope to hurt the hero by essentially raping his woman, and I saw that one coming a mile away. Also please never have Crowe go undercover with that eyeliner and outfit! Still considering that the majority of The Man with the Iron Fists is crap, it feels like nitpicking to point out these problems, but it does tell me something about RZA’s talents, psychological flaws and maturity.