Kung Fu Games is a great fight thriller that's intense, edgy and fast-paced. From the opening scenes, I was totally invested in how (or if) the fighters would get out of the situation they found themselves in.
The storyline has a certain simplicity with understated characterisation in contrast with deliberate exaggeration in the acting, dialogue and fight choreography, which makes the film surprisingly compelling. The actors did a great job of conveying the vision of the writer/director/production company to produce a back-to-basics martial arts action movie that pays homage to the last century Bruce Lee / Kung Fu action films.
It's refreshing to discover that all the actors fighting in the deadly game have martial arts backgrounds in real life, and they did all their own fight stunts. No body doubles. This is reminiscent of Jackie Chan films from the good-old days. Inspiring to see a US based film company with the vision to offer a platform for such immense talent such as Mark Strange, Caitlin Dechelle and Jade Xu. Looking forward to the possibility of a sequel, and seeing more from these actors.
Kung Fu Games stands out for standing out. It's different even though the premise isn't new. It breaks rules, and is audacious and entertaining. It has all the ingredients of becoming a cult classic movie. Bravo!
