The Man with the Iron Fists (2011)
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A series of lone warriors are forced to unite to defeat a common foe and save their home of Jungle Village.
The story
Set in 19th-century China, Jungle Village is home to several warring clans. The village blacksmith creates deadly weapons for the clans, intending to use his payments to purchase the freedom of his lover Lady Silk. When the region's governor tasks the Lion Clan's leader, Gold Lion, with protecting a large shipment of gold, Gold is betrayed by his lieutenants. Gold's son, Zen-Yi, learns of his father's murder and sets off to the village to seek revenge. Meanwhile, the Qing Emperor's undercover emissary, Jack Knife, arrives in the village to monitor the gold shipment.
Full plot (contains spoilers)
In 19th-century China, the village blacksmith creates weapons for warring clans to free his lover, Lady Silk. When Gold Lion of the Lion Clan is murdered by his own lieutenants, Silver and Bronze, for a gold shipment, his son Zen-Yi seeks revenge. Zen-Yi arrives at Jungle Village but is confronted by the mercenary Brass Body, whose skin turns to metal. Zen-Yi's men are defeated, but the blacksmith rescues Zen-Yi. Meanwhile, the emissary Jack Knife investigates the gold shipment and discovers the Lions' theft. The blacksmith, an emancipated slave who gained superhuman abilities from monks, helps Jack craft iron forearms. Zen-Yi joins them. The Lions hide the gold in a brothel run by Madam Blossom. During a confrontation, Blossom's 'Black Widows' poison the Lions. Zen-Yi and Jack join the fight. Zen-Yi kills Silver, while the blacksmith uses his iron fists to shatter the invincible Brass Body. Jack leaves with the gold, and the blacksmith vows to keep the village safe.
- First release year
- 2012
- Runtime (minutes)
- 96
- Production countries
- United States
- Original languages
- English
- Directors
- RZA
- Writers
- RZA · screenplay; Eli Roth · screenplay; RZA · story
- Cast and characters
- RZA · Blacksmith / The Man with the Iron Fists; Russell Crowe · Jack Knife; Cung Le · Bronze Lion; Lucy Liu · Madam Blossom; Byron Mann · Silver Lion; Rick Yune · Zen-Yi, The X-Blade; David Bautista · Brass Body; Jamie Chung · Lady Silk
- Genres
- martial arts; action; fantasy
- Themes
- revenge; freedom; martial arts tradition
- Tone and mood
- violent; spectacle; epic
- Premise and plot tags
- martial arts; fantasy; revenge; historical
- Franchise connections
- The Man with the Iron Fists
- Reception
- The film received mixed reviews from critics, who were divided over its homage to martial arts films, praising the choreography and performances but criticizing the direction and script's uneven tone.
- Reported review scores
- Metacritic · score: 51 · scale: 100 · review count: 18; CinemaScore · score: C+ · scale: A+ to F
- Awards and nominations
- Golden Fleece · nomination · 2013 · nomination; Best Wildposts · nomination · 2013 · nomination; Best Original or Adapted Song · nomination · 2013 · nomination
- Production trivia
- RZA trained in Hung Ga for 1–2 hours a day over 2 months in preparation for his role.; The character Jack Knife was partly inspired by RZA's late cousin Ol' Dirty Bastard.; The film was originally intended to be a crossover with Django Unchained.
Film metadata comes from the open sources listed in Credits & Contact. Catalogue details may be incomplete.
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