Fortunately, Kung Fu Jungle (soon to be released as Kung Fu Killer in the UK) is directed by Teddy Chan, and we were big fans of their last collaboration together, 2009's Bodyguards & Assassins. Teddy also directed Purple Storm back in 1999, a personal favourite of ours at Twistedwing. Donnie plays a martial arts instructor from the police force who gets imprisoned after killing a man by accident. But when a vicious killer starts targeting martial arts masters, the instructor offers to help the police in return for his freedom.
It's a hokey premise for sure but that's just fine, Kung Fu Jungle takes itself a lot more seriously than recent Donnie offerings and is all the better for it. Wang Baoqiang (A Touch of Sin, Fairy Tale Killer) plays Fung Yu-Sau, Kung Fu Jungle's menacing big bad. He's over the top - all icy-cold stares and fiery emotion - but every step he takes amplifies the action ten fold. Baoqiang gets the lions share of the fight scenes too, an endless parade of kick-ass fighting styles and frenetic fisticuffs. Which make up for the token female characters and dubious plot developments.
With a heroic performance from Donnie, breakneck storytelling, a cooler than cool villain, star cameos aplenty and a mere spattering of wobbly CGI, Kung Fu Jungle barely pauses for breath. The final battle - an extended fight sequence on a not-so-deserted highway - is worth the price of admission alone. It's good to have you back Donnie. We'll just block out the last three years of our lives. So don't do it again.
Kung Fu Killer is released on DVD and Blu-ray in the UK on February 23, 2015.
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