We Are Legends (2019)

We Are Legends (2019)
Chinese Title: 入鐵籠
Translation: Into the Iron Cage

Starring: Lam Yiu-Sing, Edward Ma, Wiyona Yeung, Eric Kot, Yuen Qiu, Jason Li
Director: Daniel Chan
Action Director: Wong Wai-Fai, Tommy Leung Pok-Yan, Chow Kwok-Hung, Yung Ka-Wai

 

We Are Legends kinda just snuck up on me. It's on Netflix here in Brazil under the title O Rei das Lutas (transl. "The King of Fights"). I had never heard of it until I came across it while browsing Netflix Brazil's Chinese movie selection earlier this year and threw it on my queue for later watching. Now that I'm currently trying to whittle down my queue, I decided to watch this and see how it fared. In fact, I honestly thought this was one of those more obscure Mainland Chinese movies until I saw the opening credits and the names were all in Cantonese. The opening credits informs us that the film is based on true events and the closing credits informs us that the movie is loosely based on the life of MMA fighter Xiong Dixin, who has a cameo as a Sanda fighter. The movie on the whole is a pretty solid MMA drama with a lot of heart to strengthen the usual underdog story.

Jack Chiu (Call of Heroes' Edward Ma) and "Bunny" Chiu (Lam Yiu-Sing) are a pair of orphaned brothers who were adopted by wannabe martial artist Eric (Saint of Gamblers' Eric Kot). Eric raised the two at his late master's gym with the help of the latter's widow, Simo (Yuen Qiu, of Kung Fu Hustle and My Kung Fu Sweetheart). Both of them have studied the martial arts since childhood, but by the time they reach adulthood, their lives have taken different paths. Jack Chiu is a promising fighter on the amateur circuit who's about to go professional. Meanwhile, Bunny has dropped out of the school so that he make more money on the underground circuit, becoming a local Youtube sensation. Jack disapproves of his younger brother's lifestyle and tries to reign him in as he's training for his first professional fight. His inaugural fight will pit him up against Jason (Jason Li Zongyan, who's been busier as an action team member on films like S Storm and The Golden Job), another newbie on the professional circuit who lost an amateur match against Jack a few years before.

The fight does not go well for Jack, who loses due to a combination of arrogance and fatigue--he had lost an ungainly amount of weight in preparation for the match. An angered Bunny challenges Jason, who initially accepts until the fight organizers request a rematch between him and Jack. After a series of unfortunate events that result in Jack getting injured, Bunny gets his wish: a formal match with Jason. But there's just one thing: street fighting and cage fighting are two different things...

There isn't a whole lot of original about We Are Legends in terms of its basic structure. In fact, the film feels a lot like a less-tragic (and brutal) version of Rocky IV in terms of its story structure. The first half of the movie builds up to a fight with one of the two male protagonists, only for him to shamefully lose. The second half builds up to the second fight, which is a sort of revenge bout (although the movie goes to great lengths to have the characters shake off the notion of vengeance throughout their training). There is even a training montage that jumps back and forth between Jason's more professional training methods and Bunny's "rustic," low-budget alternatives. That is very Rocky IV (without the jingoism and talking robot, of course). There is also a touch of Vision Quest, when Jack has to lose a lot of weight to qualify for Jason's bracket and even drops his undies during the weigh-in. If you feel like you've seen it all before, it's because you have.

Nonetheless, the well-written characters and their relationships help the cast rise above the familiar material. Initially antagonistic, Jack and Bunny grow closer as they train together and come to understand the other's point of view. A lot of time is spent on the relationship between Jack and his supportive girlfriend, Lily (Wiyona Leung, of MMA Diva and Unleashed--not the Jet Li one). Lily is an aspiring fighter herself and even gets to dish out some nice moves, whether it is beating up some random perverts or teaching her future brother-in-law the ropes of jiu-jitsu. Yuen Qiu plays trainer with a heart of gold who trains her pupils for free, but has also allowed her own life to come to a stop following the death of her husband. Training the two brothers for the big time gives her a chance to reevaluate her life and confront her own fears. When I saw that Eric Kot was in the cast, I thought, "Oh no, a Wong Jing actor. This is going to hurt." But he's a loving father who does his best for his adopted sons, even with the physical limitations he has. Even the character of Jason (who looks like a taller version of Yuen Biao circa 1987) is not a villain when you get right down to it. These are ultimately people you care about as they struggle to overcome their personal demons and make something of their lives. As Lily sums it up when she tells her sister that she prefers to fight for what she wants, instead of just marrying a rich guy and giving up.

Speaking of fighting, there are a few fights, a handful of sparring matches, and lots of training. The action director is Wong Wai-Fai, a member of Chin Kar-Lok's action team. He has worked with Chin since 97 Aces Go Places, assisting on films like Dragon Squad; No Problem 2; Cold War; and Star Runner, among many others. Wong has actually been in the action direction game going back to the late 1980s, when he assisted with the action on heroic bloodshed films like City War and Blood Stained Tradewind. Backing him up is relative newcomer Tommy Leung Pok-Yan (Zombiology: Enjoy Yourself Tonight and MMA Diva), with Chow Kwok-Hung and Yung Ka-Wai serving as the film's MMA consultants. Most of the earlier fights are either short or one-sided. The big climax between Bunny and Jason is the most sustained fight of the film. Jason Li is a very acrobatic fighter and sells his moves well. Lam Siu-Ying plays the underdog, so he doesn't do as much flashy techniques, although he does get in a capoeira kick at one point. I'm sure that MMA fans will enjoy the action, which stays grounded without the use of wires that show up in so many Jade Screen fight fests today.

In the end, I think I liked this more than Star Runner, which had flashier fights, but a more mundane human story. It's also better than Fighting, which needed more and better fight sequences. I haven't seen Unbeatable yet, so I can't compare those two. But this is a fine little MMA drama for those looking for some good grappling and a solid human story.