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Iron Monkey
Generally favorable reviews
Based on 28 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?
Based on 14 votes
Read user comments
Rate this movie >
Movie Info
Genre(s): Fantasy
Written by:
Tsui Hark
Cheung Tan
Pik-Yin Tang
Tai-Muk Lau
Directed by: Yuen Woo-Ping
Release Date:
Theatrical: October 12, 2001
DVD: March 26, 2002
Running Time: 89 minutes, Color
Origin: Hong Kong
Summary
RATING: PG-13 for martial arts action/violence and brief sexuality
Starring Rongguang Yu, Donnie Yen, Sze-Man Tsang, Jean Wang, Sai-Kun Yam, and James Wong
Iron Monkey, one of the best-loved kung fu movies of all time, weaves fact and legend in a tale of a daring thief who uses his ill-gotten gains to aid the poor and dispossessed. (Miramax)
Also On The Web: Internet Movie Database View The Trailer Official Studio Site
What The Critics Said
All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...
Film Threat Christopher Varney
Despite my ignorance of Hong Kong, I'm convinced that Iron Monkey could be the best, most entertaining martial arts film I may ever see.
Read Full Review >San Francisco Chronicle Bob Graham
Where it really counts, though, it's the same good old comic action fantasy.
Read Full Review >Los Angeles Times Kenneth Turan
If Asian martial arts movies interest you even a little bit, you're going to want to see Iron Monkey. Not only that, you're going to want to see it more than once.
Read Full Review >New Times (L.A.) Andy Klein
It's funny, heroic, exaggerated and, most of all, energetic; the film speeds along as though afraid to lose the audience's attention for even a moment.
Read Full Review >Wall Street Journal Joe Morgenstern
Now the movie can be seen for what it was all along, remarkable by any standards.
Slate David Edelstein
A rollicking, comic-book Robin Hood plot and more furiously entertaining fight scenes than the ones in Ang Lee's solemn martial-arts art movie.
Read Full Review >Baltimore Sun Chris Kaltenbach
Viewers impressed by the fairly standard martial-arts action of "Crouching Tiger" will really be wowed after seeing this film.
Chicago Tribune Mark Caro
The characters may be speaking Chinese, but such rousing entertainment needs no translation.
Charlotte Observer Lawrence Toppman
This superficial plot, almost devoid of characterization or weighty emotions, is an excuse for ferocious, fast and frequent combat.
Read Full Review >Portland Oregonian Shawn Levy
Lacks the poetic and romantic resonance of "Crouching Tiger," but it's got kicks aplenty -- of both the physical and the sensational kind -- and it lands them again and again.
Read Full Review >Mr. Showbiz Cody Clark
High drama this ain't. And yet, anyone looking for a hearty banquet of gymnastic, kung-fu tomfoolery won't walk away hungry.
The New York Times Dave Kehr
Saving the big number for the climax, like any good musical director, Mr. Yuen finishes up with a spectacular variation on the traditional kung fu pole fight.
Read Full Review >Chicago Sun-Times Roger Ebert
Basically aimed at audiences who want elaborate fight sequences and fidget at the dialogue in between. It's for the fans, not the crossover audience.
Read Full Review >USA Today Mike Clark
A long-on-video 1993 release now restored to its original Cantonese with different music and more audio pop.
Read Full Review >Miami Herald Charles Savage
The creative vigor of its originality, distilled in a pure and unadulterated form, is simply exhilarating.
Read Full Review >Boston Globe Jay Carr
They're as special as special effects get.
LA Weekly Paul Malcolm
A pure font of high-flying kung fu artistry, the likes of which has since transformed the way Hollywood's good guys and bad kick the crap out of one another.
Read Full Review >Washington Post Rita Kempley
Showcases its cast's athleticism and Ping's kinetic high-wire artistry. But unlike similar Western-made fare, it doesn't take itself seriously.
Read Full Review >New York Daily News Jami Bernard
The requisite set piece, which will remind you of the treetop sequence in "Crouching Tiger," involves a fight atop a forest of burning poles, exactly the kind of thing you want in a movie like this.
Read Full Review >New York Post Jonathan Foreman
No "Crouching Tiger." It lacks the richness of theme and performance that made Ang Lee's film so emotionally satisfying. In fact, watching Iron Monkey makes you realize just how Western and literary the sensibility of "Crouching Tiger" was.
Read Full Review >TV Guide Staff (Not credited)
Martial arts spectacles don't come more spectacular than this, and Yuen bestows a quality of grace on the entire production.
Read Full Review >Village Voice Dennis Lim
Anyone expecting the decorous serenity of the Ang Lee film should be aware that Iron Monkey strives for no more or less than comic-strip thwack and thump.
Read Full Review >Seattle Post-Intelligencer William Arnold
The movie is never engaging on anything but a superficial level, and it gradually gets decidedly tiresome.
Read Full Review >What Our Users Said
The average user rating for this movie is 8.2 (out of 10) based on 14 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.
[Anonymous] gave it a9:
Yuen Wo Pingis an ace choreographer, as he helped bring the Matrix trilogy, Kill bill and Kung Fu hustle to the top of the action genre. When he directs on his own, he pulls out all the stops and breathlessly packs tons of his fight sequences into one explosive package. If you like his fight choreography, there's plenty of it here, and it dominates most fo the screen time. THere's little, if any, filler in these intense 89min.
Gabor A. gave it a 4:
This, crouching tiger, hero(though not to the same extent). I'm sick of these plotless films with terrible cliche dialogue. "You have the skill but not the dicipline." Thats great. All the time in making these movies is spent on crafting the endless fight scenes. The result: lame and super repetetive movies. Bring something over from china that has a plot and a soul not just sword fighting.
A movie critic gave it a 9:
I really liked the plot. It made you really think, "ok, how are they going to get out of this?" and I really liked the English dub. But my only problem with it was that the Shaolin thing wasn't not focused on enough, and I wasn't sure what was going on with it. Great movie though.
Joe H. gave it a 10:
To all those who said it was a "crouching tiger" wannabe, you may want to take note that this film was actually filmed before that movie was made, but only recieved wide release after "Crouching Tiger"'s success.
Jacky C. gave it a 9:
One of the finest examples of the Hong Kong martial arts fantasy genre. The "thin," "pathetic" plot happens to derive from the story of Wang Fei-hong, a historical figure whose life has become a modern legend. A Chinese-speaking audience would already be familiar with the story, and would not need to be beaten over the head with dramatic development or exposition, making more room for those incredible martial arts sequences, which are what this genre is really all about. Iron Monkey shows off Donnie Yen's authentic Hung Gar skills, a rare treat to see on film. It would be fair to say that Crouching Tiger was an Iron Monkey wannabe, since it was actually made well after Iron Monkey's theatrical release... Ang Lee wanted to make an artsy martial arts fantasy that would stand a chance of being appreciated, and fairly reviewed, by non-Chinese audiences. He succeeded, and for those who aren't equipped to appreciate real Hong Kong film, best stick with his masterpiece.
James M. gave it a 10:
Definitely no "Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon," but that is also a good thing. In a Hollywood review scale that tends to rate movies on the latest academy awards winning trends, its nice to see a movie that rightfully becomes individual in modern day cinima. Iron Monkey is a traditional kick-ass karate movie reminicent of Bruce Lee and Kung-fu Theater mixed with modern day visual effects that can be compared to Black Mask and the Matrix. The effect is a well done movie that has its home in traditional chinese cinima and modern fast action cinima.
Dan F. gave it a 4:
The martial arts were good, however they weren't able to eclipse the pathetic plot.
