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Cast: Wenzhuo Zhao, Mini Yang, Siu-Wong Fan
There is a rumor: secret treasures hide in Wu Dang mountain. In the early days of Republican China, an American man - greedy for gold and hungry for riches - brings his daughter, a prodigy in martial arts, to compete for a championship title in kung fu combat, while planning to find and steal the riches for himself. It won't be easy. Fierce competition, dedicated protectors, and unexpected romance block the path to the Wu Dang fortune, and when the true nature of the prize is discovered - everything you know about martial arts will change forever.
Wu Dang mountain is known to have some hidden treasures. When professor/treasure hunter Tang Yunlong gets a hold of a map that is suppose to reveal where the treasures are hidden he along with his sickly daughter Ning head to the mountain to complete in a kung fu tournament but his real motive is to steal the seven artifacts in hopes that the rumors of it's powers can heal his daughter. But it won't be easy because he is not alone in his quest, there is also a female treasure hunter, Tian Xin who is in search of one of the artifacts that belongs to her ancestors and an evil monk looking to collect the seven treasures to turn himself into a powerful god.
That is basically all you really need to know about the story, there are other things at play here like a few romances going on but the main focus is on finding the treasures in time to save his daughter from an incurable disease. A father's love knows no boundaries and Tang will do whatever it takes.
"Wu Dang" contains a perfect mix of adventure and martial arts, if Tang isn't searching for the hidden treasures his daughter is competing in the tournament, plus there's those that are after Tang when his face is seen while stealing of the seven artifacts. I always say this but the film looks beautiful, there is something about Asian cinema, it has a look of it's own and the cinematography is always brilliant. The fight scenes are choreographed by legendary action director, Corey Yuen and he does no disappoint here. They are graceful, full of style and even though they defy gravity they look very realistic and painful.
The cast which includes, Vincent Zhao, Dennis To, and Louis Fan all did a fantastic job and Director, Patrick Leung keeps the film lively and moving at a great pace. There are certainly better films out there as far as Asian cinema goes but "Wu Dang" is an entertaining and fun film that that is sure to please Asian movie lovers as well as mainstream movie-goers. The film has a bit of drama to it but it never slows down the story and instead of ending the film on a sad note it ends on a happy one, I thought for awhile that the latter was going to be the case but I think the lighter ending was more appropriate here. If you like a good action/adventure then check this film out, it has plenty of both as well as some very cool special effects.
Available on DVD and Blu-ray, both come with Special Features that include:
Original Language: Mandarin
Subtitle: English
Extra: Behind The Scenes
Trailer
You can order the DVD HERE and the Blu-ray HERE.
Released by Well Go USA
*** 1/2 Out Of *****