First of Legend
Fist of Legend is a 1994 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Gordon Chan, and features action choreography by Yuen Woo-ping, and produced by Jet Li, who also starred in the lead role. The film was released in Hong Kong on 22 December 1994.[1] It is a remake of the 1972's Fist of Fury, which starred Bruce Lee as the lead character. The film is set in the Shanghai International Settlement in 1937 during the Second Sino-Japanese War as the city is occupied by Japanese forces.[2] It currently holds a 100% "Certified Fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes, based on 11 critics' reviews.[3]
Fist of Legend inspired the Wachowskis to hire choreographer Yuen Woo-ping for the fight scenes in The Matrix. The style of fighting in both films also bear some resemblance.
In 1996, an unofficial sequel titled Fists of Legends 2: Iron Bodyguards was released starring Jet Le (not Jet Li).[4]
Later films have also been influenced by Fist of Legend. Hitman also has a scene involving him using a belt as a weapon as seen previously. The more realistic and less wire-driven fight choreography seen in Kiss of the Dragon was a result of fan criticism to Corey Yuen's choreography in Romeo Must Die and preference for the style seen in Fist of Legend.
In 2006, Jet Li played his character's teacher, Huo Yuanjia, in Fearless.
In 2010, Gordon Chan and Andrew Lau produced a continuation of this film named Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen with Donnie Yen as Chen Zhen in his thirties.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_mriURlKqk
