Very very predictable, including the post credit scene !!!

A Disappointing Continuation

Very interesting film. Was caught on the premise when seeing the trailer but unsure as to what the outcome would be for the showing. As it turns out, it was a very good film.

I wanted to like it more than I actually did... But much of the humor totally escaped me and I walked out only mildly impressed.

Well this movie is another Hong Kong action movie staring the kungfu legend Jet Li. There is nothing deep about this movie, all it is is an action packed romp with strange enemies, unreal fighting maneuvers, and a dash of the Hong Kong spice that make these movies more exciting than those one sees in America.The New Shoalin is about Hung and his son. He is betrayed by a brother Shoalin who kills his family and then tries to kill him. Hung defeats him and then wonders the land to deal with the new oppressive regime. Seven years on, Hung is still following is quest and his son has become a very competent martial artists. In a city he is betrayed again, but as he has no money, he is forced to bodyguard an unscrupulous rich man. At the same time, two thieves, the notorious mother and notorious daughter, have latched onto him. Hung knows these thieves' intention, but he cannot convince his master of it.When the Shoalin Temple is destroyed they believe that he is be dead so his brother attempts to find the location of a large treasure horde, the map of which is tattooed on the back of five children. These children wind up in the same place as Hung, and when his nemesis, now known as the poison man, appears, he must protect the kids and the two thieves, the younger of which has fallen for him.As I previously said, there is not much depth in this movie, but one watches it for the action. Things are quite predictable, but the stunts, or rather the moves, are quite extraordinary, especially since they are performed quite unrealistically. This does not matter because Hong Kong cinema generally does not want to be purely correct. They appreciate a bit of fantasy in their movies.

Opening with some sort of battle in front of a fire with a small child and a large knife, New Legend of Shaolin seems to have only one parallel to the old legends: the complete and utter strangeness of the movie. In order to compensate for the plot, or maybe attempt to add some humorous elements, the director decides to have his actors tattoo some dwarf-like children, eat some chicken ass, fight a poisonous juice man who lives in a chrome armadillo, and watch Jet Li for a little bit. Definitely one of the most comical Shaolin movies I've seen, and it has the added benefit of being able to be ridiculed non-stop, as all dialogue is subtitled and all plot is nonsensical. ONLY watch this if you are an obscenely obsessed Jet Li fan or a pro at MST3K style commentary.

Definitely a movie worthy of watching. I have a complete set of all Jet Li's movies (Chinese and American made) and feel that it deserves a higher rating than others have given it. Reviewers must realize that kung fu movies are fun movies with lots of action and a weak plot. You can't compare them to Hollywood's finest productions, because people have to realize that they were meant to be released in Asia only and that they are to be compared to other Asian fighting shows. Now that I've finished ranting about other's reviews let's get back to talking about the show. Jet Li plays a different character than the usual Master Wong or Master Fong. Jet usually plays the master of the kung fu club or society, but in this case him and his son are rebel outcasts of the main society. I'm not going to spoil the movie for you, but it's the usual plot of a kung fu movie - he fights the true bad guys, picks up a sexy girl who falls in love with Jet, and he fathers and trains his son. By the way, I only watch the Chinese original movies because I'd rather read the sub titles and hear the original music and read the proper meaning of the show. I understand that influences my reviews because others may be seeing badly translated dubs with stupid voices in them.Rent or buy the proper versions if you can. The theme song for Fong Sai Yuk (Jet's character in the 'Once Upon a Time in China' series is an awesome instrumental song) If you're picky about production quality, quality of plot, etc. etc. then don't watch Chinese produced Jet Li movies. Some of my other favourite Jet Li movies are 'Last Hero in China' and 'Hitman'

This movie is great. Corey Yuen did an excellent job. The fights were amazing. The story and the humour were bad. But enjoy the great fight scenes. This movie is far better than romeo must die or The One. Buy it or rent it or steal it because every martial arts movie fan should see this movie. 9/10