June 2nd 2008 The Force Behind The 'Fist Of Legend' : Gordon Chan speaks

June 02, 2008

THE FORCE BEHIND THE ‘FIST OF LEGEND’ : Gordon Chan speaks.

I think the most eagerly awaited upcoming Dragon Dynasty release is probably the long-awaited re-issue of Jet Li’s kung fu classic ‘Fist Of Legend’. An earlier DVD edition of the film featured only the English dubbed American edit. Now we get the chance to give the DD treatment to the last truly great kung fu film of the 90s wu shu wave. It was a great pleasure to sit down with an old friend, director Gordon Chan, to shoot an exclusive video interview in which he discusses the genesis, development and filming of ‘Fist Of Legend’.

For those new to the genre, ‘Fist Of Legend’ is a palimpset of Bruce Lee’s ‘Fist Of Fury’, a rich embellishment of an established text. It brought together a unique synthesis of Gordon Chan’s story-telling, Yuen Woo-ping’s choreography and the charisma of action icon Jet Li.

I first met Gordon during my time at Media Asia. He had a multi-film deal with the company, and I was the token white employee, wanting- to learn more about the industry. Gordon was (and is) constantly amenable and friendly, speaks perfect English and it was a great pleasure to work with him on his films ‘Beast Cops’ and ‘2000AD’. On the latter, I remember him calling me on a Saturday evening to come in and record the voice of a fighter pilot for the opening scene. What impressed me about Gordon was that he maintained such a low key persona for someone who could write, direct and produce hit films in every genre. The industry is full of people boasting much more and delivering much less…

Chan had a relatively unique start to his film-making career. He worked in the special effects department at the Shaw Brothers studio, where producer Mona Fong’s nickname for him was ‘ET’! He made his directing debut with the romantic comedy ‘Yuppie Fantasia’, which I remember seeing at late night screening in a cinema in Birrrmingham (England, not Alabama). In a truly eclectic career, Chan delivered career best films for stars Stephen Chiau (‘King Of Beggars’), Anthony Wong (‘Beast Cops’) and, with ‘Fist Of Legend’, Jet Li…

When Gordon made the move to become head of production at Emperor Motion Pictures, I followed him, and started work almost immediately writing the (justifiably) much maligned ‘Medallion’. The reasons why that film turned out as it did would fill a book. I remember that, long after dust had settled, I did an interview about the film for a French website where I told it like it was (from my perspective), and Gordon wrote to commend me on my honesty. Whatever its merits (or lack of them!), ‘Medallion’ was an amazing experience, three years working with Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung and Gordon Chan. Unfortunately, I kept the enemies I made on that film, but, more importantly, kept the friends as well. Throughout the process, I only saw Gordon lose his temper once (and that was at Cannes Film Festival, when I put his chocolate in the fridge…).

My best memories of the Medallion shoot are of the pre-production and filming in Dublin. It was my first time in that wonderful city, and, in fact, in Ireland itself. The scale of the production was sometimes intimidating, but Gordon always kept a level head, even when dealing with the often madcap antics of co-star Lee Evans. (“Of come on, Lee, give me a break…”, he would mutter, as Evans cracked up the crew for the 15th time. Lee is one of the funniest guys I’ve ever met, but somehow we didn’t manage to capture that on film!)

While we were in Dublin, Gordon took the time to record a DVD commentary with me for ‘2000AD’. We were in the studios next to those where U2 record. It would have been the easiest thing in the world for him to decline to participate, citing his workload, but Chan knew how important his contribution would be to bringing the film to a wider audience. (‘2000AD’ ended up selling unexpectedly well in the UK.)

‘Fist Of Legend’ is an important film in the canon of kung fu idol Jet Li. It brought to a close the cycle of period Chinese actioners that he began with ‘Once Upon A Time In China’, and paved the way for what would be his next (and last?) great kung fu movie, ‘Fearless’. In our interview, Gordon offers a unique perspective on working with Li as a collaborator. He also answers the age-old question of whether Chen Jun, the character played by Li in ‘Fist Of Legend’ (and by Bruce Lee in the original ‘Fist Of Fury’) really existed. It was great to have this excuse to catch up with an old friend, and I know our fans will enjoy his insights into this kung fu classic.