This was a Jackie Chan directed and Jackie Chan starred film. The movie was more or less two parts. We can call the parts pre-grandpa's death and post grandpa's death.
The pre-death part of the movie was very light and upbeat. Shing Lung (Jackie Chan) used his clan's style of kung fu to make money. Employed by a con artist, he posed as a kung fu school's brightest pupil and he would take on all-comers. When he won he'd get paid handsomely for the win. The fights were never really serious as he would fight in various costumes and make his challengers look silly.
The post-death part of the movie came when Shing Lung's grandfather was killed by a ruthless martial artist looking to eliminate Shing Lung's clan. All levity and lightheartedness left Shing Lung when he saw his grandpa killed and he really buckled down and got serious about training. Now the movie shifted to a tale of revenge. But, like most kung fu movies, Shing Lung was not ready for revenge. First he had to be trained by The Unicorn to prepare him to fight the silver-haired main boss.
Every kung fu movie needs some secret for defeating the main boss. Shing Lung was taught a style of kung fu in which he used various emotions that manifested in different styles. It was gimmicky and not visually the best for a showdown, but Jackie Chan makes it work with his athleticism.
The pre-death part of the movie was very light and upbeat. Shing Lung (Jackie Chan) used his clan's style of kung fu to make money. Employed by a con artist, he posed as a kung fu school's brightest pupil and he would take on all-comers. When he won he'd get paid handsomely for the win. The fights were never really serious as he would fight in various costumes and make his challengers look silly.
The post-death part of the movie came when Shing Lung's grandfather was killed by a ruthless martial artist looking to eliminate Shing Lung's clan. All levity and lightheartedness left Shing Lung when he saw his grandpa killed and he really buckled down and got serious about training. Now the movie shifted to a tale of revenge. But, like most kung fu movies, Shing Lung was not ready for revenge. First he had to be trained by The Unicorn to prepare him to fight the silver-haired main boss.
Every kung fu movie needs some secret for defeating the main boss. Shing Lung was taught a style of kung fu in which he used various emotions that manifested in different styles. It was gimmicky and not visually the best for a showdown, but Jackie Chan makes it work with his athleticism.