Tai Chi Master
Directed by: Yuen Woo-PingStarring: Jet Li, Michelle Yeoh, Siu-Hou Chin, Fennie Yuen Synopsis: Within the confines of the Shoalin Monastery, childhood friends Junbao (Li) and Chin Bo (Chin) become formidable fighters under the tutelage of their master. Junbao is more spiritual and open-hearted, while Chin Bo is overly competitive, ambitious and self-centered. His temper eventually gets the better of him, resulting in both he and Junbao being exiled. They initially wind up helping some rebels, including the forlorn Siu Lin (Yeoh). but Chin Bo is enticed by the promise of wealth and power and joins the military under the patronage of the local magistrate. Going their separate ways, the two life-long friends soon find themselves on opposite sides of the law… Review:Tai Chi Master is a fast-paced, action packed martial arts epic which nevertheless takes the time to develop its central characters and tell a compelling story. In Shaolin, the young duo lead an almost idyllic lifestyle amongst their peers, constantly pushing each other to be the best they can be. Sometimes this leads to them over-doing it, such as accidentally ripping their fellow monks’ robes when they should be washing them. Jet Li’s Junbao is initially very naïve and innocent – especially within the walls of Shaolin, where he’d spent nearly his whole life. When they are forced to leave, Li is able to convey the fear and uncertaintly Junbao must be feeling. One wonders how he would have fared without the companionship of Chin Bo. Chin Bo, on the other hand, sees their exile as freedom and a window to new, secular opportunities. 
Luckily, the duo befriend the numerous patrons of a local restaurant, especially the owner and Siu Lin, who is searching for her husband who’s run off with the sister of the local magistrate. The film takes an interesting “time-out” to showcase Siu Lin’s fighting skills as she is attacked by her husband’s new spouse. It’s an extraordinary scene as both women fight while balancing atop a broken table and chair respectively.Tai Chi Master has quite a decent streak of humour running through it. Many of the Shaolin Temple-set scenes are quite comical, and there are a number of sight gags and one-liners which would have been pertinent at the time. One such throwaway moment sees two people being served pork buns, only to suddenly exclaim “oh My God, they’re HUMAN pork buns!”, acknowledging the success of the infamous Anthony Wong horror movie, Bunman: The Untold Story. 
As many readers will realise by now, I’m not particularly a big fan of wire-enhanced fighting. Hero, with it’s languid displays of fighters swooping over lakes, left me cold. However, I can go with the flow here, mainly because the fight scenes are so damn exciting, and even at their most fantastical are delivered with verve and vigour. My favourite is when Junbao and Chin Bo first face-off against each other, while Siu Lin is crucified on top of a wooden cross. So where does the Tai Chi get a look-in? When Junbao and Chin Bo are exiled, their master gives them a scroll which he hopes will help them in their travels. It’s largely forgotten about until Junbao, a broken man after his confrontation with his life-long friend, begins to read it and adapt it’s teachings, learning a more natural flowing style of kung fu that converts his opponent’s energy against himself. It’s an interesting training montage which is quite unlike any other. 
Jet Li is very good here, both in his acting and fighting skills, but is overshadowed by Chin Siu-Hou, who also co-stars in Fist of Legend. For the middle part of the film, you’re constantly hoping in the back of your mind that he’s going to see the error of his ways and rejoin with his friend, and it feels tragic when he doesn’t. Michelle Yeoh also does well (naturally) and gets a decent fight scene towards the end as she and Junbao fight the magistrate and his sister.Verdict Tai Chi Master takes the “student discovers new style of kung fu” plot and surrounds it with a compelling story about two life-long friends and the separate paths they take in life. One of the true classics and another solid release from Cine Asia. 8 out of 10 (MikeOutWest)
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