''Once Upon a Time in China and America'', also known as ''Once Upon a Time in China VI'', (Chinese: 黃飛鴻之西域雄獅) is a 1997 Hong Kong
martial arts
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...
western film
The Western is a genre set in the American frontier and commonly associated with folk tales of the Western United States, particularly the Southwestern United States, as well as Northern Mexico and Western Canada. It is commonly referred ...
directed by
Sammo Hung
Sammo Hung Kam-bo ( zh, t=洪金寶, j=Hung4 Gam1-bou2; born 7 January 1952) is a Hong Kong actor, martial artist, film producer and Film director, director, known for his work in martial arts films, Hong Kong action cinema, and as a fight choreog ...
in his last directorial effort
until 2016, who also worked on the film's
fight choreography
Stage combat, fight craft or fight choreography is a specialised technique in theatre designed to create the illusion of physical combat without causing harm to the performers. It is employed in live stage plays as well as operatic and ballet p ...
. The film is the sixth and final installment in the
''Once Upon a Time in China'' film series. It also saw the return of
Jet Li
Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese film actor, film producer, Chinese martial arts, martial artist, and retired wushu (sport), Wushu champion. He is a naturalized Singapo ...
as
Cantonese
Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ...
martial arts master and
folk hero
A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; an ...
Wong Fei-hung
Wong Fei-hung (born Wong Sek-cheung with the courtesy name Tat-wun; 9 July 1847 – 17 April 1925) was a Chinese martial artist, physician, and folk hero. His recent fame was due to becoming the subject of numerous martial arts films and televis ...
, who had been replaced by
Vincent Zhao
Vincent Zhao Wenzhuo (born 10 April 1972), sometimes credited as Vincent Chiu or Chiu Man-cheuk, is a Chinese actor and martial artist. Zhao is best known for playing the Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung in the ''Once Upon a Time in China'' film an ...
in the fourth and fifth films. The film was released in Hong Kong on 1 February 1997 and garnered positive reviews.
Plot
The film is set in the early 20th century.
Wong Fei-hung
Wong Fei-hung (born Wong Sek-cheung with the courtesy name Tat-wun; 9 July 1847 – 17 April 1925) was a Chinese martial artist, physician, and folk hero. His recent fame was due to becoming the subject of numerous martial arts films and televis ...
, along with his romantic interest
13th Aunt
Thirteenth Aunt, Chinese given name Siu-kwan or Aunt Yee(少筠; "Siu-kwan", incorrectly translated in some subtitles as "Peony"), is a fictional character created by Hong Kong director Tsui Hark for his 1991 martial arts film ''Once Upon a Time ...
and apprentice Clubfoot, travels from China to America to visit another of his apprentices, "Bucktooth" So, who has recently opened a branch of Po-chi-lam, Wong's
traditional Chinese medicine
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. It has been described as "fraught with pseudoscience", with the majority of its treatments having no logical mechanism of action ...
clinic, in
San Francisco
San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...
. While travelling by carriage across the wilderness, they pick up a friendly cowboy, Billy, who is almost dying of thirst. When the party stops to have lunch, a bunch of hostile Native Americans ambush them. Although Wong, 13th Aunt and Clubfoot escape unharmed, their carriage is destroyed. 13th Aunt and Clubfoot are rescued and taken to "Bucktooth" So's clinic. Wong, however, hits his head on a rock and loses his memory as a consequence. He is saved by another Native American tribe.
In San Francisco, Billy tries to stop the corrupt mayor from imposing discriminatory laws to make life difficult for the Chinese migrants. Meanwhile, the Native American tribe that saved Wong gets into trouble with a more powerful rival tribe. The chief's son, Fierce Eagle, is injured by the rival tribe's leader. To everyone's surprise, Wong defeats the rival tribe's leader and half of his men, causing the rival tribe to flee in fear. He eventually makes his way to San Francisco and regains his memory with the help of his companions, but forgets everything that happened during his bout of amnesia.
In the meantime, the mayor has fallen into debt so he hires a Mexican bandit to help him rob the bank and frames the people in Po-chi-lam for the robbery while he secretly plans to abscond with the loot. Wong and his companions are arrested and sentenced to death by hanging. Just then, the Mexican bandit discovers that the mayor has paid him less than he expects so he returns to claim his money, thus revealing the truth. In the ensuing fight, the mayor is killed and Wong manages to capture the bandit and clear Po-chi-lam's name. At the end of the film, Billy is elected as the new mayor while Wong, 13th Aunt and Clubfoot return to China.
Cast
*
Jet Li
Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese film actor, film producer, Chinese martial arts, martial artist, and retired wushu (sport), Wushu champion. He is a naturalized Singapo ...
as
Wong Fei-hung
Wong Fei-hung (born Wong Sek-cheung with the courtesy name Tat-wun; 9 July 1847 – 17 April 1925) was a Chinese martial artist, physician, and folk hero. His recent fame was due to becoming the subject of numerous martial arts films and televis ...
*
Rosamund Kwan
Rosamund Kwan Chi Lam (born Kwan Kar Wai on 24 September 1962) is a Hong Kong former actress, best known for starring as the female lead "Thirteenth Aunt" in the 1990s ''Once Upon a Time in China'' film series. She had since retired from acti ...
as
"13th Aunt" Yee Siu-kwan
*
Hung Yan-yan
Hung Yan-yan (born 25 February 1965, also credited as 熊欣欣 or Xiong Xin Xin) is a Hong Kong martial artist, actor, stuntman and action director originally from Liuzhou, Guangxi, China. He was the stunt double for martial arts superstar Jet L ...
as Kwai Geuk-chat ("Clubfoot Seven Chiu-Tsat")
*
Power Chan
Power Chan Kwok-pong is an actor in Hong Kong. He has appeared in numerous TVB drama series as well as films. He dated cantopop
Cantopop (a contraction of "Cantonese pop music") or HK-pop (short for "Hong Kong pop music") is a genre of pop ...
as So Sai-man ("Bucktooth" So)
*Jeff Wolfe as Billy
*Joe Sayah as Mexican bandit
*
Richard Ng
Richard Ng Yiu-hon (born 17 December 1939), also known as Richard Woo, is a Hong Kong actor known for playing comedic roles, particularly in Hong Kong films of the 1980s and 1990s.
Film and television career
Ng has appeared in 80 films to da ...
as Uncle Han
*
Lau Kar-wing
Lau Kar-wing (born 1944) is a Martial Artist, Hong Kong people, Hong Kong Chinese martial arts, martial arts film director, Stage combat, action choreographer and actor.
Background
Born in the Xinhui District of Jiangmen in Guangdong, People's R ...
as Lion Dance Drummer
*
T. J. Storm
Juan Ricardo Ojeda, better known as T.J. Storm, is an American actor, stuntman, dancer, and martial artist. He is best known for his role as Bayu in '' Conan the Adventurer'' and for his motion capture performances in '' Tron: Legacy'', '' Captain ...
as Rival Tribe Indian Brave
*
Mars
Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...
(extra) (uncredited)
*
Patrick Lung
Patrick Lung (8 February 1934 – 2 September 2014), also known as Lung Kong, Patrick Lung Kong, was a film director from Hong Kong. Before working at the film industry, he worked at the stock market. In the late 1950s, he was invited to join S ...
as Uncle Lung
*Deborah Kay Hooker "Mum"
*Ron Ring
*Ryon Marshall
*Freddy Joe
*
Chrysta Bell as Sarah
*William Fung as Immigrant worker
*Johnny Koo as Immigrant worker
*Jerry Wu as Opium Den worker
*Alan Chanas
*Wong Choh-wa
*Fan Chin-hung
*Choi Kwok-keung
*Jason De Hoyos as Fierce Eagle
*Daniel Lujan as Flying Eagle
*Roberto Lopez as Mexican (Gang of seven )
Production
The film was shot at the
Alamo Village
Alamo Village is a movie set and tourist attraction north of Brackettville, Texas, United States. It was the first movie location built in Texas, originally constructed for and best known as the setting for '' The Alamo'' (1960), directed by John ...
, the film set originally created for
John Wayne
Marion Robert Morrison (May 26, 1907 – June 11, 1979), known professionally as John Wayne and nicknamed The Duke or Duke Wayne, was an American actor who became a popular icon through his starring roles in films made during Hollywood's Gol ...
's ''
The Alamo
The Battle of the Alamo (February 23 – March 6, 1836) was a pivotal event in the Texas Revolution. Following a 13-day siege, Mexican troops under President General Antonio López de Santa Anna reclaimed the Alamo Mission near San Anto ...
''
and other locations in
South Texas
South Texas is a region of the U.S. state of Texas that lies roughly south of—and includes—San Antonio. The southern and western boundary is the Rio Grande, and to the east it is the Gulf of Mexico. The population of this region is about 4.96 ...
.
Lau Kar-wing
Lau Kar-wing (born 1944) is a Martial Artist, Hong Kong people, Hong Kong Chinese martial arts, martial arts film director, Stage combat, action choreographer and actor.
Background
Born in the Xinhui District of Jiangmen in Guangdong, People's R ...
served as the film's assistant and second unit director.
Awards and nominations
Box office
Jet Li
Li Lianjie (courtesy name Yangzhong; born 26 April 1963), better known by his stage name Jet Li, is a Chinese film actor, film producer, Chinese martial arts, martial artist, and retired wushu (sport), Wushu champion. He is a naturalized Singapo ...
's return to the series - and, in all likelihood, the final installment of the franchise - opened on the weekend of
Chinese New Year
Chinese New Year is the festival that celebrates the beginning of a New Year, new year on the traditional lunisolar calendar, lunisolar and solar Chinese calendar. In Sinophone, Chinese and other East Asian cultures, the festival is commonly r ...
, and faced stiff competition from director Hung's own film, ''
Mr. Nice Guy''. Still, it grossed HK$30,268,415 at the Hong Kong box office.
Mandarin version
A sync-sound Mandarin soundtrack features a number of the Chinese actors speaking their own language (including Jet Li, Patrick Lung - Richard Ng speaks Cantonese however), whilst others are dubbed.
References
External links
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HKMDBHK Cinemagic
{{DEFAULTSORT:Once Upon A Time In China And America
1997 films
1997 martial arts films
1990s biographical films
1997 Western (genre) films
Hong Kong biographical films
Hong Kong martial arts films
Hong Kong sequel films
1990s Cantonese-language films
China Star Entertainment Group films
Films shot in California
Films shot in Texas
Kung fu films
Once Upon a Time in China (film series)
Films directed by Sammo Hung
1990s Hong Kong films