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Alternate Titles:
Fong Shi Yu
The Legend of Fong Sai-Yuk
The Legend (North America)
Related Movies:
Sequel: Fong Sai Yuk 2 (1993)
Rating: 
Released: 1993
Producer: Jet
Li Lian-Jie
Director: Corey Yuen Kwai
Actors: Jet Li Lian-Jie, Josephine Siao
Fong-Fong, Michelle Reis, Sibelle Hu, Chan Chung-Yung, Paul Chu Kong, Zhao Wen-Zhou,
Chan Lung
Jet Li plays Fong Sai Yuk, a fun-loving, whimsical but highly skilled young man. Sai Yuk is extremely dedicated to his equally humourous mother and the two occasionally save each other from punishment at the hands of Sai Yuk's stern father. Fong Sai Yuk meets Ting Ting, the daughter Tiger Lu, the head of a new martial arts school that has just opened up in Canton. When Sai Yuk rescues Ting Ting and her mother from a local bully, he is challenged by the man to compete in some sporting events. With his amazing physical skills and the help of Ting Ting and some of his friends, he beats the bully in a relay race and in a long jump competition. Unfortunately Sai Yuk's father finds out he has been fighting and he and his mother get beaten for it. To increase interest in the new school, Tiger Lu arranges a competition to determine who will win his daughter's hand in marriage. Whoever defeats his wife gets to marry Ting Ting, but Ting Ting is not very happy with this arrangement. After some aerial battles, Tiger Lu's wife defeats a couple young fighters and Sai Yuk sneaks out of study time to compete. After a very heated battle (a lot of it on the heads and shoulders of their supporters), Jet Li sneaks a look at his 'prize' but Ting Ting has run away and her replacement is somewhat unpretty, so in a hilarious last-minute move, Sai Yuk makes sure he loses. Upon hearing about his loss, Sai Yuk's mother enters the competition in disguise as Sai Yuk's brother to regain their family honour. She ends up winning but escapes much to the chagrin of Tiger Lu and his wife. Later, Sai Yuk and his mother arrive just in time to discover that Sai Yuk's father is a rebel so they help him escape from the government forces. Fleeing their house, they move in with Tiger Lu and agree to marry Sai Yuk to Tiger's daughter (who Sai Yuk still thinks is ugly and not Ting Ting). Soon the governor arrives and recognizes them and their father is captured despite Sai Yuk's efforts (great pole fight!). Sai Yuk's friend is taken in for questioning and is killed for not co-operating. In a dramatic scene, Sai Yuk recovers the body and fights a group of guards with a piece of rope and with the dead man strapped to his back! With his father ready to be executed the following day, Sai Yuk deceives his mother so that he can rescue him. There's a daring last-minute rescue in which Sai Yuk has a fantastic fight with the governor in very cramped quarters - inside the structure of the executioning floor! Sai Yuk's mother arrives just in time and Sai Yuk overthrows the Manchus and the government forces with her help. This movie is very light in tone and sprinkled with great humour and great wire-fu action scenes! This is a must-see Jet Li flick!
Reviewed: 2001 (letterbox)
