movie on Mas Oyama
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coming to a cinema near you
Fighter in the Wind (2004)
AKA: ¹Ù¶÷ÀÇ ÆÄÀÌÅ�
Premise: A young Korean Taekwondo competitor arrives in Japan near the end of World War II with hopes of being a fighter pilot, but ends up on the streets battling racism, organized crime, occupying American servicemen, and his own fear of failure as a martial artist. He retires to the wilderness for two years to train his body in the art of karate and returns to take on the world.
Review: Fighter in the Wind is a dramatic and stylized portrayal of the life of Kyokushin karate founder Masutatsu Oyama, or as he is known in this movie by his original Korean name, Choi Baedal. As a biopic of a man who wrestled bulls and whom the New York Times declared in 1961 to be "the toughest man in the world," it falls far short of giving an accurate portrayal of someone whose real-life exploits are more fascinating than any fiction. That said, Fighter in the Wind is an immensely entertaining martial arts movie that's full of breath-taking action and heart.
In 1975, Mas Oyama collaborated with his student Sonny Chiba on a trilogy of films about his life beginning with Karate Bullfighter. As would be expected of a Sonny Chiba movie, they were exploitive and highly exaggerated accounts of Oyama's life. By this point in his life, Oyama had become something of a folk hero in Japan after having trained in solitude for two years like a modern Musashi Miyamoto, defeated countless martial arts challengers all over the world, wrestled as many as 52 bulls, and gone on to found Kyokushin karate which is still going strong to this day. His early exploits in Japan, during and right after World War II, had become the subject of manga serials that turned him into a martial arts super hero. It's understandable then that ten years after his death, Korea would honor their own with a movie in keeping with the spirit of Mas Oyama, rather than the facts.
Where Karate Bullfighter focused on Choi Baedal's life after he trained in the mountains for two years, Fighter in the Wind begins earlier with his journey from Korea to Japan where he had hoped to become a fighter pilot. But discrimination and the end of the war put an end to these plans and Choi (Yang Dong-geun) winds up on the street with fellow Korean immigrants, all trying to survive. Brought low by bullying yakuza and by Kato (Masaya Kato), a Japanese army officer and karate master, Choi is rescued by his old mentor and fellow Korean, Bumsoo (Jeong Du-hong). He introduces the teachings of Musashi and Japanese karate to Choi, who regains his self respect by rescuing Japanese girls from lustful American servicemen. He even finds love when he meets a geisha girl (Aya Hirayama). But when Bumsoo is murdered by yakuza, Choi retreats into the wilderness with the mission of becoming the very best fighter. He returns with a hardened body and incredible strength to take on and defeat all of Japan's finest martial arts masters. But when he's finally forced to kill an opponent, Choi humbly seeks out the widow and her son to find redemption. Having eventually paid his dues, Choi returns to take on his nemesis, Kato, who is now president of Japan's martial arts union.
Fighter in the Wind is the third collaboration between director Yang Yun-ho and actor Yang Dong-geun, after the dramas Zzang (199
and White Valentine (1999). The soft-spoken Dong-geun seems at first to be a poor choice for the role of such a rugged individual as Mas Oyama, but he does a great job in giving the character a quiet and emotional intensity. He also performs well in the film's many demanding action sequences. They're all tightly edited from short takes, but clearly assembled and they appropriately convey the strength and power one would expect to see. Oyama was known for his debilitating punches and powerful kicks to the head and we get to see both, clearly executed and dynamically shot as Dong-geun levels one opponent after another. He not only takes on karate practitioners, but all of Japan's top martial artists. That means we get to see him pummel judo, aikido and ninjitsu fighters as well as they vainly try to employ their various styles against Oyama's brute hitting power.
It's great to see Jeong Du-hong (Spin Kick, No Blood No Tears), one of Korea's top martial arts directors and actors playing Oyama's mentor. He unleashes some awesome moves midway through. He's the man who hands Oyama a copy of Musashi's "Book of Five Rings" and encourages him to succeed. Here more than anywhere else, the film shows its nationalist spirit for not only does Jeong play an ass-kicking and righteous fellow, but he trying to preserve the Korean culture among immigrants even as he draws from the best of Japanese martial arts to improve himself and those he mentors.
Technically speaking, Fighter in the Wind is a masterful work. From cinematography to sets, it's first-rate. Korean cinema is churning out some of Asia's best-looking films at the moment and this is one more example. I am at odds with the soundtrack however. Gothic vocals and pounding electric guitars are used in places to drive home the intensity of Oyama's struggles. It works on a visceral level and the music itself is fine, but this is a period movie that's set in the late-'40s and pounding electric guitars spoil this illusion a little.
There are a few other minor details that could have been improved on. The man Oyama is forced to kill in the movie wears this awful, anime-like hairdo that covers half his face. When he makes his initial appearance early on, it turns a tense dramatic scene into a bit of a joke. Then there is the scene where Oyama is seen shaving his eyebrow while in the wilderness, even as his hair continues to grow wild and unkempt. This is in reference to a real-life suggestion by Bumsoo to encourage Oyama to stay the course, rather than return to civilization as he had so desired initially. To do so without an eyebrow in Japanese society would be a shameful embarrassment. A little more explanation here would have been nice. Finally, I was disappointed to see the film more or less end the same way that Karate Bullfighter does, with a very quick transition from redemption to climatic battle. It works from an action film standpoint, but leaves certain dramatic elements unresolved.
Putting the facts of Oyama's life aside, which viewers really must do in order to fully enjoy this movie, the story is epic in scale and convincingly paints a picture of a man at odds with the world and himself. This Oyama fears failure, crippling wounds and death. He gives in to this fear early on, but finally pushes himself to overcome this fear through sheer determination and perseverance. There is truth in this for any martial artist or in the true meaning of kung fu which can be applied to all things in life. That is, through perseverance and hard work, all things are possible. Martial arts movies come and go, but surprisingly few touch on this fundamental precept in an authentic fashion. Fighter in the Wind succeeds, not only because it has some fantastic martial arts action, but also because you see Oyama's callused knuckles, his pained expressions and his fear. Even though in this portrayal he is ultimately a larger-than-life figure with Herculean strength and picture-perfect moves that only multiple takes could produce, Mas Oyama remains assessable and someone whom we can still relate to and draw inspiration from. -
thot osama
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Mas Oyama was originally Korean? Oh my....this is something new to me.
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that's because japs have a habit of making korean and chinese immigrants adopt jap namesOriginally posted by gentlerock:Mas Oyama was originally Korean? Oh my....this is something new to me.
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Hmm...doesn't sound bad at all. One thing though, the movie doesn't seem to touch on Oyama's later stages of life. If this is intended to be a biopic, then it does not seem proper to exclude that. It would be interesting to see how Oyama deals with the fact that his traning methods have left him with serious arthritis in his fingers.
It would also serve as a warning to the impressionable out there that puncing trees and chopping rocks is not smart trg. -
the director took care of that by replacing those inanimate objects with jap racists, and US occupationistsOriginally posted by lwflee:Hmm...doesn't sound bad at all. One thing though, the movie doesn't seem to touch on Oyama's later stages of life. If this is intended to be a biopic, then it does not seem proper to exclude that. It would be interesting to see how Oyama deals with the fact that his traning methods have left him with serious arthritis in his fingers.
It would also serve as a warning to the impressionable out there that puncing trees and chopping rocks is not smart trg.
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Here more than anywhere else, the film shows its nationalist spirit for not only does Jeong play an ass-kicking and righteous fellow, but he trying to preserve the Korean culture among immigrants even as he draws from the best of Japanese martial arts to improve himself and those he mentors.
this movie is about fighting to free the oppressed, unlike B-grade movies which come up with other excuses for a slug-fest. reminds me of "The Chinese Connection" by the late Bruce Lee and "Fists of Fury" by Donnie Yen -
another korean often mistaken for a jap.
Hwang Jeong-Ri
aka Hwang Jang-Lee
Although Hwang Jang Lee is Korean by birth, he was actually born in the outskirts of Osaka, Japan. Hwang studied Taekwondo and boxing from an early age against his parents will and during the 70's acted as martial arts trainer to Korean troops stationed in Vietnam.
During his tour of duty as a martial arts instructor in Vietnam he was challenged by a south Vietnamese knife expert. The challenge was over 30 seconds later. His opponent lay dead, killed by a well executed round kick to the head by Hwang.
In 1976 he was approached in Korea by producer and director Ng See Yuen to play the villainous Silver Fox in Secret Rivals (1976) along with Wang Tao and John Liu. This film became a classic. It was the first "kickmaster" movie, meaning that instead of virtually all punching it was all kicking instead. The film was a surprise hit. The final fight was amazing, with all three leads giving their all. Hwang instantly became hot property. The combination among Hwang Jang Lee, John Liu and Wang Tao led to a sequel, The Secret Rivals 2 (1977) and the stunning Snuff Bottle Connection, kung fu classics all made at Seasonal Films.
Hwang relocated to Taiwan and in 1978 he appeared in the ground-breaking movies Snake in the Eagle's Shadow and Drunken Master, directed by legendary choreographer Yuen Wo Ping and also starring Jackie Chan and Simon Yuen (Yuen Siu Tien). The film rejuvenated and electrified Hong Kong cinema's somewhat stagnant kung fu genre and proved a huge box-office success with Drunken Master taking in over 8 million dollars (HK), which was a lot of money at that time for a kung fu movie. It smashed all box office records, even the ones set by Bruce Lee.
Numerous lead performances as thugs and heavies followed, most notably in Dance of the Drunken Mantis (1979), the real follow-up to the first Drunken Master movie with Yuen Shun Yi taking Jackie Chan's place in the movie with all other cast members remaining on the set. Here, Hwang Jang Lee stars as the southern mantis drunkard "Rubber Legs" who is out on a mission to destroy the Northern drunken boxing master, Sam the Seed (Simon Yuen). This movie is incredibly good.
Although retired from filmmaking, Hwang will be remembered as arguably the best leg fighter in martial arts film history and easily one of it's most popular stars. -
Geee.....you learn something new everyday. I never knew there were Korean actors in Dance of the Drunken Mantis. Actually, I was very young then and all I remember was that old man with long white and beard. And the laser music too, each time he got drunk. eeewwweeeeewwweeeeewwweeee....
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in case you were wondering how's he doing now. he's quite enterprising and should be doing just fineOriginally posted by gentlerock:Geee.....you learn something new everyday. I never knew there were Korean actors in Dance of the Drunken Mantis. Actually, I was very young then and all I remember was that old man with long white and beard. And the laser music too, each time he got drunk. eeewwweeeeewwweeeeewwweeee....
If you're a fan of Hong Kong cinema, then this man is one who must know. Hwang Jang-Lee is the ultimate bootmaster. Known for his powerful and deadly kicks on screen as well as off, Hwang has a reputation as the Lord of the Superkickers. Born in Japan, Hwang's family moved back to their native Korea, where at the age of 14, Hwang began taking the national martial art of tae kwon do. Hwang would go on to teach the Korean Army TKD, and during his service, he killed a Vietnamese knife fighter in self defense. Hwang began his film career in his native Korea. In 1976, Ng See-Yuen, the founder of Seasonal Films, hired Hwang to play the villain Silver Fox in The Secret Rivals, where he goes toe to toe with Chinese superkicker John Liu. Hwang would go on to establish himself as the best on screen kicker anyone has seen. He even played the villain in the two films that boosted Jackie Chan's career, Snake in the Eagle's Shadow and Drunken Master. In 1980, after playing the villain for so long, Hwang directed, produced and starred as the hero in Hitman in the Hand of Buddha. After making many films, Hwang retired in 1990, where at first he ran a golf-tee manufacturing company and hotel in Seoul. He also suppsedly ran a bodyguard agency. Nevertheless, Hwang has established and stamped his Hong Kong career as the king of the Bootmasters. In 1994, Hwang starred in two low budget Korean films while running a hotel as well as a bodyguard service. In January of 2003, Hwang was awarded his 9th-degree black belt in Taekwondo and is now Grandmaster Hwang Jang-Lee. Sources say his birthdate is December 13, 1944, but according to two Korean sites, his birthday is September 2, 1947. Since he is of Korean descent, until confirmed, we will use the birthday listed in the Korean sites. -
I must get some of those old movies to watch again....very nostalgic. When I was in lower secondary, I used to run out of the house every Saturday just to watch all these movies with flying men.
Are you a movie fan, martial arts fan, or both? -
both lor. because it's hard to be 1 without being the other. but i only know some TKD from school. hope to pick up other forms too. but so far, no time and funding. you wanna recruit students?Originally posted by gentlerock:I must get some of those old movies to watch again....very nostalgic. When I was in lower secondary, I used to run out of the house every Saturday just to watch all these movies with flying men.
Are you a movie fan, martial arts fan, or both? -
Huh? I recruit what students?
Actually, its not expensive to enrol in one of those community centre classes. They always have lots of banners advertising for TKD, karate, silat, wushu, line dancing, flower arrangement, etc.
I saw on TV news yesterday that wushu is gonna be a compulsory sport in the inter-school games here. -
yeah. they show opening that time will be bare-topped with oiled bodies and practice some 5-style animal style in some dark room with candles and fight with imaginary opponent and their arms move around got the loud sound effects "vrok vrok vrok......"Originally posted by gentlerock:Geee.....you learn something new everyday. I never knew there were Korean actors in Dance of the Drunken Mantis. Actually, I was very young then and all I remember was that old man with long white and beard. And the laser music too, each time he got drunk. eeewwweeeeewwweeeeewwweeee....