Review of Man of Tai Chi (2013) by Gavin P — 03 Sep 2014

Not great, but not crap, either. It;s a pretty predictable kung-fu film, with the exception that Tiger practices Tai Chi, not kung-fu, karate or any other martial art. I guess you have to admire Keanu Reeves for filming it on site in China & Hong Kong and having subtitles, rather than doing a half-assed attempt in the U.

S. And, although an extremely limited actor, his constant scowl and lack of any real dialogue make Keanu a pretty believable bad guy! Definitely an element of 'Fight Club', but it's basically a mix of that & 'Unleashed', with Tiger redeeming himself at the end and returning to his Tai Chi roots to fight Keanu (remembering his 'Matrix' training!).

Pretty predictable story, lots of odd camera angles/transitions/edits (I guess that's Keanu experimenting as a first-time director) and a dodgy soundtrack. Still, some interesting fight scenes make it worthwhile.