With films like ‘The Matrix’ or ‘Charlie’s Angels’, martial arts acts best known from Chinese cinema at the turn of the millennium also found their way to Hollywood – and were blown up into exaggerated spectacles with the virtually unlimited possibilities of the dream factory. often had little to do with the origins of martial arts. And so, in the early 2000s, Jet Li began bringing old-fashioned, handcrafted martial arts to the screen – going back to the roots of martial arts cinema, after recently overdoing himself with “Romeo Must Die.” for the Hollywood brand.
However, with “Kiss Of The Dragon” a lot changes: the use of CGI and ropes must be kept to a minimum, and realism must be taken to the extreme with every punch, kick or jump. The result can still be seen more than 20 years later – for example on TV tonight: Sat.1 shows “Kiss Of The Dragon” on the night of December 23 to 24, 2023 from 1:30 am. In the fully unabridged FSK 18 version.
While DVD and Blu-ray* Currently only available through third-party providers, you can currently also find the French-American action thriller on Netflix. But wherever and however – in the end it is the same on both sides: “Kiss Of The Dragon” is worth a watch for all Jet Li fans, as well as anyone who enjoys intense martial arts entertainment in general – and fans of films like ‘Taxi’, ‘The Transporter’ and ’96 Hours – Taken’ can also take a look with confidence. What do all these films have in common with “Kiss Of The Dragon”? They are all produced by Luc Besson, who shaped French action cinema in the 90s and 2000s, not only with his directorial works such as ‘Leon – The Professional’.
“Kiss Of The Dragon”: Jet Li fights his way through Paris
In ‘Kiss Of The Dragon’, Jet Li takes on the role of Chinese government agent Liu Jian, who is tasked with helping Parisian Commissioner Richard (Tchéky Kayro) arrest a Chinese drug lord. But shortly after his arrival, he discovers that the French law enforcement officer is actually a corrupt, sadistic murderer – who not only accuses his Chinese partner of murder, but also wants to hunt down the uninvited guest.
Liu Jian barely manages to save himself and also obtains important evidence. However, before he can benefit from this, he must first go into hiding – because the hunt for him has been in full swing for a long time…
“Kiss Of The Dragon” is an action film in which many small cogs fit together perfectly – and certainly not by chance. Because Luc Besson relied on great talents in front of and behind the camera, with whom he worked again and again. Among them are martial artist Cyril Raffaeli (“Taxi Taxi”, “Ghettogangz 1+2”), cinematographer Thierry Arbogast (“Nikita”, “The Fifth Element”) and action legend Corey Yuen, who was responsible for the martial arts choreographies – and would shortly later took over the management of “The Transporter” under Besson.
Yuen comes from the Hong Kong film industry and had extensive experience with lead actor Jet Li – one of the greatest martial artists in film history, who filmed “The Enforcer” and “Bodyguard of Beijing” with him. However, his interaction with Cyril Raffaeli presented him with a very special challenge: Jet Li lets the sparks fly spectacularly over the course of the film, but in the final battle with Raffaeli, the two’s movements were even too fast (!) for the camera – so the director had to Chris Nahon specifically slowing down and delaying the fightso that the punches and kicks of the fighters in the film could later be seen with the naked eye!
“Kiss Of The Dragon” is an absolute must-see, especially for fans of old-fashioned hand-to-hand combat, in which there is virtually no CGI or other tricks. There were real experts at work here, both in front of and behind the camera, who managed to give the action a level of brutality and dynamism that large Hollywood productions often lack.
Author: Daniel Fabian
Source : Film Starts
I am Dawid Malan, a news reporter for 24 Instant News. I specialize in celebrity and entertainment news, writing stories that capture the attention of readers from all walks of life. My work has been featured in some of the world’s leading publications and I am passionate about delivering quality content to my readers.
