Watch Man of Tai Chi For Free

How sad is this?

Beautiful, moving film.

Although I seem to have had higher expectations than I thought, the movie is super entertaining.

The movie turns out to be a little better than the average. Starting from a romantic formula often seen in the cinema, it ends in the most predictable (and somewhat bland) way.

I've seen many martial arts 'fight-club' movies with the same basic premise, Bloodsport through Mortal Kombat. Not many are done well, but some manage to hold up. I hate watching subtitled movies, but this one was worth it. Not many are.This one takes the non-combat based Tai Chi, that most everyone has seen used for a healthy and balanced mind and body in many movies, and makes it work well as a combat form.This story keeps you interested. You watch the main character progress through the effects of an unbalanced lifestyle and see him transform.It could have easily been pushed and ruined. You think you can see an old trope coming, but then it proves not to be one.Keanu, I applaud you.Very enjoyable.

This Review might contain slight spoilers because well, in order to review it, some context has to be made with other films. So the spoilers are not going to ruin the film.TLDR / If you like action movies, especially martial arts movies, this is a must watch.Man of Tai Chi is a pretty great effort for Keanu Reeves debut. The camera work was excellent, the editing was fast paced, the fights were believable (although, there was some wire kung-fu - more on that later), and in general, the movie felt like watching a modernized classic 1980's martial arts movie.It is the same basic story as thousands of films and older martial arts. Hero is innocent, hero (or town or friend or village) loses something, hero is forced to fight, and then the hero determines ultimately which path he wants to take, good or evil. The most recent movie I can think of to compare this to is Tony Jaa's Onk Bak. It really is quite a similar movie, following the plot pretty closely, but also adding it's own style and a more futuristic setting.In the film, Tiger is becoming a master of Tai Chi, an art known more for meditation than for fighting. The movie deals with his inner turmoil of disappointing his master while also trying to establish himself. On that aspect, the movie succeeds because Tiger Hu Chen plays the part pretty well, especially for a man who mostly is a stuntman. Keanu Reeves actually does a decent job in his role and is a believable villain. Although neither are exceptional, it doesn't matter because the movie, like most "pure" martial art films that have come before it, is all about the fighting.Now, a lot of reviews and comments complain about all of the "wire fu" used in this film. There isn't as much as they would lead you to believe. Most of the "wire fu" is used to fling people back further to demonstrate the strength of the many different styles in the film, or to make a character appear to be unbeatable, or to pull off a couple of the more complex stunts. In general, besides a few scenes, it is not distracting and doesn't undermine the movie in any way. If anything, it enhances some of the fights because it emphasizes Tiger's small statue and "weak" fighting style when he fights larger, more powerful foes.And that is what this film is all about is the fights. Again, like Onk Bak, the story is just a reason to watch fight after fight after fight. In this movie, that is exactly what you get. The movie is probably 20% dialogue and 80% fighting and that is where it shines. It is very clear that Keanu did his homework and basically made an homage film to kung fu movies overall. Without question, Reeves succeeded.Quite simply, if this movie had came out in 1990 and stared Jackie Chan in the lead (although that would lead to more goofy scenes but lets just pretend Jackie plays it straight) this film would have been considered revolutionary.I can't believe I'm saying this, but I'm wondering if, like Ben Affleck before him, maybe Keanu Reeves is better behind the film than in the film. Sure Keanu has had a more successful career than Ben, and Ben is probably the better actor (which isn't saying much), however if this is Keanu Reeves debut, I can't help but be anxious to see what he does next.A solid 7.5 from me, which I rounded down to a 7. For those who don't read my reviews, or check my rating history, you know I am not a instant 1 or 10 reviewer / rater. I think I've given 2 10's in my entire life, and maybe a few 9's.TLDR / If you like action movies, especially martial arts movies, this is a must watch.

Man of Tai Chi is a very enjoyable movie, but it may not be for everyone. The plot and characters are fairly straight forward, and the fight scenes are fairly grounded, so they won't be too exciting if you're in the mood for a crazy, physics breaking,brawl movie, however this compliments the tone of the movie rather nicely. This is a subtle movie, and it has a lot of heart, the action sequences focus less on trying to be big and explosive and more on showing a brutal, fairly realistic struggle that also sheds light on the mental state of the main character, in other words. The fights in this movie are not as flashy and stylized as other movies, this however did not detract from my enjoyment, because of the more tooth and nails style of the fights, it made them feel more like a struggle to survive than a choreographed martial arts show. As for the story, it is much more personal than you'd expect, instead of being focused on crime and criminals, which are certainly big elements of this movie, it's more about the main character's inner struggle about who he wants to be and how he wants to win his battles. This type of story wouldn't work without good actors. The performances are not award worthy, but they are enjoyable and you can't help but be excited to see what the characters do next. This is a straightforward, grounded fighting movie, with a personal story and good characters, not as stylized as other martial arts movies, but this fact adds to its tone and story, all in all, a well done, entertaining movie with an endearing message.

This film works on many levels and is not just an excuse for a lot of fighting. Keanu Reeves directs a tight plot with excellent actors all extremely well chosen. There is no flying about on wires or lengthening swords but there is a powerful message at the heart of this film and it is a lesson for China emerging once again as a world power. It is also a lesson at the heart of Chinese culture and Tai Chi. The film feels very slick and is filmed with an eye developed in Hollywood which is an interesting cocktail mixed with the Chinese actors and language - most of the film is in Mandarin but Reeves speaks English - to give a distinctive and interesting flavour. Reeves is the evil character symbolising corruption and a hunger for blood whilst the Man of Tai Chi battles with his inner demons to overcome his own loss of Chi.