Gallants

Audiences pining for a strong throwback to Hong Kong cinema’s rough and ready old-school kung-fu of the past will be well served with Gallants. And so too will be moviegoers happy to soak in a magical celebration of Hong Kong culture and the city’s film heritage. There may be no modern-day megastars to woo the masses, but co-directors Derek Kwok and Clement Cheng’s spirited martial-arts comedy makes up for that with a wallop of fun action choreography, smart screenwriting, catchy animation and even soundtrack homages to the Italian spaghetti westerns once influential to Hong Kong filmmaking.
Action is headed to screens when puny office lackey Cheung (Wong You-nam) is sent to a remote village to help his real estate company nail down hard-to-get property rights. Two martial artists (1970s stars Chen Kuan-tai and Leung Siu-lung) are holding fort in the local teahouse, once the kung-fu school of their mentor Master Law (Teddy Robin) but now fallen on less glamorous times. Their teacher has been lying upstairs in a decades-long coma, but he springs back to life when local landlord and gym boss Master Pong (Chan Wai-man) makes moves to clear out the shop for redevelopment. Twists of fate bring Cheung into the teahouse fold, alongside tough maiden Kwai (Jia Xiaochen), and in short order Master Law starts training a team for a martial-arts tournament at Master Pong’s place.
With ace action director Yuen Tak (She Shoots Straight, Fong Sai-Yuk) on board, and veteran screen fighter Lo Meng brawling as well, Gallants’ kung-fu scenes are top notch. Extravagant battles are made with muscular, clear takes with skilled fighters, not marred by the rapid editing and CGI blood now standard in weaker efforts. Even diminutive Teddy Robin, no martial-arts star he, cracks out kung fu with apparent ease. Casting is exemplary, whether in referencing past work (Chen’s part recalls his 1974 film The Teahouse), casting against type (see Susan Shaw’s warm, romantic character) or drawing on young stars’ talents (rapper MC Jin brings a nifty rhythm to his part).
Kwok and Cheng are meanwhile keen to play up past cinema norms and make good use of old-fashioned settings, and their film is likely to sit near heart of Hong Kong’s current nostalgia wave once it reaches cinemas this summer. Character names are emblazoned on-screen as they were in early-’70s pictures, the well-worn tournament theme gets a run in a fresh guise and Teddy Robin’s retro score is a delightful take on Euro-western style. But throughout all is an effort to underline a Hong Kong identity, a respect for local tradition and the merits of unfailing dedication through hard times.
The hot topic of unchecked property development is slipped in for added bite, as too is the notion that flashy marketing shouldn’t overshadow the virtues of age-old practices. It’s in the latter point that the co-directors score especially well: theirs is a low-budget work, minus high-tech effects, lacking top stars and rooted in a genre cast off by Hong Kong youngsters, but thanks to valiant efforts in screenwriting and production, and with a sure-footed and youthful energy, Gallants punches well above its weight.