The same team, the same routine, the same formula, and perhaps even the same horse.
The "knife wielder" played by Shi Xiaolong as the jackal is not crazy at all; I think having Jiang Qiming play the role might have provided a more exciting interpretation. Getting back to the point, the fight scenes are as exhilarating as ever, and designing matching martial arts movements for the characters is a basic skill that comes easily to a seasoned performer.
The characters and actions can match, but the actor and the role do not quite fit.
Shi Xiaolong's action performance is fine; there's no need to worry about that since he comes from a martial arts child star background. Although he looks scruffy and dirty, speaking with a strained voice, it's still easy to see his youthful face. Why does it feel this way?
Shi Xiaolong, nearing forty, still gives off a youthful and inexperienced vibe? Xie Miao, who is a few years older than him, has a face that tells a story.
The name "jackal" sounds crazy and terrifying; while the fighting looks good, it lacks explosiveness, and Shi Xiaolong cannot convey that ruthless feeling.
Xie Miao, also a knife wielder, has skills honed under the direct training of Jet Li, clean and sharp, ruthless and fierce; when it's time to break someone's limbs, he does so without hesitation.
Xie Miao has transitioned from online films to theatrical releases, and now he is acting alongside Andy Lau and Nicholas Tse in "Raging Fire," which is highly anticipated.
It is said that next year there will be a collaboration with director Kenji Kawai on "Fire in the Eyes," aiming for the international film scene. Who is Kenji Kawai? He is a protégé of Donnie Yen.
The unremarkable Shi Xiaolong is focusing on building the "knife wielder" into a personal brand martial arts film series, and a return to theaters is just around the corner.
Light knives and swift horses have created a martial arts metaverse, and Xie Miao's character, the blind man, is also a knife wielder; the "No One in Sight" series has received good reviews, and continuing to film will likely yield good box office results.
What’s even more surprising is that the knife wielders are gathering like the Avengers.
In the post-credits scene of "Knife Wielder," the blind man receives a wanted notice for the jackal.
Some audience members commented that Teacher Cao Jun hasn't appeared for a long time, and his emotional wounds should be healed by now; why not include him? Three martial arts child stars, each with their own flair, ultimately unite to form the "Knife Wielders Alliance" to fight monsters together.
This year, there’s also a similar martial arts film "Lone Road Mad Blade," where Zhang Jin's actions are very sharp and visually appealing; he should be the big boss of the "Knife Wielders Alliance."
The story structure of "Knife Wielder" is relatively simple. The good person must be in decline, but at a moment of warmth, they open the long-sealed door to their heart, leading to an instant epiphany, their combat power skyrocketing, transforming from a killer to a god of killing; the bad guy's trait is to self-destruct, never allowing a glimmer of humanity to show, remaining completely dark, with no thoughts of remorse, and absolutely cannot be forgiven.
Playing a pervert is difficult, but playing a pervert who wants to express a tumultuous journey and ultimately strives to be a good person is even harder. Fortunately, the budget is limited, and there’s no time to tell how he struggles and twists into a pervert.
Nowadays, no one wants to know how a pervert becomes a pervert.
The structure of the climax in such films is surprisingly consistent. The characters played by Zhang Jin, Xie Miao, and Shi Xiaolong all follow this routine because it works well.
The protagonist will definitely don armor, pick up weapons, unleash their inner universe, and deliver powerful attacks. The bad guy must die, and their death must be satisfying; begging for mercy is necessary, but absolutely no forgiveness.
What we want to see is a one-hit kill, a sword to the throat, a knife to the heart. The trope of the bad guy suddenly realizing their wrongs and repenting is no longer palatable.
In such a constrained creative environment, achieving success is not easy. The martial arts series by Light Knives and Swift Horses is akin to the embryonic form of Hong Kong's action cinema, following the same routines and formulas, rotating different directors, screenwriters, and actors, creating countless similar yet slightly different film combinations, knowing full well that they might even be using the same horse, yet still feeling exhilarated.
It looks like a fast-food online film produced on an assembly line, lacking high artistic value and a solid core, but it meets a certain emotional release that people crave today. Good people are rewarded, and if good people die, no one reports it. The so-called justice lies in the hearts of the people; if justice itself is wrong, who will break it?
Therefore, martial arts will never die.