Dragon Inn holds an important – yet underappreciated – place in the history of the martial arts genre. Although it’s far from one of the most famous martial arts movies today, it’s true that the 1967 film had a tremendous influence on what followed. In fact, it can be argued that Dragon Inn is one of the movies that helped define the martial arts genre.
Its impact and legacy are reflected by filmmakers’ efforts to revisit the movie years later. Major stars ᴀssociated with kung fu movies took part in remakes of the King Hu classic, with both Jet Li and Donnie Yen appearing in the films. Both received their share of fanfare, but neither has managed to live up to the reputation of Dragon Inn, which holds a Rotten Tomatoes score of 100%.
Dragon Inn Was A Great Precursor To The Martial Arts Movies Of The 1970s
Dragon Inn Is A Wuxia Masterpiece From The Legendary King Hu
The martial arts genre didn’t fully take off until the early 1970s with the release of films like Jimmy Wang Yu’s The Chinese Boxer, Lo Lieh’s Five Fingers of Death, and Bruce Lee’s The Big Boss. These films served as an evolution of a phase that took place in the 1960s, which was encapsulated by films such as The One-Armed Swordsman, Come Drink With Me, and Dragon Inn.
On the heels of his equally consequential film, Come Drink With Me, King Hu directed Dragon Inn, a period piece set in and around the movie’s тιтular inn, a place that draws in both the movie’s heroes and its villains. In the film, various fighters – both good and bad – convene at Dragon Inn and get into a fight over the children of the corrupt emperor’s political rival.
Considering that hand-to-hand combat had yet to become a stable of the genre, Dragon Inn uses sword-fighting as the basis of its action scenes, which are quite plentiful and beautifully choreographed in Dragon Inn, albeit much shorter than what many tend to see from kung fu movies from the 1970s and 1980s, and even those made today.
Jet Li & Donnie Yen Starred In Underrated Remakes Of Dragon Inn
Tsui Hark Directed The 1992 And 2011 Remakes
The story of Dragon Inn was revived in 1992 by the release of New Dragon Inn, which starred Maggie Cheung, Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Ka-fai, and Donnie Yen. In the film, the cold-blooded eunuch who launches the story via his pursuit of the children is played by Donnie Yen, giving the actor a rare villain role. Like the original, Dragon Inn combines romance and sword-fighting action in a thrilling story that sees multiple martial artists meet and team up against the eunuch.
It’s technically set after the events of Dragon Inn, but it is still considered a remake, due it to following a very similar narrative, also centered on an inn during the Ming Dynasty.
Nearly a decade after making New Dragon Inn, director Tsui Hark helmed Flying Swords of Dragon Gate, a movie that saw Jet Li step into the starring role as a wandering hero. It’s technically set after the events of Dragon Inn, but it is still considered a remake, due it to following a very similar narrative, also centered on an inn during the Ming Dynasty.
Both New Dragon Inn and Flying Swords of Dragon Gate gather interesting ᴀssortments of martial arts heroes, creating fun dynamics between them and delivering exciting team-ups. They may not become classics in the same vein as Dragon Inn, but succeed in paying tribute to a significant chapter in the martial arts genre’s history.
