Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen

Legend of the Fist: The Return of Chen Zhen (2010) is a Hong Kong action drama you can watch online on iFILM. Chen Zhen, the folk avenger from the old Fist of Fury legend, was thought dead for years. He resurfaces in Japanese-occupied Shanghai under a borrowed name, ready to fight.

The story opens on a World War I battlefield, then drops into the smoky Shanghai of the late 1920s. By day Donnie Yen's Chen Zhen is a polished regular at a glamorous jazz club; by night he becomes a masked fighter picking off the Japanese officers plotting a massacre. Shu Qi plays a club singer whose loyalties run both ways, and Anthony Wong is the owner trying to keep the city from tipping into open war. Yen choreographed the combat himself with Kenji Tanigaki, which is why the brawls hit with that relentless, bone-cracking rhythm.

Director Andrew Lau, the man behind Infernal Affairs, recasts the classic hero in a trench coat and fedora, with a knowing nod toward pulp and superhero serials. For fans of Donnie Yen and vintage Hong Kong action, this is a clean hit. Stream Legend of the Fist (2010) online on iFILM.