Line #112 Film/TheManWithTheIronFists


1	[[quoteright:345:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ManWithIronFistsPoster_3353.gif]]
2	[[caption-width-right:345:EverybodyWasKungFuFighting.]]
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4	In a place called Jungle Village, numerous factions are at war with one another for control, with a lone Blacksmith (RZA) making weapons for them all. When Imperial gold is set to travel through the village, the normal violence reaches new levels, various powerful figures including good and evil brothers, the son of the Lion Clan Leader called the X-Blade (Creator/RickYune), a devious madam (Creator/LucyLiu), and a mysterious Englishman (Creator/RussellCrowe) with a [[ImpossiblyCoolWeapon pistol/knife/drill combo]] in his holster arrive in Jungle Village. Will the Blacksmith stay neutral as the lives of his fellow villagers are put on the line?
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6	RZA's first directorial film, co-written with Creator/EliRoth, ''The Man with the Iron Fists'' was in part a tribute to the 70's [[MartialArtsMovie martial arts]] films that inspired his old hip-hop conglomerate Music/WuTangClan. It was released in Fall of 2012, although reportedly this is less than half of what was actually filmed, with RZA having originally intended to release it all as two movies before executive hijinks shot it down. An unrelated DirectToVideo sequel was released on DVD and Blu-Ray on April 14, 2015.
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8	Not related with ''VideoGame/{{Tekken}}''[[note]]Japanese for "Iron Fist"[[/note]], or to Marvel's ''Comicbook/IronFist'' properties.
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10	----
11	!! This film provides examples of:
12	%%* ActionGirl: Madam Blossom is the DragonLady variety.
13	* ActionPrologue: EverybodyWasKungFuFighting during the opening credits.
14	* AmbiguousTimePeriod: It appears to be set in China, but where and when is hard to pin down. The presence of Jack Knife (who dresses like an old west gunman) and his dealings with Opium in China, as well as the Blacksmith's backstory as a slave in Southern American plantations, nominally put this movie somewhere around the 1860s (in turn suggesting the Emperor is either [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daoguang_Emperor Qing Daoguang]], [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Xianfeng_Emperor Qing Xianfeng]], or [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tongzhi_Emperor Qing Tongzhi]]) but the technology blends BambooTechnology with Steampunk and meshes the aesthetic of several time periods (with the Pink Blossom in particular practically looking like a modern-day brothel).
15	* AnimalThemedFightingStyle: Jungle Town's warring clans are each named for an animal which informs their fighting style. This doesn't just cover normal animal-themed kung-fu disciplines, but other animals as well, such as:
16	** Rat Clan, who use camouflage and skulking about to conceal large numbers of fighters for sneak attacks. They're individually fairly weak but specialize in coordinating their attacks to confuse and incapacitate stronger opponents.
17	** Spider Clan, who run the local brothel and are quite adept [[ImprovisedWeapon at using the normally decorative curtains in their home to move about when fighting]]. They also possess [[PoisonedWeapons poisoned needles]] they can mount on their tongues to deliver a powerful toxin that almost instantly paralyzes and kills their targets.
18	* AnimalThemeNaming: The various clans that control Jungle Village.
19	* ArtisticLicenseChemistry: Mercury is apparently dark green. It will also turn your veins black and kill you in about five seconds when injected into your bloodstream via blowdart. It's possible, however, that the version Poison Dagger uses is a modified mercury-based compound of some kind.
20	* AssholeVictim: [[spoiler: The racist hick the Blacksmith accidentally killed. Also, Crazy Hippo.]]
21	* TheAtoner: The Blacksmith saves X-Blade's life to atone for the fact he made the weapon that killed X-Blade's father.
22	* AutomaticCrossbows: The Geminis' troops carry these. After they hijack the gold, the Lions use the ones they've captured in the process.
23	* BackToBackBadasses: The Geminis, naturally. The "Gemini Stance" consists of their doing this while the Gemini Female is locked in position inverted on the Gemini Male's back.
24	* BallsOfSteel: Brass Body has these...go figure.
25	* BandOfBrothels: Lucy Liu's charismatic bordello madam keeps ample security ([[spoiler: a trained squad of shadowy kunoichi assassins]]) on hand to deal with unsavory clients.
26	* BandOfBrothers: [[spoiler: Thaddeus, Jack, and Zen Yi at the end]].
27	* BattleCouple: The Gemini Killers.
28	* BigBad: Silver Lion, TheUsurper of the Lion Clan trying to steal the gold. However, [[spoiler: Poison Dagger is arguably the ManBehindTheMan and the true BigBad. He's at least part of a BigBadDuumvirate]].
29	* BlackAndWhiteMorality: It's mostly a tale of good vs. evil. However, there are shades of [[{{BlackAndGreyMorality}} grey]]
30	** Jack Knife saves Thaddeus[[spoiler: and the children at the Pink Blossom]], but he also provokes a man into a fight early on in the movie basically for being a FatBastard, and proceeds to cut said man in half.
31	*** He even suggests Madam Blossom feed his dead body to the dogs.
32	** Though he later feels remorse, Thaddeus is responsible for the construction of the weapon that kills Gold Lion and sets the plot in motion.
33	*** He knew he was making weapons of murder, but he was more interested in buying his girlfriend's freedom. Somewhat justified, given his history and environment.
34	** [[spoiler: Madam Blossom is not above poisoning all the lions and taking gold that belongs to someone else, but she's also protective of her girls.]]
35	*** [[spoiler: She also ends up giving her life to save a child.]]
36	** [[spoiler: Lady Silk comes off as an innocent victim, but she was complicit in Madam Blossom's plan to poison all the Lions and steal the gold.]]
37	*** She just happened to get stuck with the [[{{NighInvulnerability}} nigh invincible]] Brass Body.
38	* TheBlacksmith: The titular character. His real name is [[spoiler: Thaddeus Smith]], and he specializes in unusual weapons. Including [[spoiler: mercury]] blowguns, for some reason.
39	* BladeEnthusiast: A heroic example in Zhen Yi, they don't call him [[HiddenWeapons X-Blade for nothing]].
40	* BloodKnight: Jack Knife.
41	* TheCameo:
42	** Creator/PamGrier as RZA's mother.
43	** Creator/GordonLiu as the Abbot
44	** Creator/ChenKuanTai as Gold Lion.
45	* ChekhovsBoomerang: The same [[SupernaturalMartialArts teachings and techniques]] used to have the human body control inanimate objects [[spoiler: is key to allowing Blacksmith to defeat Brass Body due to a poison wound he received to one of his [[PressurePoint vital points]] and Blacksmith beginning to target the ones he knows. ]]
46	* ChekhovsGun: The shield on the back of [[spoiler: Zhen Yi's second suit of knives]] prevents him from getting his [[spoiler: spine shattered by a booby trap, leaving him enough strength to kill Silver Lion.]]
47	* ChekhovsGunman: That white-haired official in the early narration ordering the shipment of the gold? Turns out that's [[spoiler: Poison Dagger]].
48	* ChopSockey: As part of the loving homage to 70's kung fu movies, many scenes are intentionally ChopSockey. The opening fight scene in particular stands out for this reason.
49	* ChromeChampion: Brass Body is a relatively rare example that is ''not'' a silvery color.
50	* CounterpartCombatCoordination: In the final battles, [[spoiler: The Blacksmith faces Brass Body, iron fists vs ...brass body. Jack Knife faces Poison Dagger, an old acquaintance of his, and they talk about how they are not so different. Zhen Yi (the X-Blade) fights against his sworn brother, Silver Lion]].
51	* CrapsackWorld: It ain't called Jungle Village for no reason and Thaddeus still seems to prefer it there than where he came from.
52	* CurbstompBattle:
53	** Bronze Lion at the beginning of the movie.
54	** Brass Body versus Zen Yi and his buddies.
55	* DeathByFallingOver: The AssholeVictim Thaddeus accidentally killed in his backstory. While harassing, hitting, and insulting Thaddeus, he eventually fights back, pushing him over. The racist hick hits his head on an anvil and dies.
56	* DiedInYourArmsTonight: Gemini Female in Gemini Male's arms while doing their GrievousHarmWithABody routine, Gemini Male shortly after, causing their dying pose to be that of the Gemini sign, and [[spoiler: Lady Silk in The Blacksmith's arms]].
57	* DragonLady: Madame Blossom.
58	* EstablishingCharacterMoment: Subverted in the cases of Jack Knife and Brass Body. The former enters the film as a hedonistic foreigner who delivers a vicious death using his [[ImprobableWeapon gun/knife/saw...]] [[BuffySpeak thing]], and ends up being one of the more upstanding and heroic characters in the movie. The latter enters while entertaining local children with his strength and being all smiles...only to be revealed as a monstrous assassin and borderline rapist with little regard for anyone else in his way.
59	* EveryoneCallsHimBarkeep: Blacksmith
60	* EvilIsHammy: Silver Lion.
61	* FaceDeathWithDignity: Poison Dagger. [[spoiler: As he's slowly being dragged into the massive gears, he's not struggling, and laughing]].
62	* FamilyFriendlyStripper: Despite being a brothel, none of the women at the Pink Blossom ever remove their tops on-screen. Even mid-coital, they're still clothed.
63	* FatBastard: Crazy Hippo.
64	* FatherToHisMen: {{Inverted}} as Madam Blossom is a mother to her girls
65	* FauxAffablyEvil: Silver Lion acts fairly normally around those not in his inner circle, but he is conniving and violent. [[spoiler: He doesn't hesitate to agree with Poison Dagger that Madam Blossom should die just after making a deal with her, and he enjoys toying with Zen Yi in the HallOfMirrors]].
66	* {{Flashback}}: While Thaddeus tells Jack how he got to China.
67	* FourStarBadass: [[spoiler: Jack Knife.]]
68	* FriendToAllChildren: Brass Body.
69	* GatlingGood: Subverted. During the last act of the movie, a big fuss is made over the fact that the Emperor's troops are approaching the village with a Gatling gun to massacre everyone. [[spoiler:Then it's never used.]]
70	* GenocideFromTheInside: Late in the movie Brass Body reveals that he was a member of yet another animal-themed clan, but he killed off the rest of his clan years ago.
71	* TheGiant / WorldsStrongestMan: In-universe, Brass Body (played by former wrestler/MMA fighter [[Wrestling/{{Batista}} Dave Bautista]]).
72	* GoodOldFisticuffs: Brass Body's fighting style, combined with his strength and NighInvulnerability makes him hard to beat. And if he is losing, [[spoiler: turns out he DOES have training and he actually is a skilled martial artist]].
73	* {{Gorn}}: Oh so much cheesy fake blood, in homage to the special effects of the chop sockiest of kung fu movies.
74	* GrievousHarmWithABody: One-third of the Geminis' fighting style consists of using tandem momentum. The other parts are guns on Gemini Female's body and their matching blades, which also help their routine.
75	* HealItWithFire: Twice done to [[spoiler: The Blacksmith's arms, once to cauterize the wound and once to prep it for the installation of the titular Iron Fists.]]
76	* HeroicSacrifice:
77	** [[spoiler: Two of the last loyal members of the Lion Clan that were working against Silver Lion die saving Zhen Yi from Brass Body's attempted assassination. ]]
78	** [[spoiler: Lady Silk, leaving herself open to a fatal attack to save the life of a child.]]
79	* HeroKiller: Poison Dagger, who basically exists to one-shot characters who are otherwise a OneManArmy.
80	* HoistByHisOwnPetard: [[spoiler: Silver Lion is killed by the gold he worked so hard to steal]].
81	* HumanJungleGym: This is how Batista's character Brass Body is introduced. The local children all start climbing onto him as he makes his entrance, eventually resulting in him being covered in kids as the villagers notice him. All he does is twitch his muscles and the children go (safely) flying off of him, giggling as they do. The friendly scene belies the fact that Brass Body is a [[PsychoForHire psycho-killer for hire]] who murdered his entire clan in cold blood.
82	* HighPressureBlood: Characters spew blood from any wound.
83	* IAmNotLeftHanded: [[spoiler: Brass Body, for most of the film,]] is set up as a guy who uses strength and NighInvulnerability with minimal fighting skill. Until he reveals that in addition to being all but impervious to damage, he's also [[spoiler: a master of the [[ActorAllusion Tiger]] Style fighting technique]].
84	* ImplacableMan: Brass Body is this in a big way for most of his scenes. Nothing any fighter in the movie does to him fazes him in the slightest. [[spoiler: Until the film's climax, where the Blacksmith ups his game and a wound given to Brass Body by Lady Silk leads to Brass Body's downfall.]]
85	* ImprobableWeaponUser:
86	** Pretty much everyone, but special mention goes to Jack Knife's gun/drill/knife.
87	** The sequel gives us a man wielding a mantis claw-shaped sword and the man with the iron legs.
88	* ItsPersonalWithTheDragon: The blacksmith's main enemy (and the only guy he truly has a grudge against) is Brass Body, Silver Lion's dragon.
89	* KiManipulation: See SupernaturalMartialArts below.
90	* KillTheCutie: Zen-Yi's assistant, Chan. The poor kid is clearly in over his head from the start, and [[spoiler: has his throat ripped out by Silver Lion just to goad Zen-Yi]].
91	* KissOfDeath: The brothel workers keep special blades in their mouths and later use them to stab the necks of their victims.
92	* LargeHam: Jack Knife is this in almost every single scene.
93	* LaserGuidedKarma:
94	** Discussed by the Blacksmith. [[spoiler: he pointed out he is suffering due to straying from the path, and eventually he loses his love, Lady Silk, and his arms.]]
95	** [[spoiler: The villains die in a karmic way. Brass Body brags about "drilling" Lady Silk, and gets drilled in return. Silver Lion wanted gold, and he gets it--all two tons right on his head.]]
96	* LastOfHisKind: Brass Body of the [[spoiler: lost Tiger Clan. He killed them all himself.]]
97	* LimitBreak: Done by the Blacksmith to [[spoiler: Brass Body]] during the final battle.
98	* MamaBear: Madam Blossom tells Jack Knife that if he hurts her girls she will hurt his boys. [[spoiler: She also dies saving a small child]].
99	* MartialArtsMovie: If you've made it this far, then it goes without saying.
100	* MenAreTheExpendableGender: Averted [[spoiler: all three main male protagonists survive while every major female character dies]].
101	* MyGirlIsASlut: Played with. Thaddeus doesn't seem to have a problem with Lady Silk working in a brothel, but it is also mentioned that Thaddeus is the only customer she has.
102	* NeverBringAKnifeToAGunFight: Invoked -- as incredible as the martial artists are, they are (except for one memorable example) not ImmuneToBullets. As a result, the moment when the heroes find out that the Emperor has sent his top soldiers to CleanUpTheTown and ''they'' are armed with guns is the moment when the plot escalates into a RaceAgainstTheClock.
103	* NippleAndDimed: Not a single female nipple is shown, rather surprisingly, considering half the film takes place at a brothel, and several gratuitous sex acts are depicted on screen.
104	* NomDeGuerre: The entire cast seems to go by these, save for a few exceptions, see NoNameGiven.
105	* NoNameGiven: Almost none of the characters' real names were revealed. Exceptions are the X-Blade (Zhen Yi), Jack Knife (Jack C. Wales), and the Blacksmith (Thaddeus Smith).
106	* ProtagonistTitle
107	* PunnyName: Thaddeus Smith, TheBlacksmith, chiefly. Jack Knife, though it isn't his actual last name, and others as well.
108	%%* RatedMForManly: Oh yeah!
109	* RedemptionEqualsDeath: [[spoiler: Madame Blossom's last act is to save an orphan girl, allowing the mortally wounded Bronze Lion to throw a weapon into her exposed back as she saved the child.]]
110	* RuleOfCool: Everywhere...
111	** Thaddeus's iron fists.
112	** Jack Knife's [[ImpossiblyCoolWeapon knife thingy]].
113	** Silver Lion's sunglasses.
114	** Gemini's martial arts.
115	* ShoutOut:
116	** So very many. An obvious one being the final fight between [[spoiler: Zhen Yi and Silver Lion]] in a HallOfMirrors a la ''Film/EnterTheDragon''. In this version, however, it's actually shown how it all works.
117	** Naturally, there are more than a few Music/WuTangClan references.
118	** There's a brief musical cameo of Sally Yeh's theme for Creator/JohnWoo's ''Film/TheKiller1989''.
119	** The character Poison Dagger is almost a {{Expy}} for Number 3/Brother Scorpion in their roles as TheGhost [[spoiler: and CorruptBureaucrat]] from ''Film/FiveDeadlyVenoms'' minus not having his alter ego get lines before the reveal.
120	** Possible ones may have been that the [[Film/TheMachineGirl Hero loses one or both arms,]] [[Manga/FullmetalAlchemist gets metal replacement,]] [[Franchise/MortalKombat kicks butt.]]
121	** Gordon Liu as the Abbot is, according to RZA, is San Te from the 36th Chamber of Shaolin.
122	* SchizoTech: The technology is all over the place. Within the ''same scene', there's a character using a pistol versus a character using a crossbow, and Jack Knife's weapon of choice (a steampunk knife-drill-gun hybrid) is a category all of its own.
123	* SequelHook: No sooner is the movie over than [[spoiler: the wife of Zhen Yi is kidnapped by the Hawk clan.]]
124	** The sequel turns out to have nothing to do with the hook, with only Thaddeus and the Geminis returning. That doesn't mean the ending was CanonDiscontinuity; it's shown that people are learning of Thaddeus's reputation, probably from word of adventures spreading.
125	* ShadyLadyOfTheNight: In the last act of the film, Madam Blossom is hired by the Lion Clan to conceal the Emperor's stolen gold beneath the Pink Blossom Brothel in exchange for a percentage. She double-crosses them: the ladies of the Pink Blossom brothel turn out to moonlight as an assassin-trained AmazonBrigade, [[OutWithABang kill several members of the Lion Clan in bed]] and then become one of the participants in the MeleeATrois that ensues as the obligatory Creator/QuentinTarantino bloodbath ending.
126	* SilkHidingSteel: [[spoiler: All the ladies of the Pink Blossom]].
127	* SoleSurvivor: The Blacksmith is the only survivor of a shipwreck in his backstory.
128	* SpikesOfVillainy: Inverted with X-Blade's suit of spikes/knives, as he's one of the film's most heroic characters.
129	* StormingTheCastle: [[spoiler:Well, actually the Pink Blossom]].
130	* SupernaturalMartialArts: A blacksmith [[EnlightenmentSuperpowers studies with Shaolin monks]] [[KiManipulation and learns to use his qi to control inanimate objects]]. Also, a man with a brass body capable of repelling blades.
131	* SupportingProtagonist: The Blacksmith.
132	** He plays much the same role in the sequel, as well. A significant portion of the story has even less to do with him than the first one.
133	* ThrowingYourSwordAlwaysWorks: Subverted. While many thrown weapons can or should kill, most throwers die before they can retrieve their weapons, [[spoiler: including Gemini Male and Madame Blossom]]. However, they can be perfectly capable of some combat without their weapon. The X-Blade's suit includes several fire and forget blades, but not a single one works against Brass Body.
134	* UnskilledButStrong: Subverted. Brass Body has [[NighInvulnerability a body that turns into metal]] and massive brute strength that allows him to tank any opponent without effort. However, once the Blacksmith proves he's able to hurt him despite his defense, Brass Body proves he's quite capable of fighting with skill instead of just strength.
135	* VanityProject: For RZA. A ChopSockey kung fu movie starring himself as the titular character? AuthorAppeal and VanityProject rolled into one.
136	* WaifFu: [[spoiler: Madam Blossom takes out Bronze Lion, though she is killed in the process]].
137	* WarriorMonk: The men who trained The Blacksmith
138	* WilhelmScream: When The Blacksmith sends mooks flying.
139	* WireFu: is in several scenes.
140	* WorldOfBadass
141	* WrestlerInAllOfUs: Brass Body kills a guy with a powerbomb. Creator/DaveBautista actually used a variant as his finishing move during [[Wrestling/{{Batista}} his wrestling career]].
142	* WouldHitAGirl: Brass Body and Bronze Lion
143	* WouldntHurtAChild: Brass Body.
144	* {{Wuxia}}: The movie definitely contains elements, but the more BMovie variety.
145	** It's not always clear whether the movie is intended to be an AffectionateParody or a {{Pastiche}}. It's probably a little of both.
146	* YankTheDogsChain: As soon as the Blacksmith and Lady Silk have earned enough money to buy their way out of Jungle Village and to a better life, they get caught at the center of the ongoing power struggle.
147	* YouKilledMyFather: Zhen Yi to Silver Lion.

Context Film / TheManWithTheIronFists