Characters from the Chinese action-comedy film Kung Fu Hustle (2004).
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Sing (and his acquaintances)
Sing
Played by: Stephen Chow
A loser in life who aspires to join the Axe Gang. He specializes in the Fut Gar Buddhist Palm technique. When the Beast attacks beats Sing to a pulp, it 'resets his qi flow' releasing the natural-born Kung Fu Master within.- Agony of the Feet: The foot-stomping Sing delivers to some members of the Axe Gang, and later to the Beast, in the final battle. It's so strong, their feet get flattened and you can even see the cracks underneath their feet. Ouch!
- Animal Motifs: Sing associated with butterflies. Throughout the film, Sing is shown to be a lost, incredibly inept young man with signs of potential, much like the caterpillar. When he emerges from his full-body cast, it is juxtaposed with a newly formed monarch butterfly emerging from a cocoon, symbolizing his Heel–Face Turn from an Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain into an Action Hero.
- Anti-Villain: He starts off as a very pitiable Harmless Villain or Ineffectual Sympathetic Villain, but towards the climax he ends up making a Heel–Face Turn and becoming The Hero of the movie.
- Being Evil Sucks: The movie makes it quite clear that the reason why Sing is such The Chew Toy and so down on his luck is because of his insistence on being a bad guy. Once he performs his first truly heroic deed as an adult, he's rewarded with unlocking his full potential as The Chosen One, running a successful candy shop, and finally able to be with a woman who loves him.
- Big Bad Wannabe: With a big emphasis on "wannabe".
- Card-Carrying Villain: Sing outright admits that he wants to be seen as the most feared bad guy in town. Not that he's any good at being bad however.
- Establishing Character Moment: He and Bone try to run a Protection Racket built on a cartoonishly flimsy premise (Sing promising not to hurt the Barber for giving Bone a "too good" haircut in exchange for money), Bone acting as the boss and Sing the enforcer. Bone then falls asleep in the barber's chair and Sing is ganged up by the rest of Pig Sty, all of whom are revealed to outclass him by a country mile.
- Freudian Excuse: He wanted to be a hero as a child and he gave his "life-savings" (his allowance) to a homeless man who gave him kung fu pamphlets as payment. He tries to save a mute girl from a bunch of bullies, only to get beat up and pissed on when the moves he learned failed to work as advertised. He had since believed that the world was so corrupt, good guys are destined to fail and the only way to get ahead in life is to become the biggest bad guy of them all, hence why he wants to join the Axe Gang (Shanghai's biggest crime syndicate) so badly.
- Good Wears White: After unlocking his true power and pulling a Heel–Face Turn, Sing faces off against the Axe Gang in a climactic battle while wearing a white cheongsam. The Axe Gang (including The Beast, who was wearing white earlier) are all wearing black during this fight.
- Harmless Villain: Despite his attempts, he is completely ineffectual as a gangster, and fails to make any of the Pig Sty residents fear him (since even the weakest among them can still kick his ass).
- Heel–Face Turn: When given an order by Brother Sum to help the Beast finish off the Landlord and Landlady, Sing has an epiphany and saves the couple's lives instead. After that, he protects Pig Sty from a final assault by what's left of the Axe Gang.
- Humble Hero: After his redemption. After he defeats the Beast and is asked what the Buddhist Palm technique was, Sing humbly just offers to teach it to the Beast if he wanted to know, as though the two hadn't just had a massive destructive kung fu fight. And despite becoming The Chosen One and arguably the most powerful kung fu fighter ever, he ends the movie having opened up a candy shop.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: Despite acting like a total prick to everyone around him, he does have a softer side that he tries to keep hidden, until he eventually Took a Level in Kindness.
- Kick the Morality Pet: He bullies Fong even though she's the only person who has been consistently kind to him in his life. He also treats his accomplice Bone like crap at times, despite him being pretty much the only friend (or acquaintance) he ever has to hang out with.
- Lip Losses: During the botched assassination attempt, Sing accidentally gets a cageful of snakes dumped over him. Bone suggests he whistle to calm them, only for Sing to get bitten squarely on the lips the moment he tries. For good measure, his lips end up swelling to the size of watermelons.
- Master of Unlocking: The one talent he has as a criminal, using an Improvised Lockpick to free himself from handcuffs and break out The Beast from his cell.
- Minion with an F in Evil: Throughout the film, Sing does everything to try and be a gangster, his attempts to intimidate failing epically due to the bumbling of his sidekick Bone, being hilariously outclassed by whoever he is trying to pick a fight with (which is everyone) or just sheer bad luck. This is a sign that he is not destined to be a bad guy, his Heel–Face Turn happening almost by impulse when he ends up hitting Brother Sum and the Beast in the head with a table-leg, the following beating by the Beast unblocking his chi pathways and metamorphosing him into the Action Hero he was destined to be.
- Nice Guys Finish Last: Sing's philosophy after his attempted heroics as a kid got the tar kicked out of him by the bullies he picked a fight with.
- Redemption Equals Death: Subverted and played upon, with Sing. But it quickly turns out to be Nice Job Fixing It, Villain.
- Redemption Promotion: Sing was a horrible criminal but achieves enlightenment after deciding to help The Landlord and Landlady (And getting beaten within an inch of his life for it).
- Rock Beats Laser: After being awakened, Sing uses a technique where he stomps on the feet of opposing mooks in rapid succession, resulting in comically paper-flat feet in cratered tile. The Beast sees it and mocks it ("The Toe Crusher. That was old when I was in kindergarten...") but yet falls for it himself later.
- Start of Darkness: A flashback reveals how Sing got into a life of crime: he tried to protect a girl from a gang of thugs using a kung-fu manual he bought, only to get the shit kicked out of him, laughed at for learning a fake technique from a fifty-cent mock kung-fu manual, and pissed on. This moment convinced him that Nice Guys Finish Last. Except the "fake" kung-fu manual turned out to have been the genuine article all along when Sing lets loose with the Buddha's Palm, one of the techniques taught, on The Beast.
- Threw My Bike on the Roof: Sing stomps the kids' soccer ball flat for no reason than to be an asshole. Behind the scenes, it's also a clever retort to fans who keep insisting that Chow make a sequel to Shaolin Soccer.
- Took a Level in Badass: Almost every time he gets seriously hurt, he always manages to come back stronger. By the end of the film, he's a One-Man Army and a Worthy Opponent to the Beast.
- Took a Level in Kindness: Towards the climax of the movie, he goes from being a selfish jerk to a more heroic figure who learns how to be a better person.
- Traumatic Superpower Awakening: After being beaten to within an inch of his life, Sing suddenly awakens to his true power as a Kung Fu master.
- A Twinkle in the Sky: Sing ends up as this when the Beast launches him upwards with the Toad Technique. However, subverted immediately afterwards, as it ends up as a setup for Sing to deliver the Buddha's Palm onto the Beast.
- Villain Protagonist: During most of the story, he's a criminal who is trying to get initiated into the Axe Gang, though he's totally incompetent at being a bad guy. And by the end, he ultimately turns himself away from the dark side.
- Villainous BSoD: Learning that the ice cream girl he's trying to stick up was the same girl who he tried to rescue as a boy and that she was still grateful to him after all these years sends Sing into distress, causing him to run away and force Bone to leave him.
- Who's Laughing Now?: Played with through Sing. After being beaten up and humiliated as a child he attempt to invoke this by become a thief and tough guy. Unfortunately for him he sucks at it and ends up being the Butt-Monkey. When his kung fu skills finally do awaken he subverts it, choosing not to get revenge on everyone who laughed at him and instead becoming the good man he wanted to be as a child.
Bone
Played by: Lam Chi-chung
Sing's sidekick. He tends to follow Sing around and is obese.- Being Evil Sucks: He outright says that trying to act like a gangster tires him out, hence why he fell asleep in the barber's chair.
- Earn Your Happy Ending: He's last seen working in a candy shop with Sing, and appears to be way more competent selling kids sweets than he ever was pretending to be a gangster.
- Establishing Character Moment: He and Sing try to run a Protection Racket built on a cartoonishly flimsy premise (Sing promising not to hurt the Barber for giving Bone a "too good" haircut), with Bone posing as the boss, ripping off his shirt to show how fat he is in an attempt to intimidate... only for Bone to immediately fall asleep in the chair, leaving Sing to deal with the rest of Pig Sty and get thoroughly outclassed by all of them.
- Face of a Thug: He has a scarred lip and eyebrow, which makes him look naturally intimidating on some level, but he's a completely harmless idiot.
- Fat Best Friend: He's overweight and the closest thing that Sing has to a friend, anyways.
- Fat Idiot: He's so big his body makes slow, loud sloshing noises when he moves and as a minion, he ranks a solid F in evil due to utter airheadedness.
- Minion with an F in Evil: Bone is somehow even worse than Sing at being a bad guy.
- Morality Pet: Sing's genuine friendship with him (up to risking his life to save him from the Axe Gang's wrath) is pretty much his only redeeming trait throughout the first half of the film. When Sing shoos him away, it's a sign he's about to hit rock bottom.
Fong
Played by: Eva Huang
Sing's mute love interest and childhood acquaintance. Sing saved her from Brother Sum and his crew when she was young.- Chekhov's Gunman: She turns out to be the girl with the lollipop that Sing tried to save when he was a young boy, and ends up being incredibly vital to his Character Development.
- Chocolate of Romance: Her romance with Sing is symbolized by ice cream, lollipops and chocolate at the end.
- The Cutie: Fong is a gentle and adorable young woman.
- Cute Mute: Yes, and yes. Fong is simply a ray of sunshine and kindness.
- Girls Love Chocolate: She is a ice cream woman and implied chocolatier.
- Forgotten First Meeting: Sing does not remember that they met when they were children, but she instantly recognizes him.
- Implied Love Interest: The movie never actually outright says she and Sing are in love or romantically interested in one another. Though there are definitely signs.
- The Ingenue: Fong is primarily characterized for her extreme sweetness and innocence among a cast of very cynical characters.
- Morality Chain: Sing's firmest tie to his days as a hero, and it is her tie with Sing that truly turns him to the path to good. Sing's mistreatment of her is actually the act that ring as most heinous to the audience.
- Tragic Keepsake: Fong still keeps the lollipop she had on hand when the bullies attacked her, in hopes of one day giving it to Sing (her attempted savior who got beaten and traumatized in the attempt and who she never saw again). Sing shatters it., but the lollipop becomes a recurring symbol and the logo of his candy shop near the end.
- You Are Better Than You Think You Are: The second time they encounter one another, Sing is attempting to rob her at knifepoint. Seeing the boy that saved her all those years ago turned into a common thug clearly breaks her heart, as she tries to remind him of his heroism all those years ago by presenting him with the lollipop she had back then.
Pig Sty Alley
In general
The local residents of Pig Sty Alley, one of the poorest slum neighborhoods in Shanghai.
- Almighty Janitor: The five undercover masters are a tailor, a baker, a coolie (unskilled laborer) and the landlady and landlord. Even the farmer lady that is challenged by Sing can punch him hard enough to make him cough up blood.
- Dwindling Party: One by one, the masters living in the slum step up to fight the gang. Nearly all are dead by the end of the film, and the Landlady and Landlord only just barely manage to survive.
- Flock of Wolves: As the opening text points out, harmless villages of squalor are the only place one can find peace. It seems like everybody had the same idea to find peace as a harmless villager, considering effectively everyone in Pigsty Alley is proficient in hand-to-hand combat and the place hides no less than five of the world's best kung fu masters in hiding for completely unrelated reasons. In summary, the harmless village is largely composed of extremely lethal people pretending to be harmless.
- Humble Hero: All of them lead very humble lives and carry very little ego, barring a couple of exceptions (such as the braggadocious Landlady and the young man whose ass-crack keeps showing).
- Let's Get Dangerous!: They're all comical, miserable villagers living in squalor who are actually absurdly competent in hand-to-hand combat to varying extents.
- Retired Badass: The Musicians mention the Three Masters are "long past their days as warriors" and the Landlord and Landlady likewise explicitly say they're retired from fighting.
- Undefeatable Little Village: Pig Sty Alley is this kind of village within a larger city dominated by criminal gangs.
- Working-Class Hero: Most of them are regular workers with regular jobs. This is actually a specific point of the film as Stephen Chow said the inspiration came from his childhood learning several unassuming working class people around him had actual martial arts training, teaching him real kung fu masters aren't secluded monks but just regular folk.
The Landlady
Played by: Yuen Qiu
The Landlady of Pig Sty Alley. She is a master of the Lama Pai Lion's Roar technique. She has a sonic scream that can pierce through anything.- Cranky Landlady: She verbally abuses all of her tenants for the pettiest reasons.
- Dark and Troubled Past: She doesn't specify the details, but she cries about how her son was killed in a fight and how Vengeance Feels Empty, implying that a lot of her crankiness stems from still mourning her son and not being able to use kung fu as an outlet.
- Establishing Character Moment: She is introduced callously shutting off her tenants' water for not paying rent, yelling at and threatening to evict almost everyone in the public square for the same, and then forcing everyone to be quiet.
- Jerkass Has a Point: She is verbally abusive towards her tenants and is physically abusive towards her husband, but considering her tenants apparently all owe her rent and her husband is a constantly getting drunk and flirting with everyone around him, its hard to blame her.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: She is incredibly rude and ill-tempered to everyone around her, but deep down she's actually a caring person; despite the fact that all of her tenants are supposedly months late on their rent she is never seen actually evicting anyone (just complaining loudly and sometimes cutting the water off).
- More Deadly Than the Male: The Landlady henpecks her husband despite him being a powerful Taichi master, and for good reason. Most other martial arts require the combatants to get in close range, but her Lion's Roar can obliterate opponents at range. The Harpists found this out the painful way.
- Never Mess with Granny: The Landlady, who just so happens to be made of awesome, as she's a master of Lama Pai Lion's Roar technique. She's strong enough to crack the top of a funeral bell and hold it to use it as a megaphone. Her actress, Yuen Qiu, really does have martial art skills, shown in her small role in The Man with the Golden Gun, and that's before you get to the fact that she and Yuen Wah both studied under the same master as Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung.
- Personality Powers: She is the master of the Lama Pai Lion's Roar technique, a sonic scream that can positively obliterate anyone in her path, matching her loud, abrasive and authoritative personality. This acts as a Stealth Pun on a Chinese slang-term for "shrill woman."
- Pet the Dog: The first sign of her heart of gold is when she responds to Sing threatening the barber and the rest of Pig Sty Alley by smacking the shit out of him with her slipper.
- Super-Scream: Her standard powers, the Lion's Roar.
- Super-Speed: The Landlady demonstrates this as early as the first time the Axe Gang sets foot into the Pig Sty Alley... by running back home to hide underneath her covers. She then uses it to chase Sing out after the failed assassination attempt, and to carry the badly injured Sing out of the casino after the Beast's beatdown (this one, along with her husband).
The Landlord
Played by: Yuen Wah
The Landlord of Pig Sty Alley. He is also a master of Taijiquan. He is flexible and able to hover in midair.- Ambiguously Bi: In his Establishing Character Moment, the Landlord drunkenly flirts with both the Camp Gay Tailor (even giving him a Flirtatious Smack on the Ass) and one of his lady customers.
- Casanova Wannabe: Appears to fancy himself quite the womanizer but gets rejected by everyone. It's subverted in this is likely a façade to cover his Kung Fu prowess (and indeed he seems entirely faithful to his wife once he drops the act).
- Chivalrous Pervert: The Landlord is a shameless flirt (to everybody), but at the end of the day it's clear he's faithful to his wife and this is just teasing.
- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: He's a bumbling Butt-Monkey in the first third of the film, but once he drops the charade of bumbling put-down landlord he turns out to be a absolute beast in combat.
- Deadly Dodging: His fighting style involves casually avoiding attacks or letting them bounce off of his less vulnerable spots, causing his opponents to hit each other by accident.
- Henpecked Husband: He frequently gets berated (and even beaten around) by his wife.
- Iron Butt Monkey: His comically brutal beatdowns at his wife's hands seems like a exaggerated joke at first but we later find out that soaking up damage is actually the key of his fighting style.
- Nice Guy: He's far more polite and easygoing compared to his wife anyways.
- No Sense of Personal Space: As befits his Casanova Wannabe personality, the Landlord's attacks begin with what looks like a hug.
- Obfuscating Stupidity: The Landlord's buffoonish abused pervert personality throughout the first third of the film is hinted to be an act as he entirely stops acting like that one he reveals himself as a Kung Fu Master. Contrast his wife who is still her hardass, aggressive self (if a tad toned down) after revealing herself as a master.
- Pajama-Clad Hero: He's a heroic character who spends the majority of the film's runtime dressed in his pajamas, though he does dress in a suit for one scene.
- Personality Powers: The ability to deflect attacks and defy gravity is the perfect ability to have when you're a punching-bag Henpecked Husband with No Sense of Personal Space.
- Stone Wall: Comparative to other fighters, The Landlord's main style is built around soaking up a truly obscene amount of damage moreso than dishing it out (which he often does by Deadly Dodging rather than attacking head-on).
The Coolie
Played by: Xing Yu
Kung Fu specialist of Tán Tuǐ Twelve Kicks technique from the Tam School. He has incredibly fast legs and can sense when an opponent is approaching.- Big Damn Heroes: He's the one who catches (mid-air) a lighter that was on its way to incinerate an oil-doused family, kickstarting the Three Masters standing up for the village.
- Extreme Doormat: As a Coolie he is shown as just silently carrying a comically large amount of weight and taking the insults from his Landlady in total silence. Of course, he subverts it when he's the very first inhabitant of the village to stand up to the Axe Gang.
- Extremity Extremist: While Coolie does use punches, his fighting style chiefly revolves around kicks.
- Logical Weakness: As his fighting style relies heavily on his lower body, he starts running into trouble when the Axe Gang swarm him to the point where he can't get enough room to throw a kick. Additionally, as he's the only one of the Three Masters who doesn't use a weapon, he has no way to defend against the Harpists' Razor Wind attacks, and he dies before he can put up a fight.
- Good Old Fisticuffs: He prefers fighting using his fists and feet, and that's enough for him to take down multiple enemies.
- Off with His Head!: Killed by way of decapitation.
- The Quiet One: He doesn't speak much, and when he does it's in short, terse sentences.
- The Stoic: He's also very economic with reactions and expressions in comparison to everyone else in Pig Sty Alley.
The Tailor
Played by: Chiu Chi-ling
The effete tailor of Pig Sty Alley. He specializes in the art of Hung Ga Iron Fist technique and he fights with iron rings on his arms, lending formidable weight to his strikes while also providing the means to defend against armed assailants.- Agent Peacock: Very effeminate and outright implacable in a fight.
- Beware the Silly Ones: His comically effeminate mannerisms betray the fact he's a unstoppable warrior.
- Camp Gay: He is incredibly effeminate and the film does nothing to hide this fact.
- Emotional Bruiser: Very emotional and sensitive (breaking into tears at when bullied by Landlady or gifted with vegetables by a poor family), but also downright fearsome in battle.
- Let's Get Dangerous!: Shown at first as comically cowardly before he reveals himself, but once the steel rings come flying, The Tailor proves his mettle. He's actually seen tearfully begging for an Axe Gang man to not attack him. Once he does, The Tailor effortlessly hurls that man through a window, signifying he's serious now.
- Nice Guy: The Tailor is very gentle and very meek outside of his fights.
- Real Men Wear Pink: Effeminate, overly emotional and concerned with a "feminine" craft (clothes), but never portrayed as lesser than any other Kung Fu Master and indeed, quite fearsome. Tailor does actually wear bright red underwear at one point that the Landlady mocks for being frilly, but the villagers stick up for him saying that doesn't make him any less of a man or a hero.
- Stealth Pun: Tailor's Camp Gay behavior belies his martial art, which requires extremely strong (as opposed to limp) wrists.
- Taking the Bullet: Pushes Donut out of the way from the Harpist's Razor Wind attack and dies as a result. Unfortunately, Donut also dies shortly afterward.
- Wrecked Weapon: The Harpists' Razor Wind shatters his iron rings when he tries to block it. This highlights how outmatched he is.
Donut
Played by: Dong Zhihua
The baker in Pig Sty Alley. He specializes in the Baguazhang Staff style. While primarily a staff user, he's also got a few spears stashed away.- Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass: Is shown as a very meek, somewhat Extreme Doormat bread-maker who is actually a incredibly fearsome kung fu master.
- Gratuitous Foreign Language: He switches to some very heavily-accented English every now and then (like saying "Thank you!" to the Landlord). In fact, his last words are in English: "WHAT ARE YOU PREPARED TO DO?", a Shout-Out to The Untouchables (1987).
- Mundane Utility: Before revealing himself, he is seen using some of his many staves as erstwhile rolling pins.
- Nice Guy: Seems to overall be a friendly chap always smiling to his costumers. He even offers a Axe Gang member a meal (before being swiftly punched in the face).
- Only Known by Their Nickname: As the other Three Masters, he is only known by his occupation. In this case, by what he makes (Donut).
- Rock Beats Laser: Donut destroys a few Tommy guns and Mauser C96 pistols with his staff.
- Wrecked Weapon: The Harpists destroy all of his spears as he tries to get close enough to strike them.
Axe Gang
In general
- Absurdly Sharp Blade: The axes used by the Axe Gang are sharp enough to cut clean through a man's leg when thrown. The harpists' invoked blades as well.
- Ax-Crazy: To say that their methods are extreme would be an understatement. They clear out the entirety of town square just to kill the comparatively minuscule Crocodile Gang and would go on to hire three of the deadliest men just to wipe out the impoverished residence of Pig Sty just because their lowliest members failed to scare them. The fact that their signature weapons are all hand-held hatchets certainly helps.
- Disproportionate Retribution: Their entire conflict with Pigsty Alley stems Brother Sum thinking they "disrespected the Axe Gang". Keep in mind the whole thing was started by the Gang trying to murder a boy for talking back to them and escalated from there.
- Evil Wears Black: Their black robes.
- Gang of Hats: The Axe Gang all wield axes, wear black suits (with some of them actually wearing top hats), and perform choreographed dancing in unison. Brother Sum is played by a professional choreographer.
- Leitmotif: A jazzy, catchy tune named "Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained
" that they're always seen dancing to (implying the song exists in the internal fiction of the film and is their theme). - Mook Chivalry: Inverted and subverted, especially in the first and the last mass brawl. The mooks don't shy from pulling Zerg Rushes and generally try to take all possible advantages they might have... but they are just mooks in an Affectionate Parody of wuxia.
- Mook Horror Show: Every scene where the Axe Gang confronts Pig Sty Alley directly basically ends with half of the gangsters getting their asses handed to them and the other half running away.
- Sharp-Dressed Man: Suit and tie is dress-code for the entire gang, from the lowly minion to the top boss. When Sing officially joins the gang he's actually given money and told to go out and buy a suit.
- Totalitarian Gangsterism: The Axe Gang rules all of Shanghai and spend an awful lot of time, energy and resources to snuff out any sign of dissonance. They were able to spook the entire Shanghai Police Department and clear out the streets just to kill the Crocodile Gang (which is just four guys and the boss' defenseless wife), they send an army of goons to ransack the impoverished Pig Sty Alley when two of their lowest goons fail to intimidate them, they hire two of the most deadly (and expensive) assassins in the world when three of their tenants manage to fend them off, then they break out the Beast - who was being held at a government facility for essentially being the deadliest man on Earth - as their last resort.
- The Triads and the Tongs: They are a Chinese criminal gang operating in Shanghai during the Great Depression. There was actually a very nebulous real-life Axe Gang in China between the 1920s and 1940s but very little is known about them.
Brother Sum
Played by: Danny Chan Kwok-kwan
The ruthless leader of the Axe Gang, who has destroyed all the other gangs in Shanghai.- Asshole Victim: Nobody shed any tears for Sum after the Beast killed him.
- Bad Boss: He kills an underling on the spot for accidentally spilling a cup of tea.
- Bait the Dog: After murdering a rival gang leader, Sum tells the man's wife that "I don't kill women." Then immediately after she turns her back on him, he cold-bloodedly shoots her dead anyways, thus establishing what a totally dishonest and ruthless thug he really is.
- Big Bad: Sum leads the Axe Gang and is responsible for the intimidation of the residents of Pig Sty Alley out of irritation towards their defiance. Though he's mostly hands off himself, he's the one organizing and recruiting for the attacks to take place.
- Big Bad Wannabe: Though still technically the main antagonist of the film, Sum is quickly reduced to a joke as he's humiliated by the Landlady and Landlord. Losing more and more control of the situation as the film goes on, Sum is eventually killed by the Beast for pissing him off still with 20 minutes left to go.
- British Teeth: While he's obviously not British, his teeth is horrible, and most visible when the camera pulls a Gross-Up Close-Up on his mouth when he's about to set a couple of civilians on fire after the Gasoline Dousing moment. We briefly see him smoking opium, so it's possible his teeth are in that condition over copious opium use (a common side-effect).
- Bullying the Dragon: When the Landlord, Landlady and Sing all escape their lair, Brother Sum has the chutzpah to chew out the Beast for letting them get away, earning him a backhand that kills him instantly.
- Card-Carrying Villain: He insists that he and his gang are "the bad guys," and conducts himself like a menace for fun.
- Dirty Coward: Sum tends to act like he's a badass whenever he and his gang are attacking enemies who are heavily outnumbered and outgunned, or when trying to kill helpless people who are unable to defend themselves; but he lacks any real fighting skills of his own, and will run off to hide when faced with opponents who can actually fight back. Probably best shown with how pathetically he surrendered to the Landlady when she cornered him.
- Disc-One Final Boss: Is the main antagonist for most of the film, only to be unceremoniously killed by the Beast, who promptly usurps the role of Big Bad.
- The Don: He is effectively the top mob boss of Shanghai.
- Establishing Character Moment: He is introduced sashaying his entire gang through the empty streets of Shanghai just to kill off the comparatively smaller Crocodile Gang. He does the hustle as he kills the leader, and then he lets the leader's wife go with seeming mercy, only to shoot her in the back when she tries running for it.
- Evil Has A Bad Senseof Humor: Shooting a unnarmed woman in the back (after promising not to harm her) and then doing a little dance with the shotgun seems to be his idea of a joke.
- Evil Is Not a Toy: He has the Beast broken out of his asylum to have him kill the Landlord and Landlady, only for the Beast to kill him and usurp control over his gang when Sum mouths off at him.
- Faux Affably Evil: He can sometimes be superficially charming, but he has no qualms with murdering anyone who gets in his way, even after calmly and politely pretending that he'll spare their life.
- Getting High on Their Own Supply: We briefly see him consuming his own opium.
- Hair-Trigger Temper: As described above under Bad Boss, he can fly into a murderous rage over something as little as his tea getting spilled.
- Hate Sink: He's despised by practically every character in the movie, from the residents of Pig Sty Alley to rival gangsters and even including his fellow underlings. Every moment he gets humiliated onscreen is played for laughs, and his entire gang pretty much forgot about his existence after his death.
- Jerk with a Heart of Jerk: He's a violently short-tempered thug without any redeeming qualities whatsoever. Best demonstrated with how he cheerfully pretended to be merciful to a helpless woman, before murdering her for no reason.
- Neck Snap: The Beast slaps Sum's face so hard that it causes his head to revolve around a few times until it faces backward.
- Scary Teeth: His teeth are rotted and yellow.
- The Sociopath: Sum is a murderous scumbag with absolutely zero trace of any kindness or morality in his body, and is perfectly willing to kill any (innocent) man, woman, or child who gets in the way of his goals for money and power.
- Soft-Spoken Sadist: Rarely speaks in anything beyond a low monotone at first, calmly and softly, as if disinterested. However, he noticeably loses this more and more as the movie goes on and his Villainous Breakdown continues - his last few lines are shouted at the top of his lungs.
- Weak Boss, Strong Underlings: Brother Sum can't fight much himself, but he can hire out The Harpists and the Beast, some of the strongest fighters in the entire world.
- Would Hit a Girl: As shown in his introduction, he is not above gunning down a completely defenseless woman with a shotgun blast to her back, despite (falsely) reassuring her that "I don't kill women."
- Would Hurt a Child: He tries to force a martial artist who injured a gang member to reveal himself by nearly setting a woman and her child on fire.
Brother Sum's Adviser
Played by: Tin Kai-man
Brother Sum's right-hand man and second-in-command in the Axe Gang.- The Consigliere: Essentially Brother Sum's voice of reason and go-to guy for every task. Given the Axe Gang's western trappings, he's probably a literal Mafia Consigliere (or at least a Shanghai approximation).
- Dirty Coward: The most cowardly villain of the Axe Gang and of the entire film.
- The Dragon: He's the right-hand to Brother Sum, working as his personal assistant and is seldom seen away from his side until Sum is killed.
- Dragon Their Feet: After the Beast kills Sum, the advisor continues to assist in the management of the Axe Gang.
- Karma Houdini: Although happily participating in the criminal activities of his gang, he's never seen again after the Axe Gang confront Sing under the Beast's leadership, with no indication of his fate afterwards. Although considering he was in the overall viccinity of Sing's kung-fu rampage, it's probable he got his ass kicked off-screen.
- Laughably Evil: While despicable, he's slimy and cowardly enough to serve as comic relief for most of the film's runtime.
- Sycophantic Servant: Acts on Brother's Sum every whim (despite the occasional humiliation). And falls right in line when The Beast takes over, doing the same for him.
- Vile Villain, Laughable Lackey: The laughable coward to his boss's more foreboding menace.
- What Happened to the Mouse?: He just kind of disappears in the climax, being last seen when another mook is hurled directly at him.
The Harpists
Played by: Gar Hong-hay and Fung Hak-on
A duo of assassins hired by the Axe Gang. Their instrument is the guzheng, or "Chinese harp." They can use their harp to create skeleton soldiers or swords to kill a person.- Absurdly Sharp Claws: The sighted musician uses his fingernails to attack the Tailor, and they leave clawmarks in his chest and the wall behind him.
- Always Someone Better: They preface their chat with Brother Sum by noting that they're technically the world's number 2 when it comes to professional killing. The number one being, of course, The Beast. In their Pigsty Alley fight proper they prove to be hopelessly outclassed against the Landlord and Landlady.
- Blind People Wear Sunglasses: They wear sunglasses, but only one of them is blind.
- Blind Weaponmaster: One of them is blind and is still considered one half of the pair of the deadliest men on the planet. The blind appears to be the master and main wielder of a "weapon" that utilizes sound capable of long-distance one-hit kills and close-range defense.
- Blood Knight: They seem actively interested in the challenge the Three Masters might give them, with the Sighted Musician seeming particularly happy to fight The Tailor.
- Break the Haughty: When the Landlady hits them with the Lion's Roar they're left a whimpering wreck unable to grapple with the Roar's existence.
- Clothing Damage: The Landlady uses her Lion's Roar to obliterate their outfits, except for their underwear.
- Combat Pragmatist: As assassins, they focus on taking the path of least resistance when killing their targets. They ambush Coolie and unceremoniously kill him before he even realizes he's being attacked, and then draw Tailor and Donut out into the open courtyard of Pig Sty Alley, where they're out-ranged by the guzheng's Razor Wind.
- Evil Counterpart: In a fighting style sense they're a counterpoint to the Landlord and Landlady, both duos of martial artists who always fight in tandem with one more physical member than the other (Sighted Musician/Landlord) and both posess a
Game-Breaker sound-based form of attack (the guzheng and the Lion's Roar). In the film they also turn out to be just the "N.2" in their factions, with the Harpists being outranked by The Beast and the Landlord and Landlady by Sing. - Faux Affably Evil: They appear fairly polite in the conversation with Brother Sum, and the sighted musician makes some polite small-talk with the Tailor before they fight. Doesn't stop them from being remorseless killers though.
- Logical Weakness: While they are no slouches when it comes to close-combat, most of their skills rely on using their guzheng to attack from a distance and their teammwork. When they are faced against the Landlord — a man who's fighting technique involves having No Sense of Personal Space and deflecting their blunt attacks onto each other — they are both flung around like ragdolls. And when they attempt a last-ditch attack against the Landlady, strumming up an entire army of sword-wielding skeleton warriors, they find out the hard way that The Landlady is just louder.
- Musical Assassin: They pluck and strum their guzheng to summon blades and even undead warriors to cleanly slice apart their foes before they even knew they were there.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: In a more minor way, they are briefly introduced as comically bumbling (with Sing and Bone laughing at their expense and the blind musician struggling to drink his tea), but we very quickly learn they are incredibly lethal.
- Oh, Crap!: They're pretty hard to emotionally affect, but they pretty much lose their shit once the Lion's Roar comes into play.
- Only Known by Their Nickname: Only known as "The Harpists" or "The Musicians".
- Professional Killer: While they have the record to back it, their price is high. They agree to take on the Axe Gang's hit not just because they are paid to do it, but are eager to cut their teeth against the kung fu masters in combat when they are told their fighting styles.
- Razor Wind: The Harpists summon swords with each strum of the qin. It's more or less an interpretation of what their attack will do upon impact. Sometimes they summon winds that can punch your guts out based on how they play the instrument. Played horizontally, it creates Razor Wind. Vertically it creates blunt wind (in the form of fists or a shield).
- Shaping Your Attacks: They can turn their Razor Wind into swords, fists, and even skeletons.
- Short Range Guy, Long Range Guy: They can both wield the long-range Guzheng, but it seems like the Blind Musician is its main wielder and the Sighted Musician is the duo's main brawler (as he's the one who goes to fight the Tailor hand-to-hand while the Blind One only drops the Guzheng when he has no other choice).
- This Cannot Be!: They're absolutely shocked beyond recognition when they suffer the Lion's Roar.
- Those Two Guys: The unfailingly polite yet ruthless pair of villainous assassins.
- Token Competent Minion: Prior to the Beast's introduction, the Axe Gang practically get their asses handed back to them at every turn. And then these two shows up, kills three of the heroes, and the whole movie got a lot darker.
- Villainous Breakdown: They start to lose their cool when they first notice the Landlady's abilities and get more desperate from there, with The Lion's Roar completely breaks their spirit into desperation and shock to the point the Landlord surmises they won't be seen again.
- Villainous Friendship: They seem to genuinely have each other's backs. There's a brief moment the Blind Musician struggles to find his teacup in a table and his partner gently slides it over to his hand, and when they're beaten for good the Sighted Musician is last seen dragging the Blind Musician to safety (rather than simply booking it).
- Wicked Cultured: They quote poetry, talk of philosophy and play a classical Chinese opera tunes on a classical Chinese instrument.
The Beast
Played by: Bruce Leung Siu-lung
An old but incredibly strong Kung Fu master. He is rumored to be the most dangerous person alive, though his skill is disguised by his unkempt appearance. He is a master of the Toad Style from the Kwan Lun School. He can act like a toad and head butt a person with immense force.- Animalistic Abilities: The Beast's "Toad Style" technique allows him to mimic a toad's stance, headbutting force and leaping ability.
- Animal Motifs: The Beast is associated with Toads. Just outside the Beast's cell-door, there are various toads in the hallway, and in his rematch with Sing, he uses a Toad-style fighting technique. Like toads, the Beast is an unassuming, seemingly unimpressive man, surprising everyone when it shows that he is most definitely a predator with venom under his sleeves (in his case, a pair of poison-darts he keeps in his pockets). Traditionally, frogs and toads in China are seen as beasts who represent a lack of understanding and vision, which makes it all the more ironic that he is defeated by Sing after he has a vision of the Buddha in the clouds, the Buddha a figure that combats such things.
- Animal-Themed Fighting Style: His "Toad Style" technique.
- Baddie Flattery: All The Beast wants is to find a opponent who can truly match him. He gives the Landlord and the Landlady in particular a lot of props and respect for being the best he ever faced. Ironically he does not give the same respect to Sing, the guy who does actually surpass him.
- A Beast in Name and Nature: Known only as "The Beast", and despite his slovenly appearance and casual attitude, his deadly abilities and ruthlessness make him more than worthy of the name.
- Big Bad: The Beast takes over the role of main antagonist after killing Brother Sum.
- Blood Knight: He really enjoys a good martial arts fight, and wishes to face a Worthy Opponent who is actually capable of defeating him.
- The Brute: What he is to the Axe Gang as a whole. At least, before he killed Brother Sum.
- Combat Pragmatist: It should be noted that 'The Beast' cares little for honour in combat, and cheats when needed and given the chance. During the fight in The Syndicate's casino headquarters, when he was sent on the back-foot fighting the Landlord and Landlady, he make himself appear to be outmatched and humbly acknowledges their prowess, causing both to lower their guard, thinking he is surrendering... giving him the opportunity to stab them with deadly ornamental implements he hid in his clothes to weaken them and even the odds back in his favour. He attempts this again against Sing when Sing finally unleashes his full power, but was stopped from pulling the same trick successfully by Sing.
- Diabolus ex Nihilo: Nothing is established about The Beast's background aside from the fact he killed martial artists for a undisclosed period of time before growing bored from the lack of challenge and locking himself in. As far as the film is concerned, The Beast simply is and always was, which makes him all the most foreboding.
- Dragon-in-Chief: Recruited to act as an ace in the hole for the Axe Gang and proves himself to be more powerful than all of the forces under Brother Sum and shows it by killing Sum to take over.
- The Dreaded: He is infamous as the deadliest man to walk the Earth, having been locked away by the Chinese government for the kind of threat he poses.
- 11th-Hour Ranger: For the villains rather than the heroes. The Beast is the Axe Gang's very last resort and thus only shows up in the last thirty minutes of the film after they've exhausted every other option.
- Establishing Character Moment: When he is brought to the Axe Gang's lair, he is humbly brushing off claims of his reputation (wearing shorts, a wife-beater and plastic flip-flops) before snatching a guard's gun when it is pointed at him - asking if it's for men too - and catches the bullet before it hits him point-blank.
- Evil Old Folks: His age is not given (and given we know little about his backstory it's impossible to tell) but he's clearly very old and very evil. His performer (Bruce Leung Siu-lung) was 55 at the time of filming.
- Faux Affably Evil: He seems rather laid-back and friendly at first, but eventually shows that he's not above dirty tricks when he's backed into a corner and pretty much drops the facade by the time he takes over as leader of the Axe Gang.
- Foil: Sing desperately wants to be a killer so he can be at the top of the world and be happy with money and women. The Beast is a highly prolific killer who is (by unanimous consensus) the strongest assassin in the world but this has brought him nothing but utter boredom to the point he actively disdains any material gain for a chance to just fight someone worth his time.
- Graceful Loser: Realizing he had finally found someone who surpasses him and moved by Sing's casual offer to teach him the 'Buddhist Palm' technique, 'The Beast' collapses in tears and finally admits he had lost.The Beast: [Stunned Silence] What's the name of your technique?Sing: Do you want to learn? I will teach you.The Beast: [Beat, and collapses in tears] Master...
- I Surrender, Suckers: He attempts this twice. First with the Landord and Landlady, stabbing them both in the process. He attempts it with Sing again, only for Sing to turn around and blow up part of the building with his Buddhist Palm technique, aiming next to The Beast on purpose. This finally makes The Beast realize how outmatched he is.
- Mysterious Past: Aside from "he killed masters all over and then locked himself in a insane asylum out of boredom", nothing is actually established about him. Interestingly, going by his accent, one can infer he is actually Taiwanese unlike anyone else in the film (despite the film being largely set in Shanghai and featuring Hong Kongers).
- Names to Run Away from Really Fast: The Beast. His Chinese name (火云邪神) counts as well, as it means when transliterated "The Evil God of/with/in Fiery Clouds".
- No Challenge Equals No Satisfaction: The Beast is introduced locked up in a mental institution, but he could easily break out any time he wishes. He voluntarily stays there because there doesn't seem to be anyone left who can offer a challenge and put up a good fight against him.
- Not-So-Harmless Villain: Bald, overweight, and at first dressed in a tank top, shorts, and cheap flip-flops, even The Syndicate that freed him didn't believe he was really the Beast until he held a gun six inches away from his head, pulled the trigger, and caught the bullet. He quickly ascended to being the Big Bad shortly after.
- Not in This for Your Revolution: He stresses he has absolutely 0 interest in the Axe Gang's actual beef with the Pigsty Alley inhabitants and is just here to find a Worthy Opponent. Unlike the Harpists he also has no interest in even being paid, offering to do the job for free for the thrill of it.
- Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs: The Beast is so fast he can achieve this effect in slow motion.
- Sealed Evil in a Can: The Beast. Subverted because he willingly checked himself into the insane asylum out of boredom from the lack of worthy opponents to challenge and kill. Of course, when we first see him after his cell door is picked open, he's sitting on the john reading a newspaper which makes him Sealed Evil On the Can.
- The Starscream: Becomes this on a whim of anger when Sum incenses him by questioning his skill, causing the Beast to break his neck and assume control over the Axe Gang.
- Super-Speed: One of the Beast's abilities, which he demonstrates by shooting himself in the head, and then catching the bullet in mid-air. And in the fight scene that comes after, he's moving in super speed while the scene is running in Bullet Time.
- Super-Toughness: Very few people and weapons can actually hurt him. The first time is overwhelmed is from the Landlady's amplified Lion's Roar.
- Tailor-Made Prison: The Beast, though he stayed there voluntarily because he ran out of good opponents... by killing them. It's more or less explicit that he could have escaped any time if he really wanted to. We see there are at least two other people imprisoned where he was but it's not clear why they're there.
- They Look Just Like Everyone Else!: As part of the film's running theme of unassuming kung fu masters, characters are initially heavily skeptical The Beast is who he says he is because he just looks like a middle-aged guy wearing dirty clothes and flip-flops. Interestingly, it seems like the Landlord and the Landlady can identify him on sight because of his aura, and he can likewise sense their presence.
- This Cannot Be!: Sing's skills clearly begin to upset him. After previously declaring speed as essential to one's kung fu skills, he's shocked to find himself struggling to keep up with Sing's Rapid-Fire Fisticuffs.
- Too Kinky to Torture: An Axe Gang member repeteadly punches him in the face with enough force to shatter his glasses but his only response is a mocking "Harder." before laughing off his lack of strength.
- Villainous BSoD: The Beast has spent his entire life looking for a Worthy Opponent, who he tells the Landlady and Landlord he expects to kill him. He finds his Worthy Opponent in Sing, but when Sing defeats him but not only doesn't kill him, but offers to teach the Beast his ways, the Beast is so moved, he collapses in tears and admits defeat.
- You Kill It, You Bought It: How the Beast takes control of the Axe Gang, killing Brother Sum when he tests his patience.
- You Wouldn't Like Me When I'm Angry!: Brother Sum - in a fit of extreme hubris - calls out the Beast and scolds him for letting Landlord and Landlady get away with Sing when they were all on the verge of being killed. The Beast promptly breaks Sum's neck with a backhand, spinning his head 540 degrees.
- Worthy Opponent: The Beast's goal is to find one opponent worthy his skills. The Landlord and the Landlady are the ones he treats with the most respect, but Sing is the guy who truly surpasses him.
Other characters
Crocodile Gang
Crocodile Gang Boss played by: Feng Xiaogang
Crocodile Boss's Wife played by: Si Lu Ren
A minor street gang which was destroyed by the Axe Gang at the beginning of the film.- Ain't Too Proud to Beg: The Crocodile Boss tries to make one last desperate plea right before Brother Sum kills him, reminding Sum how he once treated him to dinner. It doesn't work.
- Always a Bigger Fish: The Crocodile Boss was physically powerful enough to send a police officer flying into a solid oak plaque (breaking it in two) and had enough of a reputation to do so in full view of the rest of the department with impunity. He’s cut down five minutes later by the Axe Gang, who are leagues above him in manpower, resources, and political connections.
- An Arm and a Leg: A member of the Axe Gang throws an axe at the Crocodile Boss' leg, severing it just below the knee. This wounds him badly enough for Sum to walk up and finish him off with his own axe.
- The Cameo: The Crocodile Boss is played by mainland Chinese film director Feng Xiaogang.
- Ugly Guy, Hot Wife: The Crocodile Boss' Wife is a beautiful young woman, and her husband favorably compares her good looks to that of movie stars, while the camera pans along to him rubbing his hand down her backside.
- No Honor Among Thieves: Most of the Crocodile Gang henchmen defected to the Axe Gang, allowing them to quickly eliminate the few remaining members who stayed loyal to the Crocodile Boss.
- The Triads and the Tongs: They're just strong enough to intimidate the Shanghai police, but are still a relatively minor criminal group compared to the much larger Axe Gang.
- We Hardly Knew Ye: The gang's leader, his wife, and their goons only appear for the first few minutes of the movie before the Axe Gang shows up to kill them all.
The Beggar
Played by: Yuen Cheung-yan
The man who sold Sing the Buddha's Palm manual. He is a fraud who tricks kids to make money for himself.- Book Ends: He (chronologically) kickstarts the narrative of Sing and shows up at its very end.
- The Cameo: The Beggar is played by Yuen Cheung-yan, legendary Hong Kong fight choreographer/actor/director, creative partner and brother to Yuen Woo-Ping. He also studied kung fu under the same master as Yuen Qiu (the Landlady) and Yuen Wah (the Landlord) above.
- Chekhov's Gunman: In a Brick Joke sort of way, the Beggar is introduced as a key piece of Sing's backstory in Kung Fu. He shows up in the end implicitly kickstarting another.
- Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane: The manual the Beggar gives to Sing doesn't seem to work on Sing as a kid, but once he gets his chi unlocked, it's quite effective. The Beggar also seems to magically appear at the end of the film without any sign of aging, giving another kid the same pamphlet in almost exactly the same way.
- Magical Homeless Person: He may or may not be some kind of homeless kung fu mentor giving manuals to kids who will one day save the world.
