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‘Dragon’ understands the conflicted rhythms of combat, and the human heart

One of the strengths of the film is that both men are right and both men are wrong. Lu’s vision of the law stripped of compassion is a law that is also vulnerable to corruption as judges use the letter of the law to line their pockets rather than represent justice. Liu’s belief that he can literally remake himself as a better man ignores the addictive nature of violence. (When Liu begins to fight the robbers, he can’t stop himself from killing them – instead of subduing them – any more than a drunk can have one shot from a bottle and stop there.)

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Fantasia 2012: ‘Dragon’ an unusually human martial-arts showcase

Dragon aka Wu Xia aka The Swordsmen Written by Oi Wah Lam Directed by Peter Chan 2011 Hong Kong/China Fantasia imdb In a strange way, Dragon is a perfect companion film for the Shaw Brothers classic The Fists of the White Lotus that Fantasia presented this year. (Expect Edgar Chaput to review that film as part of his Shaw Brothers Saturday series soon.) Both films are about the never-ending cycle …

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