Iron and Silk
Seen it?1991 | 92 min | Drama, Comedy
Sunday Safe Betearly ratingWhy it’s a Sunday Safe Bet
It earned strong reviews (80% on Rotten Tomatoes), though it had almost no lasting buzz and soft box office. A safe bet when you want something reliable.
Based on critics, audiences, awards, box office and buzz. Details below.Is it for you?
- Who'll love it
- Right up the alley of martial arts fans and readers who like to compare the book and the screen version. The fight choreography is a big part of the appeal. Fans of Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story or Beast should feel right at home. Adapted from a book, so readers can compare notes.
- The mood
- Funny with heart.
- The pace
- Gives its people room to develop, at 1 hr 32 min.
- What might put you off
- Not the one if you want explosions or easy laughs.
Iron and Silk is a 1990 movie based on the eponymous book by American writer Mark Salzman. It details his journey to China after college to study Chinese wu shu, better known in the west as kung fu, and to teach English. Though not trained as an actor, Salzman starred as himself, as did Pan Qingfu, who claimed no one else could portray him on film. Salzman's experiences occurred in Changsha, Hunan, though the film was shot in Hangzhou, Zhejiang. (Wikipedia)
How it earned its rating
- CriticsStrong
80% on Rotten Tomatoes
- AudiencesNot counted
Not measured yet: not enough ratings
- AwardsNot counted
No major awards or nominations
- Reach & staying powerBelow par
Streaming release that reached a small audience so far; still draws a steady audience long after release
- Buzz & cultural impactWeak
About 3K people sought it out in the past year
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Birth of the Dragon
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Cast & crew
Directed by Shirley Sun
- Mark SalzmanTeacher Mark
- Qingfu PanPan Qingfu
- Vivian WuMing
- Hangcheng DongTeacher Cai
- Xihong JiangTeacher Zhang