Rating summary

Movie		2.0
Video		4.0
Audio		4.5
Extras		3.0
Overall		3.5

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion Blu-ray Movie Review

Draining my patience, draining my chi...

Reviewed by Kenneth Brown April 15, 2015

It's no wonder Roel Reiné has risen to the top of the direct-to-video action movie director's list. He isn't a director. He's a machine, sent from the war-torn future to bring already low-budget sequels in under budget, on time, and with an enthusiastic cast and crew at his back, chanting his name. He doesn't need sleep. He doesn't need rest. He shoots, shoots, and shoots some more, and makes studios like Universal very, very happy. "We've been averaging 110 setups a day," said co-producer Chris Lowenstein of The Man with the Iron Fists 2. "Last time we worked with Roel, we averaged about 65 a day. Most films average between 12 and 24 a day. Shows you how great Roel is as a director, but also the Thai crew loved to follow that. And if you watch Roel work, you watch the crew follow him. It's pretty incredible what we can accomplish." And taking budgetary constraints and other limitations into account, it is incredible. But that doesn't mean the hastily assembled Sting of the Scorpion is a particularly good film, no matter how much Reiné and executive producer/co-writer/star RZA work to wrap a rough script and stocky dialogue in knowingly rough and stocky nods to grindhouse kung fu cinema.

Iron-armed Thaddeus (RZA) is back. Badly wounded in the wake of an ambush, Thaddeus is found on the outskirts of an oppressed 19th century mining town, where miner Li Kung (Dustin Nguyen), his wife Ah Ni (Eugenia Yuan) and their daughter Innocence (Pim Bubear) offer the injured blacksmith refuge. As he heals, he becomes entrenched in a conflict that pits Li Kung, the village's mayor (Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa) and the townsfolk against the evil Master Ho (Carl Ng), his nefarious Beetle Clan, and a mysterious entity that's murdering young girls and draining their bodies of Chi. Soon, Thaddeus must choose between peace and war, while mild-mannered Kung must decide if patience or vengeance is the path to his family's freedom.

After taking a bladed gauntlet to the gut, Thaddeus disappears for almost the entirety of the film's first act, only to then spend the better part of the second act recuperating. Kung is the protagonist of The Sting of the Scorpion. Kung is the man to root for, the warrior to follow, and the hero to watch. And it's Kung who shoulders the burden of the biggest tragedies and punishment, making Thaddeus' role in the emancipation of the village a relatively minor one. All well and good except for one little problem. A few come to think of it. Thaddeus doesn't actually help matters. He sets up shop and makes weapons for the locals, sure. But he also refuses to get involved during key showdowns (no worries, the villagers don't seem to notice), interrupts a fight where Kung is about to finish off Master Ho (no worries, the villagers don't seem to notice), and inadvertently helps the already rickety story's Big Bad gain an upper hand (no worries, the villagers don't seem to notice). Detect a pattern? Were this solely Kung's film, it would be more compelling. But it isn't. It's The Man with the Iron Fists 2. Yet Thaddeus is a bit player -- and a hindrance at that -- in his own sequel. (Ironically, RZA is a hindrance when he's on screen too, with a stilted delivery that's sorely lacking.) Sadly, a weak, derivative script renders Kung's tale just as weak and derivative, with Nguyen doing his best to infuse emotional depth into a fairly one-note man of the people.

In "The Making of The Man with the Iron Fist 2," Reiné explains that a decision was made early in production to devote the majority of the film's budget to stuntwork and fight choreography. And, to an extent, mission accomplished. When one highly trained martial artist faces off against another, particularly when framed by a gorgeous Thailand temple or vista, it shows. There are a number of reasonably exciting battles, and it's here that the blood-spurting, limp-lopping, head-popping actioner briefly earns its keep, even with all the cheesy faux-70s violence pushing the visuals well over the top of over-the-top. However, whenever the camera pulls back or dozens of warriors enter the fray, things go south fast. Only a small handful of cast members are as skilled as Dustin Nguyen and Carl Ng, and large battle scenes lose much of the speed, ferocity and brutality Reiné and RZA capture in the film's best scenes. RZA's fights don't impress either, regardless of how many people are on screen. His iron arms don't carry very convincing heft, power or texture, his movements and choreography aren't nearly as flashy as Nguyen's and Ng's, and his screen presence doesn't pack much punch, literally and figuratively.

The only way to really enjoy The Sting of the Scorpion is as the guilty pleasure direct-to-video sequel it's content to be. Fans of the first film will no doubt find something to enjoy here; perhaps even love, if overcoming low-budget adversity increases your fondness or respect for a movie. Reiné is a master of delivering an action-packed, blood-soaked dime on the dollar, and his passion for the material, even at its worst, is -- I gotta say -- a bit infectious, no matter how cringe-worthy some scenes may be. He also has a knack for mirroring the visual tone and verve of a preceding theatrical film, marrying his rough-n-ready sequel styling with the vision of a previous filmmaker. (In this case, RZA himself, who, when directing the first Man with the Iron Fists, was heavily inspired by Kill Bill-era Quentin Tarantino.) Not that Reiné is the sort of director that would do much better with hundreds of millions in his coffers. He's a fixer. Give him a problem and he solves it. Give him impossible odds and he'll still churn out a functional flick. It might not look pretty. It might not work very well. But he'll push through, have a blast, and do more with less than most other direct-to-video sequel generators. And boy, of boy, does The Man with the Iron Fists 2 have a lot of problems for Universal's resident DTV fixer to work through. It still isn't a quote-unquote good film, but it has heart -- Reiné and RZA's -- and heart goes a long way. That doesn't mean I'm looking forward to the inevitable third entry in the series. I'm not. But I'm not exactly dreading it either. What's next, boys?

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion swings and connects with a solid 1080p/AVC-encoded video presentation. Colors are strong but carefully saturated, with lifelike skintones, deep black levels, and consistently satisfying contrast. Detail is excellent too, with crisp, clean edges (free of aliasing and ringing), well-resolved fine textures, and decent delineation. Banding, macroblocking and other unsightly issues are nowhere to be found, and the only glaring distractions involve the film's at-times wonky FX. Noise and other minor anomalies creep into darker scenes, as does crush, but each instance traces back to Reiné's digital photography and none of it proves to be much of a problem. Is The Man with the Iron Fists 2 a striking film? No, despite playing the part of a '70s grindhouse kung fu actioner with a string of winks and nods. Universal's encode is, though, insofar as it's a faithful and proficient presentation of the low-budget sequel; scars and all.

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

Universal's DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track revels in the film's chintzy '70s kung fu sound effects, bone-cracking fights, and gangster rap theme songs, having more fun with RZA's grindhouse homage than many of the visuals that make it to the screen. Dialogue is clear and intelligible at all times, even when that clarity comes at the cost of some glaring ADR. (Let's hope it's intentionally glaring. If so, kudos to RZA's sound designers.) LFE output, meanwhile, is big and booming -- heavy on the downbeats and heavier on the beat-downs -- as the rear speakers pull their own weight, confidently translating the immersiveness of the expansive, enveloping Thailand shooting locations to the home theater environment. Directionality is playful and precise, pans are smooth, dynamics are terrific, and the entire unapologetic, unabashedly exuberant experience screams "enjoy!"

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

• Rated & Unrated Versions of the Film: The Blu-ray release of The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion features two cuts of the film: rated (1:29:39) and unrated (1:30:25). The differences are minimal and amount to additional snippets of blood and gore.
• Audio Commentary: Director Roel Reiné and executive producer/co-writer/actor RZA deliver an uncensored commentary of the film. It's initially more of a love fest than an insightful glimpse into the production, but that changes soon enough, with the filmmakers detailing the various challenges of shooting a low-budget martial arts film, location scouting and casting, filming in Thailand, assembling a crew, costume and production design, blocking and performances, choreographing fight scenes, and more.
• Chi Warriors: The Making of The Man with the Iron Fists 2 (HD, 13 minutes): A decent overview of the production, though little is revealed that wasn't already covered at greater length in the commentary.
• Deleted Scenes (HD, 12 minutes): Eight scenes are available: "Walking Out of the Mine," "Ah Ni and Innocence Discuss Thaddeus," "Kung vs. Guards in Mine," "Cha Pow Buys New Teeth," "Duyan Questions the Crew," "Thaddeus has Cha Pow Bite an Apple," "Innocence and Ah Ni Discuss Kung's Past" and "The Battle Begins in the Mine: Kung vs. Ho."

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

The Man with the Iron Fists 2: The Sting of the Scorpion is exactly what you'd expect from a low budget direct-to-video sequel to the original film, only this time with crafty DTV plumber Roel Reiné at the helm instead of RZA. Universal's Blu-ray release is better, thanks to a solid video presentation, excellent DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 surround track, and decidedly decent selection of special features. That only helps, though, if you find the sequel to be guilty-pleasure-good rather than all-kindsa-bad.