PLOT SUMMARY: Mehmet lives in a suburb of Stockholm called Kastby, he's persecuted and pursued (romantically) by the evil Tarek who together with his gang is terrorizing the entire community. Mehmet doesn't like the situation but daren't resist his persecutor. Suddenly a legendary but almost forgotten Kung-Fu master, Willy Fastfoot, re-emerges. He begins teaching Mehmet his famous style called 'Disco Kung-Fu'.
COMMENT: The movie is really funny and very stylized. It contains elements of Sergio Leone's western's as well as Hong Kong kung fu movies. All set in a imagined bleak Swedish suburb of today, it's a heavy brew of said elements but also comments on racism, and the non activist state of Swedish society. The antagonist relationship between suburbians (immigrants) and central city dwellers (Swedes) are also displayed. The central plot is straightforward and are more geared towards emotional imagery than dialogue, although the Willy Fastfoot character (played by Swedish actor-veteran Kjell Bergqvist) gets almost too much dialogue. The one criticism I have against this movie, is that it slows to almost a coma when Bergqvist's character talks about the old days. Disco music and imagery just enhances the ironic and lighthearted fun of this movie. And the gayness of Mehmet's nemesis Tarek, is dealt with as a non-issue and not used to enforce his evil, but it may be perceived like that by some. Tarek is in some ways the most interesting character, and the movie does explain the motivation behind his actions. The acting is somewhat squared but I guess that's what comes with the style of the movie. Overall it's great fun with great music and a couple of surprises, and for those who like that, a lot of kung-fu.
COMMENT: The movie is really funny and very stylized. It contains elements of Sergio Leone's western's as well as Hong Kong kung fu movies. All set in a imagined bleak Swedish suburb of today, it's a heavy brew of said elements but also comments on racism, and the non activist state of Swedish society. The antagonist relationship between suburbians (immigrants) and central city dwellers (Swedes) are also displayed. The central plot is straightforward and are more geared towards emotional imagery than dialogue, although the Willy Fastfoot character (played by Swedish actor-veteran Kjell Bergqvist) gets almost too much dialogue. The one criticism I have against this movie, is that it slows to almost a coma when Bergqvist's character talks about the old days. Disco music and imagery just enhances the ironic and lighthearted fun of this movie. And the gayness of Mehmet's nemesis Tarek, is dealt with as a non-issue and not used to enforce his evil, but it may be perceived like that by some. Tarek is in some ways the most interesting character, and the movie does explain the motivation behind his actions. The acting is somewhat squared but I guess that's what comes with the style of the movie. Overall it's great fun with great music and a couple of surprises, and for those who like that, a lot of kung-fu.