Once Upon a Time in China

Once Upon a Time in China (1991) is director Tsui Hark's landmark Hong Kong martial-arts epic — watch it online on iFILM. Jet Li plays Wong Fei-Hung, the real-life folk hero and kung fu master who stood between ordinary people and the foreign powers dismantling late-Qing China piece by piece.

Canton, late 19th century. British, French and American interests pour in — and so do slave traders. Wong runs a martial arts school, breaks up kidnapping rings, and tries to keep the peace while the city tilts toward chaos. Then Aunt Yee comes back from America with a trunk full of western fashion and progressive ideas, forcing him to reckon with what change actually costs. Guns answer every challenge he meets with bare hands.

The film launched a six-part franchise and single-handedly revived the wuxia genre for the 1990s — Jet Li became an international name on the strength of this one role. Action choreographer Yuen Kwai built fight sequences still studied in film schools today. Stream Once Upon a Time in China online on iFILM.