Paper Dragons (1996) Online

A Russian immigrant, Paul Marcos, becomes a drug dealer to survive. After a heist he joins goes bad, he recovers from his wounds at a Buddhist Temple. There he is taught Mantis style martial arts. But the abbots at the monastery have a hidden agenda, one which forces Marcos into confrontation with the mob that ruined the heist....

Here's the bad news - this is not an action movie.

It is a drama about one young man's spiritual journey through a world of corruption. Not a martial arts film but a film about martial arts, and how rigorous self-discipline and strict ethics comprise what kung fu is really all about.

Here's the good news - despite a crash budget, Adolfo Swaya turns in a remarkably good film. Strong script, surprisingly effective visuals, excellent editing, rock solid acting despite some stereotyping, good sound quality for a cheapie independent. And that's is what this is, really - an independent film (a personal film, very carefully crafted), not a 'kung fu' film. But I found it easy to watch and with a lesson to learn. Rewards the patient viewer who can release genre expectations and enjoy it for what it is

I came across this movie when I was browsing Amazon Prime's movies. Big Trouble in Little China is my favorite movie, so when I saw it had three actors from that movie in this, I had to see it. When I looked up the cast, I was shocked. It has Lo Pan, Egg Shen and Rain from Big Trouble In Little China. It also features Jeremy Renner, the lead in the show Cold Case, as well as the great, Vegetable Lasagne, from Seinfeld! Oh, and also the best part of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles 2: Secret of the Ooze, Ernie Reyes Jr, who oozes charisma as the best fighter in the monastery.

The first five minutes are pretty rough, but once the story gets going, it's actually a really enjoyable movie. It follows a drug dealer who gets "assassinated", only to be found by some monks and nursed back to health. They teach him their ways, and he goes from being a bum to a good man.

I don't want to spoil anything, because the story is fun to watch unfold. I will just say that the writer/director/star of the movie did a great job with this movie. It's low budget, but he was able to make a very enjoyable movie.

I highly recommend it!