''The Bare-Footed Kid'' (released in the Philippines as ''Professional Fighter'') is a 1993 Hong Kong

martial arts film Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature numerous martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expres ...

directed by

Johnnie To Johnnie To Kei-fung (born 22 April 1955) is a Hong Kong film director, screenwriter and film producer. Popular in his native Hong Kong, To has also found acclaim overseas. Intensely prolific, To has made films in a variety of genres, though in ...

and starring

Aaron Kwok Aaron Kwok Fu-shing (born 26 October 1965) is a Hong Kong singer, dancer and actor. Active since the 1980s, Kwok is known as one of the "Four Heavenly Kings" of Hong Kong pop music. Dubbed the "God of Dance", Kwok's onstage dancing is influenc ...

Maggie Cheung Maggie Cheung Man-yuk (; born 20 September 1964) is a Hong Kong former actress. Raised in Hong Kong and Britain, she started her career after placing second in 1983's Miss Hong Kong Pageant. She achieved critical success in the late 1980s and i ...

Ti Lung Ti Lung (born 19 August 1946) is a Hong Kong actor, known for his numerous starring roles in a string of Shaw Brothers Studio's films, particularly '' The Blood Brothers'', ''The Avenging Eagle'', ''Clans of Intrigue'', '' The Duel'', ''The Sentim ...

and

Jacklyn Wu Jacklyn Wu Chien-lien (born 3 July 1968) is a Taiwanese actress and singer who began her career in Hong Kong. She graduated from Taipei National University of Arts. Career In 1990, Wu's acting career began. For her first acting role, Johnn ...

. The film is a remake of the 1975 film, ''Disciples of Shaolin'', which was directed by

Chang Cheh Chang Cheh (; 10 February 1923 – 22 June 2002) was a Chinese filmmaker, screenwriter, lyricist and producer active in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Chang Cheh directed more than 90 films in Greater China, the majority of them with the Shaw Br ...

Plot

After the death of his father, the poor and illiterate Kwan Fung-yiu (

) goes out to the provincial capital to seek refuge from Tuen Ching-wan (

), a friend of his deceased father, and works in a dye factory, the "Four Seasons Weaver". The political situation in the capital is tense. With his superior identity as a

Manchuria Manchuria is an exonym (derived from the endo demonym " Manchu") for a historical and geographic region in Northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day Northeast China (Inner Manchuria) and parts of the Russian Far East (Outer M ...

n, Hak Wo-po (

Kenneth Tsang Kenneth Tsang Kong (; 5 October 1934 – 27 April 2022) was a Hong Kong actor. Tsang's career spanned 50 years and included a variety of acting roles. Tsang won the Best Supporting Actor Award at the 34th Hong Kong Film Awards in 2015. Early ...

), owner of the "Tin Lung Spinner", dominates the city and set up a gambling den where he sends his workers to fight with workers of "Four Seasons Weave". The newly appointed magistrate Yuen Tin-yau (

Cheung Siu-fai Cheung Siu-fai (; born 4 February 1963), also known as Eddie Cheung, is a Hong Kong actor. He is best known for his many supporting or everyman roles similar to Liu Kai-chi. Filmography Television series References External links * * ...

) and his instructor Mr. Wah ( Paul Chun) want to eradicate Hak, but they do not have enough evidence to bring him to justice. Later, Tin-yau meets Pak Siu-kwan (

), the owner of "Four Seasons Weaver" and Wah's daughter Lin (

). Then it was revealed that Tuen was a fugitive who changed his name and hid in the dye factory to avoid arrest and developed affection towards Pak. Fung-yiu and Lin also develops a mutual bond after an incident. "Tin Lung Spinners" had always been inferior to "Four Seasons Weaver". Feeling vengeful, Hak sets "Four Seasons Weave" on fire to vent his anger. Fung-yiu, who is witless, dazed and confused, gets up to the fighting arena, and was lured by Hak where he kills his friend's father. Fung-yiu had fallen further and further into a quagmire of confusion. He also reveals Tuen's past identity as a killer and Tuen is wanted by officials. Yuen Tin-yau's discerning eyes can tell greatness from Fung-yiu, and they work together to defeat the "Dragon Place". However, Tuen was ambushed by Hak where he swallowed poison and shot to death by millions of arrows. Fung-yiu hurried off to save Tuen, but it was too late by then.

Cast

as Kwan Fung-yiu *

as Tuen Ching-wan *

as Pak Siu-kwan *

as Wah Wong-lin * Paul Chun as Mr. Wah *

as Hak Wo-po *

as Magistrate Yuen Tin-yau *

Wong Yat-fei Wong Yat-fei (born August 19, 1946) is a Hong Kong cinema actor who has acted in numerous Cantonese films. Wong is best known for his role as Iron Head in ''Shaolin Soccer'' for which he won popular awards. He has appeared in more than 139 film ...

as Kuei *Tin Ching as Pak's worker *Wong San as Pak's indebted worker *Chu Tit-wo as Hung Chun-tin *Benny Lai as City guard *Johnny Cheng as City guard *Yuen Ling-to as Pui *Cheng Ka-sang as Hak's bodyguard *Leung Kai-chi as Weaver at Tin Lung Spinners *Hau Woon-ling as Sam Ku, woman leading bridal march *Jacky Cheung Chun-hung as Magistrate Yuen's aide *So Wai-nam as Magistrate Yuen's aide *Kent Chow as Magistrate Yuen's aide *Kong Miu-deng as Hak's thug *Mak Wai-cheung as Hak's thug *Huang Kai-sen as Hak's thug *Chan Min-leung as Chan *Chan Man-hiu as Shoes vendor *

Ng Wui Ng Wui (December 3, 1913 - March 1, 1996) was a Hong Kong film director, writer and actor, best known for his films of the 1950s and 1960s.He is credited with over 200 films under his direction. Filmography Films * 1952 ''The Prodigal Son'' - ...

as Cow owner *Kam Lau as Shop owner *San Tak-kan as Boat passenger *Kai Cheung-lung as Boatman *Adam Chan *Kwan Yung *Jameson Lam

Music

Theme song

*''The Expression After Speaking'' (留下句號的面容) **Composer: William Wu **Lyricist: Siu Mei **Singer:

Insert theme

*''Wait for Your Return'' (等你回來) **Composer: William Wu **Lyricist: Siu Mei **Singer:

Cass Phang Cass Phang ( Chinese: 彭羚, born 2 February 1969) is a retired Cantopop singer from Hong Kong, affiliated with EMI from 1993 to 1998 and then with Sony Music Entertainment. She was born in Hong Kong, studied at Munsang College and a high sc ...

Release

''The Bare-Footed Kid'' was released in Hong Kong on 3 April 1993. In the Philippines, the film was released as ''Professional Fighter'' by South Cinema Films on 21 April 1994, with actor

credited as "

Alexander Fu Sheng Alexander Fu Sheng () (born Cheung Fu-sheng (); 20 October 1954 – 7 July 1983), also known as Fu Sheng was a Hong Kong martial arts film star in the 1970s. Life and career Born Cheung Fu-sheng in British Hong Kong in 20 October 1954. He ...

Jr."

Critical response

''The Bare-Footed Kid'' received generally positive reviews. Ard Vijn of ''

Twitch Film Screen Anarchy, previously known as Twitch Film or Twitch, is a Canadian English-language website featuring news and reviews of mainly international, independent and cult films. The website was founded in 2004 by Todd Brown. In addition to films, ...

'' writes "it's not a classic by any means but it's a fun movie that definitely has its moments. Fans of either Aaron Kwok, Ti Lung or Maggie Cheung won't be disappointed." Mark Polland of
Kung Fu Cinema
' rated it 4 out of 5 stars and writes ''The Bare-Footed Kid'' is a thoughtful kung fu film with an unusually strong story that winningly delivers a message that strength and fighting ability are useless without morality and sound judgment. Andrew Saroch of
Far East Films
' also rated film 4 out of 5 stars and writes "while not as good as ''Disciples of Shaolin'', ''Bare-Footed Kid'' is an excellent film and like its inspiration, operates of a number of levels."

Box office

The film grossed HK$3,973,198 at the Hong Kong box office during its theatrical run from 3 to 14 April 1993.

References

External links

* *
The Bare-Footed Kid
' at

Hong Kong Cinemagic Hong Kong Cinemagic, sometimes referred to as HKCinemagic, is a bilingual (French and English) website providing a repository for information about Chinese language films from Hong Kong, China and Taiwan, and the people who created them. The websit ...

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bare-Footed Kid 1993 films 1993 action films 1993 martial arts films Hong Kong action films Hong Kong martial arts films Kung fu films 1990s Cantonese-language films Films directed by Johnnie To Remakes of Hong Kong films Films set in the Qing dynasty Films with screenplays by Yau Nai-hoi 1990s Hong Kong films