The Young Master is a 1980 Hong Kong martial arts film starring and directed by Jackie Chan, who also writer with Edward Tang, Lau Tin-chi and Tung Lu. The film co-stars Yuen Biao, Fung Fung and Shih Kien. The film was released on 9 February 1980. The film is notable for being the first that Jackie Chan worked on for Golden Harvest, and despite being his second film as director, it is often incorrectly regarded as his directorial debut. The film was co-written by Edward Tang, Lau Tin-chi and Tung Lu, and produced by Raymond Chow and Leonard Ho. Dragon Lord was originally intended to be the sequel to The Young Master, and was to be called Young Master in Love, as confirmed by Jackie Chan in his book.
Plot
The school attended by Dragon and his brother, Tiger is entered against a rival school in a Lion Dance competition. The school needs to win the prize money to remain open but their star performer, Tiger, is seemingly injured when he falls from a ladder, leaving his brother, Dragon, to take his place. During the competition, Dragon realizes that his brother feigned his accident in order to take part in the competition for the rival school. The rival school wins the competition, but the truth emerges about Tiger's betrayal and he is exiled in disgrace. However, Dragon vows to bring back his errant brother so the pair can make amends to their master. Dragon sets off on his mission, but en route is mistaken for a criminal known as The White Fan by local police chief, Sang Kung along with his son and daughter. Meanwhile, Tiger collaborates with his employers by freeing a dangerous criminal known as Kam. However, Tiger is later framed for a bank robbery. To stop his brother from being arrested, Dragon promises to apprehend the escapee, Kam. The Young Master ends with a furious, brutal fight between Kam and Dragon, in which Dragon sustains substantial damage. At the beginning of the fight, it appears that Kam has the upper hand as he punishes Dragon with blindingly fast punches and kicks. However, after consuming water from an opium pipe given to him by a whimsical old man, Dragon becomes energized and defeats Kam. The Young Master ends with Dragon returning to his hometown, a hero.
According to his book I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action, Chan nearly suffocated when he injured his throat while filming a stunt scene.
Music
The theme song played over the closing credits, Kung Fu Fighting Man was the first song recorded and performed by Jackie Chan. He has since gone on to release many records, and has performed the theme songs on many of his films. Much of the incidental music is from stock sources, notably a recording of The Planets by Gustav Holst.
Versions
There are two main versions of the film currently available, one being the 106 minutes Hong Kong cut and the 90 minute international cut. A Taiwanese video featuring footage missing from both the Hong Kong and international cuts was also released. However, even this version is not definitive - the original version of the film that Chan handed over to Golden Harvest was reportedly three hours in length. This had to be re-edited, so over 70 minutes of footage was cut during the first edit.
Box office
In Hong Kong, the film grossed HK$11,026,283, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1980. In South Korea, it was the highest-grossing film of 1980, with 436,631 box office admissions in Seoul City, equivalent to an estimated . In Japan, it was the 21st highest-grossing film of 1981, earning . Combined, the film's total estimated box office gross in East Asia was approximately, equivalent to adjusted for inflation.
