From the slums of Shaolin comes the first trailer for RZA’s debut kung fu movie, The Man with the Iron Fists. Anyone who’s a fan of the Wu-Tang Clan knows this one is a long time coming: RZA has been sampling kung fu flicks on their albums for almost twenty years, and he’s also arranged the soundtrack for Kill Bill and scored movies like Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai.
While the bloody and slightly NSFW red band trailer may feel familiar to anyone who’s seen a Quentin Tarantino movie, one surprise is the presence of Russell Crowe, who appears to play a major role. Hong Kong veteran Corey Yuen choreographed the action scenes; frequent Tarantino collaborator Eli Roth co-wrote the screenplay; and, according to the trailer, Kanye West, Wu-Tang Clan, The Black Keys, Wiz Khalifa, and RZA himself will all contribute new music.
It’s clear that RZA and crew had a lot of fun bringing his vision to life, and hopefully that sense of fun will be just as contagious when the movie comes out later this year.