Kung Fu Deadly

Bluesky

Kung-fu comes to Dublin in Fergal Costello’s relocated wuxia adventure, which screened as part of Fantastic Fest 2026. Starring YouTube and TikTok sensation Steven He alongside Storyland’s Michael Tient as flatmates, co-workers and longstanding best friends Danny and Frank, it plunges them into a magical world which intersects with modernity to comedic effect but also delivers plenty of traditional thrills.

Danny and Frank make their living in pest control, and business isn’t great, so they’re delighted when they discover that a local church is suffering from rat infestation. Unfortunately for them, the presence of those rats may be connected to a rather larger and more powerful creature. Seeking immortality and more, two local men have conspired to acquire a gorgeous antique Chinese coffin which contains an aggressive, unkillable jiangshi, unleashed into the world long ago by the demon queen Min-chun. When they stumble across the release of the monster, our heroes are lucky to survive, and do so only thanks to the intervention of recently arrived Chinese guardian Lian (Gemma Chua-tran). Unfortunately, they unintentionally sabotage her efforts to take down the monster, leaving it free to wreak havoc, do bad impressions of the Pointer Sisters (really), and seek the magical coin it needs to resurrect Min-chun herself.

True to form for this sort of thing, the protagonists are very different people. “The key to a happy life is to have no ambition,” says Frank, who believes that most problems in life can be resolved by drinking guinness, eating Asian food, and waiting for the whole thing to blow over. Danny, however, has recently been haunting by the fear that life is passing him by, and that he is failing to engage with destiny. Not that he’s aware that he has a special destiny, until Lian sees the carved peachwood staff that his late father bequeathed to him, and it gradually emerges that there’s a reason why he was brought up so far from his father’s homeland, and why he was taught kung-fu at an early age. Now he must recover his skills, and Frank must accept some responsibility, if they are going to save the world.

Ancient Chinese mysticism directs the action that follows, but it’s shot through with pop culture references. Early on, a problem is solved with reference to Pulp Fiction; later on, there’s a cute Easter egg for those who have also seen Kill Bill. The jiangshi can’s see people who are holding their breath, but no-one proves particularly gifted in that regard. The fighting is good but not particularly well shot – it’s not easy to capture the dynamics of Lien’s close-up style. Occasional more inventive moments, such as when director Fergal Costello moves the camera up to watch combat from above, add a little flair. The character dynamics, however, remain lively and entertaining throughout, and even when we can’t see the moves very well, the fight scenes have an infectious energy.

Although the film is pretty formulaic, it’s warm-hearted, it has enough different things going on to remain entertaining, and it rattles along at a fair old pace. Stick with it when the credits roll if you want to hear what the Bangles sound like when covered by lungs that have been in the grave for two thousand years. That, at least, is an experience you’re unlikely to find elsewhere.

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