Last year, streaming platform iQIYI released period actioner The Wild Blade of Strangers (2024). A Max Zhang vehicle, the film had more than its fair share of well choreographed fight scenes, with it turning out to be one of the better action films to premiere on iQIYI that year.
2025 sees Zhang once again starring in a streaming release, this time headlining director Fan Xiang’s The Old Way. Similarly to The Wild Blade of Strangers, this is a quality production, with excellent production values and memorable action scenes, that could easily have been released in cinemas.
It isn’t without its problems, but show me a film that isn’t. Even the biggest budgeted blockbuster isn’t perfect and considering that the makers of The Old Way were no doubt working with limited resources, the finished product still manages to be more entertaining than those being released theatrically.
In a tumultuous time filled with bandits, the rogue gangster Peng Yinan (Max Zhang) and his partners in crime, Lei Wu and Ma Ming (Ning Huan Yu), survive as outlaws. They are approached by the mysterious Zhuang Yue (Cheng Yi), who hires them with a gold bar to abduct a bride from a ruthless bandit stronghold.
During the mission, Peng uncovers someone he has spent years searching for, the individual responsible for the massacre of his family years ago. Driven by a thirst for revenge, Peng initiates a fierce battle in order to settle old scores.
Director Fan Xiang does an admirable job behind the camera. According to online resources, this appears to be Xiang’s directorial debut which makes it all the more impressive. I’m more than willing to forgive some missteps during the film, as these are to be expected from a first timer. Admittedly, his screenplay which he co-wrote with Lu Xun becomes somewhat convoluted, but for the most part Xiang keeps things moving at a fair pace, with him building up momentum as the film progresses.
What really sets The Old Way apart from other streaming releases is how good it looks. The locations, set and costume design are all top notch, betraying the film’s budget. Adding in several well conceived action set pieces just raises the bar even further. The action is a mixture of martial arts fight scenes and shootouts, with Xiang making sure there is a decent balance between both, however I did find it strange that the finale is mostly focused on gunplay.
Whilst this wasn’t a major issue for me, as I have quite a penchant for a good shootout, the lack of an end of film fight scene between Zhang and the film’s main villain did seem somewhat anti-climactic, with their actual face off coming almost 30 minutes before the finale. In a way it is refreshing that Xiang decided to shift from the norm, but I could definitely see it upsetting those looking for a more traditional structure, that no matter how good the final set pieces action is, the lack of any proper martial arts during it is an issue.
This isn’t to say The Old Way is highly original. This type of revenge tale has been told many times over, but the characters and how the film is structured still manage to hold interest. It does help that Xiang has a captivating lead in the form of Max Zhang. Those that read my reviews will probably be sick of me going on about how Zhang should be a bigger star, but his work here doesn’t change my opinion. Once again Zhang proves his worth as an action star, with his morally ambiguous character giving Zhang more to play with dramatically.
The remaining cast all put in good turns, even those in smaller roles. Personally, I wasn’t as aware of much of the supporting cast’s previous work other than Michael Tong who has been regularly showing up in Hong Kong movies since the mid 90’s. Like many veteran HK actors, the majority of Tong’s work seems to go to streaming, but every now and again he gets an opportunity to shine, as he does here.
The likes of Ning Huan Yu and Zhan Ni are other standouts from the supporting cast, giving their characters more than what would have been on the written page. Zhan Ni is especially impressive, with her seeming like a cold blooded villainess only for her emotions to come through when least expected.
As mentioned, The Old Way is currently available on streaming platform iQIYI, but I don’t expect that it will be too long until it is picked up in the U.S. by the likes of Well Go USA. Considering their previous handling of Max Zhang movies, The Old Way would be another quality film to add to their catalogue.
Like The Wild Blade of Strangers, The Old Way isn’t the film that is going to take Max Zhang out of the realm of streaming releases, but there is still much to enjoy here, with a good mixture of colorful characters and exciting action scenes that the 103 minute runtime flies by. Fingers crossed Zhang’s next venture finds him featuring in something more high profile, but even if that isn’t the case, I will still be watching.
Plot: 3.5/5
Acting: 3.5/5
Action: 3.5/5
Overall: 3.5/5