Netflix has quite a diverse offering of movies and TV shows and within the documentary category I found this title. The cover art looked beautiful and although it only had one star I still decided to see what this movie was about. I soon found out that Elliot ‘White Lightning’ Scott is someone with a dream: becoming the first Canadian action hero.
Of course everyone has their dreams, but Elliot has decided to realise it. He has already made two movies: “Stalker And The Hero” and “They Killed My Cat”. When you see some footage from these titles it soon becomes clear that he still has a long way to go before making it. They are shot with a very cheap camcorder and Elliot doesn’t have either the charisma nor acting talent to be a convincing new actor comparable to Jackie Chan or Jean-Claude van Damme. And that’s where the limitation don’t end. He is supposed to be a kick box champion who has won several tournaments, but when you see him fighting you might start doubting that. He doesn’t move convincingly, powerful or graceful.
The documentary follow him the moment he is making his newest movie, Blood Fight, together with his girlfriend Linda. Elliot doesn’t have a job and it’s up to her to brin gin the money. The two seem to love each other, but it is obvious that Linda is very frustrated with some of the things he does as she doesn’t seem to be friendly at all when talking to him. Still she stands by him, helping him out during the production.
It’s easy to compare Kung Fu Elliot to a documentary like American Movie, of someone having a dream but who doesn’t have the capability or talent to realise it. Towards the end of the movie a number of points are brought up which make you question Elliot. Is he to be trusted, what motivates him? The directors insert something extra to think about. Although this might not be a must see, it’s a fascinating (and entertaining) documentary about an intriguing personality.
