By Fred Topel | Image property of Paramount Vantage
The Foot Fist Way
The Foot Fist Way pokes fun at the martial arts world, telling the story of a shopping mall tae kwon do instructor. Director Jody Hill chose the subject because of his own personal experiences.
Jody Hill Practices The Foot Fist Way
"I don’t know if there’s anything intrinsically funny about tae kwon do," said Hill. "Tae kwon do was I took so that’s why I did. I think there’s something funny about a strip mall kind of franchise business approach to martial arts rather than some type of Zen."
The film is finally hitting theaters this month, after two years on the festival circuit. "We made it in summer 2005. It was at Sundance in 2006. These guys [distributors Will Ferrell and Adam McKay] came on around early summer of 2006 I'd say. Then just getting it all together takes a while. The movie's maybe a little dangerous. It takes delicate handling so it looks like they're doing it right."
The dangers of the film do not involve the on camera stunts. "For one, we shot it on 16mm. The budget is probably what a light costs on a normal movie. Lots of bad words. A few kids get demolished. And there are no stars in it except for Danny [McBride], who at the time we were selling it, was Bust-Ass from All the Real Girls. As it gained more fans in the wake of Will and Adam, then the demand for it rose."
The Foot Fist Way also includes a cameo from Magnum P.I.'s signature Ferrari. "That Ferrari actually was a friend of my dad's. That car, he's owned it for forever. In middle school, we used to drive through town with it. When it came time to do the movie, we dragged that Ferrari down and he let us use it."
The Foot Fist Way
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