Slowcap’s martial arts brawler Sifu is set to release on February 8, 2022 (although if you pre-order the special edition, you can get your hands on it 48 hours early, but the deadline to do so is fast approaching). At the time of this writing, that’s less than a week away, and the hype train has officially left the station. But just when you thought that train was rolling at maximum speed and you couldn’t get any hyper, Slowcap, in collaboration with Christopher C. Cowan, drops “Sifu: At the Cost of Time,” a live-action short-film adaptation of the game.
And let me be the first to say, this project is friggin incredible. Sifu (the game) already lent itself to comparison with dope martial films that no doubt inspired it — I would imagine movies like The Raid series are high on the list of inspiration — so to see it come full-circle in the form of a live-action martial-arts short film is a bit of a trip. And even though it doesn’t quite nail the art style of Sifu, relying on more traditional camera movement and blocking, as well as numerous cuts to better represent the hard-hitting nature of the combat, it still manages to come out swinging.
A lot of credit has to go to Christopher C. Cowan. Short of producing the project and playing each of the roles himself, he handles damn near every other aspect, from the script to the directing to the choreography. And all of it is top-notch, clean, and visceral, so this is quite the accomplishment. My hat couldn’t be more off. Considering how difficult it seems for Hollywood to pull off great — or even just okay — movie adaptations of video games, Cowan makes it seem effortless.
I gotta say, this is the perfect companion piece for the game and a great way to get people pumped to get their hands on Sifu. If you’re like me — looking forward to letting the fists fly come release but needing a bit of a fix to tide your over — I definitely recommend checking out “Sifu: At the Cost of Time,” which I’ve posted below for your convenience.
