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It should come as no surprise that, in person, Jet Li is very much like his screen persona. The five-foot, six-inch action legend has the boyish face and modest politeness that makes him look younger than his 43 years. He never dropped his gentle smile during the all too brief interview, and he answered every question with animated interest. He also had a habit of bringing every answer back around to his gospel of martial arts philosophy, as illustrated in his new film Fearless.

The story of Wu Shu godfather Hua Yuan Jia, Fearless is Jet Li's dream project, his attempt to reclaim the true meaning of martial arts after years of flexing his physical prowess on screen.

A child martial arts prodigy in mainland China, he won his first of five Wu Shu Championships at the age of eleven and performed at the White House for President Richard Nixon as part of China's first Wu Shu team to tour the West. In 1982, he made the transition to movie star with Shaolin Temple, China's first modern martial arts movie. Soon Hong Kong came calling and hit films such as the sweeping turn-of-the-century action drama Once Upon a Time in China and the comic action spectacle Fong Sai-Yuk made him the number two martial arts star in Asia behind Jackie Chan.

Li has headlined over 30 films in Hong Kong, Hollywood and Europe since his debut, from a rare villain opposite Mel Gibson in Lethal Weapon 4 to a modern day superhero in Black Mask (a combination Green Hornet and Kato) to a master swordsman and legendary warrior at the dawn of China's unification in the historical martial arts epic Hero.

Li has played many real-life Chinese martial arts folk heroes - Wong Fei Hung in Once Upon a Time in China and sequels, Fong Sai-Yuk, the founders of Tai Chi in Fong Sai-Yuk and Hung Hei Gun in New Legend of Shaolin, but Fearless brings him full circle to the art and philosophy of Wu Shu, the discipline he studied and mastered from childhood, and to its founder, Hua Yuan Jia.

Speaking in halting but expressive English (learned in the years following his 1998 Hollywood debut), Li was more martial arts evangelist than movie star but, needless to say, he was gracious with every question.

You've publicly stated this will be your last martial arts film. Why?

Because in China we call martial arts Wu Shu, from two words: Stop, War. Stop fighting. We made a lot of action films, and not just me. A lot of people make action films more focused on fighting, fighting, fighting, more focused on the physical part, a violent physical move against another violent move, but nobody talks about the "stop." So I found the perfect story, Hua Yuan Jia, the true martial artist in the last century in China. His martial arts and his life, I think, is very close to my life, because he died at 43 years old. I made the movie at 42. Martial arts is also very important to my life. I learned everything through martial arts philosophy and I put everything in this film about what I believe. The physical is only a part of martial arts. The philosophy, honor, responsibility, what kind of person learns martial arts, how to use martial arts to help people. It's more important than just kick ass, beat up somebody. So, from that point, I put everything already in this movie, so I having nothing to say in the future. That's why it's my last martial arts film.

You were a master of Wu Shu style before you started making films.

Yes, I have learned martial arts since I was eight years old. I won five championships in a row in China. After that, I was making movies.

What is different about Wu Shu from other martial arts styles?

In the movies, martial arts will be usually called Kung Fu, but whatever we call them, it is just material to help the story or help the character. You can see some cop fight with a gangster, just use physical contact, and some people call it martial arts and some people call it action movie. But for me, that is the physical part. It doesn't have anything to do with real Wu Shu or real martial arts. We talk about the violence and it doesn't represent good or evil. Martial arts also is not a good or evil. It really depends on who uses the martial arts, who uses the gun. How to use them, that's more important. A lot of parents complain about children watching too much violent stuff, and even walking down the street, a lot of kids look at me and say, "Oh Jet Li! Beat up somebody! Kick somebody." They thought that was the cool stuff.

What I want to say is, that's cool, but something is cooler. The physical contact is the first step of martial arts. The second step is, without hurting each other, without killing each other, use your head, use your heart, use strategy to stop the fighting before it happens. That's the higher level. The highest, of course, is how to turn your enemy to become your friend. That's the meaning of martial arts. It's not just beating each other, but usually people don't talk about that. They just see two guys beating each other and who wins, who's the stronger. I worry about that. A lot of teenagers watching martial arts movies only focus on the violent part.

Do you find that to be a conflict in other films you've made, like the Once Upon a Time in China films where you played Wong Fei Hung, who was also a healer and philosopher?

That kind of movie, like a Wong Fei Hung or a Tai Chi Master, those are true martial artists, but they still just try to tell people that you need to use martial arts or that you don't need to use martial arts, but still didn't talk about it like this master. What Jet Li believes is you learn in martial arts that your most dangerous enemy is yourself. You need to fight yourself: fight your physical part, fight your mental part, be strong. You don't need to beat up somebody to prove you are the best. Try your best, don't give up. That's good enough.

Fearless recalls your most famous movies as a Hong Kong star. Fong Sai-Yuk is an immature and irresponsible character, whereas Wong Fei Hung in Once Upon a Time in China is a mature man who tries to counsel peace but has to stand up against western aggressors. Fearless is like the transition between these two characters - it shows the irresponsible young man growing into a mature and responsible man.

Yes, I made a lot of these kinds of films, real Chinese martial artists stories, but this master, Hua Yuan Jia, is the only one based on a true philosophy. He opened a school and wrote out rules on why we need martial arts and how to use them. The story of Wong Fei Hung is more created by the writer. There is no real history to talk about their lives and what they believe. It's the writer, it's the director, putting their ideas into the character. Hua Yuan Jia is real; his school is still in Shanghai right now. You can see the writings of the father of Chinese martial arts about the spiritual [aspect] of martial arts. It's very important to the Chinese people.

Are saying that you've played a lot of real-life historical martial arts figures but you've never played their real stories before?

Put it this way. In the 5,000 years of Chinese history, he's the number one guy, he opened the heart, he told everybody, "Martial arts is just like sports. It is not to kill somebody, like a weapon."

Is this why this film has been a dream project of yours, because you are so dedicated to his philosophy?

Yes, yes.

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