Man With The Iron Fists / O.S.T. MAN WITH THE IRON FISTS / O.S.T.

Offered the opportunity to direct a karate flick -- and with all the freedom, funding, and flash that an executive producer like Quentin Tarantino would allow -- Wu-Tang leader and kung-fu fanatic RZA must have been like a kid in a candy store. Still, the soundtrack to his directorial debut is classic, restrained RZA, as sneaky, restrained, and cool as the Wu when Bobby Digital first landed. After a rap-rock opener that's James Bond big with RZA and the Black Keys reuniting after their collaboration on the Blakroc album, this soundtrack gives up highlights that resist gimmicks or going over the top, with fellow Wu man Ghostface Killah leading M.O.P. and Pharoahe Monch down the darkest of alleyways ("Black Out") while RZA and Kanye West co-produce the latter's "White Dress," a sassy soul strut that suggests what 808s & Heartbreak would have sounded like had it been released by Stones Throw. Even more surprising is how the deceptively small "Get Your Way (Sex Is a Weapon)" from Idle