Martial Arts movies

Sigard

For all those fans of Jet, Bruce and Jackie, I thought I'd start a thread to discuss our favourite martial arts films.
I've really gotten into the Hong Kong stuff in the last few years, and to date, the best ones I've seen are Iron Monkey, Way of the Dragon (uncut), and Once Upon a time in China 2. The only problem is the ridiculous prices thay charge for the DVD's in HMV. Another thing I noticed is that, over in Hong Kong, the likes of Jet Li and Jackie Chan have more control over the production of the films, and consequently, the fight scenes are more elaborate. For example, in the film 'twin Warriors', there is a scene in wihich two monks (one of which is jet li) take on over fifty guys at once. Possibly the coolest fight i ever saw, I think just about everything Jet Li has done in hollywood has been piss poor (give or take the odd fightscene) by comparison, but I put that down to Joel Silver and his insistance to use slo-mo and wirework that is inferior to that seen in the Matrix.

Tusky

I really enjoyed Jets "Hitman" and Bruce lees "Enter the dragon" would you like to reccomend some other good martial arts movays ?

Nemici

Yeah I agree about the hollywood style, its more about glitz instead of quality fight scenes.

the old style kung fu flicks like "the thundering mantis" and "the one armed swordsman" do it for me,

but early jackie chan stuff like police story 1 & 2 (the fight in the playground especially) beat blockbusters hands down.

RasTa

yes i love that scene in twin warrios myself,brillant film
if your lookin to get started, owl xtra-vision got some dvd's in at a nice price
once upon a time in china triology 40 euros
iron monkey 15 euros
police story 1 and 2 for 15 euros each
some still have drunken master and snake in a eagles shadow
for rent if not buy
and the bruce lee ones
all the above mentioned ones are my fav kung-fu flicks btw
shaolin temple has some good scenes in it also.

KdjaCL

Seen some great movies recently on CNX on Sky but about Jet Li i used to like that guy till i seen Romeo Must Die and then watched the special features and seen his stunt double who is like a twin of him.
I like the actors who actually do the stunts themselves like jackie Chan etc:
Project A on CNX tonight one fo Chans best Big Boss was on last night and it continues if its not Kung Fu its some kind of Hong Kong Action.

I bought Bullet in the Head from kencrane a few years ago on DVD paid $60 for it so its not just HMV who overcharge for HK movies.

kdjac

Gaffo

I have a copy of Drunken Master at home. Very young Jackie Chan. Never realised it was the same guy when he went Hollywood. I also have The Protector, another Chan film.

Drunken Master is great. Saw a display of it one year in Wales. Great technique.

kaimera

Iron Monkey = teh win. $14 at christmas on DVD

I've been lookin for Drunken Master [Jackie Chan] for months.
Anybody know where I can get it in Ireland?

Is Hard Boiled a martial arts or not?

Haven't seen it but would buy on DVD if anybody has it to sell.

Spock

i can't watch Martial arts movies, i always just think, Bruce Lee would kick his ass, for this reason i dont like Jackie Chan.

No one will ever surpass Bruce Lee.

Most of my favourites have all ready been mentioned. Crouching Tiger Hidden dragon is excellant.

Is Hard Boiled a martial arts or not?

No its basically a shoot em up or gunplay film.

KdjaCL

I got hard boiled in Golden Discs (they will order non region 2 discs for you) for £25 about 3 years ago which was the norm at the time.

kdjac

Clintons Cat

Jackie Chan has made some of the best and worst martial arts movies of all time

Project A has to be my favorite Martial Arts movie,
Followed closely by by Police Story 1+2
young master

Some of his are clankers though Battle creek brawl,fighting wooden wrestlers in a turn of the century plot that involves a periodically authentic lycra clad roller disco fight scene...boggle.


Also great in no particular order

Legend of a fighter,iron monkey,magnificent butcher,crouching tiger hidden dragon,once upon a time in china trilogy,iron monkey,The Emperor and the assassin,new dragon gate inn,Ninja in the Dragons Den,Fong Sai Yuk.

For something a little different try Encounters of the Spooky kind,Mr Vampire,Meals on wheels,man called hero

enjoy

Mac daddy

Originally posted by Kaimera
Iron Monkey = teh win. $14 at christmas on DVD

I've been lookin for Drunken Master [Jackie Chan] for months.
Anybody know where I can get it in Ireland?

Is Hard Boiled a martial arts or not?

Haven't seen it but would buy on DVD if anybody has it to sell.

i bought it in xtravision, i got the drunken master and the island of fire, and snake in the eagles shadow. ring them up they might have a copy in one of there other stores :ninja:

stevoslice

I liked Dragon : The Bruce Lee Story, not much fight scenes, but a good insight into the man himself.

Sigard

God bless extra vision, without them, we would have to endure the godawful prices they charge in HMV:D . To date, I have about 10 martial arts dvds and 16 videos. Bruce Lee is obviously the undisputed best, and his influence on martial arts in cinema is what has made kung fu and the like so mainstream. But, I still prefer Jackie Chan at the end of the day. I love Shanghai Noon (and Knights), and the 2on 1 fight at the end of 'Who am I' is still one of my favourites. Also, I agree with Gaffo about Drunken Master, truely excellent physical performance by jackie. Donnie Yen is another martial artist who I'd like to see make it big over here, he has the skills, and is younger than Jet and Jackie:ninja:

Steve_o

In relation to what Darko said bout crouching tiger hidden dragon its a class film but i think it doesn't have enough fight scenes at all and its more of a love story also i think Jet Li would have been better than Chow Yun Fat!!

In relation to what Darko said bout crouching tiger hidden dragon its a class film but i think it doesn't have enough fight scenes at all and its more of a love story also i think Jet Li would have been better than Chow Yun Fat!!

The new Jet Li film is supposed to be just like Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon but with more fight scenes.

orangerooster

Whats the name of this new jet li film?

Spock

thebhoy, rent are buy Bruce Lee:a warriors jounry. Its a documentry about his life and it also has the fight scenes from "the Games of Death" which were never released.
You'll like it plus "Dragon: the bruce lee story" is way off the mark are dosent really tell you anything about his life

Makaveli

Originally posted by orangerooster
Whats the name of this new jet li film?

The one with DMX?
If so, Cradle 2 Tha Grave.



I have a couple of martial arts dvds. I really must get the Bruce Lee ones but I keep forgetting. I should also have gotten those Jackie Chan ones in Xtra Vision ages ago.
The problem with martial arts dvds is a lot are dubbed with no option to watch in Cantonese or whatever with subs. This annoys me quite a bit.
I prefer Jackie Chan to Jet Li. I dunno why, maybe it's because I've seen more of Jackie's films. Jackie is funnier anyway.

Clintons Cat

Makavali

buy Hong Kong Legends Versions they are the best in the buisness when it comes to Martial art DVD releases.Usually with the original Cantonese/mandarin soundtrack

Also they have loads of special offers


<<<Edit to fix link>>>Hongkonglegends.co.uk

Sigard

Well Cradle 2 the Grave is coming out soon, but I'm sure it will simply be a cross between Exit Wounds and Romeo must Die. i.e, Jet Li says about 5 sentenses, there is a heavy rap soundtrack, and a lot of slo-mo fighting. On the other hand, the film to which Daro alluded to is called Hero, and stars ( I have the preview here in front of me) Jet Li, Tony Leung, Maggie Cheung, Donnie Yen and Zhang Ziyi. Can't wait, although it'll never beat the impact Twin Warriors had on me (sure it's ridiculous, but by God was it entertaining:) :ninja: )

vasch_ro

what about Blade and Blade 2
Snake in the Eagles Shadow,(jackie Chan)
The Matrix,
Fist of Legend ( Jet Li's remake of Bruce Lee's Fist of Fury)
Once Apon a Time in China 1 and 2 (three is ok ish )
They all get my vote

Sigard

Aye, Fist of Legend has some very good fights in it, excellent coreography (is that spelled right) by Yuen Wo Ping. Actually this reminds me. The one DVD I want to get from HKL, and I mean really get is The Blacksheep Affair. I have seen the trailer many times, and it blew me away. Unfortunately I was told that soon after it was released here, all the DVDs had to be recalled due to being faulty. Since then, I havn't seen it anywhere. If anyone knows where to start looking, I would be most grateful.

Clintons Cat

I got my copy fromhere about 6 months ago,its still listed so i presume its still available.

OK no more pimping on this thread I promise.;)

Earthhorse

I can't believe Clintons Cat is the only one who has mentioned Young Master. An absolutely class film, you should all track down a copy.

Others that spring to mind are:

Mystery of Chess Boxing
36 Chambers of Shaolin (can't find my copy right now, I *think* that's what it's called)
Project A 2

I also think Police Story 3 (Supercop) is one of the best martial arts films in terms of plot and cinematography. There are some great scenes which have nothing to do with martial arts in that movie.

There used to be a "Best of Martial Arts" video in Xtra Vision Dundrum. Not sure if it's still there but it's well worth getting. It focuses mostly on Jackie, Samo and Yeun Biao (sp.?) but there are some others in there.

I've had Dragons Forever upstairs for about two years. Keep forgetting to watch it!

Makaveli

Thanks for the link CC. I'll have to check them out.
I think play.com sells Hong Kong Legends DVDs too, and they ship to Ireland for free, any idea if Hong Kong Legends include Ireland in the UK or are we worldwide? Not that £2 really bothers me.

Clintons Cat

makaveli i am based in the uk so i am not sure on the shipping costs to Ireland,play might be a better option as i know a few of the regulars here use them.

Makaveli

Yeah I've used play a load of times before, they are good and have good customer support, but deliverys are taking a long time to arrive at the moment. This might be An Post's fault though.
What's the usual delivery time from hong kong legends?

Oh and to anyone interested CNX are showing a martial arts film every night at 10. I think it's for all of this month. FUX it's called. kdjac already mentioned, just thought it deserved a second one. Also there seems to always be a Jet Li film on one of the Sky Movie channels.

Clintons Cat

i think around about 12-16 days average.Certainly nothing to excessive.

Boro

The Legend of Fong Sai Yuk 1 & 2 rock.

There is this one class scene in Legend 2 where FSY fights blindfolded because he doesnt want to see who he is killing is an amazing scene.

Jaeger

The clash in Enter the Dragon between O'Hara and Lee. Try watching it in slow motion, still damn hard to see lee moving.

What was the name of that Jet Li film that had bridget fonda in it? Couple of great fight scenes there.

edit: Kiss of the Dragon wasn't it?

Makaveli

Yeah it's Kiss of the Dragon.
Not a bad film at all. Sticking the pins into the pressure points to make people fall asleep is pretty cool.
Also when

he sticks the pin into the back of your mans neck, and all the blood in his body travels to his head, and starts pouring out of his eyes, nose and ears. Pretty nasty way to die.

Sigard

Originally posted by Boro
The Legend of Fong Sai Yuk 1 & 2 rock.

There is this one class scene in Legend 2 where FSY fights blindfolded because he doesnt want to see who he is killing is an amazing scene.

Yeah, the 'ten swords technique' or something like that. Very cool. Also, the pole fight at the climax of Iron Monkey is another favourite. Anyone here see the Streetfighter 2 animated movie, some pretty good fights in that.

Ph3n0m

Jackie Chan, IMO is the greatest martial artist who has made it onto the screen.

Dont get me wrong, I appreciate who and what Bruce Lee did for martial arts as a whole, and yes even though I do love his films, I just have to rank Jackie Chan that little bit higher on the viewability rating.

It would be quite easy to say "oh Jackie Chan is an actor who happens to know martial arts", but then again that would be a misconception, like Bruce Lee, he trained from a very young age (i think both started when they were around 9/10 yrs old)

But Jackie Chan seems to have a more natural personna on the screen, mixing great action, insane stunts, etc

My top JC films are

Project A and Projcet A II
Police Story 1 -> 3
Young Master (so many quality fight scenes, including the last 20 or so minutes where JC gets his ass handed to him until he gets loaded or stoned)
Drunken Master
Who Am I


In fact there are so many. Templecom (on Aston Quay) do have a nice selection on video only and for very reasonable prices

ps: am I the only one who really didnt like Rush or Rush Hour 2

TacT

My favourites included

Twin Warriors (all time fave, Bo Staff scene is unbelievable!)
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Kiss of the dragon (just for the twisted ending)
Hero (just saw this recently, very, very nice, crouching tiger with more aggressive fightscenes and an interesting plot)
Enter The Dragon - The Bruce Lee Story
Any of Bruce's films, All of jet li's not-american films
Jackie Chan's earlier films, I think rumble in the bronx was when a turning point in his career made the films go west with hollywood glam and crap.

@ph3nom - yeah, hated em with a passion

quick review - Hero is fantastic, has an intriguing plot, beautiful fight scenes, a love story, it's about a King who lives in fear of assasination and Jet Li arrives as his saviour after defeating some of the most feared warriors in the land with his sword and now the king is safe and seeks to reward Jet li for his bravery by inviting him to his palace....

Hero (just saw this recently, very, very nice, crouching tiger with more aggressive fightscenes and an interesting plot)

Where did you see Hero? I thought it wasnt being released here till next year.

Sigard

Originally posted by Ph3n0m
Jackie Chan, IMO is the greatest martial artist who has made it onto the screen.

Dont get me wrong, I appreciate who and what Bruce Lee did for martial arts as a whole, and yes even though I do love his films, I just have to rank Jackie Chan that little bit higher on the viewability rating.

It would be quite easy to say "oh Jackie Chan is an actor who happens to know martial arts", but then again that would be a misconception, like Bruce Lee, he trained from a very young age (i think both started when they were around 9/10 yrs old)

But Jackie Chan seems to have a more natural personna on the screen, mixing great action, insane stunts, etc

My top JC films are

Project A and Projcet A II
Police Story 1 -> 3
Young Master (so many quality fight scenes, including the last 20 or so minutes where JC gets his ass handed to him until he gets loaded or stoned)
Drunken Master
Who Am I


In fact there are so many. Templecom (on Aston Quay) do have a nice selection on video only and for very reasonable prices

ps: am I the only one who really didnt like Rush or Rush Hour 2

Ph3n0m you read my mind as regards Jackie Chan. I'd forgotten about Who Am I, great film. That reminds me, anyone here see Gorgeous. The film itself was pretty dire, but the fight that jackie has with the short guy in black near the end was pretty good. Also, as regards the Rush Hour films, I prefer to think of them films in which happen to star Jackie Chan rather than Martial Arts films (and I must be one of the few people who doesn't hate Chris Tucker:D ).

TacT

A mate brought me back a few vcd's on a trip - I think it's due for release here in november..

bail

jet li's kiss of the dragon + the one
jackie chans anyone is good
bruce lee's enter the dragon
kung fu jesus
kung pow enter the fist
and the animatrix it is cartoon but is also brillant
also the matrix is my all time fav havent you noticed how everyone now rips off the slow mo from scary movie to daynome drink which makes no sense
also the matrix is real cos this one time trinity and neo where in tokyo and i was with them and agents came and started dancing like stoned hippies and wearing rainbow wigs and a song echo that went like " and everyone was dacen movin sunday school groovin not gonna bring me done again six feet under the ground. and then they all turned in to really hot girls and then they all got naked and neo jet jackie and bruce came and beat me up and then i got back up and thier to help me was jason voorhees mike myres and freddie cruger and death but i didn't like them so me and the guys (neo jet jackie and bruce) beat them up and we were friends and then i had sweet sweet lovin. then i woke up just like in the matrix when the agents caught neo and so it is real mmmmmmmm...... sweet sweet lovin with girls of course heheehehehehehe (in nervous voice)

Makaveli

Wandered into Xtra Vision tonight to see what they had in stock, left €100 lighter.
Picked up
Once Upon A Time In China Trilogy (€40)
Police Story 1 + 2 (€15 each)
Way Of The Dragon (€15)
Iron Monkey (€15)

All Hong Kong Legends dvds. mmmm very nice.

Oh they have The Killer too, but that's more of a gangster film than martial arts. Actually I don't think there is any martial arts in it, but you should buy it anyway (or at least rent it) because it's a cool film. €15 aswell.

echomadman

The hong kong legends series are amazing, in terms of value and extra features

Bey Logans commentarys on them make them really stand out, He gives you a lot of insight into the genre, and the whole scene in hong-kong cinema

Just watching Way of the Dragon as i stumbled across this thread...
Go Nuchaku..

Sigard

absolutly true. p.s, has anyone heard any more about the forthcoming Jackie Chan film 'The Medallion', formerly known as Highbinders.

vasch_ro

which store was it, because the store near me is really really small

vasch_ro

I think part of high binders or the medallion was shot in Dublin

Makaveli

Stillorgan

banbutcher

i dunno bout you guys but i liked kung pow: enter the fist, its funny and there was some good fights in it!!

Dempsey

The Matrix fight scenes were good, they all learned martial arts for the film.

Jet Li is good, I taught he looked vicious in Lethal Weapon 4. The One, Romeo must die and Kiss of the Dragon are ok.

But I'd rate Jackie Chan or Bruce Lee higher because bruce lee had his own unique style and Jackie Chan actually does his own stunts

Steve_o

Jackie Chan may be giving up doin all his own stunts because of his age!! The 1 thing that makes Bruce Lee better than everyone is he never used cables in his fight scenes! Jackie doesn't do it that often but Jet Li is another story altogther!!

galactus

Originally posted by RasTa
yes i love that scene in twin warrios myself,brillant film
if your lookin to get started, owl xtra-vision got some dvd's in at a nice price
once upon a time in china triology 40 euros
iron monkey 15 euros
police story 1 and 2 for 15 euros each
some still have drunken master and snake in a eagles shadow
for rent if not buy
and the bruce lee ones
all the above mentioned ones are my fav kung-fu flicks btw
shaolin temple has some good scenes in it also.

Bought Police Story last week in X-travision: 15 euros. But noticed that the disc said "Police Assignment" or somesuch. Mix up in translation? Whatever. Popped the DVD in. No...wait a minute...this disc that they gave me is Police Story 2!

No probs. Down to local X-travision. Explained what was up.

Assistant #1: You mean you're missing disc 2 of a two disc set.
Assistant #2: No it's a film called "Police Assignment"
Assistant #1: No, it isn't
Assistant #2: Yes, it is
Assistant #2: No, it isn't

And so on. Anyway, eventually got to watch it. Jackie is pure class

galactus

Originally posted by Earthhorse
Others that spring to mind are:

Mystery of Chess Boxing
36 Chambers of Shaolin (can't find my copy right now, I *think* that's what it's called)

36 Chambers Of Shaolin - The Final Confrontation
http://www.blackstar.co.uk/video/item/7000000058078

A big favourite of the Wu Tang!