Category: Martial Arts

A Kung Fu Odyssey Through the Wilds of the Martial Arts World

If you’re looking for a trip down the rabbit hole of martial arts mayhem, “Arhats of Shaolin Temple” is your ticket to ride. This film is a heady mix of jaw-dropping fight scenes, off-the-wall humor, and a dash of spiritual enlightenment thrown in for good measure.

>The story follows a group of monks who find themselves in a battle to defend their temple against an evil warlord. But this isn’t your typical kung fu flick. Oh no. Director Lau Kar-leung has infused this film with a sense of anarchic energy.

From the opening scene, where a monk uses his beard to fish for dinner, to the final showdown that sees our heroes battling it out with their enemies in a field of wheat, “Arhats of Shaolin Temple” is a non-stop thrill ride. And the cast of characters is just as eclectic as the action on screen. There’s the wise old master who dispenses nuggets of wisdom like a mystical Yoda, the young monk who just wants to get laid, and the villainous warlord who chews up the scenery with relish.

In short, “Arhats of Shaolin Temple” is a wild, unpredictable, and thoroughly entertaining ride through the world of kung fu cinema. Strap yourself in and get ready for one hell of a trip.

Written and directed by: Li Xi Jie
Starring: Yangyang Long, Gu Shangwei, Miao Xie

Brutal revenge or letting go and breaking the cycle of violence?

In feudal Japan, village senior is killed out of revenge by a youthful samurai. His blind daughter agrees to be escorted to the nearest safe place while she has a dilemma – either to revenge her father or to cut a cycle of revenge.

Akiko Izumitani is a female director/writer born and raised in Japan, now based in Los Angeles. As a followup to the story, she co-wrote the pilot episode of a limited series of the same name illustrating Yae’s backstory as part of a TV series.

Written and Directed by: Akiko Izumitani
Starring: Nobuaki Shimamoto, Yuwi Kim, Masa Kanome

A true classic film from the greatest martial artist of all time!

Tang Lung arrives in Rome to help his cousins in the restaurant business. They are being pressured to sell their property to the syndicate, who will stop at nothing to get what they want. When Tang arrives he poses a new threat to the syndicate, and they are unable to defeat him. The syndicate boss hires the best Japanese and European martial artists to fight Tang, but he easily finishes them off. The American martial artist Colt is hired and has a showdown with Tang in Rome’s famous Colosseum.

Martial arts expert Bruce Lee fights off mobsters and world champion Chuck Norris

Written and Directed by Bruce Lee
Starring Bruce Lee, Chuck Norris, Nora Miao

Best Chinese Sword play Film dubbed in English

In this martial arts action-drama, a swordsman named Toh Hong travels home after a long battle to discover his wife and children have been brutally murdered.

Pre-wire-fu so it’s all acrobatics and quick footwork! Setting is great in that it really looks desolate, back drops are epic, everything’s gritty and dirty rather than overly bright like a lot of this film’s contemporary opera based counterparts. -Fighting styles are unique and consistent across different characters. -Weapons techniques aren’t all fancy dodges (though obviously there’s a lot of that), but include a lot of kill blows where weapons obviously smash pretty hard against things in the background (ice, wood, stones, etc). -Fights are all exciting because they’re contextual, with the heroes winning by the skin of their teeth or whole handedly according to the situation. It’s not like a lot of films where it’s always massively one sided. -You know how usually most films have a lot of extras blindly and uselessly flailing weapons at each other like dumb mooks as the main characters actually fight? EACH AND EVERY FIGHT features EVERYONE fighting at LEAST one other person and looking like they’re actually trying. It’s obvious the PRC pulled out all the stops and got great people for even the background guys.

Directed by: Hsin-Yen Chang
Starring: Chenghui Yu, Chi-kang Chao, Shanshan Chunyu

Great and really entertaining Kung-Fu movie

Plot:
Defeated in a match at Shaolin, Wu Kung wanders China till he finds his own temple and style of fighting: Tang Sao Do Karate. Years later, student and ninth successor, Hsi Man Kwong challenges and crumbles all the Chinese kung fu schools in the area.

This movie is so cool because you have seven kung fu masters, each with a unique fighting style, duking it out with a Japanese karate master. The coolest part is that each style–Hun Gar, Wing Chun, Monkey Fist, Choy Lee Fut, and others–gets its own part of the spotlight and a neat description to accompany it. The opening credits provide an impressive display of masters and these styles

One of the best exhibitions of kicking in Martial arts film history!

A country bumpkin arrives to help his brother’s rice business. Things get out of hand while a rival company becomes corrupt. The bumpkin, an ace martial artist, fights off the rivals. Angered, the rivals hire a martial arts expert to fight the hero, only to get beaten up himself. The expert send his teacher to hurt the hero and succeeds. The hero is sent to a temple where he learns a new style of kung fu. Now with the skills, our hero is ready to get even.

Hwang Jang Lee, the famed villain from Drunken Master and Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow, actually plays a good guy in this film. I find it interesting that he directed and produced it and that he wanted to play a good guy (for a change)! It is one of the best exhibitions of kicking in kung fu film history.

Directed by: Yun-Kyo Park

In this period martial arts-adventure, three warriors set out on a series of adventures in order to determine who has the strongest fighting skills. The Hot, the Cool, and the Vicious stars Delon Tan and Wang Tao.

I know the best martial arts movie ever made is “Magnificent Weapons of China” but this movie has the best title. I doubt “Nan quan bei tui zhan yan wang” actually translates into “The Hot, The Cool, and the Vicious”, its something more like security – king – something – something. What a fabulous title. The story starts out with excellent pacing and intrigue and the fights are great simply because of the kicks. At the end the story falls apart because there is too much to resolve and circumstances have to be contrived for a final fight and resolution. Who cares, just great fights, above average stuff. Dorian and Don team up again and add Chang Yi and a bit of comedy in “Challenge of Death”.

Directed by: Lee Tso Nam
Starring: Tao-Liang Tan, Don Wong, Ming Chin

Shaolin Temple Against Lama (1980) – Action-packed extravaganza Made in Taiwan

Shaolin Temple Against Lama (1980) – Creaky plot concerning palace intrigues in the late Ming Dynasty. In a slight nod to Hamlet, an evil Lord has killed the king and consorts with the lovely queen. Queen’s son, the Prince, is a braggard who seeks the truth, and also to be the leading martial artist in China before fully assuming the throne. The evil lord leads the Black faction, which seeks to unite all the martial arts schools under their sway. Shaolin resists. This causes one helluva lot of fighting. Keeping up with who’s fighting who is impossible, but there are at least 12 superb martial artists flying around. Outstanding, fast-paced and very frequent fight scenes.

Cast and Crew:

Director: Chien-Chi Chang
Writer: Chien-Chi Chang
Stars: Alexander Rei Lo, Alan Chung San Chui, Chi Ping Chang