Martial Arts of Shaolin (1986)
Revenge is the theme for this third Shaolin Temple movie with Shaw Brothers veteran Lau Kar-leung brought in to add a fresh dynamic, utilising the Chinese scenery to great effect as well as maintaining...
View ArticleOnce Upon a Time in China III (1993)
Although this is nowhere near as good as the other two, part three of this great franchise does have some great moments, although few and far between. The Empress dowager tries to restore national...
View ArticleThe Swordsman (1990)
Before Tsui Hark’s Once Upon a Time in China series sparked a resurgence in kung fu pictures in Hong Kong, it was Tsui Hark’s The Swordsman which would rejuvenate the stagnant wuxia genre with vibrant...
View ArticleSwordsman II (1992)
Tsui Hark overhauled his initial concept for this wuxia franchise following the difficulties making the first Swordsman film. Instead, he follows up with a hyperactive sequel complete with a new cast...
View ArticleFong Sai-yuk (1993)
Jet Li revives another classic Chinese folk hero for modern audiences with a spirited performance as Fong Sai-yuk, the real-life happy-go-lucky kung fu wunderkind whose life was serialised in wuxia...
View ArticleProfile: Chang Cheh
Date of birth: February 10, 1923 (Qingtian county, China) Date of death: June 22, 2002 (aged 79), Hong Kong Birth name: Chang Yi-yang Other names: Cheung Kit, Chang Che, Chang Cheuh, Chang Chueh, Chang...
View ArticleKung Fu Jungle (2014)
In shades of Silence of the Lambs, convicted murderer Donnie Yen is sprung from prison three years into a five year jail term to help no-nonsense homicide detective Charlie Yeung get into the deranged...
View ArticleFong Sai-yuk II (1993)
Rushed sequel made the same year as the original film, this follow-up focuses on Adam Cheng’s appointment as the new head of the Red Flower Society rather than the charming relationship between Fong...
View ArticleKung Fu Cult Master (1993)
Here we go, then: Jet Li falls off a cliff and is cured of his ‘Jinxed Palm’ injury after learning the ‘Cosmic Solar Stance’ from a bearded monk chained to a giant rock. He then flies around the Seven...
View ArticleBodyguard from Beijing (1994)
Nothing too special here; a conventional action thriller borrowing themes from Hollywood hit The Bodyguard. Jet Li is the titular bodyguard who is sent to Hong Kong to protect a key witness in a murder...
View ArticleWar (2007)
Yakuza thugs and Chinese triads cross swords in a bitter feud which escalates from the underground nightclubs of San Francisco to Mexico, Japan and back again. Rogue (Jet Li) is a silent assassin who...
View ArticleMy Father is a Hero (1995)
Jet Li‘s first successful departure from traditional kung fu hero to modern day action man. This isn’t a classic by any means but it does provide a convincing contemporary performance from Jet Li in...
View ArticleShootfighter: Fight to the Death (1992)
Shootfighting is a Japanese-American derivative of shoot-wrestling and is now regarded as something of a forerunner to modern day mixed martial arts (MMA), being both a hybrid style and a full contact...
View ArticleThe One (2001)
The One is a mixed affair: stylistically influenced by The Matrix but with silly cartoon violence. Jet Li has never acted better in a US production and although the film is littered with gimmicks, he...
View ArticleFalcon Rising (2014)
Ex-serviceman John Chapman (White) returns to New York from an undisclosed conflict in the Middle East suffering from PTSD and a really short fuse. When he’s not self-medicating his trauma with...
View ArticleMagic Crystal (1986)
Super fun action comedy from Wong Jing who takes a distinctly Hong Kong approach to reworking both E.T. and Raiders of the Lost Ark. The fantasy elements are pure Spielberg, in which a young Chinese...
View ArticleIp Man 3 (2015)
Five years after the second instalment, actor Donnie Yen and director Wilson Yip return to the Ip Man franchise for a third and final time. Yen slips back into his most defining role with impeccable...
View ArticlePolice Story 2013 (2013)
Those looking for a grittier antidote to Jackie Chan‘s increasingly diluted family-friendly output may be relieved to find this messy heist thriller, directed by Ding Sheng of Little Big Soldier fame....
View ArticleOnce Upon a Time in Shanghai (2014)
Another remake of Chang Cheh‘s The Boxer from Shantung, this moody fu noir is set in China, 1930, on the brink of Japanese invasion, and focuses on the struggles of migrant workers in the slums of...
View ArticleMission of Justice (1992)
Mildly diverting double-header reuniting Angel stars Moon Lee and Yukari Oshima as top cops sent undercover by police chief Carrie Ng to thwart an opium deal in Asia’s Golden Triangle. Betty Mak plays...
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