Greatest Martial Arts Films

[Phillosophic]

Hello there fellow Escapists.

I am pretty new around here & this be my first thread. Just wondering what your favourite Martial Art films are & why? Don't have to restrict yourselves to only the one,

Mine would be Enter The Dragon because it's the Daddy of the genre.
Meals on Wheels for the stunts & the Jackie, Samo, Yun Biao chemistry.
Once Upon A Time In China, good wire work & classic plot. Also Proved Jet Li could act, unless you watch it dubbed.
Kung-Fu Hustle because, well just because.
Lastly Ong Bak because I truly believed everything good had been done. Then Mr Jaa came along & proved me wrong

 

[ldjosh]

Ong Bak is one of my favorite films of all time.
Jackie Chan's Police Story is another, though only a kinda martial arts film.

Also, this thread is confusing if you thought the topic was Marital Arts.

 

[Rhodite]

I have really enjoyed the crop of recent Chinese films.

Crouching Tiger hidden dragon
Hero
House of the Flying daggers

I know some of what goes on in the films is a tad strange at times (based on folk lore I belive) but I found them to be excellent.

 

[Galletea]

Hero was plain depressing.
Kung fu Hustle on the other hand is awesome.

 

[WheresMyCow]

It would have to be Kung Fu Hustle. It has a nice mixture of comedy and impressive fight scenes.

 

[Phillosophic]

I have really enjoyed the crop of recent Chinese films.

Crouching Tiger hidden dragon
Hero
House of the Flying daggers

I know some of what goes on in the films is a tad strange at times (based on folk lore I belive) but I found them to be excellent.

All three have amazing cinematography & sweet use of colour. I think they are based on Chinese myth, folklore etc. If you like them, you should check out Iron Monkey.

Thanks for the replies.

 

[Baby Tea]

Uhh, hello? Legend of the Drunken Master with Jackie Chan.

Don't get me wrong, Ong Bak is great, I also LOVE the Once Upon a Time in China trilogy (I own all three!), but 'Legend' was just really sweet. Great fighting with impromptu objects, no wire-fu (Not that I'm against it, but I like seeing things done that are actually possible), and it's even pretty funny in spots.

 

[Baby Tea]

Hero was plain depressing.

Aww, I thought it was a beautiful film. Crazy good cinematography, great story, good fights (Not great, but good)...ahh, I think I might watch that tonight.

 

[Phillosophic]

Drunken Master is one of my favourites too, just thought I had put too many up already. Is Legend the Fong Sai Yuk one? If so, I love the "chicken nerve strike bit" so funny.

 

[Alone Disciple]

The 1977 cult classic cheeze fest:

"Master of the Flying Guillotine"

Tagline: It's A Mean Machine - Cuts Your Head Off Clean!

Plot synopisis from IMDB: The one-armed boxer is stalked by a vengeful flying guillotine expert, after his disciples were killed in the first 'One-Armed Boxer' film. But as the flying guillotine master is blind, he starts his quest by becoming a serial killer of one-armed men. Meanwhile, the one-armed boxer is running a martial arts school, where he teaches his pupils to control their breath so they can run up walls and along ceilings. And there's an Indian fakir whose arms can extend until they're ten feet long. As you may have gathered, a rational plot summary is pretty pointless - but rest assured there are epic martial arts battles and ludicrously inspired moments galore

 

[videonerd250]

Lastly Ong Bak because I truly believed everything good had been done. Then Mr Jaa came along & proved me wrong

You should definately see "The Protector" then. Similar story (except with an elephant), except with an awesome/hilarious scene where he breaks 20+ guys' limbs.
Also...breakdance fighting (not joking either).

 

[Phillosophic]

Yeah, it's called The Warrior King over here in the U.K. I love the random part where loads of rollerbladers & people on BMX's appear. That 7 the fact that the entire plot is Tony walking into a room, shouting "Where's my Elephant" then proceeding to beat the crap out of everyone.

 

[Nazulu]

Kung Pow, well not exactly serious martial arts but it's flippin hilarious!

Avoid the meadow!

 

[Scorched_Cascade]

Iron monkey is awesome and thanks for this thread by the way I was looking to get my dad a martial arts film for Christmas but couldn't think of any I hadn't already got him; Kung Fu Hustle looks promising

Edit- Oh I'm also going to chuck in Jet Li's "The One" and "Romeo Must Die" here too which, while not technically a traditional martial art film, has a lot of martial arts themes (and the latter has X-Ray kills!).

 

[Phillosophic]

Iron monkey is awesome and thanks for this thread by the way I was looking to get my dad a martial arts film for Christmas but couldn't think of any I hadn't already got him; Kung Fu Hustle looks promising

Edit- Oh I'm also going to chuck in Jet Li's "The One" and "Romeo Must Die" here too which, while not tchnically a traditional martial art film, has a lot of martial arts themes (and the later has X-Ray kills!).

I love the use of cable ties in Romeo Must Die. Kung-Fu Hustle is a great film, funny, well shot & has some great over the top fight scenes. Thanks again guys & girls, keep 'em coming.

 

[Jharry5]

I'd have to go for Enter Thr Dragon, purely for Bruce Lee - the God of martial arts.
But a close second goes to Onk Bak; Tony Jaa could well be the next Bruce Lee. His stunts in that film are nothing short of excellent.

 

[jewru]

drunken master, ong bak, 5 deadly venoms, enter the dragon, deadly game,3 evil masters, street fighter & return of street fighter(Sonny Chiba), any shoguns assassin flick ......oh and fight club if that counts as a martial arts movie. wow i have a lot of favorites

 

[Sporadic]

Kung Fu Hustle! Yeah, we know... Lame... But hey, some like slapstick stupidity! It was awesome, I'm going to watch it again!

 

[anNIALLator]

Either Ong Bak or Enter the Dragon. Realism beats crazy wirefighting computer animated films hands down.

 

[Phillosophic]

drunken master, ong bak, 5 deadly venoms, enter the dragon, deadly game,3 evil masters, street fighter & return of street fighter(Sonny Chiba), any shoguns assassin flick ......oh and fight club if that counts as a martial arts movie. wow i have a lot of favorites

forgot all about Shogun Assassin, Lone Wolf & Cub, that was one scary pram. It was banned at one point in the U.K.

The film: not prams