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The 1980s marked a golden era for kung fu movies with iconic actors like Jackie Chan and Sammo Hung redefining the genre. Female action stars like Cynthia Khan challenged gender stereotypes in films like In The Line Of Duty III, showcasing power and skill. From legendary films like Police Story to the classic Wheels On Meals, the 1980s produced a diverse array of kung fu movies that continue to inspire.

Every decade has seen the emergence of remarkable kung fu movies, and the 1980s stand out as a treasure trove of some of the genre's finest. This golden era of Hong Kong cinema showcased several movies featuring legendary actors like Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, and Yuen Biao, who redefined the genre with their innovative stunts, intricate choreography, and unparalleled martial arts skills. Films such as Police Story, Project A, and Wheels on Meals not only entertained audiences with their high-octane action sequences,...

Shaw Brothers Studio left an indelible mark on the landscape of Kung Fu cinema. Founded in 1925 by the Shaw brothers, Runje, Runme, and Run Run, the studio became synonymous with high-quality martial arts films during the 1960s and 1970s. Their meticulous attention to choreography, intricate fight scenes, and dramatic storytelling revolutionized the genre, setting new standards for action-packed entertainment. Through iconic films like “The One-Armed Swordsman” and “Come Drink with Me,” Shaw Brothers Studio not only popularized Kung Fu cinema globally but also shaped the artistic direction of future martial arts films. Their legacy continues to inspire filmmakers and enthusiasts, underscoring their enduring impact on the world of cinema. In this list, we present 50 of the most iconic titles the company produced, in alphabetical order.

1. Bloody Parrot (1981) by Hua Shan

One of the better elements found here is the fact that the film manages to work in plenty of fun from its two main components.

Revenge is a common motivator for main characters in martial arts films, often triggered by the killing of a family member or mentor. The Chinese Boxer (1970) is considered the first true martial arts film, setting the template for future movies by focusing on hand-to-hand combat and featuring revenge as a central theme. Martial arts movies like Kill Bill (2003/200 and Revenger (2019) showcase epic showdowns and intense fight scenes as characters seek revenge for past wrongs.

Revenge movies are among the most popular entries in the martial arts genre. Martial arts films often involve many different themes, from personal growth and romance to comedy and crime, interweaving each in their stories, whether it's in an ancient or modern setting. However, one of the themes most closely linked to martial arts films is revenge, which is arguably the most common motivator for a main character in the genre.

Martial arts heroes often embark...

Some martial arts actors have built their careers on playing villains, often stealing the show with their formidable fighting skills. Wang Lung Wei, Lu Feng, Lo Lieh, Collin Chou, Benny Urquidez, Lateef Crowder dos Santos, Darren Shahlavi, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Bolo Yeung, Yayan Ruhian, and Hwang Jang-lee are exemplary martial arts movie villains. These actors have left a lasting impact on the industry, with their villainous performances standing the test of time and making them some of the greatest martial arts movie villains.

Martial arts movie stars often play heroes, but there are also many great martial arts villain actors. One of the most important rules of martial arts movie-making is that the villain has to be as strong and as menacing as possible. Usually, that entails making the villain an extremely formidable fighter, in order to create the highest possible stakes for the hero or heroes to overcome.

Some martial...

Jackie Chan and Bruce Lee may be universally considered the greatest in the Martial Arts genre, but they’re not alone at the top. Both are unquestionably the biggest names in kung fu movies, but they don’t dominate the genre. It’s actually filled with talented fighters not named Bruce Lee or Jackie Chan, some of which being actors whose fame predate the two stars.

The number of iconic martial arts movies released since the 1960s speaks to the idea that Lee and Chan have plenty of company when it comes to actors with real fighting skills. After all, a large portion of the most talked-about martial arts movies of all time don’t include either actor. Bloodsport, Come Drink With Me, Ong Bak, Fearless, and Ip Man are among the countless films in the genre that don’t rely on the top two kung fu stars. Here are...

In Kill Bill 2, we get the modern reimagining of one of martial arts cinema more iconic characters – Pai Mei, the white eyebrowed monk. It’s the standout section in what was for this reviewer an awful movie. The casting of Gordon Liu who played Pai Mei’s nemesis across the two original Shaw Brothers movies as Pai Mei himself was a nice touch. Having not watched the originals in some time, I was presented with the opportunity to rewatch “Clan of the White Lotus” on blu ray after a new release in the UK. So after stroking my beard and letting loose an evil cackle, it’s time to see if it stands up today after 40 years.

The movie starts with a prologue as Hung Wen-ting (Gordon Liu) and his martial arts brother defeat the traitorous White Eyebrow monk using their combined techniques, locating his fatal pressure point.

Before Hugh Jackman's Wolverine takes one last "hurrah" on the big screen next year, check out his collection of Funko Pop! figures, Dorbz, and keychains. Also: cover art and details on the new graphic novel edition of Officer Downe, a look at Jeaux Janovsky's Inktober cartoons, details on the Stern Pinball digital arcade, info on El Rey's "Way of the Turkey" marathon, and two clips from Maker Studios' revamped Polaris YouTube Channel.

Images and Release Details for Funko's Logan Collectibles: From Collector Corps via Funko: “He’s the best at what he does, but what he does isn’t very nice!

The adamantium-filled, self-healing superhero Wolverine is getting an all-new Funko treatment!

Collect Wolverine and his retractable claws as Pop!s, Dorbz, and a Pocket Pop! Keychain!

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When it comes to making features like this one, i love the idea of coming up with my own personal “100 Great Kung Fu Movies” of all time. It is tough choosing just 100 because you know there are many more great Kung Fu movies that are not on the list.

I have decided that to make the list, a movie must have a few hand to hand fight scenes in the movies chosen. If for example its mainly sword play with one fight scene hand to hand it won’t make the list. Its old school “style” Kung Fu movies, not modern day settings.

I understand everyone will have their own personal favorites and some may not agree with my list and that’s fine because it’s nice to have different opinions on this genre which keeps it fresh and alive when having good debates.

Anyway, thank you for taking...

Like millions of you around the world, i love Kung Fu movies. It is the only real genre that keeps me going back for more and that is why i will always love Kung Fu movies.

I know many of you have probably seen many of the movies i will post about, but this is also for anyone new to the genre of Kung Fu and even Swordplay and looking for other movies to enjoy. I hope you enjoy the movies i have listed and please feel free to comment about any of the movies.

 

Snuff-Bottle Connection (1977)

Studio: Fortuna Film Co

Director: Lau Lap Lap, Richard Tung Chin Hu

Cast: Hwang jang lee, Yip Fei Yang, John Liu, Philip Ko, Hsu Hsia, Yuen Biao

Action Director(s): Yuen Woo Ping

 

Dirty Tiger, Crazy Frog (1978)

Studio: Gar Bo Motion Picture Company

Director: Karl maka

Cast: Sammo hung, lau Kar Wing,...

In the midst of insane fight sequences and impossible violence, Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill gave me a moment of pause. In the second part of the movie, The Bride (Uma Thurman) finally confronts Bill (David Carradine), and ultimately dispatches him with a secret technique from their old master Pai Mei (Gordon Liu) known as the five-point-palm exploding heart technique. This closely-held secret move uses pressure points on a man’s chest that will stress the heart to a point that the victim can only travel five steps before his heart explodes and he falls dead. That’s a pretty cool technique, and would be quite handy in a pinch, so it got me thinking: Which martial art will teach it to me? The Answer: A special subset of Aikido known as “bullshit.” The so-called “death touch” move, or “dim mak,” has shown up in many movies prior to either of the Kill Bill volumes. In...

There was indeed a movie planned for this week’s Shaw Brothers column, but in light of the recent sad news regarding Sir Run Run Shaw’s passing, a more tasteful move here is to dedicate this space to the man with a few words about what he meant to fans, kung fu, and film.

There is a plethora of sources to read about Run Run Shaw’s life (his Chinese name is actually Shao Renleng), especially in recent days as most cultural media journalists provided the requisite plot points to the man’s life story (and his rarely mentioned contribution to 1982′s Blade Runner) in the wake of his death. Today’s column shall therefore sidestep the obvious route, preferring to consider his legacy, what it means and how he went about building it sky high.

Like the great Hollywood studio producers such as Jack Warner, Run Run Shaw...

With the passing of Lau Kar-leung (the common Cantonese spelling, he was also often credited in Mandarin as Liu Chia-liang), one of the great chapters of Hong Kong cinema comes to a close. Justly famous as martial arts choreographer and action director for many kung fu and wu xia films—the last was Tsui Hark's Seven Swords (2005), in which he also acted—Lau was also one of the outstanding filmmakers of Hong Kong cinema. His most important period was during the final heyday of Shaw Brothers, Asia's biggest studio: In the late 70s and early 80s, before Shaw Bros. closed their doors, Lau proved himself the biggest proponent of the martial arts tradition in Hong Kong cinema, as well as its chief modernizing force, hiding sublime layers beneath ultra-robust exterior appearance. (Fittingly, in 2003 he also directed the studio's comeback movie, more or less coinciding with the inauguration of belated...

If Tarantino’s films of the 1990s announced the writer-director’s as a phenom for writing formidably snappy dialogue that enhanced characterization, his films of the 00s, while continuing to demonstrate the aforementioned writing prowess, suggest that he is equally adept at staging and filming wonderful action scenes, be they brawls, gun fights or contests of martial arts skills. Death Proof and Django Unchained have their share of impressive set pieces representing unique visions of what, in the case of the former, a cinematic car chase can be like, and, in the case of the latter, what a cinematic gun fight shoot out can be like. In essence, pretty darn sweet.

In both cases, even though Tarantino and his crack team definitely put their own spin on such action set pieces, the ingenuity that went into both was inspired by movies which made names for themselves in the annals of film history.

Dragon aka Wu Xia aka The Swordsmen

Written by Oi Wah Lam

Directed by Peter Chan

2011 Hong Kong/China

In a strange way, Dragon is a perfect companion film for the Shaw Brothers classic The Fists of the White Lotus that Fantasia presented this year. (Expect Edgar Chaput to review that film as part of his Shaw Brothers Saturday series soon.) Both films are about the never-ending cycle of violence and revenge, the corruption of Imperial China, and the strange effectiveness of martial arts acupuncture. Both films also feature a climax built around a fight with strangely difficult to kill old men and martial arts masters who are not afraid to appear to be clowns.

How difficult is it to pretend to be terrible at martial arts when you are actually really good at it? How difficult is it to play the buffoon when you are actually a World Class expert?...

Dragon aka Wu Xia aka The Swordsmen

Written by Oi Wah Lam

Directed by Peter Chan

2011 Hong Kong/China Fantasia imdb

In a strange way, Dragon is a perfect companion film for the Shaw Brothers classic The Fists of the White Lotus that Fantasia presented this year. (Expect Edgar Chaput to review that film as part of his Shaw Brothers Saturday series soon.) Both films are about the never-ending cycle of violence and revenge, the corruption of Imperial China, and the strange effectiveness of martial arts acupuncture. Both films also feature a climax built around a fight with strangely difficult to kill old men and martial arts masters who are not afraid to appear to be clowns.

How difficult is it to pretend to be terrible at martial arts when you are actually really good at it? How difficult is it to play the buffoon when you are actually a World Class expert?...

Fists of the White Lotus (aka: Clan of the White Lotus)

Directed by Lo Lieh

Written by Tien Huang

Hong Kong, 1980

*This week’s film was recently viewed at the 2012 Fantasia International Film Festival on a 35mm print, hence its inclusion in both the Fantasia 2012 and Shaw Brothers Saturdays columns.

The old, evil martial arts master who can still pack a thunderous punch, often demolishing anyone who stands in his path with precise, near-effortless movements. He dresses in white, laughs a powerful laugh and frequently passes his hands on his white beard when in thought. The image is fond one among many a martial arts movie fan. For many, their first ever exposure to the character was in Quentin Tarantino’s 2004 feature, Kill Bill: Vol. 2. the truth of the matter is that the old kung fu master has made numerous appearances in much older action films. In fact, not...

We are now a week into the three week long Fantasia Film Festival, and while we admittedly have been a little behind due to some technical issues with our website, we still managed to get a dozen film reviews published. Keep coming back to our site as we promise twice the amount of articles by the end of week two. In the meantime, here is a round-up of what we’ve seen and written about so far.

Black Pond

Directed by Tom Kingsley and Will Sharpe

Written by Will Sharpe

U.K., 2011

Comedy, in its nature and its presentation, has morphed dramatically over the past decade or so, both in North America and in Europe, in particular the United Kingdom. From the more overt, on the nose comedy of yesteryear we have now live in an era in which the comedy is delivered with a completely different version of wit.

Fists of the White Lotus (aka: Clan of the White Lotus)

Directed by Lo Lieh

Written by Tien Huang

Hong Kong, 1980

*This week’s film was viewed at the 2012 Fantasia International film festival on a 35mm print, hence its inclusion in both the Shaw Brothers Saturdays and Fantasia 2012 columns.

The old, evil martial arts master who can still pack a thunderous punch, often demolishing anyone who stands in his path with precise, near-effortless movements. He dresses in white, laughs a powerful laugh and frequently strokes his white beard when in thought. The image is fond one among many a martial arts movie fan. For many, their first ever exposure to the character was in Quentin Tarantino’s 2004 feature, Kill Bill: Vol. 2. the truth of the matter is that the old kung fu master has made numerous appearances in much older action films. In fact, not so long ago in this very column,...

Since I explained at ridiculous length how to make your Fantasia list, I thought it would only be fair to share mine.

My general goal for Fantasia 2012 is to see 40 films and write about 20. (The scary thing is that in seeing 40 feature films I will only be seeing 25% of the Fantasia selection.)

Here are my 40:

Thursday, July 19th

1. 18:30 Hall For Love’s Sake

2. 21:45 Hall Dragon

Friday, July 20th

3. 17:15 Hall Children Who Chase Lost Voice From Deep Below

Saturday, July 21st

4. 13:25 De Seve Fists of the White Lotus

5. 16:20 Hall Cold Steel

6. 19:00 Hall Sushi Girl

Sunday, July 22nd

7. 16:25 Hall Lloyd the Conqueror

8. 19:55 De Seve Funeral Kings

9. 21:40 Hall Starry Starry Night

Monday July 23rd

10. 17:00 Hall The Sword Identity

11. 19:25 Hall Smuggler

12. 22:00 De Seve The Victim

Wednesday, July 25th

13. 17:15 Hall Reign of Assassins

14. 19:45 Hall Resolution

Thursday, July 26th

15. 19:30 Hall...

One thing that has become clear as Ricky, Edgar, Justine and myself work through the 396 page Fantasia program book (seriously this thing is massive) is that to pick your list of films to watch at Fantasia, you need a system.

As it happens, I have been going to Fantasia since the festival started in 1996 and over the years I have gotten pretty good at figuring out what I want to watch and how to build a schedule quickly. I have been known to go to Fantasia on the day that they start selling tickets, buy the program and figure out the 30 films that I was going to buy tickets for… while standing in line.

Now if you are only going to Fantasia to watch the animated films or to watch the martial arts films or to watch the horror films, than my system won’t help you and in fact...