Martial arts films are a subgenre of action films that feature martial arts combat between characters. These combats are usually the films' primary appeal and entertainment value, and often are a method of storytelling and character expression and development. Martial arts are frequently featured in training scenes and other sequences in addition to fights. Martial arts films commonly include hand-to-hand combat along with other types of action, such as stuntwork, chases, and gunfights. Sub-genres of martial arts films include kung fu films, wuxia, karate films, and martial arts action comedy films, while related genres include gun fu, jidaigeki and samurai films.
Yeung Sze, better known as Bolo Yeung, is a Hong Kong former competitive bodybuilder, martial artist, and martial arts film actor. Primarily cast as the villain in the movies he stars in, Sze is globally known for his performances as Bolo in Enter the Dragon (1973), starring Bruce Lee, and as Chong Li in Bloodsport (1988), starring Jean-Claude Van Damme, as well as other numerous appearances and a long career in Hong Kong martial arts films.
The Bloody Fists, is a 1972 Hong Kong action film directed by See-Yuen Ng and starring Chen Siu Sing and Kuan Tai Chen. The memorable fight scenes were choreographed by Yuen Woo-ping, better known for choreographing Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and The Matrix.
Lo Wei was a Hong Kong film director and film actor best known for launching the martial arts film careers of both Bruce Lee, in The Big Boss and Fist of Fury, and Jackie Chan, in New Fist of Fury.
King Boxer, also known as Five Fingers of Death, is a 1972 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Chung Chang-Wha and starring Lo Lieh. It was produced by Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd., the largest Hong Kong movie production studio at the time. The script was written by Chiang Yang (江陽). Made in Hong Kong, it is one of many kung fu movies with Indonesian-born actor Lo Lieh (羅烈) in the lead. He appeared in many similar martial arts film efforts from the 1960s, pre-dating the more internationally successful Bruce Lee.
The Mystery of Chess Boxing is a 1979 Hong Kong kung fu film written, produced and directed by Joseph Kuo and starring Mark Long, Jack Long and Lee Yi Min.
Killer Constable is a 1980 Hong Kong martial arts-action film directed by Chih-Hung Kwei, starring martial arts star Chen Kuan-tai. The movie was produced by the Shaw Brothers studio and is a loose reworking of the 1969 movie The Invincible Fist by the film director Chang Cheh, a frequent collaborator of Chih-Hung Kwei.
Drunken Tai Chi is a 1984 Hong Kong martial arts action film directed by Yuen Woo-ping. It is notable for being the acting debut of Donnie Yen, who had previously performed as a stuntman. The film showcases Yen's martial arts skills as well as his b-boying abilities, including a scene in which Yen performs a moonwalk.
He Has Nothing But Kung Fu aka. Kung Fu's Deadly Duo is a 1977 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Lau Kar-wing, starring Gordon Liu and Wong Yue. It was Lau Kar-wing's first film as a director.
Conan Lee Yuen-Ba 李元霸, is a Hong Kong-born American film actor and martial artist.
All Men Are Brothers, also known as Seven Soldiers of Kung Fu, is a 1975 Hong Kong wuxia film based on the Chinese classical 14th century novel Water Margin. The film was produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio and directed by Chang Cheh and Wu Ma.
The Legend of Bruce Lee is a 2008 Chinese biographical television series based on the life story of martial artist and actor Bruce Lee. The 50-episode series was produced and broadcast by CCTV and began airing on October 12, 2008. It was intended to promote Chinese culture alongside the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics.
Là dove non batte il sole, also known as The Stranger and the Gunfighter and El kárate, el Colt y el impostor, is a 1974 kung fu Spaghetti Western comedy film directed by Antonio Margheriti and starring Lo Lieh and Lee Van Cleef. The film is based upon an original screenplay by Barth Jules Sussman who received sole screenplay credit as can be seen in the film credits. The names of the other writers listed elsewhere in this article were attached after production ended, to take advantage of Italian tax rebates. It was produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio in collaboration with an Italian company, and filmed on location in Hong Kong and Spain. For English-language release, the film was retitled The Stranger and the Gunfighter and Blood Money.
The Karate Kid is a 2010 martial arts drama film directed by Harald Zwart and produced by Jerry Weintraub, Will Smith, Jada Pinkett Smith, James Lassiter, and Ken Stovitz, from a screenplay written by Christopher Murphey, based on a story conceived by Robert Mark Kamen, the writer of the first three Karate Kid films. It serves as the fifth film in The Karate Kid franchise, and stars Jaden Smith and Jackie Chan in the lead roles, with Taraji P. Henson, Wenwen Han, Zhenwei Wang, Luke Carberry, Zhensu Wu, Zhiheng Wang, and Yu Rongguang in supporting roles. While serving as a remake and following a similar narrative as the original The Karate Kid film from 1984, with the setting moved to China, and the martial art changed from karate to kung fu, the film is set in the same fictional universe as the previous films, retroactively serving as a standalone sequel to The Next Karate Kid (1994).
Wei Ping-ao, also known as Paul Wei, was a Hong Kong-based Chinese actor who started his career in the Shaw Brothers Studio. He is best known for playing cunning interpreters in Bruce Lee's 1972 films Fist of Fury and Way of the Dragon, in which he dubbed his own voice, and also appeared in films such as Deaf Mute Heroine (1971), Hapkido (1972) and Fists of Bruce Lee (1978). He suffered from jaundice in his later years. He died on 3 December 1989 in British Hong Kong.
The Scorpion King is a 1992 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by David Lai, and starring Chin Kar-lok, Lau Kar-leung and Kim Won-jin. The film was released on 12 November 1992.
Opium and the Kung-Fu Master is a 1984 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Tang Chia, who also serves as one of the film's action directors, and stars Ti Lung as the titular protagonist.
George Wang Jie was a Taiwanese actor and film producer. After a beginning his career in Mainland China during the Republican era, he was an important figure in the early development of Taiwanese and Hong Kong cinema, but came to the attention of international audiences for his appearances in a multitude of Italian films during the 1960s and '70s.
Duel of Karate, also known as To Subdue Evil and To Subdue the Devil, is a 1971 Hong Kong martial arts film produced by and directed by Fu Ching-hua and starring Chan Hung-lit and Tien Peng as twin brothers who were separated at a young age after their parents were murdered by the chief antagonist.
Kung Fu Fighter is a 2007 Hong Kong Kung Fu movie directed by Wing Kin Yip and Yongjian Ye.
