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.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to martial arts:
Michael Dowse is a Canadian director.
Universal Soldier is a 1992 American military science-fiction action film directed by Roland Emmerich, produced by Allen Shapiro, Craig Baumgarten, and Joel B. Michaels, and written by Richard Rothstein, Christopher Leitch, and Dean Devlin. The film tells the story of Luc Deveraux, portrayed by Jean-Claude Van Damme, a former U.S. Army soldier who was killed in the Vietnam War in 1969, and returned to life following a secret military project called the "Universal Soldier" program. However, he finds out about his past, though his memory was erased, and escapes alongside a young TV journalist. Along the way, they have to deal with the return of his archenemy, Sgt. Andrew Scott, who had lost his sanity in the Vietnam War, and became a psychotic megalomaniac, intent on killing him and leading the Universal Soldiers.
Crank is a 2006 American action film written and directed by Neveldine/Taylor in their directorial debuts. It stars Jason Statham, Amy Smart, Jose Pablo Cantillo, Efren Ramirez and Dwight Yoakam. The title of the film comes from a slang word for methamphetamine. In the film, Chev Chelios, a Los Angeles–based hitman, is poisoned by a synthetic drug and must keep his adrenaline flowing constantly in order to keep himself alive, while trying to track down the person who poisoned him.
Merantau, released in some countries as Merantau Warrior, is a 2009 Indonesian martial arts action film written, directed and edited by Gareth Huw Evans, and starring Iko Uwais. The film, which marks Uwais' debut as an actor, is the first collaboration between director Evans and star Uwais. It also marks the acting debut of Yayan Ruhian, both of whom Evans met while shooting for a documentary in Indonesia which became his introduction to the Pencak Silat martial art.
Uwais Qorny, known professionally as Iko Uwais, is an Indonesian actor, stuntman, fight choreographer, and martial artist. He is best known for acting in the action films Merantau (2009), The Raid (2011), The Raid 2 (2014), Headshot (2016), Mile 22 (2018), The Night Comes for Us (2018), Stuber (2019) and the Netflix series Wu Assassins (2019–22).
The Raid is a 2011 Indonesian action thriller film written, directed and edited by Gareth Evans, and starring Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Donny Alamsyah, Ray Sahetapy, and Yayan Ruhian. The film follows an Indonesian National Police tactical squad that is deployed to raid a ruthless drug lord's apartment block in the slums of Jakarta, only to be encircled by the criminals, forcing them to fight their way through the complex.
Johannes Taslim, known professionally as Joe Taslim, is an Indonesian actor and martial artist. He was a member of Indonesia’s national judo team from 1997 to 2009, becoming a three-time medalist at the Southeast Asian Games, and a Gold medalist at the 2008 Pekan Olahraga Nasional.
The Raid 2, also known as The Raid: Retaliation, is a 2014 Indonesian action thriller film written, directed and edited by the Welsh filmmaker Gareth Evans. It is the sequel to the 2011 film The Raid and stars Iko Uwais, Arifin Putra, Oka Antara, Tio Pakusadewo, Alex Abbad, Julie Estelle, Ryuhei Matsuda, Kenichi Endō, and Kazuki Kitamura. In the film, Rama is sent undercover to expose the corrupt police officials colluding with the crime families of Jakarta's criminal underworld.
The Night Comes for Us is a 2018 Indonesian action thriller film written and directed by Timo Tjahjanto. It was originally conceived as a screenplay and then adapted into a graphic novel, before finally being released as a film. In December 2014, Tjahjanto confirmed he was working with Indonesian artist hub Glitch Network to adapt his original screenplay into comic form. The film stars Iko Uwais, Joe Taslim, Julie Estelle, Sunny Pang, Zack Lee and Shareefa Daanish. In the film, a former crime enforcer (Taslim) sets out to rescue a young girl from the crime syndicate, which later sends a rising gang prospect (Uwais) and legions of thugs to eliminate the enforcer and the young girl.
Tiger Chen is a Chinese martial artist, stuntman and actor. Tiger Chen is Yuen Wo Ping's protege and Keanu Reeves's teacher and friend. He was also Uma Thurman's stunt double.
Yayan Ruhian is an Indonesian martial artist and actor. He is known for co-starring in Gareth Evans' films The Raid (2011) as Mad Dog, The Raid 2 (2014) as Prakoso, Star Wars: The Force Awakens (2015) as Tasu Leech, and Beyond Skyline (2017) as the police chief. He reprises this role in Skylines (2020).
Beyond Skyline is a 2017 American science fiction action film written, co-produced and directed by Liam O'Donnell in his directorial debut. It stars Frank Grillo, Bojana Novakovic, Jonny Weston, Iko Uwais, Callan Mulvey, Yayan Ruhian, Pamelyn Chee, Betty Gabriel, and Antonio Fargas. It is the sequel to the 2010 film Skyline and the second installment in the Skyline film series, set concurrently with the events of the first film.
Mile 22 is a 2018 American espionage action thriller film directed by Peter Berg and written by Lea Carpenter, from a story by Carpenter and Graham Roland. The film stars Mark Wahlberg, Iko Uwais, John Malkovich, Lauren Cohan, and Ronda Rousey. It follows an elite top secret CIA unit composed of paramilitary officers from the Special Activities Division's Ground Branch, that has to escort a high-priority asset, a rogue police officer, 22 miles to an extraction point while being hunted by the government. The film marks the fourth collaboration between Berg and Wahlberg, following Lone Survivor, Deepwater Horizon, and Patriots Day.
Headshot is a 2016 Indonesian action film directed by the Mo Brothers. The film stars Iko Uwais and Chelsea Islan in the lead roles. In the film, a man with amnesia, clashes against a crime syndicate to protect the doctor who saved his life.
Stuber is a 2019 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Michael Dowse and written by Tripper Clancy. Its plot follows a mild-mannered Uber driver named Stu who picks up a passenger who turns out to be a cop hot on the trail of a brutal killer. Iko Uwais, Natalie Morales, Betty Gilpin, Jimmy Tatro, Mira Sorvino, and Karen Gillan also star.
Wu Assassins is an American supernatural action streaming television series, created by John Wirth and Tony Krantz that premiered on Netflix on August 8, 2019. The series stars Iko Uwais, Byron Mann, Lewis Tan, Lawrence Kao, Celia Au, Li Jun Li, Tommy Flanagan, and Katheryn Winnick. The first season received positive reviews, with critics praising the fight choreography, although there was criticism of the plot.
Expend4bles is a 2023 American action comedy film that is the fourth installment in The Expendables franchise, following The Expendables 3 (2014). The film stars an ensemble cast including Jason Statham, Sylvester Stallone, Dolph Lundgren and Randy Couture reprising their roles from previous films, with Curtis "50 Cent" Jackson, Megan Fox, Tony Jaa, Iko Uwais and Andy García joining the cast. It is directed by Scott Waugh from a screenplay by Kurt Wimmer, Tad Daggerhart, and Max Adams, based on a story by Spenser Cohen, Wimmer, and Daggerhart.
Fistful of Vengeance is a 2022 American supernatural action thriller film directed by Roel Reiné, and written by Cameron Litvack, Jessica Chou and Yalun Tu. The film serves as a follow-up to the first season of the television series Wu Assassins, and stars Iko Uwais, Lewis Tan, Lawrence Kao, JuJu Chan, Pearl Thusi, Francesca Corney, Jason Tobin, Rhatha Phongam and Simon Kuke. The film was released worldwide on February 17, 2022, on Netflix.
