What was the last classic martial-arts film you watched?

[saltysam]

Duel Of The Devils

Tan Tao Liang's father and son are murdered by japanese, his wife is kidnapped and forced to marry the japanese warlord. Angela Mao plays a cop ,has a few short fight scenes .I'd never heard of this one and it was quite mediocre until the left field finale which is a riff on Game Of Death. Tan Tao has to enter the pagoda and fight his way up the levels, he meets a fencing master, and Lung Fei shows up playing an indian complete with turban. Kam Kong is here as well. The copy i watched wasn't great,  i'd like to see a remastered version of this one.

[paimeifist]

On 10/3/2020 at 9:21 AM, sym8 said:

Kung fu from beyond the grave-1982

Directed by Lee Chu

Starring Billy Chong,Lo Lieh,Alan Hsu

Found this a lot more enjoyable than his other Kung fu /horror movie Kung Fu Zombie.Chong is on top form in the fight sequences(choreographed by Alan Hsu)and Lo Lieh is a worthy adversary,and unlike the afore mentioned Kung fu Zombie the undercranking isn’t over the top.Check it out 👍👍

I’d been wanting to watch this being the Lo Lieh fan that I am, and wanting to see more of Billy Chong. The extreme undercranking in KF Zombie and other films kept me away from it. Thanks dude! Going to watch soon.

 

Attack of The Joyful Goddess
 

Post-Shaw Cheng Cheh flick featuring Ricky Cheng Tien Chi, Chiang Sheng, and Lu Feng. 

 

Some old pervy commander dude wants a chick from the opera troupe. He originally wants Chiang Sheng who plays as a fighting girl, til he learns that he’s a man. Anyway, some of the troupe don’t want to let the  commander take advantage of them, while others want them to do whatever it takes to win his favor, those are the “bad guys” led by Lu Feng, naturally.....

In the midst of this there is a “joyful goddess” doll that seems to come alive and attack people, as well as awaken vengeful spirits who also attack those who did them wrong in life.

The movie is pretty entertaining. The story is very dark, and there are some funny bad effects, such as whenever the doll does anything. It’s usually a puppet which is just laughable as people are so frightened of it.

There isn’t much action til the last 20 minutes, when there is a big free for all featuring some decent fighting as well as effects. Prior to that most of the action comes from opera scenes, which are okay but not as fun as “real” fights (weird eh?) In the end the doll gets to be an actor painted and dressed as the doll, which is both scarier and more entertaining, as it gets to pull some bad ass fu, combined with cheesy effects.

[Chu Liu Hsiang]

On 10/5/2020 at 2:34 AM, paimeifist said:

Attack of The Joyful Goddess

I saw this once and could not make heads or tails of it but it was late and I was tired, I have to give it another try. Also, it was the first post-Shaw Chang Cheh I saw and I had wrong expectations. 

THE MAGNIFICENT - first rewatch of one of the first non Shaw movies I saw, I did not remember anything! Not a huge Carter Wong fan but I liked him here, Doris Lung is great (and does she fight bad ass in the finale!), some nice settings and scenery. 

[ShawAngela]

2 hours ago, Chu Liu Hsiang said:

THE MAGNIFICENT - first rewatch of one of the first non Shaw movies I saw, I did not remember anything! Not a huge Carter Wong fan but I liked him here, Doris Lung is great (and does she fight bad ass in the finale!), some nice settings and scenery. 

If I already watched this one, I don't remember it at all, but your comment makes me think that I need to watch this movie as soon as possible !

[paimeifist]

Watched another horror themed fu movie in Kung Fu from Beyond the Grave. 
 

Highly enjoyable fu with horror themes, the typical hopping vampire/wizard mix but what made this one unique is that there wasn’t any comedy mixed in. Maybe a short scene at most.
 

After seeing a couple other films starring Billy Chong, I had been disappointed because he is clearly super talented, but the movies were only decent at best. This one managed to be a decent movie where he is in top form, with kicks as smooth as butter. The always reliable Alan Chui looked good in the action as well, he has always struck me as B grade Kwok Choi in his style. Lo Lieh and Addy Chung while less talented than Chong and Chui made for good dancing partners as the main villains.
 

The horror elements were fun, not overdone and didn’t rely on terrible special effects like other early 80s HK films did. I also enjoyed that they didn’t really try to make it comedic, as Spiritual Boxer series and Spooky Encounters has already done that, and done it well.

 

Good fu flick for around Halloween time!

[saltysam]

The Magnificent 2

Two brothers own 8 boats in a fishing village, one is good natured but easily led,the elder one is sensible and self righteous. The younger one ends up falling in with the local gang and trouble ensues.Vintage basher from 1974 doesn't have enough actual bashing for the first hour but then picks up pace with some solid basher action. Some familiar faces here with the late Shan Mao as the big bad. Despite some minor framerate issues i recommend NoKUNGFUforYU's Custom, it's wide, anamorphic and well subbed.

[Drunken Monk]

Dragon Lord (1982) - The first thing I’d like to say about this movie is that it isn’t a kung fu movie. It’s a Jackie Chan movie. It has very little actual Kung fu.

With that said, however, it’s a wonderfully charming movie with some absolutely blistering action set pieces. Honestly, some of the bumps in this film are legendary. Even a shuttlecock soccer match is as exciting as Jackie’s fight scene. I wondered how the hell they managed to get some of that stuff on camera (over a thousand takes will do it, it seems).

I like this one which is odd, because for years I thought I really didn’t. I suppose that’s my younger self being upset at the lack of kung fu. These days I enjoy it for what it is: a delightful comedy with some heavy action. Not quite as good as other Jackie classics but very good indeed.

[ShawAngela]

I watched The young dragons today, after maybe 25 years.; I remember that I had appreciated it in the 90's when I bought the HK VIdeo dvd release, but at that time, I didn't know any of the actors...

I enjoyed it a lot this time, and I recognized a lot of "our" favorite and familiar actors, and I was a little bit shocked to  see that the credits mention only Henry Yu Yung (who looks a lot like Ti Lung in Dead End, here !), Cheng Lei and Chiang Nan (the old) as the lead male actors, and Fung Hark On, who has a important role isn't even mentioned !

As I said, a lot of familiar actors here : in addition to the above mentioned, I recognized Ng Ming Choi, Li Min Lang, Dean Shek, Sai Gwa Po, Chan Dik Hak, Lau Kong and a lot of other ones...

Superb movie !

[saltysam]

The climactic fight of Young Dragons is pretty epic

[sym8]

Dragons Claws-1979

Directed by Joseph Kuo

Starring Lau Kar Yung,Hwang Jang Lee,Chu Ti Wu

Lau Kar Yung never really became that big a star but I’ve always found him extremely watchable and whether it’s a Shaw Bros or an indie film I’ve enjoyed some of his performances and this one is a great watch.The lord of the leg rocks up to claim the leadership of the dragon sect only to find that after wining his duel(Lau Kar Yung s dad dies) that the sacred tablet(big gold medal) is fake.Well he’s not happy and goes in search of the real one which leads to plenty of Fist and foot action and Lau Kar Yung ploting revenge.Great choreography and all round well made film,check it out👍👍👍

[sym8]

Ninja In The Dragons Den-1982

Directed by Corey Yuen

Starring Conan Lee,Hwang Jang Lee,Hiroyuki Sanada

Ive seen this a few times and I might be in the minority here but I just don’t like it.At times it feels like two movies made into one,I hate the comedy and not a fan of some of the choreography either especially the stilts thing.I know they were moving away from the long takes with multiple movements but for me the quick cuts just didn’t work and Conan Lee is not a leading man(didn’t like him in the tiger on the beat films)I get why many people like it but just not for me,sorry👎👎

[Chu Liu Hsiang]

THE STOMP - Doris Lung quits her position and former life as leader of the evil, female-only Poison Clan to save a Beggar Clan descendant from massacre but of course their reclusive peaceful life cannot last forever. Good thing they used their free time for training! 

Pro: Great performance by Doris Lung as blind remorseful foster mother. Con: Chen Hsing and Ko Fei are rather wasted. Most costumes are extraordinarily ugly - not necessarily cheap, just plain ugly.  The English dub mainly consists of "Give me the secret message!".  Inexcusable: a dog is used to carry lit dynamite into a shack. I assume (or hope?) they did not really use dynamite and the dog did not really die there but anyways you can see he does NOT enjoy his role. 

[ShaolinMapache]

The Wild Panther 1984

Great kung fu action flick by the legendary director Lee Tso Nan. The movie focuses on rogue ex soldier trying to protect a list of wanted criminals from a crime syndicate who will stop at anything to get the list. There is plenty of hand to hand combat as well as some great shootouts.

[ShawAngela]

I just watched Rebellious reign for the first time today, thanks to @NoKUNGFUforYU.

What a SUUUUUUUPERB movie !!

First, the song at the beginning is very good ; it's in Mandarin with no subtitles, and I only understood one sentence "what is love and what is hate", but I guess that it's a touching song about General Nan Geng Yao's feelings towards Fourth Prince.

Second, the music is GREAT all along the movie !

Third, it was nice to see Lung Fong as the main hero for once.

Fourth, the fights are GREEEAAAT !! And  almost the last 30 mn are only a long ferocious fight !

 I didn't expect this movie to be so good and I don't regret to have watched it !!

[that guy]

just watched the recent blu ray of Chinese Hercules  & Bruce's Ninja Secret  neither one is very good but both are fun reminders of me finding Kung Fu movies in the early 80's. 

[HeavenSword]

Inheritor Of Kung Fu aka The Heroic One-  A pretty cool movie with Ti Lung as a goofy / naive student who dosent know kung fu too well.  But once his own corrupt master frames him as the one who stole a manuscript with martial art secrets , Ti Lung goes into training and becomes the bad ass we all know in a good finale. 
 

Filled with a lot of great fights taking place in the “ snow “ ( mainly filmed on sets , besides the beginning and end ) . Really gave the movie an atmospheric feeling and I’d say those are the highlights, as well as Ti Lung . He was good in this type of  role , reminded me of Shaolin Prince .  There’s a training montage with him and a drunk he becomes friends with that shows them doing kung fu, drinking and just joking like old pals that was great . 

Edited October 18, 2020 by HeavenSword

[Drunken Monk]

World of Drunken Master - This one is good but not great. The whole thing feel a little chaotic to me; like there’s too much going on at one time. And that goes for both plot and fight scenes. When it calms down in the last twenty minutes, we’re treated to a phenomenal shapes-fest equal to The 7 Grandmasters and Mystery of Chess Boxing. But prior to that, this one just didn’t gel with me. Even the training sequences feel rushed and less charismatic as many training scenes feel.

[saltysam]

On 10/18/2020 at 5:33 AM, that guy said:

just watched the recent blu ray of Chinese Hercules  & Bruce's Ninja Secret  neither one is very good but both are fun reminders of me finding Kung Fu movies in the early 80's. 

I have a weird attraction to Chinese Hercules-watched it plenty

[saltysam]

Rage Of Wind

Chen Sing returns to his village with a new american wife to find it's being run by the evil japanese,led by Yusaki Kurata.Naturally he's not going to stand for this. Solid basher ,i always like to see baddass Chen Sing playing a goodie. Doesn't let loose too much in this one until the beach set climax against old foe Kurata. The print i watched was entitled Ninja Warlords,and was unusually 16:9 full frame.  While we need a proper scope version of this, the print was much better than those on Youtube.

[NoKUNGFUforYU]

Magnificent 2

Believe it or not, I don't usually watch these until months after I sub them but my friend Meng went the extra 9 yards and corrected the dubtitles. Yes, some flickering and frame rate, but the fights are savage. And the mom is a nag. Sorry, I guess that kind of repressive culture is what it is, but jeez, stop being so sanctimonious! Anyway, for me it was the first movie I saw walking in at 14 at the Great Star on a double bill with the Eunuch. Thought I would never see it again. Then I bought the VHS rip from Roger and found the VOD on the web and decided to transfer the subs. There is some sentimental value, but also, fights were by Tommy Lee/Gam Ming, so they move right along.

[Yihetuan]

Mysterious Footworks of Kung Fu [1978] - Dir.  Chan Wa

Charles Heung plays a simple minded kung fu expert who gets involved in fighting an opium smuggling ring and along the way befriends a Beggar Su character played by Fan Mei Sheng. No wine for this one as he prefers goose legs over drunken revelry. The crux of the plot is he trains with Beggar Su to avenge the death of his master. The villains are led by a hired killer played by Michael Chan-wai who has a multitude of weapons at his disposal and the "crab" and "shrimp" style kung fu duo played respectively by Kong Do and Tommy Lee. For some odd reason, Tommy Lee has a real repulsion bordering on phobia to getting dirty and bad smells especially towards horse dung & this "weakness" is used to expose him in the final fight. Nothing memorable but I enjoyed the training sequences and the end fight of course.

 

[DiP]

The Fearless Hyena (1979)

Standard story and comedy elements from his two successful kung fu comedies the year before. But as far as fight choreography and action concept go... Wow. Jackie showed in those movies that he was as talented as anyone else in the action business but with this movie he truly showed was he was capable off, and did so without the aid of other people this time. The final fight scene with Yen Shi-Kwan was something else. I don't think I have laughed and been amazed so much simultaneously at a fight scene before. Jackie was known as the king of kung fu comedy so he put a stamp on his own status by taking it further 

8/10

Edited October 27, 2020 by DiP

[Drunken Monk]

Snuff Bottle Connection (1977) - The formula is nothing new but the action in this one is incredible. There’s plenty of it too. Hwang Jang Lee is mostly saved for being the “big bad” at the end but everyone else gets their chance to shine throughout. 2020 has actually seen me warm up to John Liu a little. He’s actually really entertaining in this one. Thanks to Yuen Woo Ping, I’m sure.

[DrNgor]

3 minutes ago, Drunken Monk said:

2020 has actually seen me warm up to John Liu a little. He’s actually really entertaining in this one. Thanks to Yuen Woo Ping, I’m sure.

Ah ha!!! I knew that the worldwide MA Movie Crisis would eventually lead to a re-evaluation of John Liu as one of the great kickers.

[ShawAngela]

1 minute ago, Drunken Monk said:

Snuff Bottle Connection (1977) - The formula is nothing new but the action in this one is incredible. There’s plenty of it too. Hwang Jang Lee is mostly saved for being the “big bad” at the end but everyone else gets their chance to shine throughout. 2020 has actually seen me warm up to John Liu a little. He’s actually really entertaining in this one. Thanks to Yuen Woo Ping, I’m sure.

I loved this movie a lot and it's in this one that I discovered how a big screen fighter was Yeh Fei Yang and became a big fan of his.