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

[ShawAngela]

4 hours ago, Rodolphe Dux said:

But back in the day, we had some great companies like HK video

Do you mean that they don't exist anymore ?

I was used to buy the magazines together with a VHS at a moment : beautiful pictures in the magazines and interesting movies (not always...) and I preciously kept the magazines for my retreat...

[Rodolphe Dux]

3 minutes ago, ShawAngela said:

Do you mean that they don't exist anymore ?

I was used to buy the magazines together with a VHS at a moment : beautiful pictures in the magazines and interesting movies (not always...) and I preciously kept the magazines for my retreat...

 fifteen years ago Christophe Gans left the ship when the evil metropolitan took over HK video, that was the end of the best french asian movie editor. They still use the hk label but the editions are shit, look at what they done with armour of god, a disaster! But yeah keep those magazine like a treasure! I love those the format, the paper the interviews, that was awesome!

[saltysam]

The Stranger & The Gunfighter - Shaws had a hand in this mediocre spaghetti western/kung fu hybrid. Spaghetti legend Van Cleef teams up with kung fu legend Lo Lieh to find the map to an emperors stolen treasure, which consists of 5 parts,each part tatooed onto a prostitutes backside. It's not terrible, just average and Lo Lieh doesn't get to bust loose much. I have the Spanish blu ray which i think is an upscale but it's scope and far better than the crappy Blood Money DVD i had years back.

 

Jaguar Lives!- I always felt sorry for the late Joe Lewis who despite his good lucks and being a legendary world champion Karate fighter never made it in the movies. That was until i watched his interview on the extras for this Arrow release. He comes across as egotistic and bitter throughout most of it. He brags he was paid more for his movie debut than Chuck Norris, Bruce Lee etc, has a dig at Bob Wall  and generally comes across as a bit of an obnoxious dude. As for the film itself, it's pretty terrible but strangely watchable, it's basically a travelogue with Joe showing up in different locations round the world to kick ass. He's surrounded by big names as guest stars Christopher Lee,Donald Pleasance, Barbara Bach, John Huston etc. Unfortunately Joe is a pretty wooden actor however,as he boasts in his interview, he's the onky actor to have shared the screen with three former Bond villians on his movie debut.

Edited September 2, 2018 by saltysam

[sym8]

23 hours ago, Rodolphe Dux said:

Don't know if it applies the topic but let's dare. Royal warriors aka In the line of duty aka In the line of duty 2 aka yes madam 2 (I probably forgot some I can't keep up with all the titles...). Well that was the movie who makes me fall in love with HK 80-90's action movies. Michelle Yeoh is awesome, very cool script, awesome stunts, I don't ask for more. Legendary action movie.The HD/Blu remaster gives it a second youth which is kinda awesome.

 

 

In England this was called police assassins and Michelle Yeoh went by the name of Michelle Khan one of the classics from the girls with guns genre.👍👍

[Rodolphe Dux]

1 minute ago, sym8 said:

In England this was called police assassins and Michelle Yeoh went by the name of Michelle Khan one of the classics from the girls with guns genre.👍👍

Oh yeah I forgot the Michelle Khan thing! At first I believed that was an actress related to Cynthia Khan... Well that was before internet

[sym8]

On 9/1/2018 at 11:06 AM, chazgower01 said:

My Lucky Stars (1984, Hong Kong) Amazon Prime 3/5
1985 would be a big year for Jackie Chan, and it would start off in February with the second 'Lucky Stars' movie, which shot to #1 at the box office and outdid every movie the rest of the year. Of course, it helped that the Aces Go Places team decided to take a year off, but My Lucky Stars' HK $30.7 Million made it Jackie's highest grossing film yet.
It starts off promising enough, in Japan, with Jackie and Yuen Biao (as plain clothes cops) chasing some bad guys (driving stunts and then acrobatic stunts at a carnival) before being surrounded by.... ninjas! They put up a good fight (shot somewhat unevenly by a usually sure directed Sammo), but Yuen gets captured, so Jackie has to call in a favor to have some of his old 'orphanage buddies' released from jail to help him.
From there, we get a good 40 minutes of 'lucky stars', that depending on how you feel about it, is either a huge waste of film or some amusing laughs. Sure we get a young, attractive Sibelle Hu slinking around in a flimsy nighty for one scene, but watching 30+ minutes of these knuckleheads vying for her attention gets old.
We get a good fight, as Sammo and Jackie take on a few goons before we get even more 'Lucky Stars' (Richard Ng, Eric Tsang, Charlie Chin, and Stanley Fung) and a slow work up to the finale.
Much of this film feels like filler, but once Jackie reappears and makes his way through the fun house it picks up quickly. Jackie takes on Dick Wei (as a Japanese fighter!) in easily the best fight in the film, though Sammo taking on a roomful of goons is entertaining as well and Yuen Biao gets in on some action. Also Sibelle Hu has to battle Japanese muscle lady Nishiwaki Michiko, though Sammo finishes her off way too early.
In fact, the whole finale is over far too quickly, and it always leaves me feeling a bit underwhelmed. It has its moments, but it still baffles me how this outdid one of Jackie's greatest movies (Police Story) at the box office released later that year.
 

Not a fan of the lucky stars movies but the action is top quality especially in the finale(wouldn’t call it a Jackie film though,it’s mainly a Sammo movie and Jackie is just an extended cameo)

[Rodolphe Dux]

47 minutes ago, Ah_Tao said:

I was just talking about this the other day! I wish Celestial would put it up on Amazon. A true cult classic

Same! I would love a blu of this one and the iron flag. The problem with amazon is the annoying english dub, I’d rather take mandarin with subs.

[Ah_Tao]

21 hours ago, Rodolphe Dux said:

Same! I would love a blu of this one and the iron flag. The problem with amazon is the annoying english dub, I’d rather take mandarin with subs.

I like em both. But I'd wish that they would put both so that people could choose what they prefer. I often have a movie in the background with the dubs should I need to get any paperwork or whatever done. That's just me lol, I need something to hear so I could stay concentrated.

[Rodolphe Dux]

1 hour ago, Ah_Tao said:

I like em both. But I'd wish that they would put both so that people could choose what they prefer. I often have a movie in the background with the dubs should I need to get any paperwork or whatever done. That's just me lol, I need something to hear so I could stay concentrated.

For sure, I never got why Amazon didn't includes an additional mandarin track. Technically it's not so much nowadays. Maybe it's a matter of rights.

[Ah_Tao]

On 9/4/2018 at 11:52 AM, AlbertV said:

LOL @ShawAngela I got addicted at the age of 4. Besides, I have the film on DVD already.

Yoooo, so did I. That was about 14 years ago lol. I was huge on the Gordon movies

[AlbertV]

52 minutes ago, Ah_Tao said:

Yoooo, so did I. That was about 14 years ago lol. I was huge on the Gordon movies

14 years ago? LOL...try 35 years! LOL :P The love of the fu never dies! 😀

[ShawAngela]

1 hour ago, Ah_Tao said:

That was about 14 years ago lol.

You are a baby, then !!

22 minutes ago, AlbertV said:

.try 35 years!

I began at 14, and it will be soon...42 years ago already !! I beat you all !!!

[DrNgor]

I started watching MA films at age 9 (8 if you count Ninja Turtles) and HK films at age 14.

[TibetanWhiteCrane]

7 or 8 years old, 1985... renting Young Master from the video store.

[Omni Dragon]

Being born two decades after ENTER THE DRAGON martial arts where quite established a quadranscentennial (quarter century) ago in mainstream movies. So I can't remember it not being a part of the movies. Though the first piece of martial arts in the media that I can easily remember and say I was a fan of, was the TV  animation of JACKIE CHAN ADVENTURES. As far as I know the first time that was broadcast on British TV was on Saturday the 22nd September 2001. I may have seen that very broadcast at 8 years old. JCA was an influence for me to take up learning MA in August 2003, not long after I saw RUSH HOUR for the first time. I think THE ACCIDENTAL SPY counts as the first Hong Kong movie I ever saw. Not too sure when I saw SPY, can't have been that long after RH. Then in January 2006 I watched DRUNKEN MASTER, RUMBLE IN THE BRONX and PO LI CE STORY and finished that year by watching PROJECT A and ARMOUR OF GOD in December that year.

[Killer Meteor]

The Hero (1972)

AKA Wang Yu The Destroyer AKA Rage of the Master

"Our master wouldn't have thrown me out of the school, if you had not told a tale!"

Jimmy Wang Yu remakes The Chinese Boxer replacing the Japanese villians with Thai boxers - said Thai boxers being Chinese actors in circus strong-man outfits and goofy wigs. Unoriginal, but very entertaining. For a 70s basher, the two female leads get a decent share of the action. The fights are clunky but furious, the wirework is naff, and Wang Yu only has one facial expression, but you should enjoy it.

7/10

PS Be warned, the dub job on this is hideous!

 

Edited September 8, 2018 by Killer Meteor

[ShawAngela]

2 hours ago, Killer Meteor said:

the two female leads

Chang Ping Yu as Wang Yu's blind mother (if I remember well) and the great Chiao Chiao. I wish they would have more fights in the movie, especially Chiao Chiao !

I think that this was the second or third movie I saw her in in cinemas and I furiously enjoyed this movie at that time !!

 

And yes, Tien Yeh is awful with this strange wig !!!!

[Killer Meteor]

The Tatoo Conecction is a funky film, but the overly Britishishy dubbing spoils the mood.

 

Tower of Death - purse genius insanity. The music on the HK version is this

 

 

[DragonClaws]

36 minutes ago, Killer Meteor said:

The Tatoo Conecction is a funky film, but the overly Britishishy dubbing spoils the mood.

 

Not everyone speaks that way in the U.K, a lot of the old school dubbers, came from Private Schooling and upper middle class backgrounds. Having a cut lass accent, was almost essential for getting into U.K media at the time. A lot of the dubbers being Enlgish teacher's, or BBC news reader's, meant you got a lot of very Britishy dubbing, more so in some titles, as you pointed out.

[saltysam]

the Anders Nelson theme song Diamonds is up there with Candy's King Of Kung Fu 😁 i found the english dub quite racist, regularly referring to Kelly as "that black guy" . I usually watch these things in original language but i confess i didn't realise the pathfinder DVD had that option.

[Killer Meteor]

3 hours ago, DragonClaws said:

 

Not everyone speaks that way in the U.K, a lot of the old school dubbers, came from Private Schooling and upper middle class backgrounds. Having a cut lass accent, was almost essential for getting into U.K media at the time. A lot of the dubbers being Enlgish teacher's, or BBC news reader's, meant you got a lot of very Britishy dubbing, more so in some titles, as you pointed out.

I am British, so maybe that's something to do with me not liking the dub. It's much like my dislike of Shaws using De Wolfe's music - too much of it I recognise from British kids shows.

[Chu Liu Hsiang]

Finally got to watch MYSTERY OF CHESS BOXING. I had not read any reviews, just knew it's considered a classic. I had hoped for/ expected more Chinese chess elements but nevertheless really enjoyed it, even as dub version.

[DragonClaws]

 

Caught this dose of old school action recently, in the form of Iron Fisted Eagles Claw. Those Kung Fu Fandom followers/reader's, who are interested in my long-winded ramblings, click on the link below, Thank You.

 

 

 

[DragonClaws]

 

More old-school related rambling's, for all those Martial Arts movie head's, and Kung Fu Fandom reader's out there, just click on the link below, for my full length review, Thank-You.

 

 

 

Phillip Ko-Fei dodges one of Charles Heung deadly strikes, in a scene from Shaoin Tough Kid, a.k.a Goose Boxer.

Edited September 18, 2018 by DragonClaws

[saltysam]

Thunderkick- Larry Lee didn't have much charisma but he's a pretty decent on-screen fighter and for me this is a pretty good basher. i'm probably biased as it was one of my first exposures to kung fu back in the late 70's when my dad bought a super 8 version of this. Many years later i made it my mission to find this film again, the secene where Larry gets his Tonfas out always stuck with me. The german dvd has an english dub and is 2:35:1 with 4:3 inserts for cut scenes (there's a fair bit of this).

Fists Of The Double K-Again my first exposure to this was via super 8, however to my mind the film is one of the great bashers of the era. Henry Yue Yung is great as the hero and should've been a bigger star, the film has a great spaghetti western vibe, cruel villains and great fight scenes. the climax is a doozy. The german dvd has an english dub and is 2:35:1 with some windowboxed inserts for cut scenes. The print is faded but is passable. cracking film.