Best/Most Realistic Kung Fu Fights of the Mid-Late 70s?

[66 Mantis]

Excluding the obvious Sammo/Jackie stuff, which films do you consider to contain the hardest hitting and most realistic kung fu combat? By this I mean battles where in addition to displays of various shapes, it looks at least somewhat like the combatants are genuinely beating the stuffing out of each other.

[Morgoth Bauglir]

Not all mid-late 70's but 10 of my favorites-

 

Chung Fa vs WLW- Two Toothless Tigers

Billy Chong vs KYM first fight- Kung Fu Zombie

Iron Dragon Strikes Back final fight

The Sword final fight

Big Boss of Shanghai final fight

Rebellious Reign final fight

Shadow NInja final fight

NInja Holocaust final fight

Little Superman final fight

Return of the Tiger- the dojo scene with Wong Chi Sang and others

one more that doesn't fit maybe but I have to include- One Armed Boxer final fight

 

[paimeifist]

The finale of Tiger Over Wall, although it was made in 1980.

 

Almost any of the fights featuring Chen Kuan Tai from Heroes Two

 

Also many of the kicking movies of the time, notably Secret Rivals. The Tournament (74) also fits the bill.

 

 

 

[Yakuza954]

1981, but close enough: The Chinese Stuntman Finale- Bruce Li vs Sze Ma Lung

 

One of the few old-school movies that displays how exhausting real fighting is. Both fighters are visibly worn out and breathing heavily by the end.

 

If we're going strictly 70's then I always felt the ring fights/Angela Mao's training in The Tournament had a very practical martial arts approach - minus the part where the secret to defeating Muay Thai is a drop kick. The movie was based on real events from 1970s HK, when Chinese kung fu was coming to grips with the effectiveness of Muay Thai.

[sym8]

Not a Kung fu movie but I would say the Sonny Chiba Classic The street fighter(one hit and you stay hit)kinda action and brutal.

[DragonClaws]

The final fight in Kung Fu The Invisible Fist where Chang Sing and Yusuaki Kurata go all out in their epic encounter. The two are barely standing by the end of it all and there's some weapons use thrown into the mix too.

[Lady Jin Szu-Yi]

Chan Wai Man against Lo Lieh in The Handcuff (1979). I love this fight,  realistic and very very dirty. The head butt gets me every single time. It's more of an action film, but dang...that fight never gets old. 

 

As far as Kung Fu,

 

I have to vote for CWM again in Broken Oath (I'm still learning character and actor names here, but the fight with his old accomplice is vicious and he ends it fast.)

 

And I'd almost nominate his Bloody Devil from Judgment of An Assassin when he goes fist to fist against The Golden Whip. The earlier fight against David Chiang is hilarious and fun in all the right ways, but you don't see how dangerous CWM's Bloody Devil is until that later fight. 

 

I'll probably think of more later,  but part of my thing for CWM is how realistic a lot his moves look no matter the type of kung fu film. 

[lungfei]

[66 Mantis]

Thanks for the feedback, some good stuff in here. Of the ones mentioned, I haven't yet caught up with The Handcuff  (but intend to soon) and don't think I ever heard of Successor. The clip above looks kind of awesome, is the rest of it any good?

[Lady Jin Szu-Yi]

I'd post a link to the CWM vs. Lo Lieh fight 66 Mantis, but I don't want to spoil it, since you haven't seen The Handcuff yet. 

 

This is a fun thread.