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Jet Li's best movie of each decade


Iron_Leopard

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Drunken Monk

80’s: Martial Arts of Shaolin

90’s: Once Upon a Time in China

00’s: Fearless

10’s: Flying Swords of Dragon Gate

This was really tough. Jet Li’s 90’s filmography is brimming with gems.

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80s - Martial Arts of Shaolin

90s - Fist of Legend

00s - Fearless

10s - Flying Swords of Dragon Gate

I agree with @Drunken Monk that it wasn't an easy one to do. The 80s were a hard choice. Dragon Fight has one of my favorite Jet Li fights, but the film surrounding it isn't great. The first Shaolin Temple has lots of good fighting, but Martial Arts had better choreography.

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starschwar

I haven't seen as many of his movies as I probably should have, especially outside of the 1990s.  That said..

80s - I've only seen Shaolin Temple

90s - Tough choice, but I'll go with Fist of Legend.

00s - It's a toss-up, but I'll put Fearless above Hero.

10s - ....  Expendables 2.  I haven't seen any of his Chinese output from the last decade, somehow!  Shame on me, I know. 

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Iron_Leopard
On 5/26/2021 at 8:55 AM, Drunken Monk said:

80’s: Martial Arts of Shaolin

90’s: Once Upon a Time in China

00’s: Fearless

10’s: Flying Swords of Dragon Gate

This was really tough. Jet Li’s 90’s filmography is brimming with gems.

Not to get too far off topic here but who do you think had the better decade? Jackie in the 80s or Jet in the 90s?

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10 minutes ago, Iron_Leopard said:

Not to get too far off topic here but who do you think had the better decade? Jackie in the 80s or Jet in the 90s?

All things considered (financial, innovation, opportunities to display full extent of skills), Jackie in the 80s. The 90s were obviously a great year for Jet, what with him achieving international stardom and then showing up in his first Hollywood film at the end of the decade. Unfortunately, Tsui Hark chose OUATIC to be the film where he'd distinguish himself from the old school via wires, and everybody followed suit.

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Drunken Monk
21 minutes ago, Iron_Leopard said:

Not to get too far off topic here but who do you think had the better decade? Jackie in the 80s or Jet in the 90s?

That’s a damn good question. I think Jackie just about takes it. I love Jet Li’s classics: OUATIC, OUTIC 2, Fist of Legend etc. But I think Jackie had one of the greatest decades of any actor in the 80’s. Classic after classic with maybe only a few hiccups here and there.

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starschwar

Jackie's 1980s run is phenomenal.  If Young Master had been his debut, and he'd retired after Miracles, his reputation would still be as legendary - perhaps even greater than it is today.  Other than breaking into mainstream popularity worldwide in the 90s, not much would be different about his legacy.  Young Master and Dragon Lord would work as suitable replacements for SITES and Drunken Master for the way he changed up classic settings with comedy and dynamic choreography.  You've got his silent film / classic Hollywood homages in the Project A movies and Miracles.  Modern action taken to the extreme in the first two Police Stories.  All of his legendary (on-screen) collaborations with Sammo and Yuen Biao, including his personal favorite fight with Benny Urquidez - and the rematch, too.  And he got to stretch his dramatic wings with Heart of Dragon.  Excluding supporting roles, his only starring ventures that come up weak are the two Hollywood productions.  And even then, The Big Brawl isn't unwatchable.  And The Protector is worth existing, for being the impetus for one of the rare examples of an Actor's Cut - and one that turned out better than the original version to boot.  It was proof positive that he wasn't just a great action star - but he had a real understanding of the entire film making process.  No one could tell him he didn't know better.   And Armour of God would still forever stand as proof that that man is indestructable.  I still can't believe he bounced back from that head injury as fast and as much as he did.

 

Again, no slight against Jet's 90s movies.   He more than earned his place as one of the best martial arts stars.  But there's just no comparison.

Edited by starschwar
I forgot Armour of God!
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1980s: Martial Arts of Shaolin

1990s: Fist of Legend

2000s: Unleashed

2010s: The Expendables 2 (one single scene of an otherwise wasted opportunity)

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One Armed Boxer

1980's - Dragon Fight

I'm a huge fan of the 'Shaolin Temple' trilogy, but 'Dragon Fight' takes it as it's the one time Jet got to really let loose in a contemporary setting (more so than in 'The Master') minus the wires and debilitating injuries.

1990's - Fist of Legend

While I have a weak spot for 'High Risk' and love the madness of 'Swordsman 2', as an all-round movie combined with stellar fight choreography, 'Fist of Legend' just takes it.  Plus Billy Chow, Yasuaki Kurata, and Chin Siu-Ho.

2000's - Fearless

This was actually tougher than the 90's, because I enjoy both 'Kiss of the Dragon' and 'Hero' probably just as much, but all three for very different reasons. As Jet's martial arts swansong though, 'Fearless' comes out on top, just avoid the unneccessary director's cut.

2010's - League of Gods

Worth it just to see Jet doing a Benjamin Button and de-aging as the movie progresses, a sight which is slightly disturbing thanks to the not quite there CGI, but also fun to see a Shaolin Temple-era Jet in a Chinese blockbuster CGI-fest.

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Omni Dragon

80s: Shaolin Temple (the only one I've seen).

90s: Fist of Legend

00s: Fearless

10s: I've not seen any from this era.

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Chu Liu Hsiang

80s MARTIAL ARTS OF SHAOLIN

90s ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA or TAI CHI MASTER, I just can't decide, sorry. 

00s FEARLESS

10s FLYING SWORDS OF DRAGON GATE (only saw this and SORCERER AND WHITE SNAKE)

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80's Martial Arts of Shaolin

90's Fist of Legend and Tai Chi Master TIE

00's Fearless and Danny the Dog TIE

10's Flying Swords of Dragon Gate

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Iron_Leopard
10 hours ago, WangYu said:

I’ve only seen a handful of his films and I didn’t particularly liked any of them.

That's hard to believe. 

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80s: Shaolin Temple

90s: Fist of legend

00s: Kiss of The Dragon

10s: Don't think i've seen anything from this decade, most recent film i've seen from Jet was War from 2007.

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Lets see:

80s: I haven't seen any of his films from the 80s. 

90s: Defiantly "Fist of Legend(1994)"

00s: "Kiss of the Dragon(2001)"

10s: "The Expendables Series (2010-2014)"  

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That's a tough choice, but here goes.

80s: Shaolin Temple (first time ever I saw Jet Li on screen)

90s: Once Upon A Time in China (still one of the greatest opening scenes ever)

00s: Kiss of the Dragon (a personal favourite and one of the best modern action movies of the 00s)

10s: None (Watched a few but all of them seem pretty lackluster)

Edited by laagi
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