Jackie Chan - Drunken Master 2

The say the movie will not be a direct follow up to the last Drunken Master movies, but will bring back the old style of martial art movies. Alan Mak is reportedly attached to make the movie, and will have a budget of US $15 million and is to start shooting in February 2011.

Jackie Chan’s representatives also unveiled the following projects:

• ‘Cambodia Landmine’, an action/comedy/drama, to be directed by ‘Little Big Soldier’s Ding Sheng. The $25 million production is scheduled to shoot in Cambodia in February 2012.
• ‘Tiger Mountain’, a Mandarin-language action drama, to be directed by Tsui Siu Ming. Budgeted at $50 million and set to begin production in October 2012, the film will boast 3D special effects.
• ‘Manhattan’, a $55 million action suspenser in both Mandarin and English, which Chan will both star in and direct. It is filming in both China and the U.S. and is slated for release in January 2013.

Lets hope some of these movies are true, as id love to see another Drunken Master movie, even if chan’s the teacher and someone else is doing most fo the fighting. His last movie Little, Big Soldier was a great film, id like to see more movies like this, which shows chans ability as a comedian.

Sources: – Hollywood Reporter.

Wong Fei Hung was born in the province of canton in 1847, his father Wong Kei Ying was also a famous martial arts master who studied Hung’s fist. At the age of thirteen, while giving a martial arts demonstration at Douzhixiang, Foshan, Wong Fei Hung met Lam Fuk Sing, the first apprentice of Tit Kiu Saam, who taught him the “tour de force” of Iron Wire Fist and Sling, which helped him become a master of Hung Gar.

Wong Fei Hung was famed for his expertise in Hung Kuen, Chinese medicine and the southern Chinese lion dancing. He was successfully engaged by Jiming Provincial Commander-in-Chief Wu Quanmei and Liu Yongfu as the military medical officer, martial art general drillmaster, and Guangdong local military general drillmaster. He later followed Liu Youngfu to fight against the Japanese army in Taiwan.

Wongs most famous student was Lam Sai “Butcher” Wing (played by Sammo Hung in Magnificent Butcher), who came to live in Hong Kong, also a few of Hung’s students are still alive today and their grand – students are promoting Hung Kuen in modern day.

On the twenty-fifth day of the third month in 1924, Wong Fei Hung died in Guangdong Chengxi Fangbian Hospital. His wife and two of his prominent students, Lam Sai-Wing and Tang Sai-King, moved to Hong Kong, where they continued teaching Wong’s martial art. Wong became a legendary hero whose real-life story was mixed freely with fictional exploits on the printed page and onscreen.

No photos or drawing’s of Wong exist but the chinese film industry made up for this by putting his life into movies. The more famous ones are Drunken Master, Martial Club and Once Upon A Time In China. There are many more films that the late great Kwan Tak Hing played him in, and became the most famous person to play the folk hero.

Whenever I think of Wong Fei Hung straight away Kwan comes to mind, he is excellent in the role. It was in 1949 that Kwan was cast as Fei Hung in the first of ninty – nine black and white films, The character was later brought back to life in the classic films Dreadnaught and Skyhawk.

There has been other stories about Fei Hung such as he became adept at using weapons such as the wooden long staff and the southern tiger fork. Soon after, stories began circulating about his mastery of these weapons. One story recounts how he defeated a 30-man gang on the docks of Canton using the staff. Wong is sometimes incorrectly identified as one of the Ten Tigers of Canton (a group of ten of the top martial arts masters in Guangdong near the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644–1912). His father Wong Kei Ying was one of the Ten Tigers, but Wong Fei-Hung was not. Due to his heroic efforts in defending China’s pride during a period when Chinese morale was at an all time low, Wong Fei-Hung is sometimes known as the “Tiger after the Ten Tigers.”

I also have to mention the Wong Fei Hugn theme music because it was used as the theme song for various Wong Fei Hung films (particularly the versions starring Kwan Tak Hing), the Chinese folk song On the General’s Orders is now associated with Wong Fei Hung.
In the Once Upon a Time in China series, the music was named A Man Should Better Himself, with lyrics written by the late Wong Jim to On the General’s Orders. It was sung by George Lam.

Here is a small list that the Wong Fei Hung character appeared in -

• Challenge of the Masters (1976), played by Gordon Liu.

• Drunken Master (1978), played by Jackie Chan, with Yuen Siu Tien as the Beggar So.

• Magnificent Butcher (1979), played by Kwan Tak-Hing. Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao and Wei Pak starred as Wong’s disciples, Wing, Foon and Chik.

• Once Upon a Time in China (1991), played by Jet Li. This is the first in a series of six films about Wong Fei Hung.

• Great Hero From China (1992), played by Chin Kar-Lok.

• Iron Monkey (1993). The young Wong Fei Hung is played by female martial artist Tsang Sze-Man. Donnie Yen portrays Wong’s father.

• Once Upon a Time in China IV & V (1993) played by Zhao Wen Zhou

• Drunken Master II (1994), played by Jackie Chan. Ti Lung portrayed Wong’s father.

• Drunken Master Killer (1994), played by Willie Chi.

• Last Hero in China (1995), played by Jet Li.

• Around the World in 80 Days (2004), Sammo Hung has a brief appearance as Wong Fei Hung.

• Shao Nian Huang Fei Hong (TV series, 2002), China.

• My Master is Wong Fei Hung (TV series, 2004), Hong Kong.

If you haven’t seen a movie based on this fantastic real life hero then please do so, so go to your nearest dvd store and go buy a few and enjoy. Heres a video of the famous hero in action being played by the likes of Jackie Chan and Jet li. ENJOY

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1. The Prodigal Son – I first seen this movie in the early 90′s and till this day it remains my all time favorite kung fu movie. Based of the wing chun system this movie has everything, superb kung fu, comedy, violence, fantastic characters, story and music. It also won the best action choreography at the 1983 film awards and was nominated for best picture and sammo Hung for best director. The fight scenes are excellent with yuen Biao and Lam Ching Ying showing us how it should be done. One fight that comes to mind is when lam Ching Ying is attacked by a group of ninjas sent to kill him, but the timing and skill involved is second to none. If you haven’t seen this movie please find a way to do so.

Bruce Lee - Now in HD

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2. Drunken Master – This to me is one of jackie chan’s best kung fu performances, maybe thats also due to the fact that Yuen Woo Ping was directing the movie. Drunken Master was kind off a semi sequel to the 1978 film snake in the eagles shadow which featured the same cast and director. Jackie in this movie shows some excellent drunken fist movement, to me nobody can perform it better than he can, theres plenty of fights throughout the movie where we get to see him take on the the korean martial artist Hwang Jang Lee who is known for his breathtaking kicking skills. Watch out for the training sequences also, where jackie is put through his paces.

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3. The Victim – The many plot twist’s in The Victim and Sammo’s direction makes this movie a superb watch from start to finish. There’s lots of great fight scenes throughout with both Sammo and Leung Kar Yan showing what they can really do on screen. This is one of his best films to date, the acting,characters,fights and story line are all excellent. One scene i loved was when Sammo Hung is challenges different masters (of course beats them), then he’s faced with a buddhst monk who challenges him to take 3 strikes and whoever gives up first – loses. Who has the most power??? Overall a fantastic film with loads of plot twists. One of Sammo’s best pictures.

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4. Legendary Weapons Of Kung Fu – In my review on this movie i say many fans of the genre hold this as one of the greatest kung fu films ever made, although its not number 1 in my list it is a brilliant and original film. The finale must last around 20 minutes where both brothers Lau Kar Leung and Lau Kar Wing must use every single weapon ever known showing some unbelievable skill. Gordon Liu is also great in this movie along with the excellent Hsiao Hou. One of Shaw Brothers best movies and believe me they did quiet a few.

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5. The Magnificent Butcher – Once again we see Sammo Hung on the list with another brilliant kung fu movie filled with exciting fights and characters. Sammo plays Butcher Wing one of wong fei hung’s top students, but he always seems to be getting in trouble. When Fei Hung leaves the town, Butcher Wing gets into so much trouble with the rival school, the master being played by Lee Hoi San. Also in the movie are Lam Ching Ying,Fong Hak An, Yuen Biao and Kwan Tak Hing. The epic showdown see’s Sammo’s five animals style against master Kao’s Five elements, with sammo showing some excellent hand to hand combat and kicking skills. The best fight in the film for me is when we get to see Yuen Biao take on Lam Ching Ying – what a fight that is in terms of the timing and movement involved, we just wouldn’t see that type of kung fu anymore on our screens. Another gem by the legendary director Yuen Woo Ping. A must see.

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6. Drunken Master 2 – I knew both the drunken master films would be in my top 10, but the original just beat it for me. Taking nothing away from this masterpiece 16 years after the first, jackie still shows just how good he is and to me this is the last film where we see him fight at his very best. Ti Lung stars as Wong Fei Hung’s father and the late Anita Mui as his mother (although shes probably younger than chan himself), jackie shows us some excellent drunken fist throughout the film. The first main fight is between Jackie chan and Lau Kar Leung which takes place under a train, which then leads to a house where jackie gets off the hook lightly when his train starts to leave. Another scene i love is when he takes on a few thugs in the market place, this is the first time we see jackie drink his wine and he lets rip on the thugs beating them to a pulp with his very impressive flips and kicks. The end of the film will have you rewinding over and over again as jackie takes on loads in a factory using every move he has got in a jaw dropping finale. (the ending took over 3 months to film). Jackie was only a few months away from his 40th birthday when this was completed but for someone of that age performing like he does is out of this world. Do NOT miss this movie.

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7. Snake In The Eagles Shadow – The third Jackie Chan movie in my top 10 and this really does deserve to be there. Once again Yuen Woo Ping is in the driving seat and this made Jackie an overnight superstar. What i love about this film is the story and characters, the way the beggar(Yuen Siu Tin) helps out Chien Fu (Jackie Chan) from his teachers who beat him up everyday and just basically dont care if he’s alive or dead. Chien helps out the old beggar when he is attacked in the street (At this point Jackie cannot fight). After a while the beggar takes Chien under his wing and starts teaching the snake fist, but the snake fist is not enough to take on the badguy – the king of the eagle claw (hwang Jang Lee). So Chien has to bring another style into his training which is cats paw (His own creation, when seeing a cat defeat a snake), before he can beat the eagle claw king. This is another classic jackie chan movie, which wasn’t even supposed to be in the film as they were unable to get Fu Sheng, but im so glad Woo Ping gave Jackie the chance he deserved and what a classic they got.

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8. Encounters Of The Spooky Kind – Ok so its a kung fu/horror movie but what a movie it is, Sammo Hung yet again switching styles to make this a great watch from start to finish. Here Sammo plays Cheung The Brave, what he likes to do is places bets with people that he can stay in haunted places overnight and be known as the Bravest. His wife is having an affair and hires a toast priest to kill him by placing him in a house with zombies. But the evil priests brother discovers his plans and tries to help cheung the brave out by taking him under his wing. Sammo really does blend horror and kung fu better than anyone out there, the movie also broke new ground in hong kong cinema including a sequel called spooky encounters and spin offs such as the Mr Vampire series and Dead And The Deadly. yuen Biao is also on helping hand with the fight choreography and stunt doubles for lots of people.

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9. Eight Diagram Pole Fighters – The second Shaw Brothers in my top 10, Gordon Liu is back and kicking serious butt. Lau Kar Leung is back in the directers seat with this all out kung fu movie, which he also stars in. Its set during the Mid-song Dynasty Fu Sheng stars in the movie also as the sixth son who returns to his homeland after witnessing his other brothers and father killed by General Pang Mai who tricks the family into the seige. But the fifth brother also survived the attack and his rescued by a hunter (lau Kar Leung) who puts his own life at risk to protect him. Just to note whilst the movie was in the making lead actor Fu Sheng had sadly died in a car crash which resulted in a massive script re-write which put Wai Ying Hung in the lead role. The movie has some fantastic moments,also the pole fight between Gordon Liu and Phillip Kao is incredible. Watch this movie.

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10. Fist Of Fury – How could i have a top ten without atleast one Bruce Lee film in there. Bruce had just done The Big Boss with Lo Wei and was reunited for the second on this picture, but this time Bruce was given more control over the action and you really can tell in this movie. Set in shanghai in the 1930′s, The founder of the martial arts assocation is reported to have died from a sudden illness. Bruce lee comes back (His best student) and isn’t fully sure of his masters death so he wants investigations to ahead and find the real reason behind it. On his way there are some fantastic fight scenes against the Japanese rivals, with bruce entering there school with a sign given to him by the japanese saying “sick men of asia” – Bruce makes them eat there words. When released it broke all box office records throughout asia and beat the previous one The Big Boss and also gained a fantastic remake (Fist Of Legend) with jet li in the lead. This is bruce’s best movie.

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Thank you for taking the time to check out my top ten kung fu movies, believe me it wasn’t easy and left some great films out of it. Please leave your top 10 in the comment box at the top. Thanks.

Kung fu comedy was here to stay with Drunken Master following the huge success of Snake In The Eagles Shadow and this movie is even better than the first outing from jackie chan and yuen woo ping. After these two movies kung fu movies had found a new king to take over from bruce lee fater his death in 1973, it took 5 years then came Jackie Chan.

Chan plays the legendary hero Wong Fei Hung who cant stop getting himself into trouble, after two fights one morning and the rival school turning up at fei hungs fathers, he decides to send fei hung to his uncles for punishment, played by Yuen Siu Tien. Sam The Seed is known for crippling his students with his brutal training and teaching, when fei hung discovers this he tries to run away from sam the seed but is always found and beaten once again.

This is when the training really starts (i should i say torture training), putting fei hung through some painful sequences. Fei hung once again tries to run away but then comes face to face with a hired assassin (hwang jang lee) who gives fei hung a major beating, which sends him back to his master to improve his skills.

The final scene is incredible which matches the end fight from snake in the eagles shadow with jackie and hwang jang lee going kick for kick with chan showing the eight drunken fists which nobody has matched before or since. Jackie mixes kung fu and comedy brilliantly which is why he has forever since been named the kung fu/comedy king.

But everybody had to wait 16 years until 1994 for the sequel of this outstanding film, the follow up was every bit as good as the first. Excellent movie with great performances.

[Rating:10/10]

10/10

*NOTE* – This movie outgrossed snake in the eagles shadow in its first run making HK$8,000,000. Yuen woo ping and jackie chan had created there own blend of kung fu and comedy and changed the genre forever.

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Due for release in the US on15th September. The four titles announced are

• The Legend of Drunken Master (Drunken Master 2)
• Iron Monkey
• Zatoichi
• Hero

The full package is priced at over $100 dollars and the individual blu-rays expected to retail for $40 each (very pricey , but for drunken master i think i may just pay it – assuming we get the original language version and not the dubbed)

Be sure to check back often for more details.

Assuming we get original language version of Drunken Master, then this will most certainly be on my shopping list this year.