Wuxia is a broad genre of martial arts films set in ancient China. New Dragon Gate Inn is set during the Ming Dynasty in the Chinese desert. The remake will actually be shot in 3D, and production is expected to begin in September. The film will be directed by Tsui Hark, an influential New Wave Hong Kong director and producer, who served as a producer on the 1992 version of the film.

Jet Li will reportedly earn $12-million to play a General in the Ming Dynasty named Chow Wai-on, who does battle against a power-hungry eunich named Tsao Siu-Yan–a role which has not yet been cast. Li most recently acted in the American film The Expendables, and starred in his first dramatic role in the Chinese film Ocean Heaven.

The New Dragon Gate Inn remake will reunite actor Jet Li with director Tsui Hark, who previously worked together for 1990’s film series Once Upon a Time in China. Though it was one of Li’s most famous roles, it was rumoured that the two titans of Chinese film did not get along.

2007 marked the release of The Warlords in China and Hong Kong. The film was directed by Peter Chan and other than Mr.  (excuse my Americanism) Li, the film also stars Andy Lau, Takeshi Kaneshiro and Xu Jinglei.  During the Qing Dynasty in China, three brothers are torn apart by the political corruption and violent wars that break out across their country. Jet Li is General Pang and he barely escapes the massacre on the battlefield where he and his troops were sent with his life.

A group of bandits take him in after he plays dead among the slaughtered remains of his men, and after fighting alongside them to protect a village from attackers, he proves himself enough to form an oath. General Pang along with the leaders of the bandits Er Hu (Andy Lau) and Wu Yang (Takeshi Kaneshiro), become blood brothers. They promise loyalty until death but it soon becomes painfully obvious that with jealousy, lies, and political intrigue thrown into the mix that bond may be broken sooner than they expected.

The movie seems like a historical movie lovers dream and as long as you have the patience for the involved storyline then you should have a lot of fun with Warlords once it hits the big screen. Warlords will be released in the U.S on April 2^nd 2010 while it comes out on On Demand, VOD, Xbox Live, and Amazon on March 3^rd. In the meantime feel free to titillate your sense with the trailers which is available exclusively on Apple Trailers at http://www.apple.com/trailers/independent/warlords/.

Warlords was directed by Peter Chan

20. Donnie Yen Vs Bad Monks – Iron Monkey

Regarded by many as one of the best martial art films of the 90s as well as being one of Yuen Woo Ping’s finest, this film featured not only excellent fight scenes but some of the best use of wirework (wire fu) seen. The fight with the Bad Monks is no exception. Here Donnie Yen takes on many monks using the trademark Yen Kicking techniques which have made him famous today inner played with great hand techniques to take on armed enemies. The conclusion of the fight sees a masked nun come down from the skies to ambush Yen.. but of course Mr Donnie Yen is having none of it! A true classic from the 90s!

19. Way of the Dragon – Bruce Lee Vs Chuck Norris

You see we do have some love for Bruce Lee!

After all it was Bruce who made most of this all possible. If it wasn’t for his exploits many of todays martial arts stars would never have seen the light of day. One of our favourite Bruce Lee fight scenes and maybe one of his most important is the fight with Chuck Norris.

Not only was this one of the first times we ever got to see a fight between two true international superstars of the arts but also the fight could not have taken place in a more fitting location.

The Colosseum.

The Colosseum during the Roman Empire was used to host Gladiatorial contests and for their day there was no bigger Gladiators in martial arts than Chuck Norris (former 6 time consecutive Karate world champion) and Bruce Lee (arguable the world’s most important martial artist)

18. Jet Li Vs Chin Siu Ho – Tai Chi Master

Jet Li. Mr Wushu himself, in this fight Jet Li successfully exchanges Wushu for Tai Chi and to devastating effect! Under the guidance of the great Yuen Woo Ping (who had earlier directed the Drunken Tai Chi movie with Donnie Yen), Jet Li fantastic in the lead here (alongside Michelle Yeoh), for many along with Fist of Legend this is one of Jet Li’s best films (also known as Twin Warriors).

Jet Li masterfully uses wirework to fully showcase the inner powers of Tai Chi in order to defeat his former friend (Chin Siu Ho). This film showcases wirework at its best. Just as Jackie Chan is known as the Drunken Master, Jet will forever be known as the ‘Tai Chi’ Master.

17. Pedicab Driver – End Fight

How does he do it! How does the big man move so quick! So agile, so quick so fluid with his moves. Its no surprising that Sammo Hung is regarded as one of the best scene fighters of all time. Here in Pedicab Driver we see Sammo at his best! Dishing out the punishment to multiple foes, stunning stunt work and acrobatic moves. Just as Superman had us believing that a man could fly. Sammo shows us that a big man can really move! A quick mention to the stunt team here too, some of the falls – amazing!

16. Prodigal Son – Yuen Biao Vs Frankie Chan

Yuen Biaos greatest film? This really should have been the film that kick started his international career. Prodigal Son as we already mentioned in a previous article is one of the best martial arts movies of all time. Not only because of the fighting but also due to the excellent story and of course the brilliant Wing Chun training scenes (No true kung fu movie is complete without a good training sequence!). The end fight whilst not the best fight in Prodigal son easily surpasses many fight scenes from other movies during its time. Yuen Biao never looked so good, here Yuen does not only focus on his excellent kicking techniques but instead uses the fluid close combat speed of Wing Chun.

15. Dragons Forever – End Fight (Factory)

Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao in the same film? The same fight scene? For the second time! Of course this fight is gonna be in the top 20! Crazy Stunt work, Killer Moves, great comedy, and to top it off this is Jackie Chan Vs Billy the Jet 2! This fight would have been higher on the list if it wasn’t for the doubling for Jackie Chan for some of the stunts.

14. Prodigal Son – Lam Ching Ying Vs Ninjas

The Late Great Lam Ching Ying, there was no better showcase of his talents that in Prodigal Son. Possibly the best fight scene in the Prodigal son, here we see a team of Ninjas attempt to attack and kill Lam and Yuen Biao. The timing here is some of the best I’ve ever seen in a group fight. It is Yuen who is first attacked near a empty market stall he quickly dispatches of them before they move onto their next target Lam Ching Ying. Outside of Warriors Two (also by Sammo), Lam showcases some of the best screen Wing Chun ever in order to fend off the Ninjas. As with any good screen fight the scene is so well put together that at times it seems like a well choreographed dance. Outstanding!

13. Knockabout – End Fight

Yuen Biao again, but this time he’s joined by Sammo as they attempt to take down the great Lau Kar Wing (brother of Lau Kar Wing). Yuen shows amazing flexibility in this fight and his peking opera skills are truly on showcase here with his aerial work, a very long end fight scene but worth every minute of your attention.

12. Heroes of the East – Gordon Liu Vs Yasuaki Kurata

What top 20 would be complete without the great Gordon Liu! Arguable one of Gordon’s best movies. The end fight sees Gordon ‘Iron Arms’ Liu up against Japanese Actor Yasukai Karata (later famous for his battle with Jet Li in Fist of Legend). The fight starts with a clever hidden pole fight with darts and ninja stars thrown in for good measure.

11. 8 Diagram Pole Fighters – End Fight

Gordon is back again. Just missing out on the top 10 is this great fight scene from one of the all time great martial art movies from the 80s. Gordon is back once against in the familiar Shaolin gear which originally made him famous, but this time he seeks to master the pole. Here is takes on Pan-Mei and his gang. Whilst the first half of the fight scene is great the second off is completely off the hook as with Gordon on his last legs his Shaolin buddies come in to help just in the time. This is a film where you will find some of the best pole and spear work ever put to film.

60.Ip Man – Donnie Yen vs Lots

After the death of his master Donnie Yen demands a fight with 10 of the black belts from the japanese school. Donnie yen is so fast its untrue, he delievers lightening quick punches, great take downs and is so brutal against the japanese is why this makes my top 100, It only last 30 seconds or so but is a good watch.

59.Miracles – Teahouse Fight

Great fight scene from Jackie Chan and the JC stunt team as they really do get to shine with people being thrown from the top floor to the ground, one gets thrown down some spirual stairs and jackie flipping back under a spinning fan then back to his feet is a great watch,Few minutes of fast action, love it.

58.Sha Po Lang – Donnie Yen vs Wu Jing

Donnie Yen and Wu Jing finally come face to face in this bloody encounter which will have you rewinding straight after its finished. Throughout the movie we get to see both in some great fights but this one is the best with Wu Jing using the Knife against Donnie’s police batton, the fight is fast with both delievering killer blows before donnie starts to take control.The bloodsplatter right at the end of the fight against the wall is like from a old school kung fu flick. excellent.

57.The Victim – Leung Kar Yan + Sammo Hung vs Many

One of Leung Kar Yan’s best movies, again starring next to action legend Sammo Hung for this bloody encounter. Here we see Leung’s older brother trying to steal his wife off him by surrounding him with thugs ordered to kill him. We get to see him fight a dozen men using a pole delievering killer strikes, but it doesnt go all his own way as he is injured during it leaving sammo to take a few on and there forced to leave the girl behind. Fantastic fight scene and the movie is one of my favorites with a great story and twist which will leave you guessing until the very end.

56.Skinny Tiger, Fatty Dragon – Final Fight

Sammo Hung is back once again paying homage to Bruce Lee and in my opinion is by far the best Bruce Lee impersonator as we see him beat up aload of thugs and then take on the legendary Lau Kar Wing. We see Sammo defend himself against axes by using the nunchuks with power blows showing you how it should be done, then we see him performing high spin kicks, backslips and in the end just leaves Lau Kar Wing to “hang around”.

55.Hapkido – Final Fight

Whang In Sik and Angela Mao come face to face with a classful of Japanese martial artists and kicks off with Whang performing a great kick which takes out a few guys which then leaves Angela to take down some of the rest. Here Angela shows us once again her kicking skills throughout the film but once you see Whang’s amazing kicks you cant really look past that. Good movie which also stars Sammo Hung and cameos from Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao.

54.Fist Of Legend – Jet li vs Chin Siu Ho

Jet li stars in this Fist Of Fury remake and i have to say its brilliant. This fight happens because Li is dating a japanese girl which his school and fellow chinese dont approve off. As the fight starts chin siu ho comes forward and throws most the moves as Jet doesn’t want to fight back and hurt him. After a few minutes we finally see jet come to life and we see fast hand techniques and some great kicking skills by both fighters. I also feel Chin Siu Ho is very under-rated, why? im not to sure.

53.Once Upon A Time In China 2 – Jet Li vs Donnie Yen

This is the first time both legends come face to face in a movie, with a cracking pole fight between the two performed at breakneck speed. Both fighters seems to be in control until they have to fight with smaller poles, thats when the action gets better with them taking the action to a narrow alleyway where we see Donnie using the ‘cloth staff’ technique. The fight is a good watch and as always it ends in a very bloody way.

52.Prodigal Son – Lam Ching Ying vs Frankie Chan

Whilst sitting for their dinner, Lam Ching Ying is offered a challenge by Frankie Chan to see whos the best fighter and although the fight is few minutes long (if that) we see some great skill from both fighters. Lam Ching Ying is superb as Leung Yee Tai and his opera skills and wing chun really do shine with his relentless power and speed, im just gutted they never got a second fight to see who was really the best.

51.Shanghai 13 – Ti Lung vs Chen Sing

Throughout the film we get to see some great fights, but this one is the best with Ti Lung taking on Chen Sing at a dockside with great skill and timing showing just how good they both are. Chen comes at him using a knife against Ti Lungs pole, the scene is really fast paced and packs a big punch and even though Chens acrobatics are great to watch it does get him into a bit of bother.

It truly is an art all of its own. Often we talk about dramatic actors and how hard their task is but surely the art of screen fighting is the most impressive form of acting? timing, skill, stunts and the danger – this is what many 21st century audiences want to see.

But with so many martial arts movies how do you pick the best ones? How does the martial arts actor find a way to showcase new skills to an ever evolving audience? What about those new to martial arts movies?

The Official AMP Top 100 onscreen Martial Arts fights should help answer your questions. Over the next few days we will be counting down from 100, the best fights ever put to film. Stick with us over the next few weeks and find out which fight scenes make it into our top 10, and of course use the comments box to the right to discuss any of our choices.

70.The Young Master – Jackie Chan vs Whang In Sik
Maybe this would be in someones top 20 and maybe it deserves to but although i like the fight its to much like a street fight than anything else. This fight scene lasts about 20 minutes on a mountain top and Chan gets put through a world of pain against someone with excellent kicking techniques and grappling. Jackie needs the help once again and turns to alcohol which gives him super human strength and manages to come back performing anything he can weather its a jumping head butt to flipping to the ground about 5 times in a row. Crazy fight but also very enjoyable.

69.The Mystery of Chess Boxing – Jack Long + Li Yi Min vs Mark Long
Get ready for atleast 15 minutes of non stop action. It starts with Jack Long and Mark Long performing great techniques with grace and poise whilst the pace of the action increases by the minute, then we see Li Yi Min enter the fight to save his teachers life. Li starts to lose and gets countered all the time by Long this is when his teacher thinks back and remembers certain ways to defend against these strikes and try to win. One of the funniest parts is when Mark Long gets his arms broken right at the end and they dangle which is clearly so false but its a great watch.

68.Two On The Road – Leung Kar Yan and Philip Ko vs Wang Lung Wei
fantastic fight scene here from Leung Kar Yan, Its fast and powerful with a small amount of wirework, and some mad sound effects for Phillip Ko’s horse boxing technique. Ive always liked watching Leung Kar Yan when he’s performing hand to hand techniques but he also throws in some good kicking skills and timing and when Philllip Ko joins in they show us how good 2 on 1 fights can really be. To me Leung Kar Yan is very under-rated.

67.Two Toothless Tigers – (Samo Hung and Yuen Hsin Yi vs Johnny Wang)
Sammo Hung displays a dodgy tash but the fight certainly makes up for it with fast paced action. The fight starts in a teahouse where we see Villian Johnny Wang showcase some excellent kicking skills with speed and power with the other two trying to gang up on him. This shows great combat with Sammo and Johnny going toe to toe in parts with brilliant hand to hand combat, timing and movement. Sammo ends the fight with a kick to the groin(The same as Bruce Lee did to Bob Wall in Enter The Dragon).Sammo truely is one of the best choreographers ever showing us time and time again how its really done. Legend.

66.Dirty Tiger,Crazy Frog – End Fight
It took me a while to get hold of this film and although its not as good as Odd Couple or Warriors Two, it still has great fight scenes involving Masters Sammo Hung and Lau Kar Wing. Here they take on Lee Hoi San who cannot be hurt due to his metal armour, so they have to team up and take him down anyway they can. At the start Hoi San is in control and the other two dont know how to deal with him until Sammo sees some of his Armour starting to come loose so he starts pulling at it as Lau Kar Wing delievers lots of punches and kicks until he can no longer stand anymore. Very enjoyable film and another note is that all the flips and high kicks from Lau Kar Wing are actually Yuen Biao.

65.Fearless – Teahouse Fight
Jet li challenges a rival kung fu master to a fight but it all gets out of hand and nearly costs his characters life. The setting for the fight is my favorite part bringing back the old school feel with Yuen Woo Ping choreographing the fights. It starts with them both using swords and the place gets trashed (tables flying everywhere), also some great slow motion shots showing the power of both fighters. It then turns to hand to hand combat and this is when we see Jet taking control, a good fight scene.

64.Fist Of Fury – End Fight
Every moment of this is choreographed & shot perfectly with great pacing & suspense showing Bruce Lee deliever some incredible kicks and punches with power. He fights a guy with a dodgy tash and you can see the difference in skill between the two, with Bruce hitting him with a perfect high kick to the face followed by a chop to the kneck. He then fights the Japanese master who is using a samurai sword by this doesn’t bother Bruce as he intercepts and kicks him like 10 yards through a wall (The guy who gets kicked is actually Jackie Chan, at that time was the longest throw using a wire). Good stuff.

63.Hitman In The Hand Of Buddah – Hwang Jang Lee vs Eddie Ko
When the fight begins we get to see Hwang Jang Lee using alot more hand techniques showing us he has other skills than just amazing kicks. Hwang also shows us the Eagle Claw technique and the camera really focuses on the movement but then Hwang turns to his kicking skills and delievers some great blows, one where Hwang repeatedly crescent kicks his opponent in the face, A great fight with Corey Yuen choreographing the scenes.

62.Killer Army – Kuo Chui vs 4 spearmen
Ok you will know this guy from the five venom movies and in this film he doesn’t dissapoint as he takes on 4 spearmen showing us fantastic timing and skill, something we’d see in maybe a Sammo Hung movie.
The final scene is about 20+ minutes long and its worth every second as the fight gets better and better and also with alot more blood and violence. In the end he gets a little help and they overcome the badguys, good film from Shaw Brothers.

61.Fatal Move – Wu Jing vs 3
This was supposed to be 3 on 3 fight but as Wu Jings clan cannot defeat the first fighter Wu Jing himself has to step in and show what he’s made off. The first guy he faces is the muscle behind the 3 and uses oil so that Jings kicks and punches slide off, this doesn’t last long as he delievers some excellent kicks and an arm lock to defeat him. The next guy uses nails in his boots and gloves to cut Wu Jing and the fight turns alittle bloody with him looking like Bruce Lee at the end of “Enter The Dragon”. After defeating him the next guy appears showing us some close combat and some wire work, Jing uses elbows to get in close then delievers an incredible kick with a high jump kick followed by a jump spin kick to the chest. Excellent viewing.

Top 100 Martial Arts Fights – Continued!

Over the last few days we have been counting down from 100, the best fights ever put to film. Stick with us over the next few weeks and find out which fight scenes make it into our top 10, and of course use the comments box to the right to discuss any of our choices.

100 – 91

Rosa – End Fight
The fight between Yuen Biao and villian Dick Wei is a great watch with fast paced action mixed with great comedy. Biao at first beats a few bad guys with high kicks and flips then steps up Dick Wei, the choreography is very well done with them going toe to toe delievering powerful moves. The fight turns to comedy when they both get stuck in a freezer and have to take parts of each others clothing to stay warm. Great watch.

Dance Of The Drunken Mantis – Yuen Siu Tin vs Hwang Jang Lee
Yuen Siu Tien plays his famous character of Sam Seed and faces Hwang Jang Lee (Long white hair) in a great fight scene. The fight starts off with them both sitting at a table talking then it erupts, hwang shows some great movements in the mantis style flipping Sam Seed over and delievering hard punches. Yuen Siu Tien shows us a bit of the Drunken Fairy style which is a great watch and both trying to steal the Beer and get drunk shows great timing.

Drunken Tai Chi – Donnie Yen vs Wong Tao
This fight scene shows Donnie Yen perform some brilliant acrobatic and weaponry abilities against Wong Tao. This is Yens first film and in this fight scene we see great close combat from the two with donnie showing his kicking ability, also Donnie’s use of the Plum Flower Chain is great viewing.

Fist Of Legend – Jet Li vs Yasuaki Kurata
This is just one of many great fights in this classic movie, showing Japanese martial art master Kurata take on Wu Shu champ Jet li toe to toe. Jet starts of using alot of knees and punches which seems to be getting the upper hand, but when the wind picks up the Japanese master cannot see so they go use blindfolds to finish the fight. Both throw stones to confuse each other and attack but ends with both on the ground and calling it a draw.

Kiss Of The Dragon – Dojo Fight
A little nod to the fist of legend scene when jet enters a dojo and takes on about 30 guys at one time. The fight only lasts over a minute or so but shows high energy martial arts from jet li using a police batton to get rid of the bad guys before the others come blasting their way in.

Eagles Claw – End Fight
Hwang Jang Lee is back with his long white hair and eyebrows this time taking on 3 people, We see him perform his usual high impact kicks but also front flips and great hand techniques. He also shows good use of the pole (well rather a big looking walking stick) before the others start to get a upper hand against him.

Broken Oath – Chan Wai Man vs Bruce Liang
Angela Mao is the star of this movie and While Angela is fighting against Sammo Hung (with a beard), Chan Wai Man and Bruce Liang also face off in this great fight scene. Bruce Liang is a great kicker and delievers some great techniques against Wai Man whilst angela then just watches from the side and only gets involved in the last second. The setting is great and although there is no music when they fight, this seems to work and build the fight up.

Last hurrah for chivalry – Wei Pai vs Fung Hak On
Fung Hak On is one of my all time favorite badguys and in this scene he squares off against Wei Pai, the fight starts with both using the sword showing us great timing with long shots without the camera changing.
Both are getting the better of each other and the fight does turn bloody, and the way Wei Pai finishes Fung Hak On off is brutal.

The Buddhist Fist – End Fight
Classic film directed by the legend Yuen Woo Ping and his magic shows off in this movie with some great fight scenes. Tsui Siu Ming faces Yuen Shun Yee who were seperated when they were younger but have to fight at the end of the movie and its got some great hand to hand combat thrown in, the monk randomly will perform a stance (like a pose) to make the other fighter miss. The part when the monk starts climbing all over him and performing strikes is a good watch. The end result could have been different but one of them realise its not worth it and drops to the ground.

Enter The Fat Dragon – Film extra Fight Scene
Sammo arrives as an extra on the set of a bruce lee (lookalike) movie and because hes a massive fan of Bruce in the movie he hates the guy playing him and quicly lets him know about it.
They square off and sammo blocks every counter from the fighter in the style of bruce lee, and when he gets the upper hand all the extras decide to join in. Sammo shows us fantastic kicking skills, the way he takes down one after another only the way Bruce Lee could do, he’s fast, powerful and direct. This show how he is the ultimate Bruce Lee impersonator himself.

The art of screen fighting

It truly is an art all of its own. Often we talk about dramatic actors and how hard their task is but surely the art of screen fighting is the most impressive form of acting? timing, skill, stunts and the danger – this is what many 21st century audiences want to see.

But with so many martial arts movies how do you pick the best ones? How does the martial arts actor find a way to showcase new skills to an ever evolving audience? What about those new to martial arts movies?

Where do beginners start in order to find the best screen fighting artists around?

The Official AMP Top 100 onscreen Martial Arts fights should help answer your questions. Over the next few days we will be counting down from 100, the best fights ever put to film. Stick with us over the next few weeks and find out which fight scenes make it into our top 10, and of course use the comments box to the right to discuss any of our choices.

New Legend Of Shaolin – Beginning Fight

This fight starts quick with Jet Li being attacked by a load of ninja’s led by the main bad guy, Jet uses a spear to disguard some of the foe sticking through about 4 at a time.
There is some wire work (which i’m not always pleased with), but it seems to work, the setting is very similar to the fight in Once Upon A Time In China with the burning fire and the fight being at night. A hard hitting fight in a movie all will truly enjoy.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon – Michelle vs Zhang
The camera takes us to the heart of the action one moment and then pulls away to let you appreciate the complexity of the movements on display. Both fighters are very impressive, with great weapon work, fantastic timing and movement and this is one film where wire work actually works. Good fight and a shining example of wirework used correctly.

Righting Wrongs – Yuen Biao vs Cynthia Rothrock
When I first saw these two go head to head I thought damn Cynthia can fight, she has great kicking skills and she puts it to test against a legend in the kicking field Yuen Biao. The fight isn’t very long but it does show some fast action with Biao flipping from one chair to the next and Rothrock trying to arrest him using any move possible. Both do great in the scene with Biao performing an impressive jump from a balcony at the end.

Game Of Death – Bruce lee vs Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
This was Bruce’s tallest ever Opponent and he has to find different ways to defeat this giant. After getting a beating in the early stages of the fight (which leaves him with a huge footprint on the front of his clothes) Bruce switches to grappling his opponent to the floor and apply a head lock. Great to see a small man defeat such a bigger man. This fight is not only well executed but also showcases how martial arts can be used to defend a real life opponent.

Once Upon A Time In China – Opera House Fight
I know some people might have this fight higher in the list and although I enjoyed it I couldn’t get it out of my head that Jet gets doubled alot throughout this and the movie (He broke his leg). Apart from that the fight is good to watch with the use of hand techniques, weapon work and kicking skills to get rid of the foreign invasion. The scene is quiet harsh with the killing of innocent people but the fight makes up for it with Yuen Biao also popping up in the scene and Kent Cheung.

HERO- Jet Li vs Donnie Yen
This is the only action scene in the film where Kung Fu is the focus and not cinematography or flashy editing. Also this is the second fight between both guys (OUATIC 2 being the first).
When Donnie and Jet do face each other though the results are great, although the fact they are fighting each other in their minds and not physically is a shame. Its a good scene with both fighters using wepons more than anything else.

Warrior King – Tony Jaa verses 100
After getting beat up for a bit and then a stabbing Jaa finally starts to fight back with a new kind of brutality not seen on screen before. Every person that comes towards him he must break a part of their body with some brutal moves.

Hells Wind Staff – Meng Hoi and Meng Yuan Man vs Hwang Jang Lee
First of all Meng Hoi finishes off a henchman without too much difficulty but then he comes face to face with super kicker Hwang Jang Lee and his devastating ‘Hellz Wind Staff’.
Hwang does perform some great pole fighting with some amazing kicks but the intensity only increases when Meng Yuan Man joins in. Brilliant 2 on 1 fight scene from the man they call Hwang Jang Lee.

Invincible Armour – John Liu & Tino Wong vs Hwang Jang Lee
Yes people another Hwang Jang Lee fight scene and this one again doesn’t fail to impress. Hwang brings the style of Eagles Claw to the screen and in this fight we see Tino Wongs character not being able to defeat the eagles claw. Then we see John Liu turn up and it all changes from there, with great kicking techniques from the fighters and also what i really liked was the fact it would show a egg being crushed when someone would get hit in a certain part, (Have a think) ha. Its a fast paced scene with great timing and skill.

Last Hero In China – End Fight
Yuen Woo Ping choreographes the fight scenes and you can certainly tell as he pushes Jet to the max. We actually get to see him using Drunken Boxing and although not as good as Jackie Chan it still looks good on screen, there is once alot of wire work throughout the movie (someone that would later become a trademark of Jet Li films) and some doubling involved but seeing Jet use this style to defeat his opponent with the Wong Fei Hung theme playing behind is a great watch.

90 – 81 coming soon

Fong Sai-yuk was a native of Zhaoqing, Guangdong province, and was trained in Kung Fu by his mother from an early age. At the age of fourteen he is alleged to have killed a martial arts master in a challenge match, and his thought to have died in his early twenties.

His father, Fong Tak was a rich businessman while his mother Miu Tsui Fa was a highly-skilled martial artist. His mother is also one of the legendary Five Elders of the southern Shaolin Monastery.
According to legend, his mother broke every bone and limb in her body after his birth and bathes him in Chinese Rubbing Alcohol to make him practically invulnerable. Fong Sai-yuk’s body became “copper skin and metal bone” after the treatment.

According to legend, Fong Sai-yuk was killed by Bak Mei, the notorious pugilist in a battle of vengeance. But according to the history, Fong Sai-yuk was killed during the fight with Ng Mui during the burning of Shaolin. Which was the real cause of death? I guess we’ll never know.

The Fong Sai Yuk series was produced from 1938 through to 1972 but was overshadowed by the more powerful and popular Wong Fei Hung films, Also the kung fu version of Billy the Kid first hit the screen in a shanghai production, Fong Sai Yuk’s Battle In The Boxing Ring in 1928. The film was remade in Hong Kong under then same title, ten years later. After this followed just under thirty black and white films with Shi Yanzi as the lead.

In 1972 the character was brought back to life by the Shaw Brothers and played by different actors which included Alexander Fu Sheung and Wong Yu, Fong also became a hit with a Kung Fu tv series starring Leslie Cheung, who found fame later with the Chinese Ghost Story.

Jet li is the biggest name to play Fong, starring in two movies back in the 90′s which I personally really enjoyed( one time screen idol Josephine Siao makes a fantastic comeback by playing Fong’s mother).

Fong Sai Yuk is a chinese folk hero who lends himself to reinterpretation by each generation of action film makers and it wont be long until the mother and son will be back on the big screen once again.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Li was born Li Lian jie in Beijing, jet’s father died when he was two, leaving the family to struggle on its own, with Li being the youngest of two boys and two girls.

When Li was eight his talent for Wushu was noticed at a course at school, and he began his practice there. Li took part in the sport of Wushu in the non-sparring event. He began his Wushu on the Beijing Wushu Team, organized to perform martial arts forms during the All China Games.Li went on to win fifteen gold medals and one silver medal in Chinese wushu championships.

As a child he went to perform for President Richard Nixon in the United States, he was asked by Nixon to be his personal bodyguard. Li replied, “I don’t want to protect any individual. When I grow up, I want to defend my one billion Chinese countrymen! The name “Jet” was given to him as a young student, due to his speed and grace when training with the Beijing Wushu team.

The first breakthrough for him was when he was picked to take part in a movie known as The Shaolin Temple, his performance was so good that after the movie finished and aired, people would cue up for miles at his home just to see him. The movie was an overnight success and took hk$16 million and was no.4 at the box office, it made only 1 million less than Jackie Chans Dragon Lord. This led to Jet starring in the next 2 Shaolin Temple movies.

The Big Moment

A few years had passed and Li had done a few low budget movies like Dragon Fight and Born To Defend, but it wasn’t until Tsui Hark approached him to star as the legendary hero Wong Fei Hung in Once Upon A Time In China that Jet really made his mark. The movie was supposed to focus on Yuen Biao‘s character but Hark changed this when the camera started rolling, and I bet Jet fans were glad of this because the movie was a massive hit and at the Hong Kong film awards the movie won best director, editing, choreographer and music score. This would lead to Jet starring in 4 more OUATIC films and high wire kung fu was once again making a name for itself.

Throughout the rest of the 90′s Jet starred in other movies such as Last Hero In China, Fong Sai Yuk and New Legend Of Shaolin but the biggest film of all and maybe one of his very best was the remake of Bruce Lee’s Fist Of Fury, with the title Fist Of Legend. It was directed by Gordon Chan and features action choreography by Yuen Woo Ping. The film’s setting is in Shanghai in 1937 during the Second Sino-Japanese War as the city is occupied by Japanese forces. It is regarded as one of the best martial arts films of all time, and almost universally viewed as Jet Li’s best.

In 1998, he made his American film debut in Lethal Weapon 4 which was the first time he had ever played a villain in a film. He agreed to do Lethal Weapon 4 after the producer Joel Silver promised to give him the leading role in his next film, Romeo Must Die (2000) which was a box office hit. Li turned down Chow Yun-Fat’s role in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000) because he promised his wife that he would not make any films during her pregnancy.

He also turned down the role of Seraph in The Matrix trilogy, based on his belief that the role was not one which required his skills and that the films were iconic and stunning enough without adding his name to the cast list.

In 2001 he starred in another 2 Hollywood films called The One and Kiss Of The Dragon, both did ok at the box office, In 2002, the period martial arts epic film Hero was released in the Chinese market. This film was both a commercial and critical success and become the highest-grossing motion picture in Chinese history at the time.

Jet’s biggest film to cross over to Hollywood was the movie Fearless, he played Huo Yuanjia, the real life founder of Chin Woo Association, who reportedly defeated foreign boxers and Japanese martial artists in publicized events at a time when China’s power was seen as eroding. In 2008 he finally teamed up with the legend that is Jackie Chan for the movie Forbidden Kingdom, an american film which is based on the monkey king from the Chinese folk novel Journey to the West. Li also starred as the lead villain in the fantasy action film The Mummy Tomb Of The Dragon Emperor.

Jet has currently finished the big budget film called The Expendables starring and produced by Sly Stallone. Also is he making a movie called Ocean Paradise, which will be a drama and may actually signal the end of Jet Li’s Martial Arts Career and the start of his new found love for charity and dramas.

Jet Li - Expendables - But could this be Jet Li's last real action movie?

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

Click here to view the embedded video.