Way of the Black Dragon (1979)

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Way of the Black Dragon (1979)

Before the omnipotence of kung fu comedies and in the wake of relentless Bruceploitation pictures, Hong Kong was still churning out recycled crime bashers like this one. Writer-director Chan Chue (an actor probably most famous for being the factory manager in The Big Boss) takes a cavalier attitude to story-telling – and directing for that matter – preferring to, presumably, just riff it on the day. This film is saved (just about) by kung fu star Carter Wong and American martial artist Ron Van Clief, both of whom leave it quite late in the film before they unleash their magic. …

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The Black Dragon (1974)

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The Black Dragon (1974)

An early leading role for Jason Pai Piao, filmed in the Philippines and with a story borrowed from The Big Boss. Jason plays an illiterate, naive country-boy with great kung fu skills who follows his successful brother to the bright lights of the big city in search of fortune. He lands a job on the docks where he discovers that his gweilo bosses are smuggling opium into the cargo. He teams up with Ron Van Clief – making his Hong Kong action film debut – and his crew of righteous karate fighters to take out the boss before inevitably having …

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Profile: Ron Van Clief

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Profile: Ron Van Clief

Date of birth: 25 January, 1943 (Brooklyn, New York, USA)

Other names: Ronnie Van Clief, Ron Van Cliff.

Occupation: Martial artist, instructor, police officer, writer, actor.

Style: Chinese Goju-Ryu Karate (founder), Karate, jiu jitsu, ninjitsu, taekwondo, kung fu, Arnis, Eskrima, Silat.

Biography: Known as the ‘Black Dragon’ – a name given to him by Bruce Lee – Ron Van Clief became the first Black action star to lead a Hong Kong film. He is a celebrated martial arts instructor, a five-time world karate and kung fu champion, a 15-time All American champion, a former police officer and US Marine, a New York Times bestselling …

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KFMG Podcast S06 Episode 69: Ron Van Clief

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KFMG Podcast S06 Episode 69: Ron Van Clief

“Martial arts has been my life since 1959… You can never learn enough. The learning process is eternal.”

Martial arts legend Ron Van Clief never wanted to be a movie star. Known as the ‘Black Dragon’ – a name originally given to him by Bruce Lee and adopted as his screen persona in a series of Hong Kong kung fu movies in the 1970s – Ron was dismayed at the lack of genuine martial artists he met when working in action movies. For the Brooklyn-born former US Marine and New York City cop, Ron’s passion for the fighting arts was formed …

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Mortal Kombat (2021)

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Mortal Kombat (2021)

For anyone who felt the PG-13 attempts in the 1990s to recreate the gruesome beat-’em-up Mortal Kombat for the big-screen were a bit lame – not to mention the similarly campy TV spin-offs – then this potty-mouthed 2021 version from the guy behind the Saw franchise, James Wan, should win you back over. Buckets of the red stuff get sloshed about liberally as the filmmakers relish in recreating some of the video game’s more grisly ‘fatalities’. Favourite characters are given wonderful reveals and demonstrate their signature moves in total service to the fans – and, it should be said, to …

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KFMG Podcast S06 Episode 68: Alain Uy, Ron Yuan, Mykel Shannon Jenkins / Tran Quoc Bao

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KFMG Podcast S06 Episode 68: Alain Uy, Ron Yuan, Mykel Shannon Jenkins / Tran Quoc Bao

“Nothing was traditional about this… we just had to make it by hook or by crook. We’re proud of every piece we did – we gave it our full dedication and focus, and we hope the work speaks for itself.” Tran Quoc Bao, director of The Paper Tigers

It has taken 10 years to get The Paper Tigers onto our screens – a slow and at times painful process full of ups and downs for its director, writer and producer, Tran Quoc Bao. The film – which finally lands in cinemas and on digital platforms in North America on 7 May …

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Death by Misadventure: The Mysterious Life of Bruce Lee (1993)

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Death by Misadventure: The Mysterious Life of Bruce Lee (1993)

This ramshackle documentary by Bruce Lee anoraks George Tan and Toby Russell skirts over the more basic biographical elements in favour of detailed and fascinating talking heads, particularly focusing on Lee’s death. Don Langford was Bruce Lee’s physician when he was taken to Hong Kong Baptist Hospital in May 1973 following what appeared to be an epileptic seizure. He manages to keep Lee alive by reducing swelling on his brain, before transferring him to Saint Teresa’s Hospital and the neurosurgeon, Peter Wu. Peter seems quite convinced that it was the hashish that Lee had consumed which caused the attack, and …

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Be Water (2020)

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Be Water (2020)

This melancholy, poignant Bruce Lee hagiography – made for the US sports channel ESPN – arrives at a time in Trump’s America when racial divisions are at boiling point. Carefully coordinated by the Lee estate – featuring involvement from his widow, Linda, and daughter Shannon, who reads select cuts from Lee’s diaries – this film tells the story of a young, determined and charismatic Asian American immigrant trying to make an impact in white 1960s America, battling structural racism, historic prejudice, and a media landscape which saw no need for diversification. It’s an absolute miracle that Lee would go on …

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The Paper Tigers (2020)

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The Paper Tigers (2020)

Heartwarming underdog story about three kung fu buddies – known locally as the ‘three tigers’ – who meet up in middle age to avenge the death of their sifu. Bao Tran’s directorial feature film debut lands a sucker-punch not just to the funny bone – the script has more chucklesome moments than most recent action comedies with ten times the budget – but also in the feels, with a strong set of nuanced characters each battling their own midlife crises: unfulfilled potential; divisions of loyalty, justice and honour; adherence to tradition and familial responsibility; and a need to find compromise. Danny (Alain …

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KFMG Podcast S06 Episode 67: Isaac Florentine / Max Repossi

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KFMG Podcast S06 Episode 67: Isaac Florentine / Max Repossi

“Some people are trouble makers. Some people are trouble solvers. I’m a trouble solver.”

Isaac Florentine is one of those rare directors who possesses a style of filmmaking all of his own. Within a few minutes of watching one of his many great action movies, you will quickly realise you are in the world of Isaac Florentine. He wears his love for spaghetti westerns on his sleeve, almost as much as his passion for the martial arts. As an expert martial artist and karate instructor, he is keen to capture technique in his fight choreography. His combat sequences are often filmed in …

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