Magic Crystal (1986)

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Magic Crystal (1986)

Super fun action comedy from Wong Jing who takes a distinctly Hong Kong approach to reworking both E.T. and Raiders of the Lost Ark. The fantasy elements are pure Spielberg, in which a young Chinese boy (Siu Ban-ban) becomes the bearer of a telepathic chunk of a glowing green jade. The jade communicates solely with the boy, teaching him a bit of self-confidence as well as having fun with new lodger and general sex pest Nat Chan, who becomes the subject of an extended farce in which his hands and feet are rearranged and he is briefly imbued with hypnotic powers. …

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Falcon Rising (2014)

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Falcon Rising (2014)

Ex-serviceman John Chapman (White) returns to New York from an undisclosed conflict in the Middle East suffering from PTSD and a really short fuse. When he’s not self-medicating his trauma with alcohol, he’s punching holes in the walls of his apartment, or urging gun-toting street thugs to blow his brains out during a heist at a convenience store (“either shoot me or stop wasting my time.”). Enter Cindy (Ali), his supportive sister and only beacon of hope, who is taking a break from her day job as a social worker in the dangerous, hazy favelas of Rio de Janeiro. Soon after …

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The One (2001)

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The One (2001)

The One is a mixed affair: stylistically influenced by The Matrix but with silly cartoon violence. Jet Li has never acted better in a US production and although the film is littered with gimmicks, he still ends up looking pretty damn cool. The story is especially silly. It’s a sci-fi adventure following a serial killer through parallel universes. A crazy version of Jet Li is determined to kill all the other versions of Jet Li to become ‘the one’. It’s an ambitious premise and it just about works. The wire fu doesn’t look too out of place in a film …

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Shootfighter: Fight to the Death (1992)

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Shootfighter: Fight to the Death (1992)

Shootfighting is a Japanese-American derivative of shoot-wrestling and is now regarded as something of a forerunner to modern day mixed martial arts (MMA), being both a hybrid style and a full contact sport. This film takes the ‘no rules’ concept one step further to include weaponry in the ring during the final tournament sequence – nunchakus, swords, a three-sectioned-staff and so on – resulting in some pretty grisly exploitation scenes of throats being cut open and hearts removed.

The film borrows its narrative set-up and oiled torsos from Bloodsport – not to mention a lot of other great tournament B-movies – charting …

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My Father is a Hero (1995)

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My Father is a Hero (1995)

Jet Li‘s first successful departure from traditional kung fu hero to modern day action man. This isn’t a classic by any means but it does provide a convincing contemporary performance from Jet Li in keeping with his burgeoning popularity in the west. The story doesn’t break new ground, with Jet playing an undercover cop determined to bring down criminal kingpin Yu Rong-guang, and things get messy when the cop’s family get involved. Anita Mui is excellent as a straight-laced cop investigating the triad gang, although wushu wunderkind Miu Tse – playing Jet’s young son – is clearly the film’s trump …

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War (2007)

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War (2007)

Yakuza thugs and Chinese triads cross swords in a bitter feud which escalates from the underground nightclubs of San Francisco to Mexico, Japan and back again. Rogue (Jet Li) is a silent assassin who is so damn ruthless he straps explosives to rottweilers and has his own signature titanium bullets (for a marksman dealing in secrecy, this is something of an oversight). Crawford (Jason Statham) is a ballsy, hot-tempered FBI agent who is trying to quit smoking but still talks like Bruce Willis on a forty-a-day habit. Both are completely incomprehensible and rely on their muscle to communicate. They are …

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Bodyguard from Beijing (1994)

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Bodyguard from Beijing (1994)

Nothing too special here; a conventional action thriller borrowing themes from Hollywood hit The Bodyguard. Jet Li is the titular bodyguard who is sent to Hong Kong to protect a key witness in a murder trial (played by Christy Chung), who subsequently tops every assassin’s hit-list in the run up to her day in court. A relationship blossoms between protector and protected, but it’s nothing to get too excited about. Similar to the action, which consists mostly of stylised gunfights.

AKA: The Defender

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Kung Fu Cult Master (1993)

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Kung Fu Cult Master (1993)

Here we go, then: Jet Li falls off a cliff and is cured of his ‘Jinxed Palm’ injury after learning the ‘Cosmic Solar Stance’ from a bearded monk chained to a giant rock. He then flies around the Seven Kingdoms with Chingmy Yau exacting revenge on the Evil Sect masters responsible for the suicides of his parents (his father dies following a spontaneous heart explosion). The villains are Master No-Mercy – a kung fu mistress with a sacred glowing sword who kills just about everybody she encounters – and the elegant but treacherous Chao Min, who flies in and out …

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Fong Sai-yuk II (1993)

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Fong Sai-yuk II (1993)

Rushed sequel made the same year as the original film, this follow-up focuses on Adam Cheng’s appointment as the new head of the Red Flower Society rather than the charming relationship between Fong and his mother. There’s an important box out there detailing the true identity of the Red Flower leader and Fong is chosen to retrieve it, doing battle with some Japanese Samurais and Manchurian guards in the process. Amy Kwok plays a new love interest. She’s a Manchurian daughter who weds Fong in sly pursuit of the coveted box. Josephine Siao returns to relay some matriarchal dominance over …

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Kung Fu Jungle (2014)

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Kung Fu Jungle (2014)

In shades of Silence of the Lambs, convicted murderer Donnie Yen is sprung from prison three years into a five year jail term to help no-nonsense homicide detective Charlie Yeung get into the deranged mindset of kung fu serial killer Wang Bao-qiang, who has flipped his lid and started bumping off rival martial arts masters. It takes an obvious suspension of logic to go along with the film’s barely conceivable premise, and Teddy Chan does brilliantly well to keep the tension palpable despite the absurdities in the plot. It’s the sort of story you would find in just about any …

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