TNT Jackson (1974)

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TNT Jackson (1974)

Diana ‘TNT’ Jackson (“she’ll put you in traction”) flies to Hong Kong on the hunt for her missing brother who was killed by a squabbling gang of drug pushers. “I’m gonna find them, and I’m gonna bust the motherfuckers to pieces,” she says in a near-perfect plot synopsis, and soon Jackson is brushing afros with cool cat Charlie (Shaw), honing her chops with Karate Joe (Chiquito), and sniffing out the culprits after befriending undercover cop Elaine (Anderson).

It is also screamingly obvious that we are not in Hong Kong, but actually the far cheaper surrounds of the Philippines, where Roger Corman …

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Vanquisher (2009)

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Vanquisher (2009)

A sorry mess of an espionage film. Thai writer and director Manop Udomdej somehow manages to turn a basic revenge-driven cat and mouse story into complete confusion, not helped by a cast who – bless them – are excruciatingly bad. That may seem harsh, but when a filmmaker decides to add subtitles even to the bits in English then you know you’re in big trouble. But Udomdej’s most heinous crime is to undermine the physical talents of his mostly female cast in favour of barely competent gun battles full of quick editing and jerky, handheld camera distortion. The action sequences …

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Once Upon a Time in China II (1992)

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Once Upon a Time in China II (1992)

The radical, nationalistic exploits of the feared White Lotus Temple has brought a reign of terror to descend upon turn-of-the-century Canton. Talk of revolution is widespread and the sect’s anti-western hysteria is gathering momentum. Wong Fei-hung (Jet Li), his partner Aunt Yee (Rosamund Kwan) and disciple Fu (Benny Mok) arrive from Foshan and are greeted by scenes of escalating violence, with attacks on the British consulate and a foreign orphanage. Commander Lan (Donnie Yen), head of the local authorities, isn’t much help. His secret tactic of using the White Lotus to flush out revolutionaries leads him into close contact with …

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Born Invincible (1978)

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Born Invincible (1978)

The Lei Ping School are under attack from a seemingly unstoppable force. If the hidden saw attached to Lo Lieh’s tonfa wasn’t punishment enough, the poor youngsters now have to deal with the white-haired supremacy of Carter Wong and his unstoppable qigong technique. He’s been studying it since he was a boy – a lifetime’s training which has left him menacingly evil with a high voice, no genitalia and impervious to any kind of attack. He’s born invincible, but with an unknown weak spot. The Lei Ping students try their best to locate it, but Jack Long is defeated, followed …

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Legacy of Rage (1986)

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Legacy of Rage (1986)

After limited success in America, Bruce Lee‘s son Brandon Lee makes his starring role debut at the age of 21 with this, a Cantonese D&B potboiler toeing a similar line to the popular ‘heroic bloodshed’ films of the era from directors like Ringo Lam and John Woo. Lee provides his own boyish charm even if he does inevitably slip into knowing nods to his famous father, particularly during the physical stuff. His first call to arms is a back alley bash up with Bruce Lee’s buddy Bolo Yeung, and there are other convincing scuffles interspersed along the way. Lee plays …

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Profile: Bolo Yeung

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Profile: Bolo Yeung

Date of birth: July 3, 1946 (Guangzhou, China)

Other names: Yang Sze, Yang Szu, Bolo Yeung, Yeung See, Yeung Tze, Yeung Shut

Occupation: Actor, stuntman, bodybuilder, director

Style: Tai chi

Biography: Bolo Yeung, the so-called ‘Beast from the East’, is one of kung fu cinema’s all-time favourite villains. His muscular physique and deadly martial arts skills made him famous in some of the genre’s most cherished films, including Enter the Dragon (1973) opposite Bruce Lee and Jean-Claude Van Damme‘s starring role debut, Bloodsport (1988).

Yang Sze was born in Guangzhou, China, and learnt kung fu from the age of 10. After relocating to Hong Kong, he …

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Fist of Legend (1994)

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Fist of Legend (1994)

Stunning remake of the 1972 Bruce Lee classic Fist of Fury, Jet Li takes on the coveted role of Chen Zhen with the right amount of aplomb and virtue who arrives back from his studies in Japan to the Ching Wu martial arts school in Shanghai to help bury his recently deceased master, Hou Yuen-chia (a real life folk hero, later personified by Jet Li in the 2006 biopic Fearless). Since his absence, the Japanese military have escalated their involvement in Shanghai – masterminded by the beefy General Fujita (Billy Chow) – and the Ching Wu students are putting up …

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Once Upon a Time in China (1991)

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Once Upon a Time in China (1991)

Tsui Hark’s seminal kung fu film not only breathed new life into the genre (borrowing the trampolines and wires used more predominantly in his supernatural pictures) but the film also resurrected Chinese folk hero Wong Fei-hung for a whole new generation of film goers. Part of the film’s genius stems from the casting of the vibrant Jet Li in the pivotal lead role. He embodies the Christ-like figure of Wong Fei-hung with a maturity that defies his years whilst being utterly electrifying in the action scenes. Like most Wong Fei-hung films, the story deals in the encroachment of western powers …

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Tai Chi Boxer (1996)

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Tai Chi Boxer (1996)

A fusion of romance, action and political intrigue from acclaimed fight choreographer and director Yuen Woo-ping. Despite the title, the film features very little authentic tai chi action. Jacky Wu Jing plays a spirited adolescent with dazzling kung fu abilities who looks set to steal the heart of Christy Chung, playing a daughter from a powerful family. The plot abruptly shifts tone when an opium smuggling ring is uncovered, masterminded by savage gweilos and led by Darren Shahlavi. The plot threatens to get too big, especially after Wu’s character matures and becomes increasingly closer to his mother (which offers the …

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Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

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Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

There are many elements to this superb superhero movie which stand out. The emphasis placed on Chris Carnel’s powerful fight choreography is certainly one of them. Tight, sharp take-downs and crippling knife fights sit alongside flamboyant acts of high-kicking, luxuriously captured in an early bout with a French kickboxer (UFC fighter Georges St-Pierre) and two fights with The Winter Soldier: a bionic, regenerated Soviet assassin with a connection to Captain America’s past. The intensely physical scenes of human pugilism mirror Captain America’s purist persona and background as an old-fashioned war hero. In one scene, he prefers to put down his …

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