Cyborg (1989)

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Cyborg (1989)

In a post-apocalyptic New York, the world has been ravished by The Plague, populated by dry ice machines and so-called ‘pirates’, who dress like rejects from an 80s hair metal band, or something out of The Warriors. Their leader, Fender Tremolo (Klyn), communicates using mostly grunts, and quite likes the dystopian, primitive chaos of the future. He escorts a female cyborg on her way to meet some doctors in Atlanta to help cure the plague, hoping to steal the antidote, but marauding vigilante Gibson Rickenbacker (Van Damme) has other plans. Spending most of the film topless, Gibson is an emotionally-stunted …

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Rush Hour 3 (2007)

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Rush Hour 3 (2007)

A full six years after Rush Hour 2, cop buddies Lee (Chan) and Carter (Tucker) return to fight another batch of triads. The Chinese ambassador is shot during diplomacy meetings held by the head of council (played by an almost unconscious Max von Sydow). The ambassador survives, but the attacks continue until Lee and Carter trace the triads back to Paris, where they discover Lee’s brother Kenji (Sanada) is behind a plot to find the names of an ancient underworld pact hidden somewhere on the streets of France.

Chan walks through this unnecessary sequel with his eyes closed, shifting to autopilot …

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Drive (1997)

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Drive (1997)

A criminally underrated kung fu film. Drive succeeds because of Steve Wang’s blistering execution of Hong Kong style fight choreography, backed by glossy Hollywood production values. Wang’s film successfully covers a broad range of themes, from the charming buddy comedy of mismatched duo Dacascos and Hardison – constantly on the run from the bad guys – to the extended fight scenes, kitted out with a fantastical edge. Its sort of Rush Hour meets The Matrix, although Drive predates both. The story is fun, if slightly ridiculous. Dacascos has a bionic implant which gives him special kung fu powers, and the company who …

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Black Eagle (1988)

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Black Eagle (1988)

Secret agents, an exotic Mediterranean backdrop and bad Russian accents adorn this cheap reworking of a James Bond spy film. Ninja man Sho Kosugi casts aside his black pajamas to play a suited US government muscle-for-hire, fresh from seemingly aiding Taliban fighters from Commie insurgents during the Cold War’s waning years. He only wants some quality time with the kids (here played by his real-life kids, Shane and Kane), but is coerced into one more job: to locate missing F-111 fighter jets somewhere off Malta complete with laser guidance technology that a team of KGB’s finest have their eyes on. …

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Profile: Lau Kar-leung

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Profile: Lau Kar-leung

Date of birth: July 28, 1934 (Guangzhou, Guangdong, China)

Date of death: June 25, 2013 (aged 78), Hong Kong

Other names: Liu Chia Liang (Mandarin name); Gung Fu Leung, Kung Fu Liang, Lau Ga Leung, Lau Ka Leung, Liu Chia Liung, Liu Ka Liang

Occupation: Director, action director, actor, producer, writer, stuntman

Style: Hung Gar kung fu

Biography: As one of martial art cinema’s most prolific and innovative filmmakers, Lau Kar-leung helped to shape the fortunes of the Shaw Brothers studio throughout the 1970s and 80s with his highly successful traditional kung fu films, and set the standard for Hong Kong fight choreography throughout a prolific …

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Profile: John Kreng

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Profile: John Kreng

Date of birth: July 2 (Washington, D.C.)

Occupation: Stunt coordinator, fight coordinator, stuntman, author, screenwriter, producer, director, second unit director, instructor, bouncer, bodyguard, stand up comedian

Style: Tang Soo Do, Japanese Jujitsu, Tien Shan Pai, Western boxing, Wing Chun, Sil Lum Pai, American karate, Kali, Hung Gar, Taekwondo, Okinawan Kenpo, Tai Chi, Chi Gung, Aikido, Shotokan, American kickboxing

Biography: John Kreng has enjoyed a multifaceted career in the American entertainment industry. Born of Chinese and Thai descent, the Kreng family settled in Washington, D.C. following the death of his father when he was only a year old. Kreng majored in art at the …

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The Buddhist Fist (1980)

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The Buddhist Fist (1980)

Sunny Yuen and Tsui Siu-ming play orphaned Shaolin buddies raised in the sacred art of the Buddhist Fist and all its variations. Sunny’s Dad, a police chief, goes missing for two months without anybody noticing, and when Sunny’s investigations into his father’s disappearance has him fending off a tumultuous array of quirky bad guys desperate for his balls, he begins to suspect those closer to home. But surely not; a Buddhist monk as the film’s master criminal? A conniving thief out for all he can get and stealing China’s remaining jade treasures?

There is little in the way of surprises in …

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White Tiger (1996)

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White Tiger (1996)

White Tiger smells of B movie cheese, and a strong one at that, but for the most part it is good natured and spirited fun. Plucky British beefcake Gary Daniels plays a US Special Forces agent whose trusted partner is killed by sinister stereotype Tagawa – a snarling drug dealer hunted by both American and Chinese syndicates. Daniels’ quest for revenge leads him into close contact with corrupt officials and a sexy Chinatown mistress whose motives are unclear. Not that any of this matters, as most of the film is spent watching our deadpan lead kick people in the head …

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Ring of Fire (1991)

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Ring of Fire (1991)

Chinese and American kickboxers duke it out in an underground boxing ring. Softcore sex scenes split between the action. A drunken Eric Lee stumbles about on the floor, occasionally exploding into rapid fire kicks of pure excellence. And who is the gweilo fighter the Chinese are up against? Only Surrey’s finest Gary Daniels! He cockily demonstrates his flexibility before hospitalising his foe. Then cut to the doctor on duty – it’s Don “The Dragon” Wilson. He may be the best fighter out of all of them, but he’s concentrating on his medical career and complicated love-life with the gorgeous Maria …

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Twin Dragons (1992)

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Twin Dragons (1992)

Designed as a means of raising finance for new office space for the Hong Kong Film Director’s Guild (hence the long list of celebrity cameos), Twin Dragons isn’t half as knowing or self-indulgent as you might think. It’s actually a firm, enjoyable Jackie Chan caper with Hong Kong’s biggest action star playing identical twins separated at birth in shades of Van Damme’s Double Impact, which was released the year before. One is raised on the tough streets of Hong Kong to become a car mechanic and part time illegal racer, the other is raised by his biological parents in the …

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