The Raid: Redemption (2012)

Rama vs Group, Weapons Fight: 4.25/5

Rama vs 4 Guys w/ Machetes: 4/5

Sergeant vs Mad Dog: 4/5

Meth Lab Fight Scene: 3.75/5

Rama & Andi vs Mad Dog: 4.75/5

The breakout Indonesian action/martial arts film is as good as they say. Iko Uwais is not as athletically gifted as Tony Jaa but he carries himself very well throughout this film. And Mad Dog is an absolute machine. Consistently good fighting all around. One of my favorite aspects of this movie is that the thugs are not just cannon fodder. Everyone can hold their own, which adds a sense of realistic danger for the heroes. An example of this is the meth lab scene (the weaker fight scene in the movie), which is saved by a mini boss battle at the end of it, with Iko trading blows with a thug on some tables. And the final showdown with Mad Dog is superb. This will go down as one of the stronger martial arts films of the decade. Highly recommended. 

Death Grip (2012)

Baseball Field Fight: 3.25/5

Bathroom Fight: 2.25/5

Dark Fight: 2.75/5

Eric vs Knights: 3.75/5

Eric vs Alvin: 4.75/5

Eric vs Johnny: 4.25/5

The stunt people truly are a top tier stunt group. Eric Jacobus performs great screen fighting as usual. Add Johnny Yong Bosch to the mix and we've got a barn-burner. I will say that a lot of the fighting in the first half of the film didn't grab me. The dark fight is an interesting concept. The bathroom brawl is pretty funny. Once we get towards the end, things really pick up. Alvin and Eric deliver a near perfect knife fight. And the highly anticipated finale is also great stuff, more of a storytelling fight than a technical one. Recommended. 

SPL Sha Po Lang a.k.a. Killzone (2005)

Sammo vs Cops & Donnie: 3/5

Donnie vs Cops: 2.5/5

Donnie vs Wu Jing: 5/5

Donnie vs Sammo: 3.75/5

Donnie vs Wu Jing is the best modern day weapons fight I've ever seen. Donnie with his YRG baton against Wu Jing's knife. Incredible stuff. The end fight with Donnie and Sammo suffers from overused wire work. But the grappling and straight kickboxing is still great. Sammo plays a surprisingly good villain. Those are the 2 major fights. Recommended, for the weapons fight alone. 

Rosa (1986)

Office Fight: 3.25/5

Yuen Biao and Girls vs Thugs: 4/5

Girl vs Chung Fa: 2.25/5

Yuen Biao vs Dick Wei: 4.25/5


Yuen Biao steals the show yet again. His group fight near the end is performed beautifully. And his showdown with Dick Wei is great. These two have terrific chemistry. Chung Fa is underutilized, which happens far too often. Not a lot of fighting here. But some quality stuff. Somewhat recommended.

Owl vs Bombo (1984)

Sammo vs George in dark: 2.5/5

Sammo & George vs Thugs: 2.5/5

Sammo vs students: 2.25/5

Sammo & George vs Thugs: 2.5/5

Sammo vs Richard Ng: 2.75/5

Sammo vs Everybody & Dick Wei: 4.25/5


Nothing really substantial until the Finale. The finale has one of my favorite "One w/ weapon vs many" group fights of all time. It's exceptional. And then capped off by a Sammo vs Dick Wei showdown. I only wish that it were longer. Nothing else really noteworthy, though. Somewhat recommended.

Book of Heroes (1987)

Bar Fight: 3.75/5

Yukari vs Thugs: 4.5/5

Restaurant Fight: 4/5

Gas Station Fight: 3.75/5

Finale: 4.5/5

Yukari vs Lam Sam Mei: 4/5

Man, this movie is insane. So much fighting. And it's quality stuff. The ladies steal the show, Yukari Oshima's never looked better. So many crazy stunts and falls. Great, great stuff throughout. Highly recommended. 

City of Darkness (1990)

Bar Fight: 3/5

Billy Chow vs 3 Guys/ Donnie Yen: 3.75/5

Restaurant Fight: 3.25/5

Kim Maree Penn vs Guy: 3.25/5

Kim Maree Penn vs 3 Guys: 3.5/5

2 Guys vs Assasin Guy: 3/5

Donnie Yen vs Collin Chou: 4.25/5

Donnie in top form. Donnie's charisma carries the fighting for most of the movie. The other guys do a decent job as well. Billy Chow is a great early obstacle. And the finale between Donnie and Collin is great stuff. Recommended. 

License To Steal (1990)

Joyce Godenzi vs Agnes Aurelio: 2/5

Yuen Biao vs Girl: 3/5

Yuen Biao vs Collin Chou: 3/5

Poolside Fight: 3.5/5

Parking Lot Fight: 5/5

Joyce vs Two Guys: 1.75/5

Joyce vs Agnes Aurelio: 3.25/5

Yuen Biao steals the show once again. Also young Collin Chou is in top form. The Parking Lot Fight is pure art. Yuen vs Billy Chow, especially. The finale between Joyce and Agnes can't follow it, but it's not bad. Recommended. 

Flash Point (2007)

3 Brothers vs Gang: 2.25/5

Donnie Yen vs Xin Yu: 4.5/5

Donnie Yen vs Collin Chou: 5/5

Not much for quantity, but definitely quality. The end fight is one of my favorite fight scenes of all time. Highly recommended.

Dragons Forever (1988)

Opening Fight: 3/5

Sammo Hung vs 2 Thugs: 1.5/5

Sammo Hung vs Yuen Biao: 2/5

Bar Fight: 3.25/5

Jackie Chan Boat Fight: 4/5

Jackie Chan vs Sammo Hung vs Yuen Biao: 4/5

Sammo Hung vs Thugs & Benny Urquidez: 3.5/5

Jackie/Yuen vs Thugs: 4.5/5

Jackie Chan vs Benny Urquidez: 5/5

One of my all time favorite martial arts films. The 3 Dragons all square off against each other in a great three for all. Jackie has a great group fight. And the finale is spectacular. HIGHLY recommended.

Magic Crystal (1986)

House Fight: 3/5

Street Fight: 3.5/5

Gymnasium Fight: 3.5/5

House Fight: 4/5

Warehouse Fight: 3.5/5

Finale: 4.5/5

Surprisingly good fighting. Not a good movie. But perhaps Cynthia's best screen fighting ever. And Richard Norton and Andy Lau hold their own. Recommended.

Crystal Hunt (1991)

Donnie vs Thugs in Street: 2.5/5

Restaurant Fight: 2.25/5

House Fight: 2.75/5

Office Fight: 2.5/5

Donnie/Girl vs Thugs: 2.5/5

Donnie vs John Salvitti: 3.5/5

Finale: 4/5

Donnie in his prime. Decent fighting throughout, nothing too substantial until the finale, which suffers from a bit of damage overkill. But good performances by Donnie and John. Somewhat recommended. 

Broken Path (2008)

Bedroom Fight: 3/5

Basement Fight: 3.75/5

Yard Fight: 3.75/5

Scaffolding Fight: 3.75/5

Shed Fight P1: 1.5/5

Shed Fight P2: 3.5/5

Johnny vs Creep Guy: 2/5

Basement Fight 2: 3.5/5

Johnny vs Mask Guy: 2.5/5

Johnny vs Big Guy: 2.75/5

Johnny vs Sakura: 3/5

Johnny vs Dan: 4.25/5

Steady flow of solid fighting throughout. Nothing too exceptional until the finale. Johnny Yong Bosch and Daniel Southworth are great screen fighters. Great storytelling and build throughout the fight. Somewhat recommended.

Special ID (2013)

Donnie vs Ken Lo: 2.25/5

Donnie vs Thugs: 4/5

Donnie vs Andy: 3.25/5


One great group fight but Donnie experiments with grappling and ground fighting a little too freely in the finale. And the fight with Ken Lo is underwhelming. Skippable.

Tiger Cage 3 (1991)

Factory Fight: 3.75/5

Rooftop Fight: 3.5/5

Weapons Fight: 4.25/5

Ricky Cheung Kwok Leung vs Ridley Tsui: 3.75/5

The weapons fight is brutal in this movie. Great hatred is displayed as well as use of non-traditional weapons i.e. flaming 2x4's. And the underrated Ridley Tsui shows off his stuff in the finale. Recommended.

Tiger Cage 2 (1990)

Donnie vs David Wu: 2.75/5

Donnie vs David Wu II: 2.5/5

Donnie vs Thugs on Bus: 2.75/5

Cynthia Khan vs Girl: 2.25/5

Donnie/David vs Thugs: 3.5/5

David Wu vs Robin Shou: 4.25/5

Donnie Yen vs John Salvitti: 3.75/5

Donnie Yen vs Michael Woods: 4/5

Donnie Yen vs Robin Shou: 5/5


Spectacular Finale, and a great fight midway through. Donnie in his prime. Highly recommended.

Righting Wrongs a.k.a. Above The Law (1986)

Classic 80's kickboxing classic. Yuen Biao is in a starring role, as he should be.


Cynthia vs Thugs: 3/5

Parking Lot Fight: 4.5/5

Yuen vs Cynthia: 3.5/5

Yuen vs Peter Cunningham: 3.75/5

Cynthia vs Karen: 2.75/5

Cynthia vs Thugs: 3/5

Yuen vs Melvin Wong: 4/5

Yuen Biao kills it in the Parking Lot Fight. And the finale is strong, too. Recommended. 

Miracles, a.k.a. Black Dragon (1989)

Classic Jackie flick.


Jackie vs 2 Thugs: 2.25/5

Jackie vs Two Gang Members: 3/5

Restaurant Fight: 4.75/5

Market Fight: 3.5/5

Finale: 4.25/5

2 Excellent fights and no bad fights. Recommended.

Shanghai Express a.k.a. Millionaire's Express (1986)

One of my all time favorite martial arts films. Some great fights in this.


Kids Fight: 3/5

Sammo vs Yuen: 4/5

Samurai vs Thugs: 2/5

Two Guys vs Tough Bandit: 2.75/5

Sammo Eskrima Fight: 3.25/5

Yukari vs Thugs: 3.5/5

Yuen Biao vs Dick Wei: 5/5

Sammo vs Cynthia: 3.5/5

Hwang Jang Lee vs Thugs: 4/5

Richard Norton vs Yusuaki Kurata: 3.25/5

Yuen Biao & Sammo vs. Hwang Jang Lee: 3/5

I broke the finale into parts but the entire finale is splendid. And Yuen vs Sammo is very good too, though their fight in Shanghai Shanghai is better. Hwang Jang crushes many stuntmen with great kicks. Yuen Biao vs Dick Wei is one of the greatest fights of all time. Highly recommended.