Five Shaolin Masters (1974)

Opening Chase/Fights: 2.5/5



Tea House Fight: 2.75/5



Cai/Rebels vs Bao/Manchus: 3/5



Li/Rebels vs Zhang/Manchus: 3/5



Jiang/Fang vs Shan/Manchus: 3/5



Ma Chao-Hsing vs 2 Manchus: 2.75/5



Ma Chao Sing/Rebel vs Ma Fu Yi: 2.5/5



Prison Break: 3.25/5



Ma/Li Sparring: 2.25/5



End Fight: 4/5



I really dug this movie. It shows its age in parts, but there is some screen fighting in this that holds up to this day. Also, I was very invested in the stakes of the film. It follows a very simple structure, but executes it well. We see a lot of younger guys here that would go on to become stars in the 80's, like Leung Kar Yan (Beardy), Fung Hak On, and even a cameo by Gordon Liu. Of the 5 leads, Sheng Fu steals the show as Ma Chao Sing, he's got a Jackie Chan-like charisma to him. Admittedly I'm not as well versed in knowledge of martial arts actors in the 70's, besides Bruce Lee, so although these men were all top stars in this period they were new to me.

Anyway, there were no blow away fights but the final fight is great and satisfying when watched in context of the film. If you watched it as a standalone clip on youtube it wouldn't hold the same weight. There have been faster and more fluid fight scenes since then, but the finale carries emotional weight and displays various martial arts styles as a 5 part set piece that later films would adopt and follow.

Recommended.

Heroes Of The East (1978)

Tao vs Koda: 2.25/5


Tao vs Koda: 2.75/5


Tao vs Kendo Master: 3/5


Drunken Master Fight: 2/5


 Tao vs Karate Master: 3.25/5


Tao vs Nunchaku/Tonfa Master: 3.5/5


Tao vs Sojutsu Master: 3.5/5


Tao vs Sai Master: 3.25/5


Tao vs Judo Master: 2.5/5


Tao vs Takeno Round 1: 3/5


Tao vs Takeno Round 2: 3.75/5



I really dug this movie. It was kind of revolutionary for its time in that most Chinese kung fu movies portrayed Japanese people as awful monsters, whereas in this movie they are mostly honorable and fight in the spirit of sport. I also really enjoyed the variety of martial arts employed. There are no blow away fights but nothing is bad. And there's some really good stuff in here. Recommended.

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000)

Shu Lien vs Sword Thief: 3.25/5


Jade Fox & Sword Thief vs Bo, May, Tsai & Mu Bai: 3.25/5


Sword Thief vs Mu Bai: 3/5


Inn Fight: 3.5/5


Shu Lien vs Jen: 4.25/5


Jade Fox Ambush:  N/R



Goddamn I love this movie. I thought I'd look back on it and think less of it. No sir. A bunch of good fights and one GREAT fight. I'd have to check, but Michelle Yeoh and Zhang Ziyi's duel may be my favorite Woman vs Woman fight of all time. It's certainly up there. And it's also one of my favorite weapons fight of all time.

This is one of the few martial arts films nominated for Best Picture. And it's quite deserving. I'm not as big a fan of weapons fights or the Wuxia genre, but this is a beautiful film, and the acting is terrific. Yuen Woo Ping's choreography is on point. And Michelle Yeoh is exceptional.


Highly Recommended.

Dragon Tiger Gate (2006)

Tiger vs Gangsters & Dragon: 3.5/5


Dragon/Turbo vs Gangsters: 2.25/5


Kun vs Double Devils/Gangsters: NR


Dragon vs Double Devils/Gangsters: 3/5


Shibumi vs The Gate: 3.25/5


Shibumi vs Tiger/Turbo: 3.5/5


Shibumi vs Dragon: 4/5



How much hair product was in the budget for this movie? Anyway, this is a solid action flick. And it features the most one sided final battle (for the hero) I can remember. Donnie Yen's "Dragon" gets hit once in the course of the entire film. Unheard of for a kung fu protagonist. It's strange because Tiger and Turbo get some shine early on in the movie but become afterthoughts for the rest of it. It's all about Dragon. In fairness, Donnie Yen is the best screen fighter of the 3, but still, I expected Tiger to get more to do considering his name is in the title of the film.

The action is solid throughout but let me get to this final fight. Shibumi, who is one of the most strongly written badass martial arts villains in modern film, gets absolutely owned by Dragon. It's insane. Before this, we get to watch Shibumi do things like work over a Guinness World Record setting heavy bag, crush Master Wong to death, and just generally be awesome at everything. Then Dragon shows up, and Shibumi is completely outclassed. Normally in a martial arts film, the hero has to fight from underneath and overcome. Shibumi NEVER LANDS A HIT on Dragon. Dragon slaps him around about 50 times.

Now, let me also say, I really liked the fight. See the above score. The reason I rated it so highly is because the first minute of the fight features some of the best handwork choreography Donnie's ever done. It's so fast, sharp and fluid. Also I love how once Shibumi gets palm thrusted into a wall he looks up and says, "18 Dragon Slaying Palms?" like it's some mythical technique he'd only heard legends of.

Now normally, after that initial protagonist flurry the villain would start to take control and dominate. But nope. Dragon continues to slap Shibumi around for the rest of the fight. Shibumi gets zero offense until the end. And the ending gets a little ridiculous. Sometimes less is more. I actually would've rated this higher but the lack on drama due to Dragon's dominance takes it down a little for me. I wonder if Donnie's intention was to subvert the norm by having the hero just clean the floor with the big bad. I don't know.


Anyway, this is a solid flick, though not a must unless you're a Donnie Yen completist. Mildly Recommended.

Catch All Internet Lightsaber Fights (Various Years)

Ryan vs Dorkman: 4/5

Ryan vs Brandon: 4.25/5

Ryan vs Dorkman 2: 4.75/5

Ryan vs Brandon 2: 4.75/5






These are all dope! Watch them, in order!

The Shaolin Temple (1982)

Kicker Chang/Jue Yuan vs Emperor/Guards: 2.75/5


Bai vs Jue Yuan: 2/5


Bai vs Guards: 3/5


Jue Yuan vs Guards: 3/5


Jue Yuan vs Emperor: 3.5/5


Monks vs Guards: 4/5



Jue Yuan vs Monks: 3.25/5


Battle Of Shaolin Temple: 4.25/5


Monk/Bai vs Officer: 4/5



Jue Yuan vs Emperor: 3.75/5



This is a great movie. The action doesn't pick up until the second half of the film. But there are some great training montages to hold you over till then. Jet Li, though quite young here, really carries the emotional weight of the movie. His facial expressions convey such deep, sincere meaning. Oh and also, the man can fight. But this is one of his better acting performances.

The meat of this movie's action comes when all of the monks take up arms and do battle. It is glorious. Watching them fight with different weapons and styles is truly something to behold.

This movie is really all about what it means to be a monk. Which I found quite interesting. If you're into that sort of thing, you'll enjoy this too.

The movie has some gorgeous shots. Beautiful landscapes. It's the first Hong Kong film shot on mainland China. It's kind of legendary, in that way.

There are flaws with the film. It's paced a bit strangely, though that's an echo of the genre and time. Occasionally it feels almost like a series of vignettes. Some of the comedic beats don't hold up. But these are minor concerns.

I really liked this movie. Recommended.

Man of Tai Chi (2013)

Opening Fight: 2.25/5

Tiger Chen vs Chou Ping: 3.25/5

Tiger Chen vs Brawler: 3.5/5

Tiger vs Guy in Blue: 2.25/5

Tiger Fighting Montage: 3.25/5

Tiger vs Iron Body Guy: 3.75/5

Tiger vs Sanshou Fighter: 3.25/5

Tiger vs 2 Fighters: 4/5

Tiger vs Master: 4/5

Tiger vs Uri Romanov: N/R

Tiger vs Iko Uwais: 3/5

Tiger vs Keanu Reeves: 2.75/5



Tiger Chen is a talented guy. This movie functions as his vehicle. That being said, I wish I liked it more. It's an ok film, but considering they got Iko Uwais from the Raid in it and the sheer amount of fighting in it, I expected more.

Keanu Reeves chews so much scenery throughout this. He is way over the top. You can tell they wanted to make his final showdown with Tiger an epic, but they fall quite short. Keanu just can't move well enough to convince me he's the dominant villain he's presented as. Yeah he's bigger than Tiger, but that's about it. Also, if I never have to hear Keanu say, "You owe me a life" ever again I can die happy.

I wish Tiger and Iko Uwais had gotten a real chance to go at it, but the story film's narrative prevents that. Let's hope Tiger shows up in The Raid 3.

Onto the positives, there are 2 great fights and a couple very good fights in this. Tiger vs his master is especially resonant, the actor playing the Master moves better than Keanu. Plus the music that fight is set to really helps to convey the story. Tiger looks good in every fight scene he's in. He holds up his end quite well. I want him in more things.


I want to support movies like this and guys like Tiger. Somewhat recommended.