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6 movies. Very interesting stuff, but also quite strange.
I enjoyed the TV show with the same name too. It ran over 3 seasons and 70+ episodes. A German channel used to broadcast ca. 5 episodes every Saturday night. Of course the violence was harmless, but the interesting moral situations the vagabond samurai got into glued me to the screen. The show has such a slow pace that it doesn’t qualify as a Kung Fu series any more, though.
I love Lone Wolf and Cub or what I remember from my childhood as Shogun Assassin which was essentially a mash up of the first couple films in the series. I think I was able to rent them from Netflix a few years back but if I remember right Shogun Assassin is out of print or never came out on DVD or something like that. I have a crappy Laser disc version I pull out to watch every few years.
Shaolin Drunkard and Taoism Drunkard are two of the funniest movies I’ve ever seen. Some clever fight choreography too (the guy playing the drunken monk/granny has worked on hundreds of action movies, including the matrix movies). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9eUSBOWIf5s
Huh, I didn’t know they made this into a movie. I read part of the manga years ago.
Let’s just say that the first line item for production costs was:
Blood, Tanker Truck of, quantity 3
The Kid With The Golden Arm
The Chinese Connection
One Armed Swordsman
Sounds about right.
If I recall the Manga, it was about a rogue samurai who traveled around with his kid, who rode in a little stroller thing which concealed ridiculous numbers of weapons and junk.
Essentially, they encountered various people who made the mistake of screwing with them, and then proceeded to cut those people into various pieces, resulting in blood raining down over everything.
Did Mad Monkey Kung Fu ever make it to DVD? I remember reading a Joe Bob Briggs drive-in review of it, and it sounded like the greatest movie ever made.
Thanks again for the suggestions guys. I decided to place an order with DDDhouse, since I’ve had positive experiences with them before. The order contains some of the stuff that’s been recommended here, but what really convinced me to do it, was when I saw that they have A Chinese Odyssey, with Stephen Chow. I’ve been wanting to watch that, but sadly, it’s unobtainable in Europe and USA.
The New Dragon Gate Inn. A remake of an older movie I havent seen. A kung fu ensemble cast including Tony Leung, Donnie Yen, Brigitte Lin and Magie Chung. In the same vein and from the same era as Iron Monkey and Twin Warriors.
I’ve been wanting to watch that, but I’m more interested in watching the original, since it’s directed by King Hu, and starring Chun Shih, the same team that did A Touch of Zen. Sadly, it seems that all version are OOP. :(
Also, if you haven’t seen Shaolin Soccer with the original terrible subtitles, it’s worth it to track it down. Best Engrish ever.
H.
Kung Pow: Enter the Fist - Wish they made the sequel.
this.
I adore this movie, it is such a love letter to Kung-Fu.
I don’t think I have, since the version I have is quite comprehensible. I just watched Last Hero of China, though, and the subtitles were terrible, but in a good way. :)
The Odd Couple with Sammo Hung and Lau Kar Wing is the finest kung fu comedy ever. Really impressive action, too. The two play the masters of the sword and spear, who meet once a year in a duel to determine who’s the better fighter. When their fights keep ending in draws, they decide to settle it by each taking a pupil and training them to continue their series of duels. The cool thing is Sammo Hung plays Lau Kar Wing’s pupil, and Lau Kar Wing plays Sammo Hung’s pupil, so you get to see both of them show off their talents with the sword and spear. They also have a lot of fun turning some of the genre conventions on their head. It might be hard to find, but it’s definitely worth it.
Other great staples:
The Prodigal Son
Buddhist Fist
Eight Diagram Pole Fighter
Return of the Five Deadly Venoms/Crippled Avengers (I’m not sure if this is the “sequel” a previous poster mentioned, but it’s by no means crap. I much prefer it to the original.)
Master of the Flying Guillotine
Another vote for Magnificant Butcher
Another vote for the insane craziness of Taoism Drunkard, Shaolin Drunkards, and The Miracle Fighters
Instant Kung Fu Man
I’m sure I can pull out some more modern recommendations as well, if you’re not a fan of the old school stuff. Or different suggestions if you have a penchant for specific type of film.
[LEFT]Thanks for the recommendations Brendan. My Kung Fu movie budget has reached its limit, for the time being, but I’m definitely going to refer back to this thread, once I’m ready for another batch.
Since you say that you might be able to narrow down your suggestions, if I narrow down my tastes, I guess it might be worth saying that I really enjoy movies set in the late Qing dynasty (18th and early 19th century), since I have a special interest in that period. Wong Fei-Hung films and Project A 1 and 2 hold a special place with me, for that reason, so if you can recommend any others, I’d be grateful.
[/LEFT]
The two best ones I’ve seen recently:
An awesome kung fu western:
The Good, The Bad, and The Weird
A flashy period kung fu flick:
Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame
Five Elements of Ninja (the one where some dude trips over his own dangling intestines).
Thanks, that western film looks very interesting, and I think I’ll be checking it out, even though it doesn’t seem to have any kung fu, and I think it’s Korean (not that that matters, really).
I already ordered Detective Dee, and I’ve really been looking forward to it, but then I received a letter from the post office yesterday, informing me that since it was shipped from Jersey (which isn’t a part of EU), I have to pay customs, as well as their recently introduced customs fee, as well as customs on the customs fee. All in all they want about $35, even though the film plus shipping only cost about $8. :(
I think I’ll just let them return it to Jersey, and claim a refund. Then I’ll reorder it, and hope it doesn’t get stopped this time. Too bad, really, since I’d hoped to be able to watch it soon.
Yeah, The Good, The Bad, and The Weird is a Korean flick, and more gun-fu than kung-fu.
It feels more like a Hong Kong flick though, and I think there’s still some kung fu? Regardless, it kicks enough ass to not quibble over details. ;-)
Definitely glad I got the chance to see it on the big screen!