Good Hong Kong Martial Arts Action movies from the last few years ?

[Original Desmond]

I used to follow Hong Kong action cinema really closely. I haven't for at least 8 years. I've seen the odd recent Donnie Yen film and of course most Jackie Chan movies

I'm after some really good martial arts orientated hong kong action movies. I would say i prefer modern settings over classical settings but am willing to check anything out

I love all action with tons of fight scenes. Some of the recent DOnnie Yen movies i have seen have disappointed me with the lack of fight scenes overall.

The movies don't need to have big stars, just good action

any suggestions ?

[E. Honda]

Curse of the Golden Flower
House of Flying Daggers
The Forbidden Kingdom
Hero
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Ong Bak: Thai Warrior
Shaolin Soccer
Kung Fu Hustle

[mrhan]

You should see Taken w/ Liam Neeson. It's not an HK action flick but will satisfy your action craving with a lot of realistic hand to hand combat.

[JCWBobC]

Fearless-Jet Li
Kiss of the Dragon-jet Li
Unleashed-Jet Li
Protector-Tony Jaa

[Original Desmond]

thanks guys, ive seen all the movies mentioned :)

I'm more after those hidden gems of HK cinema not widely released worldwide

[toddly6666]

what about:

SPL (aka Kill Zone)?

Probably the best recent martial arts and good movie as well was:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3090/2662778936_4f6619043b.jpg

[chris_sc77]

Dragon Heat

[DJariya]

Flashpoint- Donnie Yen
SPL aka Killzone- Donnie Yen and Sammo Hung
The Bodyguard 1 and 2- Thai martial arts action comedy
Invisible Target- This IMO is a must see. Lots and Lots of action
Gen X Cops
Gen Y Cops- Maggie Q's feature debut
Naked Weapon- Lots of wire work, but good action. 2 really hot lead actors (Maggie Q and Anya Wu)
So Close- Shiu Qi, Karen Mok and Zhao Wei. Good chick action flick.
Enter the Eagles- Michael Wong and Shannon Lee, Bruce's daughter. Mostly in english.

[DJariya]

The Touch- Michelle Yeoh and Ben Chaplin. Shot entirely in english, but only released in HK. Some good action with an Indiana Jones vibe.

Bullets of Love- Underrated movie that stars Leon Lai. I believe this is shot in Paris and HK. Japanese actress Asaka Seto is great in this flick.

[stingermck]

Azumi 1 & 2
The Princess Blade
Tokyo Raiders

[Dr Mabuse]

'Legend of the Black Scorpion' aka 'The Banquet' was a terrific movie with some great action in it.

[dugan]

So Close- Shiu Qi, Karen Mok and Zhao Wei.

The best part was when Zhao Wei said "you don't hate me" to Karen Mok, and it was subtitled as "you are attracted to me."

[DJariya]

The best part was when Zhao Wei said "you don't hate me" to Karen Mok, and it was subtitled as "you are attracted to me."

Yeah, there were some weird Lesbian overtones between Karen Mok and Zhao Wei. Other than that, the action was great.

[JHosk]

Lots of good suggestions in here. I'd also add:

Fulltime Killer - some nice gun play action from Johnie To
Exiled - see above
Bittersweet Life - actually a Korean flick but definitely worth a look
Fatal Contact - some really nice Wu Jing fight scenes
Warlords - Jet li war flick
Red Cliff - John Woo's return to HK

[TimeandTide]

Azumi 1 & 2
The Princess Blade
Tokyo Raiders

These four. (The first Azumi is incredibly fun.)

And add Twilight Samurai (more drama than action but the best Samurai movie ever made, IMO), Arahan, and Musa (Korean epic starring Zhang Ziyi).

[Solid Snake PAC]

[QUOTE=DJariya;9169606]SPL aka Killzone- Donnie Yen VS. Sammo Hung
QUOTE]

that's better...makes a huge difference when that is announced instead...

[Dr Mabuse]

I see there are quite a few who can't tell the difference between Japanese and Hong Kong movies, apparently.

[stingermck]

Home now, looking at my collection:

Drive w/ Marc Dacoscos, amazing movie
Twins Effect (aka Vampire Effect)
Twins Mission
City of Violence, not a lot of action but brutal when it hits

And dare I say...Storm Riders?

[Original Desmond]

you can throw in Japanese martial arts movies too, i don't mind !

thanks for the suggestions, got some titles to go searching for now :)

[mrhan]

Drive w/ Marc Dacoscos, amazing movie


I agree but the only version worth getting is the uncut UK DVD.

[Ky-Fi]

Fantastic Japanese movie from last year, Black Belt:

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...and if you want to see the old-school Shaw Brothers guys, there was Liu Chia Liang's return with Drunken Monkey from 2003. Not as good as the old ones, but not bad:


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[Autotelik]

I saw Flashpoint (Donnie Yen) recently. Thought it was pretty good. It won Best Action Choreography in last year's HK Film Awards.

[d2cheer]

I will third recommending Drive make sure it is the director cut of the film. It is worth it, it was the reason I bought my original Malata region free DVD player. After seeing that I needed to see what else was available in the world to watch.

[TimeandTide]

I see there are quite a few who can't tell the difference between Japanese and Hong Kong movies, apparently.

I'm pretty sure the OP isn't going to dismiss the Japan/Korea/Thai action film suggestions just because they're not from HK.

[toddly6666]

And if you are interested in films with martial arts-style action from other countries (all anamorphic with English subtitles), there are:

THE CHALLENGE - Germany (it's on NTSC Region 1):
http://img.tesco.com/pi/entertainment/DVD/LF/801219_DV_L_F.jpg

CRYING FREEMAN - France (France PAL - original audio is English)
http://ec2.images-amazon.com/images/I/51ST2FNFCDL._SL500_AA240_.jpg

FIGHTER - Denmark (only on PAL)
http://www.cinemastrikesback.com/news/films/Fighter/Poster.jpg

ANNIYAN - India (Region 1 NTSC)
http://www.bollymarket.com/images/kdvd_anniyan.gif

JADE WARRIOR - Finland (PAL)
http://www.cine-east.com/catalog/images/JadeWarrior.jpg

KILTRO - Chile (NTSC Region 1)
http://www.cine-east.com/catalog/images/Kiltro_All.jpg

JODHAA AKBAR - India (NTSC Region 1, but non-anamorphic)
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/images/Jodhaa%20Akbar-147821.jpg

VIDOCQ - France (NTSC Region 1)
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51XjMN5F22L._SL500.jpg

[PopcornTreeCt]

Redbelt

Not Hong Kong, but Mixed Martial Arts. Pretty good movie.

[Geddlo]

Flashpoint and Fulltime Killer were both really good.

Chocolate wasn't bad I thought.

And you should definitely see OldBoy if you havent already.

Also if you're in the mood for a comedy, although it doesnt have much fighting, Attack the Gas Station is worthwhile as well.

[DJariya]

Redbelt

Not Hong Kong, but Mixed Martial Arts. Pretty good movie.

I liked Redbelt too, but I think it's way too dialogue-driven to really be considered action.

[mrhan]

Ip Man should be out on DVD in a couple of months.

[toddly6666]

I would say Redbelt and Fighter are the best films of 2008 that revolve around an actual story, instead of revolving around the fight scenes, since most martial-arts films are filler, filler, action, filler, filler, action, etc. I haven't seen it yet, but I have a feeling that Black Belt is a good film as well.

[asianxcore]

I'm pretty sure the OP isn't going to dismiss the Japan/Korea/Thai action film suggestions just because they're not from HK.

Possibly true. Though it does make me realize that the HK Action/Martial Arts front has been sort of quiet lately. Invisible Target and Flashpoint were the last two big HK Action/Martial Arts films I remember being released. Feels like so long ago.

Lots of HK Cop Drama's and War/Period Epic's popping up as of late.

Edison Chen needs to get over the sex tape scandal and get back into the HK industry :)

[Brian T]

Edison Chen needs to get over the sex tape scandal and get back into the HK industry :)

:lol:

He should take some acting lessons first. He's certainly got the time. Maybe on Sundays after Church now that he's found Jesus 'n all. Even the Hong Kong industry--notorious of late for pretty but limited talents--might not be so forgiving of his mediocrity this time around. Beyond the coverboy looks (which can take you far in Hong Kong, sadly), his patented snarl and/or smirk were all he had going for him in movie after movie. Singing lessons wouldn't hurt either (ever heard his stuff?:wacko:).

[mrhan]

:lol:

He should take some acting lessons first. He's certainly got the time. Maybe on Sundays after Church now that he's found Jesus 'n all. Even the Hong Kong industry--notorious of late for pretty but limited talents--might not be so forgiving of his mediocrity this time around. Beyond the coverboy looks (which can take you far in Hong Kong, sadly), his patented snarl and/or smirk were all he had going for him in movie after movie. Singing lessons wouldn't hurt either (ever heard his stuff?:wacko:).

I thought his only good movie was Dog Bite Dog maybe because he didn't do much talking in it.

[Brian T]

I thought his only good movie was Dog Bite Dog maybe because he didn't do much talking in it.

I'd have to agree that DOG BITE DOG is probably Chen's best performance, but taken in the context of his career before it, that's not saying much. The character played to his two of his three strengths: snarling and brooding (the other, as mentioned, is smirking). End of story. To see how poor an actor he really is, you need to seek out the movies where he speaks in his native tongue: English. These would include DANCE OF A DREAM, GEN-Y COPS (his debut) GRUDGE 2 and, most recently, THE DARK KNIGHT (yes, that one). As he's not a native Cantonese speaker, his performances in Cantonese-language productions should ALL be viewed with skepticism--Chinese people I know who aren't pre-pubescent girls also think he sucks as an actor and singer. (I suspect if you isolated his voice on most of his albums, you'd hear something akin to the Linda McCartney effect) The dreadfully cliched Japanese sudser UNDER THE SAME MOON is another film where Chen's role is largely silent: its makers obviously knew his appeal with teen girls would add to the pan-Asian marketability of the picture, but based on how they used him in the film, it seems very likely they tailored the role to his ability to "smolder" (or simply "be") on camera rather than any latent ability to act or learn languages to better himself as a performer. I do envy the man his hobbies, though . . .

[Snowmaker]

Naked Weapon- Lots of wire work, but good action. 2 really hot lead actors (Maggie Q and Anya Wu)

Are they naked?

[Brian T]

Are they naked?

Not really. Just skimpy outfits for the most part. Hasn't been a good naked female martial artist in a Hong Kong picture for awhile now. ;)

[DJariya]

Are they naked?

If your craving Sex and Nudity in a HK action flick, try:

Naked Killer: 1992 action flick with Chingmy Yau. Lots of nudity, sex and lesbian ovetones. One of the most well known category 3 movies.

Fatal Love: 1993 suspense thriller with Michael Wong and Ellen Chan. Lots of violence and lots of sex scenes with Chan and Wong.

[Snowmaker]

If your craving Sex and Nudity in a HK action flick, try:

Naked Killer: 1992 action flick with Chingmy Yau. Lots of nudity, sex and lesbian ovetones. One of the most well known category 3 movies.

Fatal Love: 1993 suspense thriller with Michael Wong and Ellen Chan. Lots of violence and lots of sex scenes with Chan and Wong.

Nah, I just hate misleading movie titles. Naked Gun and Naked Lunch were both let-downs. ;)

[Brian T]

If your craving Sex and Nudity in a HK action flick, try:

Naked Killer: 1992 action flick with Chingmy Yau. Lots of nudity, sex and lesbian ovetones. One of the most well known category 3 movies.

Fatal Love: 1993 suspense thriller with Michael Wong and Ellen Chan. Lots of violence and lots of sex scenes with Chan and Wong.


Or ESCAPE FROM BROTHEL (1992), which contains one of the better (and few) full-frontal nude kung-fu room-trashers ever put on film, provided you can source the full uncut version.

[Cardiac161]

Are they naked?

I'm quite sure there was nude scene here of Maggie Q.