Hong Kong had a prolific pre-1970s film industry, but it was the supremely talented and determined Bruce Lee who brought Hong Kong film to the international stage. This tiny island nation has been integral to the introduction of the martial arts genre to the rest of the world. One look at Uma Thurman's yellow jumpsuit in the Kill Bills is enough to show us this influence is still alive and very much kicking. After Lee's death in 1973 the industry lost some of its momentum and stuck to the tried and true chop socky formula, but by the 1980s a new talent was emerging in the form of John Woo, inventor of so-called 'balletic gunplay'. This style of shooting shoot-outs captured the imaginations of many young American film makers and emerges in films as diverse as 'Reservoir Dogs' and 'The Matrix'. The martial arts genre was reinvigorated by talents such as Jackie Chan and Jet Li who wanted to introduce more story into the action, and in recent years film maker Wong Kar Wai has challenged what it means to be an HK film, steering clear of Kung Fu and concentrating on more personal, quirky stories. Undoubtedly there is more to see from this exciting port of call... Right: There can be no more an iconic figure in the martial arts world, than the master himself, the late, great Bruce Lee.
"A corrupt judge protects his lecherous son from charges of murder by pinning the rap on virginal beauty Little Cabbage and a handsome scholar, with a... Read more
Asian Hawk, a treasure hunter, runs into Alan, his friend, and learns that the latter's lover has been kidnapped by a cult. He agrees to help them out... Read more
Village girls have been mysteriously going missing. The elders request Wong Fei Hung (Jet Li) to investigate. Wong does not want to get involved, but,... Read more
An extraordinary tale of rivalry, betrayal and vengeance, a martial arts swashbuckler featuring some of the most aggressively acrobatic fight scenes e... Read more
Aka 'Riki-Oh'. This over-the-top number has won a cult following for its deliberately outlandish martial arts violence, in which Riki displays the rem... Read more
With the feeling things are turning for the worst, Yang (Yu Rong Kwong) takes matters into his own hands and becomes a martial arts Robin Hood of sort... Read more
Jet Li stars in this kung fu fantasy as Zhang, grandson of a great tai chi master, who becomes the target of the Six Great Schools. After narrowly esc... Read more
In the third chapter of Tsui Hark's saga on the life of Wong Fei-hong stars Jet Li as the famed martial artist in a wild action tale set in early 20t... Read more
Stephen Chow is So, an acclaimed martial artist with a snooty attitude who can barely read. Thanks to a few shifty characters and his own laziness he... Read more
Hong Kong fantasy at its most amazing is on display in this tale of a woman raised in the mountains by wolves and in the service of an evil cult led b... Read more