Kung Fu

[CMonster]

I've woefully not seen many kung fu flicks, especially not from other countries. I was reading a thing on Jackie Chan earlier today and started thinking I need to see some good kung fu. Any recommendations and where to start? I'm not bothered by it being old or subtitled, just anything that could be considered essential in good kung fu flicks.

[ShogunRua]

Kung fu is a wider genre than it appears at first glance.

Are you looking for "classic" kung fu from Hong Kong from the years 1971 to 1985? Or are you looking for "modern" stuff (1986 to the present day), including films outside of Hong Kong? Are you a fan of wire work? (Personally, I hate it, and this is reflected in my recommendations, but some people love it) Do you enjoy weapons, bare hands, or both equally? Do you enjoy humor with your kung fu?

Anywho, while I'm sure TheDenizen will have a lot to say, I would recommend;

Legend of the Wolf (1997)
Shaolin Soccer (2001)
Drunken Master (1978)
Dragon Inn (1992)
Fist of Legend (1994)
The Shaolin Temple (1982)
Born Invincible (1978)
Snake in the Eagle's Shadow (1978)
The Victim (1980)
Magnificent Butcher (1979)
Mr. Vampire (1985)
Black Mask (1996)
Iron Monkey (1993)
Once Upon a Time in China (1991)
Project A (1983)
Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

Those are the kung-fu movies from Hong Kong I have rated in my T10, although there are many other good ones.

[CMonster]

Yeah, I don't really know what kind of kung fu I would like best because I haven't seen enough of it. And thanks for the recommends. I've been told by many people to watch Drunken Master and was looking to watch that tonight, but it was not on netflix nor anywhere I could find with ease (minus the less reputable sites on the interwebs). I may have to settle on something else.

Edit: Only two of those are even on netflix. I am now unhappy with netflix.

[ShogunRua]

Yeah, I don't really know what kind of kung fu I would like best because I haven't seen enough of it. And thanks for the recommends. I've been told by many people to watch Drunken Master and was looking to watch that tonight, but it was not on netflix nor anywhere I could find with ease (minus the less reputable sites on the interwebs). I may have to settle on something else.

Edit: Only two of those are even on netflix. I am now unhappy with netflix.

Hmmm...I actually watched almost all these movies back when I had Netflix. Are you looking for these films on the "Instantly Streaming" service, or the old-school DVD through the mail system? Looking through their selection, I was able to find every single film I mentioned, although that's for the mail system.

[CMonster]

Yeah, I don't have enough money to do instant streaming and mail, so I just stick with instant streaming. I guess I could've gotten them all on DVD if I wanted to spend the extra money.

[JacoIII]

Legend of the Wolf (1997)
Shaolin Soccer (2001)
Drunken Master (1978)
Dragon Inn (1992)
Fist of Legend (1994)
The Shaolin Temple (1982)
Born Invincible (1978)
Snake in the Eagle's Shadow (1978)
The Victim (1980)
Magnificent Butcher (1979)
Mr. Vampire (1985)
Black Mask (1996)
Iron Monkey (1993)
Once Upon a Time in China (1991)
Project A (1983)
Kung Fu Hustle (2004)

Those are the kung-fu movies from Hong Kong I have rated in my T10, although there are many other good ones.

Is the original Drunken Master really that much better than the Legend of the Drunken Master? I love the second one, I should definitely see the first.

Also, to the OP: My two favourite "kung fu" movies (althought I'm sure Shogun will correct my use of the term, my understanding of the genre boils down to "guys beating each other up instead of talking about their problems") are Unleashed and the previously mentioned Legend of the Drunken Master (both are on Netflix).

I'd also recommend Tony Jaa films (Ong-Bak, The Protector etc.) if you just want some silly beat-em-up action.

[Spunkie]

Legend is one of my favorites too, original is a good one, not better imo.

In addition to Rua's list:
Heroes of the East (1979)
36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978)
Tai Chi Master (1993)
The Young Master (1980)
Spiritual Kung Fu (1978)

Especially the first two.

[ShogunRua]

Is the original Drunken Master really that much better than the Legend of the Drunken Master? I love the second one, I should definitely see the first.

Legend of Drunken Master was pretty good, but it doesn't hold a candle to Drunken Master. Among many other things, there's no comparison between Jackie Chan in 1994 (mid forties) to the one in 1978 (late twenties, his physical prime).

I'd also recommend Tony Jaa films (Ong-Bak, The Protector etc.) if you just want some silly beat-em-up action.

Oh, definitely. Ong-Bak is a true masterpiece. In fact, I would rate it as better than most of the films I originally mentioned.

[TheDenizen]

Sorry I'm a bit late to the party...

TheDenizen's Top 10 Kung Fu movies (as in, these are absolutely essential).

1) Eight Diagram Pole Fighter (aka Invincible Pole Fighter. starring Gordon Liu)
2) Heroes of the East (aka Shaolin Challenges Ninja. starring Gordon Liu)
3) Drunken Master 2 (aka Legend of Drunken Master. starring Jackie Chan)
4) Fist of Legend (starring Jet Li)
5) Magnificent Butcher (starring Sammo Hung)
6) Knockabout (starring Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao)
7) Mad Monkey Kung Fu (starring Liu Chia-Liang and Ho Hsiao)
8) Fist of Fury (aka The Chinese Connection. starring Bruce Lee)
9) The Shaolin Temple (starring Jet Li)
10) The Young Master (starring Jackie Chan)

Classics narrowly missing the list: 5 Deadly Venoms, Shaolin Mantis, Drunken Master, 36th Chamber of Shaolin (aka Shaolin Master Killer), Five Element Ninjas, Snake in Eagle's Shadow, Shaolin Intruders, King Boxer (aka Five Fingers of Death), The rest of Bruce Lee's filmography, Once Upon a Time in China I and II, Dance of the Drunk Mantis.

A lot of those are repeats of stuff other people have said, so I'll list a few slightly lesser known kung fu films that are excellent and worth seeking out:

Dirty Tiger, Crazy Frog (Sammo Hung), The Odd Couple (Sammo Hung), Shaolin vs Lama (Alexander Lou), Snake in the Monkey's Shadow (John Cheung), 7 Grandmasters (Mark and Jack Long)...for more recent stuff Donnie Yen and Tony Jaa are the best....you can't go wrong with SPL (Sha Po Long, aka Killzone), Flash Point, Tom Yum Goong (aka The Protector), or Ong Bak.

as for Drunken Master vs Drunken Master 2, Shogun is right, Jackie was faster and in better shape for the original film, but by the time he made the sequel he was so much better at filmmaking and choreography...plus the stunts are way more outrageous. I think the sequel is the more entertaining movie, but both are excellent.

[JacoIII]

Denizen, I actually started watching 8 Diagram when I saw it was one of your 100 movies. Unfortunately, exams got in the way of the viewing. I'll probs finish it tomorrow.

One thing I noticed, it seems to have an almost... overly dramatic quality to it. Almost to the point that it seems intentional. Do you know anything about the making-of process for that film?