Favorite movie fight scenes

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#661

Post by James Y »

Co Pilot wrote:
Wed Dec 08, 2021 9:44 pm
James, yes I was thinking I had derailed into the Martial Arts Experiences thread! Sorry. Maybe see you over there,

No problem at all, Nick.


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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#662

Post by Co Pilot »

Haywire. Gina Carano. Need I say more? Well I guess I can. You may not have seen or heard of this movie, it didn't do very well but is a very good film. Not just a martial arts movie showcasing Gina, without any plot or good story. It has both and is a stand alone very good thriller/spy movie. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, director of Oceans 11,12,13, Out of Sight and other films. He said he wanted to do an action movie with a female lead who would be belieavable. Including in fights with men. He delivered or more accurately Gina Carano does. Bringing her MMA champion skills to the film, and a great deal of beauty and charisma. In the behind the scenes on the DVD(remember these?) pretty much all her male costars talk about getting injured in fight scenes with her. She didn't apparently. And the fight scenes are fairly realistic not the usual over the top Hollywood nonsense.
Especially watch for the fight in a diner between her and Channing Tatum I believe? It takes place in extreme close quarters and is a unique fight not like to many other movie fights.
A very fast paced, doesn't let up from the beginning movie with a good plot.
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#663

Post by James Y »

Co Pilot wrote:
Wed Dec 15, 2021 1:51 am
Haywire. Gina Carano. Need I say more? Well I guess I can. You may not have seen or heard of this movie, it didn't do very well but is a very good film. Not just a martial arts movie showcasing Gina, without any plot or good story. It has both and is a stand alone very good thriller/spy movie. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, director of Oceans 11,12,13, Out of Sight and other films. He said he wanted to do an action movie with a female lead who would be belieavable. Including in fights with men. He delivered or more accurately Gina Carano does. Bringing her MMA champion skills to the film, and a great deal of beauty and charisma. In the behind the scenes on the DVD(remember these?) pretty much all her male costars talk about getting injured in fight scenes with her. She didn't apparently. And the fight scenes are fairly realistic not the usual over the top Hollywood nonsense.
Especially watch for the fight in a diner between her and Channing Tatum I believe? It takes place in extreme close quarters and is a unique fight not like to many other movie fights.
A very fast paced, doesn't let up from the beginning movie with a good plot.

Yes, I saw Haywire during its theatrical release. IMO, it's a pretty decent movie. IIRC, my favorite part, fight-wise, was Gina Carano’s fight scene with Channing Tatum. I remember being disappointed by the ending, which leaves you hanging.

I’m not surprised that her male co-stars got injured on set with her. She did not originally come from an acting or performing background. I’m guessing that since then, she’s had to learn the difference between performing and actually competing, otherwise, nobody will want to work with her. It’s very easy to injure others on a movie set when they’re controlling themselves, but you’re not.

Similar to Jean-Claude Van Damme in some of his early American movies (No Retreat No Surrender, Cyborg, etc.), in which stuntmen and co-stars accused him of having no control. One incident on the set of Cyborg led to a lawsuit against Van Damme by a stuntman. Of course, accidents do happen, but some people simply have no control (Steven Seagal was another example).

In the ‘80s to mid-‘90s-era Hong Kong action films, heavy physical contact, and stars doing their own dangerous stunts were not only common, they were expected. If a newcomer came along with no control, it wouldn’t have mattered, because everyone was hitting, kicking, throwing, and twisting each other hard and taking the same punishment. And that environment would put you in your place right away. Broken arms, legs, ankles, ribs, skull fractures, concussions, burns (from explosions), etc., all happened on the sets of Hong Kong action movies from that era.

I wish Gina Carano the best. I do remember that Haywire was panned by critics, mainly due to Carano’s limited to poor acting ability. I think she’s still working in films (possibly straight to video types), so I’m assuming her acting and screen presence must have improved during the ten years since Haywire.

Jim
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#664

Post by James Y »

I Saw the Devil (2010; South Korea). Director: Kim Jee-Woon.

I already posted a scene from this movie much earlier in this thread, in which the serial killer, played by Choi Min-Sik, got into a taxi with two other psychos who plan to rob him, and brutally kills them both WHILE THE CAR IS STILL MOVING.

This is not a “fight” movie per se; it is actually a suspense film with elements or horror, that contains fight scenes. It’s my favorite suspense film. It is extremely brutal, and the acting is superb, especially by Choi Min-Sik as the relentless serial killer. There is also a cannibal friend of his, played by Choi Moo-Seong. Lee Byung-Hun plays the vengeful cop whose wife was killed by Choi Min-Sik, and is playing a cat-and-mouse game with the serial killer (who is armed with a shotgun in this scene).

Note: This scene (and this movie) is not for the overly sensitive. For some stupid reason, whoever posted this video on YT cut out part of the scene at 4:05, where the cannibal’s psycho girlfriend attacks Lee Byung-Hun, and he punches her unconscious.

Hunting lodge fight scene: Lee Byung-Hun vs cannibal (Choi Moo-Seong), and serial killer (Choi Min-Sik:

https://youtu.be/TYzfTBKHgZw

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#665

Post by Co Pilot »

James Y wrote:
Wed Dec 15, 2021 11:25 am
Co Pilot wrote:
Wed Dec 15, 2021 1:51 am
Haywire. Gina Carano. Need I say more? Well I guess I can. You may not have seen or heard of this movie, it didn't do very well but is a very good film. Not just a martial arts movie showcasing Gina, without any plot or good story. It has both and is a stand alone very good thriller/spy movie. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, director of Oceans 11,12,13, Out of Sight and other films. He said he wanted to do an action movie with a female lead who would be belieavable. Including in fights with men. He delivered or more accurately Gina Carano does. Bringing her MMA champion skills to the film, and a great deal of beauty and charisma. In the behind the scenes on the DVD(remember these?) pretty much all her male costars talk about getting injured in fight scenes with her. She didn't apparently. And the fight scenes are fairly realistic not the usual over the top Hollywood nonsense.
Especially watch for the fight in a diner between her and Channing Tatum I believe? It takes place in extreme close quarters and is a unique fight not like to many other movie fights.
A very fast paced, doesn't let up from the beginning movie with a good plot.

Yes, I saw Haywire during its theatrical release. IMO, it's a pretty decent movie. IIRC, my favorite part, fight-wise, was Gina Carano’s fight scene with Channing Tatum. I remember being disappointed by the ending, which leaves you hanging.

I’m not surprised that her male co-stars got injured on set with her. She did not originally come from an acting or performing background. I’m guessing that since then, she’s had to learn the difference between performing and actually competing, otherwise, nobody will want to work with her. It’s very easy to injure others on a movie set when they’re controlling themselves, but you’re not.

Similar to Jean-Claude Van Damme in some of his early American movies (No Retreat No Surrender, Cyborg, etc.), in which stuntmen and co-stars accused him of having no control. One incident on the set of Cyborg led to a lawsuit against Van Damme by a stuntman. Of course, accidents do happen, but some people simply have no control (Steven Seagal was another example).

In the ‘80s to mid-‘90s-era Hong Kong action films, heavy physical contact, and stars doing their own dangerous stunts were not only common, they were expected. If a newcomer came along with no control, it wouldn’t have mattered, because everyone was hitting, kicking, throwing, and twisting each other hard and taking the same punishment. And that environment would put you in your place right away. Broken arms, legs, ankles, ribs, skull fractures, concussions, burns (from explosions), etc., all happened on the sets of Hong Kong action movies from that era.

I wish Gina Carano the best. I do remember that Haywire was panned by critics, mainly due to Carano’s limited to poor acting ability. I think she’s still working in films (possibly straight to video types), so I’m assuming her acting and screen presence must have improved during the ten years since Haywire.

Jim
James, I guess I liked Haywire better than you,lol. Except for the lousy name!? Though Gina'a acting wasn't great, it was very good considering it was her first role I believe. I though she had a lot of screen presence and charisma as I said, which helped a lot.
As for her co-stars getting hurt, none of them seemed upset. It appered more like they were impressed a "girl" could hurt them! And most seemed to be "impressed" with her fighting ability and strength. If I remember right a few of them said they would never want to fight her for real. Duh.
For anyone who wants to check it out I've been seeing it pop up on cable (remember that?), either HBO or Cinemax. Or you can always do that new fangled streaming. Dafinitely worth a watch I think.
And Gina was doing great in The Mandolorian, which is very popular, until she got cancelled by politically correct cancel culture!
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#666

Post by James Y »

Underworld: Awakening (2012, USA). Directors: Mans Marlind & Bjorn Stein.

I’m not a big fan of CGI-heavy fight scenes (there are a few exceptions; this is not necessarily one of them), but I really like the concept of the “super-lycan” (the King Kong-sized werewolf). That’s the only reason I’m posting this. This video has all the scenes in the movie where Selene (Kate Beckinsale) fights the giant werewolf.

I do have my complaints. Personally, I don’t like that Selene gets swatted around from pillar to post like a fly, and remains completely unaffected. I find this annoying. What’s the point of having a gigantic, super-powerful werewolf if nothing he does has any effect on her? It not only annoys me; I HATE that. It destroys the suspense of a fight scene when the movie’s protagonist is so invincible that nobody, not even a super-powerful villain, can hurt them. I DO feel that the end of the fight is clever, though.

Selene (Kate Beckinsale) vs Quint (Kris Holden-Ried):

https://youtu.be/08x_uI4T1RU

Jim
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#667

Post by James Y »

Crazy Samurai Musashi (alternate title: Crazy Samurai: 400 vs 1). 2020, Japan. Director: Yuji Shimomura. Action director: Isao Karasawa.

A fictional movie about the real-life Miyamoto Musashi, who is revered as Japan’s greatest swordsman.

This is actually a record-setting, history-making movie. The vast majority of the movie consists of one long, 77-minute fight scene, shot in one continuous take, with zero editing. The entire movie contains very little dialogue. I can only imagine the difficulty of setting it up and executing it; one mistake, one lapse in concentration, one screw-up at any point, would have forced them to either start over, or improvise like **** and hope it doesn’t show. When I watched it, I didn’t notice any screw-ups at all. Of course, this means that most of it was improvised, as opposed to strictly choreographed move-for-move. Which also means that most of the 77-minute fight is repetitive, as Musashi mows down literally hundreds of attacking samurai (including mercenary samurai) out to kill him. There is little plot, and little reason given at the beginning as to why, exactly, the samurai clan(s) wants him dead, just that they do. The Musashi character himself comes across as an unbeatable sociopath, and it’s difficult to determine who is supposed to be the actual hero or villain here.

The 77-minute fight scene is NOT available on YouTube, at least not for free. The fight I am posting here is the ending scene, the fight that takes place 7 years AFTER the main fight. This fight IS edited like a normal movie fight, and shows that in the 7 years since the main fight, Musashi has a new weapon and has become even more lethal.

Musashi (Tak Sakaguchi) vs Chusuke (Kento Yamazaki) and samurai clan:

https://youtu.be/OOYN_N5STCs

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#668

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#669

Post by James Y »

The Presidio (1988, USA). Director: Peter Hyams.

While watching a Tim Larkin video on throat strikes for inclusion in the Martial Arts Experiences Discussion Thread, Larkin mentioned this scene in The Presidio as an example of a thumb to the throat in a movie, reminding me of it. I had almost forgotten about this scene.

In real life, I don’t think I’d actually use the thumb as a striking weapon, other than perhaps to slide up the side of the nose and into an eye.

Sean Connery vs bully (Rick Zumwalt):

https://youtu.be/fOe5ig4l9tI

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#670

Post by James Y »

How Gene LeBell Saved Bruce Lee’s Career

Actually, it was both Bennie Dobbins and legendary martial artist/Hollywood stuntman “Judo” Gene LeBell who helped save his career. The facts in this video completely dismantle Quentin Tarantino’s anti-Bruce Lee arguments. Gene LeBell was the man who taught Bruce Lee the difference between real fighting and screen fighting. The movies Bruce Lee starred in as a child actor in Hong Kong were NOT martial arts or fighting movies, they were dramas.

It’s very obvious that Bruce Lee took what LeBell taught him about fighting for the camera and ran with it like a prodigy. Bruce Lee was also a fan of Japanese samurai films, and adapted characteristics of the sword fighting scenes, such as rhythm, tempo, opponents’ reactions, etc., into his own empty-handed screen fighting style. The fact is that Bruce Lee was able to take what he learned and advanced empty-handed screen fighting to a level that was unheard of up to that time. And he could not have done that had he had such total disdain for American stuntmen, as Tarantino alleges.

On a side note: In the video, John Wayne and his onscreen punching style are briefly mentioned, in regards to what types of punches American stuntmen were used to reacting to in the 1960s. Ironically, I remember a short-lived game show back in the early ‘70s, that paired ordinary contestants with famous movie stars, to reenact scenes from the stars’ famous movies in front of a live audience. In one segment, the guest movie star was John Wayne, and the scene being re-enacted was from a western and involved John Wayne punching the other guy with a haymaker. During the re-enactment, John Wayne swung and actually connected with the guy’s jaw. After doing the scene, the contestant didn’t say anything, but he was holding his jaw and clearly wasn’t pleased that John Wayne had no control and actually clipped him. I also clearly remember that John Wayne never apologized or showed any concern for the other guy, and just stood there afterwards with a sour expression.

https://youtu.be/VzSS3dsnfQw

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#671

Post by James Y »

China Salesman (2017, China). Director: Tan Bing.

Not a good movie at all, and the fight scene isn’t great; it has the typical overdone slow-mo and floaty quality that Mainland China filmmakers are enamored with. I’m posting this mostly for the novelty factor, and because I think that Mike Tyson is underrated as an actor (he certainly deserves better than this). I do like the fight’s outcome at the end.

Mike Tyson vs Steven Seagal:

https://youtu.be/UUW0n9vUvLE

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#672

Post by James Y »

Skinny Tiger & Fatty Dragon (1990, Hong Kong). Director: Lau Kar-Wing. Action directors: Ridley Tsui & Xiong Xin-Xin.

In this film, chubby Sammo Hung once again played a character who imitates Bruce Lee when he fights. Sammo Hung had THE best onscreen Bruce Lee fighting impressions, bar none. Because he not only understood Bruce Lee’s mannerisms, but he incorporated them into his own style, making his Bruce Lee impressions unique and not a carbon copy. Sammo knew full well that he looked nothing like Bruce Lee, and that was part of the charm of his impressions. Plus the fact that in his prime, Sammo was an amazingly athletic performer; one of the all-time best, (due to his Peking/Beijing Opera background in Hong Kong), who was capable of stunts that the real Bruce Lee wasn’t capable of. Sammo had mimicked Bruce Lee in a few of his films.

Final fight: Sammo Hung & Karl Maka vs Lau Kar-Wing & his henchmen, including Mark Houghton:

https://youtu.be/UWEdQC4FJ94

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#673

Post by James Y »

The Big Boss (1971, Hong Kong; filmed in Thailand). Director: Lo Wei. Action director: Han Ying-Chieh.

This was Bruce Lee’s first martial arts movie, which was filmed after he moved back to Hong Kong from the States. Keep in mind that Bruce Lee had been a child actor in Hong Kong in the 1950s, but those were all dramas, and NONE of those movies were martial arts-related in any way, shape or form.

This was my least-favorite of Bruce Lee’s martial arts films, his other martial arts films being Fist of Fury, Way of the Dragon, Enter the Dragon, and Game of Death (which was filled in and completed posthumously). My favorite Bruce Lee movie was Way of the Dragon, which Bruce himself directed.

The choreography in The Big Boss contained lots of trampoline jumps over people’s heads, and other fakery (such as knocking a man through a wall and leaving a human-shaped hole in it), which can be attributed to fight choreographer Han Ying-Chieh (who also played the movie’s title character/villain, “The Big Boss”). Han came from a Peking Opera background, and had acted extensively in Wuxia (martial hero/swordsman) movies, which made much use of trampoline jumps, wire work, etc., to give the impression of superhuman abilities. Bruce Lee had many disagreements with fight choreographer Han Ying-Chieh, and flat-out did not get along with director Lo Wei, partly because of the fakery inserted into the fight scenes. The fakery did not enhance Bruce Lee’s performances, but made him look like an ordinary performer, and even stupid in some parts.

One part of one scene that clearly had nothing to do with Han Ying-Chieh’s choreography is shown in this video, in which Bruce Lee disarms a knife-wielding opponent with a front kick, then knocks him out with a roundhouse kick, with the same leg, in about a second. Bruce also touched his foot to the ground in between the two kicks. This was the first movie scene in which Bruce Lee was able to demonstrate his sudden, 0-60 explosive speed. This bit was clearly Bruce Lee’s own contribution to the choreography, not Han’s. In fact, this entire scene had the stamp of Bruce Lee’s choreography style over Han’s.

The opponent Bruce Lee disarmed and KO’d was Hong Kong stuntman and actor Peter Chan Lung, who had outstanding reaction timing. So much so that Bruce would take him out with lightning-fast kicks in two of his later films; Fist of Fury and Enter the Dragon (in which Bruce kicked Peter Chan Lung with a 5-kick combination with the same leg at the beginning of the final fight scene). Peter Chan Lung could react realistically to Bruce’s kicks at full-speed, without Bruce having to slow down for him, as he had to do for many stuntmen.

IMO, the knife disarm/KO scene is the best part of the entire movie. That bit of the scene is from 1:36 - 1:52.

First ice factory fight: Bruce Lee and Chinese workers vs Thai thugs:

https://youtu.be/TlHv1HcSBaU

Jim
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#674

Post by James Y »

The Victim (1980, Hong Kong). Director: Sammo Hung. Action directors: Sammo Hung, Lam Ching-Ying, Yuen Biao, Billy Chan Wui-Ngai.

Starring: Leung Kar-Yan, Sammo Hung, Fanny Wang, Chang Yi, Peter Chan Lung, Wilson Tong, Chung Fat, Yuen Mo, Karl Maka, Billy Chan Wui-Ngai, etc.

FULL MOVIE. I posted the final fight of this movie very early in this thread, but figured if you’re a fan of kung Fu films, the entire movie is worth watching. This is in Cantonese language with English subtitles; the picture isn’t as clear in the English-dubbed version.

This is one of my favorite Sammo Hung films, and is probably in my top 10 favorite kung fu films. IMO, Sammo Hung was better at kung fu comedy than Jackie Chan was. Sammo was much better at creating suspense, had a more powerful, aggressive choreography style, and was far more adept than Jackie was at combining comedy and tragedy, and comedic fighting and serious fighting in the same movie, and often in the same scene. Even though the movie is generally a comedy, the main plot and the final fight itself are 100% serious, something that is VERY difficult for a filmmaker to pull off successfully in one movie, yet Sammo did it on a regular basis.

This type of creative fight choreography and irreverent humor are a lost art. The kung fu genre is mostly dead, except for whatever comes out of mainland China in recent years, and there is a staleness to that. Even Donnie Yen’s Ip Man films cannot recapture the spirit of pure fun and creativity that many of these old-school films exuded during the genre’s golden era.

IMO, this was lead star Leung Kar-Yan’s (sometimes called “Beardy”) best role, as well as the best onscreen performance for Chang Yi, who played the arch-villain. Amazingly, Leung Kar-Yan was never an actual martial artist; he only knew whatever he was shown for whatever films he was in. Out of all the martial arts actors who had no actual martial arts training, Leung Kar-Yan/“Beardy” was THE all-time best. Even more remarkable is that, at his peak, Leung Kar-Yan came across looking far better onscreen than many real-life champion martial artists do when they are put into movies.

For anyone who needs to skip to the end, the final fight begins at 1:16:25.

https://youtu.be/24jTwIuEnSA

Jim
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#675

Post by James Y »

Movie Re-Enactment Scene From Jet Li’s Fist of Legend (and Comparison)

I posted some fight scenes from Fist of Legend (from 1994) earlier in this thread. I think I posted this fight scene, the original of which features Jet Li vs Chin Siu-Ho, and I definitely posted the movie’s final fight.

This re-enactment is amazing! The timing, the skill of the movements, the angles. The work that went into getting everything right is almost mind-boggling. Lots of people can mimic fight scenes on video, but this is the best one I’ve personally seen.

https://youtu.be/nZscqYuwXGg

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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#676

Post by James Y »

Jackie Chan - How To Do Action Comedy

This is a great video that explains much of the genius behind Jackie Chan and his work. It also points out the drastic differences between Jackie’s Hong Kong movies and his American movies. Personally, I hate Jackie’s American films. To anyone who is at all familiar with Jackie’s peak-era work in his own Hong Kong movies (late ‘70s through 1994), the action in his Hollywood movies absolutely sucks. Even though Jackie’s peak era ended around 1994, his last really good fight scenes were in the 1999 Hong Kong romantic comedy Gorgeous. If people only know Jackie through his Hollywood movies, they’ll only see him as “that goofy Asian guy who does his own stunts,” and will probably see him as nothing special beyond that. Whereas in reality, action stars like Jean-Claude Van Damme, Steven Seagal, Chuck Norris, Bruce Willis, Sylvester Stallone, Wesley Snipes, Jason Statham, etc., couldn’t carry Jackie’s sneakers. In terms of movie-making and performing, Jackie is leagues above them.

This year, Jackie has been in the movie business for 60 years, and just in the capacity of an actor and/or stuntman alone, has acted in 125 films. Only Sammo Hung has him beat, at 61 years in the business, and 192 films as an actor and/or stuntman. Two records that will likely never be equaled, as far as action stars (or maybe any movie actors) are concerned. They both started as child actors, and worked their way up from the very bottom to the very top.

Not only Jackie’s Hollywood films, but his films made in Mainland China (where Jackie has lived for many years now after leaving Hong Kong) also suck. They didn’t mention that in this video. But lots of that has to do with Jackie being WAY past his prime; Jackie no longer filming in Hong Kong; and Jackie no longer having his original Hong Kong-based Jackie Chan Stunt Team. The original stunt team members during his peak era were top-notch, and knew exactly what Jackie wanted, and how to do it. But just like any other creative people in the performing arts, great action directors/choreographers eventually grow old(er), run out of ideas and lose a step or two, never regaining the quality and freshness they could produce during their peak eras.

My favorite Hong Kong action director remains Sammo Hung, although he isn’t nearly as famous internationally as Jackie Chan. And IMO, some of Jackie Chan’s greatest fight scenes were actually in Sammo Hung-directed movies, such as Wheels on Meals, Dragons Forever, etc. Sammo was Jackie’s senior classmate in the Peking/Beijing opera school they grew up and trained in. Other great Hong Kong action directors were Lau Kar-Leung, Yuen Wo-Ping, and others. I consider Sammo, Jackie, Lau Kar-Leung, and Yuen Wo-Ping to be The Big Four of Hong Kong action directors and choreographers. And like Jackie, they ALL had extremely high standards. Anyone who could not meet their requirements were either not hired, or fired from the set. Jackie has fired (or severely lessened the roles of) real-life, world class martial artists on his films because they lacked the special type of RHYTHM that Jackie demanded his stuntmen and other onscreen performers to achieve in his choreography.

https://youtu.be/Z1PCtIaM_GQ

Jim
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#677

Post by James Y »

Top 10 Craziest Jackie Chan Stunts That Almost Killed Him

In truth, he has done so many stunts and had so many injuries over the span of his long career, it’s mind-boggling. It’s almost a miracle that he can still walk around today, let alone still move like a man much younger than his 67 years. I can only suppose that Jackie Chan’s guardian angel had his work cut out for him from the start.

Jackie’s peak years of performing dangerous stunts in Hong Kong films came at a time (1980s and into the 1990s) that actors (even leading actors and actresses) in action films were expected to do their own stunts. Which is why, in those movies during that era, the actors’ faces had to be seen at some point(s) during the stunt, to prove they actually did it. They all suffered injuries of varying severity, including broken bones, concussions, burns, and the expected bumps and bruises. NOBODY did more insane stunts than Jackie did, and he almost always did multiple takes of each one. There will never, ever be another action performer whose career and resume will ever equal Jackie Chan’s (or Sammo Hung’s). Even Sammo didn't do the amount of insant stunts Jackie did.

Some Americans compare Tom Cruise to Jackie Chan. While I give credit to Tom Cruise for doing some of his own stunts, with all due respect, he's not even close to Jackie.

For better or worse, the vast majority of action films out of Mainland China nowadays (the Hong Kong movie industry is mostly dead now, and filming of the vast majority of Chinese movies is now only done in Mainland China), mostly employ pop idols, models, CGI, and wire work.

Going a bit OT: If you ever watch Mainland Chinese action movies in recent years, the actors and actresses mostly all look the same. Because in Mainland China, there are generic “appearance standards” or “beauty standards” that must be met for most young actors/celebrities. As in South Korea, most of their young celebs have had varying (often considerable) degrees of cosmetic surgery to achieve a generic male or female look, making them look like they came off of an assembly-line. Whereas during the heyday of Hong Kong movies (including action films), it was about having actual talent and charisma. That is why, when you watch old-school Hong Kong films, the actors and actresses all had distinctly different, natural, individual looks; some were considered “handsome” or “pretty,” and some were not, but nevertheless, still became extremely popular. Simu Liu, star of the Marvel Universe movie ‘Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings’, was called “ugly” and not a proper representation of Chinese people by Mainland Chinese netizens. Which is ridiculous, IMO. Although Jackie is a megastar today; if a young Jackie Chan were coming up today and was trying to make it in the Mainland China film industry, he would NOT have met the “appearance standards” seen in Mainland Chinese and South Korean movies, where the standard for young male stars dictates that they be either “pretty boy” types, or are effeminate (see male K-pop stars, which have influenced male appearance standards in South Korea, China, and other Asian countries).

Back on-topic: After the number 1 dangerous stunt on the video, which happened during filming of Armour of God (the last one shown), Jackie had to have brain surgery, and to this day still has a hole in his skull on one side that is covered only by skin and hair, which he must always keep protected. The crazy thing is that Jackie had already completed a perfect take of the stunt, but wanted another take, during which the tree branch broke.

https://youtu.be/RKRUYJarcEk

Jim
James Y
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#678

Post by James Y »

The Three Dragons: Jackie Chan, Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao

They were the most popular action stars in Asia during the 1980s. All three studied Peking (Beijing) Opera at Hong Kong’s China Drama Academy, which was run by Master Yu Jim-Yuen. There were several others in that group, who together were known as the Seven Little Fortunes (which consisted of the best students in the academy) who also became famous performers and film directors (including Yuen Wah, and director Corey Yuen), but Jackie, Sammo, and Yuen Biao became the most popular by far.

Sammo Hung was the eldest, and was known to be the best fighter in real life. I also consider him to have been the most polished director/fight choreographer. His career began as a child actor in 1961, then continued as a stuntman, supporting actor, and fight choreographer, until he hit it big as a star in 1977. He has appeared onscreen in 192 films.

Yuen Biao was the youngest, and was known to be the best acrobat. His film career began as a stunt performer in 1966, and he was also a stunt extra in Bruce Lee’s Fist of Fury (1972) and Enter the Dragon (1973). Yuen’s first starring role was in Knockabout (1979). He has appeared onscreen in 123 films.

Jackie’s career started as a child actor in 1962, and continued as a stunt extra in numerous films in the early 1970s. After some failed attempts at achieving stardom in Hong Kong, Jackie finally became a megastar in Snake in the Eagle’s Shadow (1978). Believe it or not, in the ‘80s and early ‘90s, years before he started hitting it big in Hollywood films, Jackie Chan was considered the most popular action star internationally, outside of the US. His 1980 American debut in The Big Brawl, and his subsequent appearances in Hal Needham’s Cannonball Run films in 1981 and 1984, had done little for Jackie’s career in Hollywood. Meanwhile, his career in Hong Kong and the rest of Asia at that time was on fire. By the time Jackie became a crossover success in Hollywood with the first Rush Hour film (1998), Jackie was already well past his prime as an action star in Asia, as well as past his own physical prime. And yet he was still able to do things that much younger Hollywood actors couldn’t dream of doing. Jackie has appeared onscreen in 125 films.

This is a decent collection of bits of a few of their fight scenes, but I would have preferred them to just have their original sound, instead of the music added to it by the person who compiled this video.

https://youtu.be/BCRnOmLOKZ0

Jim
James Y
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#679

Post by James Y »

The Legendary Grandmaster Hwang In-Shik

Hwang In-Shik is a world-renowned Hapkido master who has taught at his school in Toronto, Canada for decades. Besides Hapkido, his martial arts background also included boxing and Tang Soo Do. Hwang In-Shik wasn’t the first Korean actor to appear in Hong Kong movies, but he was the first who had truly impressive martial arts skills. He was the first Korean “super kicker” in Hong Kong cinema, and had taught Hapkido to several actors, including Angela Mao, Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan, Chang Yi, etc., in around 1972. Hwang In-Shik’s onscreen trademark was his straight-leg spinning heel kick, which he mostly did with his left leg. Of course, he was also outstanding with his joint locking and throwing skills.

One of Hwang In-Shik’s senior Hapkido classmates in Korea was Han Bong-Soo (often written in the US as Bong-Soo Han), who was considered “The Father of Hapkido in America.” Han Bong-Soo is well-known to American movie audiences, whether they know it or not; Han Bong-Soo stunt doubled for Tom Laughlin in the more difficult fight/kicking sequences in Billy Jack, and had actual roles in The Trial of Billy Jack, and Kentucky Fried Movie.

Hwang In-Shik holds the distinction of being the only martial artist in history to have faced both Chuck Norris and Bruce Lee in the same movie (Way of the Dragon, 1972).

IMO, there were other fight scenes that whoever compiled the clips for this video could have included. Hwang In-Shik was a beast onscreen in his younger years. He was the only martial artist who appeared in a Bruce Lee movie whose speed came close to rivaling Bruce’s. Like Bruce Lee, Hwang In-Shik was often too fast for the Hong Kong actors and stuntmen to react to properly, and he sometimes had to slow down his movements a little so they could react properly on camera.

Bruce Lee had wanted Hwang In-Shik to be one of his opponents in Game of Death, but Bruce had to stop filming test scenes for it when Enter the Dragon began filming. And of course, Bruce passed away shortly after completing Enter the Dragon and never actually got to finish (or even truly start) Game of Death. The Game of Death we see today is only a patchwork film consisting of a completely different story and movie, shot by American director Robert Clouse in 1978 (five years after Bruce had died), to give some story around a few minutes of heavily edited bits of the test footage that Bruce had shot in the “pagoda." The result was a mess that differed greatly from Bruce's original vision of Game Of Death.

With only a few exceptions, Hwang In-Shik was mostly cast as villains. His best work was opposite Jackie Chan in two movies: The Young Master (1980) and Dragon Lord (1982), both of which have scenes I posted earlier in this thread.

https://youtu.be/-ul6B1z8bD4

Jim
James Y
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Re: Favorite movie fight scenes

#680

Post by James Y »

The Gambling Ghost (1991, Hong Kong). Director: Clifton Ko. Action director: Mang Hoi.

By the time this movie was released, Sammo Hung was just past the peak of his popularity and creativity as an actor and as a director. In this movie, he took a break from directing and fight choreography duties. But this was a pretty good supernatural martial arts comedy. Sammo played three roles; the son, the father, and the late grandfather, who is a ghost who gives his grandson supernatural powers.

Note: The sound is a split second off on the first fight between Sammo Hung and the gangsters.

Fight scenes: Sammo Hung vs gangsters; Sammo Hung vs Robert Samuels; Sammo Hung vs Billy Chow & James Tien:

https://youtu.be/q_J6GBovxkY

Jim
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