What are some good martial arts movies with use of weapons on dvd?

Jeff Adams · 11-07-2003, 06:19 PM

We all know what has sparked this question. Kill Bill. I absolutely loved this film. It reminded me of the old martial arts movies I used to watch on Saturdays as a kid on Kung Fu and Black Belt Theatre. I was wondering if you guys could give me some suggestions on what martial arts movies that use sword play and other weapons, that are on dvd.Thanks.

Sean Moon · 11-07-2003, 07:04 PM

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon has some amazing sword play in it. Its not martial arts, but Mask of Zorro has amazing swordplay in it as well. Shanghai Knights has a great swordfight at the end of it. I would suggest the Star Wars movies, but they are blends of so many styles in there.

Justin W · 11-07-2003, 07:33 PM

As far as old Martial Arts flicks most of the ones available in the US aren't very good quality. Here's a few of the better ones:

These three are referenced in Kill Bill:
Master of the Flying Guillotine (Restored Ultimate Edition)
Five Deadly Venoms
Five Fingers of Death

A good DVD of one of the worse Shaw Brothers movies:
The Mighty Peking Man (Quentin Tarantino's Rolling Thunder Pictures)

Bad DVDs of great movies:
Shaolin Master Killer
Return of the 5 Deadly Venoms
The 10 Faces of Sonny Chiba (Contains all 4 Street Fighter flicks)

And of course:
Bruce Lee, The Master Collection
Enter the Dragon (25th Anniversary)
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon

Others are the Zatoichi series and the Lone Wolf and Cub series.

Browsing www.hkflix.com wouldn't hurt.

If you can play region 3 DVD's there's a Shaw Brothers Collection put out by Celestial which are very good quality. Shaolin Master Killer is available in that series.

Another film I'd recommend getting if you liked Kill Bill is Battle Royale. While not a kung-fu flick per se, Quentin said it had the most influence on Kill Bill.

Enjoy.

WillKTaylor · 11-07-2003, 07:38 PM

Wing Chun: Look for Michelle Yeoh and her short swords. Very well choreographed. I hear she does most of her stunts, but I can't be sure in some of the weapons scenes.

Hero: Various weapons used throughout. This film is very modern in terms of cinematography and well worth the watch other than for just the fight sequences. Comparisons can be drawn with Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. The HK version has an impressive DTS track if you can get it. Here, I thought I was getting a VCD (bought on eBay) and it turned out to be the real deal. So, when I spun it up, I was very impressed with the anamorphic presentation and the DTS track

Magnificent Butcher: Couple of good sequences with use of pole fighting. Fun movie with some cheesy and great choreography on martial arts fighting. Sammo Hung .. can't go wrong.

Master of the Flying Guillotine: The flying guillotine. Lol. Not a serious weapon, but I had to throw that in there.

Also, check out some of Jet Li's films .. the guy is seriously quick and fairly impressive with his weapons skills considering he is not a master.

When I can think of a few others, I post them ...

Jeff Adams · 11-07-2003, 08:39 PM

Quote:

Master of the Flying Guillotine: The flying guillotine. Lol. Not a serious weapon, but I had to throw that in there.

Out of all the kung fu movies I have seen on Kung Fu & Black Belt Theatre, that is one I remember. I saw this at a B&M store a couple of months ago but did not pick it up due to I think there are two of them. I think the one I remember is just called The Flying Guillotine.

Quote:

These three are referenced in Kill Bill:

Five Deadly Venoms
I have that one and it is one great Kung Fu flick.

Quote:

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon has some amazing sword play in it.

Another one that I own on Superbit. This is one of my all time favorite movies period. The weapons fight scene between Zhang Ziyi and Michelle Yeoh IMO is easily one of the best fight scenes I have ever seen.

Thanks for the suggestions, I will pick some of these up.

**HTF Ads**

WillKTaylor · 11-08-2003, 01:26 AM

I too own Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon and if you have interest in this film, definately give Hero a chance ... and when you're done, I'd be interested to hear your opinion comparing the two. I don't think you would be disappointed in the least knowing that you enjoyed CTHD. Give it a shot ... very good film, interesting plot/story line, great acting/actor/resses .. and for the fight scenes ... you should eat it up. If not, I'll stake your copy for free. Zhang Ziyi is involved as well .. although minimally compared to Crouching. Then again, Maggie Cheung is top in this film. .... enjoy ....

Justin W · 11-08-2003, 07:29 AM

One I forgot that's usually considered the best Shaw Bros. film and in turn Gordon Liu (Johnny Mo) film is Invincible Pole Fighter. The only available DVD is Pan & Scan but it's a great film.

I think there's a Buena Vista Jet Li Collection that has four of his best films in it (Twin Warriors, The Enforcer, Fist of Legend, and The Defender). Iron Monkey is another good Jet Li flick, as are the first three Once Upon a Time in China movies available as a box set from Columbia Tri-Star.

On an unrelated note, I just watched Hong Kong Phooey on Cartoon Network, boy does that show bring back some memories.

Justin W · 11-08-2003, 10:40 AM

Quote:

Out of all the kung fu movies I have seen on Kung Fu & Black Belt Theatre, that is one I remember. I saw this at a B&M store a couple of months ago but did not pick it up due to I think there are two of them. I think the one I remember is just called The Flying Guillotine.

The Flying Guillotine isn't available anywhere on DVD. There is a third one called The Fatal Flying Guillotines. I think Master of the Flying Guillotine is by far the best, and the Restored Ultimate Edition (sometimes called the Netflix version) although not Anamorphic, is simply the best region 1 packaging of an old hong kong kung fu flick.

Chris_Morris · 11-08-2003, 10:52 AM

Quote:

Also, check out some of Jet Li's films .. the guy is seriously quick and fairly impressive with his weapons skills considering he is not a master.

I don't know what it would take for him to be a master, but as a child he won awards and competitions for his weapons work. Footage of him at 8 is mindboggling and truly foreshadows his great career.

As for weapons oriented movies, I would throw out there:
Swordsman II
Dragon Inn
Any Jet Li movie made in HK

If I had to pick my top three it would be (in no particular order):
CTHD
Hero
Once Upon A Time In China

Chris

Jeremy Anderson · 11-08-2003, 01:03 PM

Once Upon A Time In China trilogy is a definite must-have. However, avoid the DVD of FIST OF LEGEND if you have a widescreen set since it is not anamorphically enhanced and the subtitles are at the bottom (making it near impossible to watch on a widescreen television).

Justin W · 11-08-2003, 01:57 PM

most kung fu films aren't anamorphic. although they Jet Li films are more recent so they should be. Of note, every american release of a foreign Jet Li film is edited for violence.

and I'd consider him a master. I'd take him over Jackie Chan any ol day of the week.

If you're a martial arts fan though, the Celestial Shaw Bros. Series is worth getting a region free player for. Remastered Anamorphic transfers with the original language tracks and bonus features. Right now the best ones are The 36th Chamber of the Shaolin, Return to the 36th Chamber, and Two Champions of Shaolin. With many more in the works.