KoSho Karate Pantano, Tucson, AZ-- MA Movie Info

Wuxia
Hero and Crouching Tiger are part of a genre of Chinese movies called wuxia movies. These stories
are to Chinese myth and legends what chivalry and knighthood stories are to Western mythology.
These movies are just now beginning to make a splash in North America. They are a fun alternative
to Hollywood and Hong Kong chopsocky.

Hero-- An art film with sword fights. This is a beautiful film, with elegantly woven plot and themes.
One typically thinks of Hong Kong action flicks as having bottom-of-the-barrel production values. Not
so with Hero. I'd stack Hero's cinematography against most of the stuff coming out of Hollywood any
day.��
* Plot: A-
* Martial arts choreography: A- (Jet Li shines.)
* Interest to non-martial artists: B
* Bloodiness: Lots of swords, a few people get run through or slashed but with very little blood
* Kids: Probably fine for teens. Check it before watching it with preteens.
* Chinese with subtitles

Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon-- The first of the Hong Kong movies to break into the
mainstream American movie market. Others had been shown on American screens. Some had even
garnered a following among action movie fans. But I believe "Crouching Tiger" was the first to catch
the eye of the Academy Award folks and the first to go truly mainstream. "Crouching Tiger" is a love
story, a fantasy movie, in places a comedy; and it has first-rate martial arts choreography (Northern
Chinese martial arts-- both weapons and empty hand). The music was composed by Tan Dun and
played by YoYo Ma, and it alone is worth the price of admission.
* Plot: B
* Martial arts choreography: A
* Interest to non-martial artists: B
* Bloodiness: It gets pretty graphic in a couple places, but with much less splatter than your
average American action movie.
* Kids: The story has an "art film" feel to it. I doubt anyone under roughly 15 would be interested
unless they're really into fight scenes. That's probably for the best.
* Chinese. The DVD has subtitles or dubbing. I recommend the subtitles if you can deal with them.

House of Flying Daggers-- Another wuxia film in the tradition of Hero and Crouching Tiger.
It is a story of unrequited love and mistaken identity. It is almost as beautiful as Hero, with grand
vistas and stunning colors. The martial arts, however, aren't up to the standards of the other two.
All three require a certain amount of suspension of disbelief-- people fly, fend off attacks by dozens
of armed opponents, and generally display forces and skills highly unlikely in the real world. But
somehow you "believe" at least for the course of the movie. However, in House of Flying Daggers,
the scenes with the daggers pushed the laws of physics too much for my taste, even for a fantasy
movie. That's not to say I didn't enjoy it. It's well worth a watching.
* Plot: B
* Martial arts choreography: B- (except the last sword battle, which was first-rate)
* Interest to non-martial artists: B
* Bloodiness: It gets pretty graphic in a couple places, and I think it has a bit more splatter than
Crouching Tiger or Hero.
* Kids: The story has an "art film" feel to it. It might be a bit tricky for kids to follow. Watch it
before allowing anyone under, say, 13 to see it.
* Chinese with subtitles.

Hollywood
Karate Kid-- A series of three movies about Daniel, a lonely kid who learns karate to deal with a
bully problem. The first two are well worth watching. The third suffers badly from "sequel syndrome."
(Plus Daniel-san seems to get stupider as he ages, and in the first movie he proved that it's not just
the smart kids who get bullied.) As for "The Next Karate Kid," the fourth movie in the series (the one
done without Daniel) let's just say one karate kid was plenty.
* Plot: B+
* Martial arts choreography: C+
* Interest to non-martial artists: B+
* Bloodiness: The fights in the first movie were typical bullying and tournament fighting. The second
and third upped the ante a bit. But they are all relatively tame as martial arts movies go.
* Kids: A good jumping off point for talking with kids about bullies. The first one is probably fine for
10+. The second and third for ~14+. Check it before watching it with younger children.

Best of the Best-- If you liked Rocky, you might like this one. It's about an American team
preparing for a full-contact Taekwondo tournament. Nobody is going to mistake this movie for high
art, but it's a decent light-weight flick. James Earl Jones stars as the stereotypical gruff coach with
a heart of gold. The sequel, Best of the Best 2, stars much the same cast, but it requires a degree
of tolerance that even hard-core BoB fans would struggle to muster.
* Plot: B for watchability, C- for originality
* Martial arts choreography: B-
* Interest to non-martial artists: B+ for folks who like guy movies, D for the rest of the world.
* Bloodiness: It's a full contact tournament with the appropriate amount of movie blood and bone
breakage for an American movie.
* Kids: Most of these guys aren't gentlemen. The language is a bit rough, sometimes "suggestive."
The fighting is simulated full contact and includes one "accidental" death during a tournament. I'd
watch it before letting anyone under 15 see it.

Perfect Weapon-- An out-of-control boy is enrolled in a kempo school and grows up to be an
out-of-control man. A series of events teach him what his teacher tried to impress on him: that a
martial artist who is all technique and no wisdom is an incomplete martial artist.
* Plot: B
* Martial arts choreography: A- (true to the technique of kempo)
* Interest to non-martial artists: B- It's a decent guy movie.
* Bloodiness: The violence is street fighting stuff-- some guns (though the main character doesn't
carry one), explosions, vendettas, that sort of thing. I've seen worse, but Perfect Weapon is about
as bloody a movie as I would recommend to anyone who is squeamish like I am.
* Kids: Not for kids under 15 or so.

Kung Fu-- I've known menopausal green belts who could kick David Carradine's butt. But once
you get past the fact that he is an actor playing a martial arts master, not actually a martial arts
master (and a Caucasian playing someone half Chinese, not actually Chinese), the story isn't bad.
Caine, a Shaolin priest kills someone in the Chinese royal family and is forced to go into exile in the
American old West. The story is about Caine's life as a railroad worker, interlaced with a series of
flash-backs to his temple days. The aphorism quoted by his teachers are fairly accurate reflections
of Shaolin chuan fa philosophy.
Plot: B
Martial arts choreography: C
Interest to non-martial artists: B
Bloodiness: Fairly tame by the standards of most martial arts movies.
Kids: Probably OK for middle schoolers, maybe OK for younger kids.

Kung Fu Flicks
Most kung fu flicks are shameless chopsocky: bad acting, bad dubbing, bad storyline (when there is
a storyline), and bad production values. You watch them for the fight scenes and the cool Chinese
weapons. Period. I say this so that when I speak of "good kung fu movies," you know I'm speaking in
relative terms. That being said, there are a few kung fu flicks that are actually pretty good. Here's
the ones I like best.

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin-- This movie has a well-deserved reputation for being one
of the best kung fu movies ever. A college-aged student loses people he loves to a Manchu attack.
The student vows revenge and goes to the Shaolin Temple to learn martial arts. OK, that's a fairly
standard plot, but what sets "36th Chamber" apart is the training at the temple. Cool weapons. Cool
training techniques. Plus the actors can act, and the film makers seem to have a pretty good grasp
of how to make a film. It's not a great "A movie," but unlike a lot of kung fu flicks, it's not a "barely B
movie." I think it's my favorite kung fu flick.
Plot: B
Martial arts choreography: A-
Interest to non-martial artists: C+
Bloodiness: not much movie blood-- In fact I can't remember any, and I have a pretty good memory
for such things. But there are fight scenes, and people do get killed. But the movie doesn't wallow in
violence.
Kids: Probably OK for middle schoolers, maybe OK for younger kids. It's kung fu violence-- lots of
fights, some peril, but not nearly the gore and splatter we tolerate in Hollywood martial arts movies.

Eight Diagram Pole Fighter-- Kind of dark, with over-the-top acting and no sense of
humor whatsoever. But it does have excellent staff work (Chinese style). It's not a fun little flick,
and it's not for kids, but it is one of the better kung fu movies out there. And, by the way, it is
allegedly based on a true story.

Iron Monkey--A "Robin Hood" story, with some amazing fight scenes. A community's doctor
under cover of darkness becomes the Iron Monkey, robbing corrupt officials to give to the poor. This
is a Wong Fei Hung story, Wong Fei Hung being a real martial artist and physician who has become a
legendary figure and the subjects of dozens of movies and TV programs in China.

Legendary Weapons of China (aka Eighteen Weapons of Martial Arts)-- I'm going to give
away the plot here, since it's a lot easier to follow the plot of this movie if you know up front what it
is. (It's either that or watch it a couple of times until you figure out what's going on.) A clan of
Chinese boxers wants its masters to teach fighters to become imperious to bullets. One master, Lei
Kung, decides the enterprise is silly and goes away to hide. The clan takes exception and sends
three people to find and kill him: a monk, a magical martial artist (one who specializes in diversion
and slight of hand to win a fight), and an assassin. One of them is the head of the clan in disguise.
One is a woman disguised as a man, who secretly wants to help Lei Kung not kill him. One is Lei
Kung's brother, also in disguise. Lei Kung is disguised as a woodcutter, so to flush him out, the
assassin hires a con man to impersonate Lei Kung, figuring that Lei Kung will be insulted and come
out to clear his name. After all of this there's the big battle with all eighteen of the traditional
Chinese weapons being used before the fight is over. Once you can figure out the convoluted plot,
it's a fun movie. And the weapons fighting is very cool.

Dragons of the Orient-- No plot. Terrible acting, which the bad dubbing only compounds,
and production values that range from barely adequate to "what in the world was that that just
bounced through the frame?" It isn't so much a story as it is a montage of video clips. The first part
is scenes of China, including some of the Shaolin Temple. Then there are two characters, who
banter, flirt, and show off some martial arts moves. Then there are a bunch of film clips. The Chinese
scenes are grainy. The banter is inane. What's interesting are the clips. They show a wide range of
Chinese styles, both weapons and empty hand. It's a very different world from what we do and
interesting from a tourist-like perspective. Rent it on DVD, and keep your finger near the
fast-forward button.

Miscellaneous (Unclassifiable)
Iron and Silk-- A recent university graduate travels to China to teach English and study martial
arts. It's based on the real-life experiences of Mark Salzman, who plays his own fictional character.
The movie has excellent kata and an open, generous feel. I enjoyed the book it's based on-- I enjoy
all of Salzman's books, actually-- and I enjoyed the movie, which, refreshingly enough, is about
personal growth and adventure, not fighting for fighting's sake.
Plot and acting: C+
Martial arts choreography: A- It's all kata, but wow!
Interest to non-martial artists: B
Bloodiness: None to speak of. The worst of it is Salzman's character punching a wall.
Kids: Not written expressly for kids, but innocent enough that it's fine for kids who like grown-up
movies.

Karate for Life -- It's a bad movie. The acting's not great. The cinematography is barely
adequate. It has a out-dated '70s feel to it. And it's only use for women is as objects of brutal
attack (so the hero can fight the bad guys with impunity). The plot involves a karate-ka who likes to
hurt people, who joins up with a full-contact "traveling circus" only to find that he's expected to take
a dive on a regular basis. This news, of course, ticks him off and makes him want to hurt people. The
movie as a movie has little to recommend it. So why do I review it? Because it's not a kung fu flick;
it's a karate flick, one of the few. And the karate reflects a lot of skill. If you fast forward from fight
scene to fight scene, you won't miss anything important.
Plot: D
Martial arts choreography: B (martial arts skill: A)
Interest to non-martial artists: D-
Bloodiness: not a lot of movie blood, but a fair bit of brutality combined with a callous attitude
toward it.
Kids: Nope. To my mind, it's barely suitable for adults.

Documentaries

Shaolin Ulysses-- Several kung fu stylists who trained at the Shaolin temple come to the
United States to live and teach, each for a different reason. B+

The History of Judo-- Footage from Judo's creation to the present (or nearly so). It's
fascinating to see the changes in the art from the beginning to now. It's also amazing to see the
total body control in some of the modern Judo champions. B+

Myths and Logic of Shaolin Kung Fu-- Ok, probably more myths than logic. This
documentary goes to the birthplace of Shaolin Kung Fu and looks at the training of secular disciples
who are training to be among the very few who become martial monks. Some of these disciples are
very young, nine years old and younger but display technique that would be the envy of most
American black belts. Note for kids watching this video: watch it with a parent and then talk to them
and your teachers about which training techniques are good and which are likely to hurt you. A-

Little Shaolin Monks-- filmed at a Shaolin temple in China, it depicts the day-to-day life of
boys 6-12 years old who are training to be one of the few allowed to stay on as an adult to train to
be a martial arts master. Anyone who doubts children's abilities to focus and learn the martial arts
should watch this. Note for kids watching this video: watch it with a parent and then talk to them
and your teachers about which training techniques are good and which are likely to hurt you. B

The Martial Arts-- an A&E documentary. It looks at karate, judo, and hapkido. Nothing too
special, but worth the time. B-

Martial Arts of Korea-- Korean martial arts consist of more than just storefront Taekwondo.
The dvd looks at twelve different styles with interviews and demonstrations. This one is put together
by martial artists not by filmmakers. B+

Budo: The Art of Killing-- The title is unfortunate, as is the cover art, but once you get
past that, you'll find that the dvd is a survey of several martial arts. It's distinct from other such
surveys in a couple of ways. First, it date back to 1981, back when martial arts documentaries in
this country were far rarer than they are today. Second, it has some of the most remarkable kobudo
demonstrations I have ever seen. The sword vs. tonfa sequence, though short, is worth the price or
rental on its own. It's pretty intense in places and not for sensitive kids. Note for kids watching this
video: watch it with a parent and then talk to them and your teachers about which training
techniques are good and which are likely to hurt you.�A-�

A Few Key Players
Jackie Chan
Trained as an acrobat, Jackie Chan is probably the best martial stunt man in the business. He does
all his own stunts and fight choreography, and is amazing at it. His forte is use of props during fight
scenes. Chan got his start making Hong Kong kung fu flicks with very little plot and all the production
quality of your average home movie. But even his early films show his acrobatic talent and his
child-like sense of humor. He lists among his influences Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplain, and in
many of his films you can see their fingerprints. My personal favorite is Shanghai Noon. Almost all of
his movies are worth watching just for Jackie (with the exception of "The Prisoner," aka "Island of
Fire," which features Jackie in little more than a cameo and doesn't have much else to recommend
it). If you want to try one of the early films, one of the best is Drunken Master (the original, not the
"Drunken Master" made in 1994 for the American market, though it's good, too). Shanghai Noon, the
sequel Shanghai Knights, and Around the World in Eighty Days are probably fine for middle school
kids, maybe even younger.

Jet Li
Jet Li is a Wushu artist, who began full-time training in the martial arts at the age of nine. He has
won all-China championships, and even coached the Chinese national team before he turned 20. Now
an American action star, Jet Li also starred in several Hong Kong films that are worth checking out.
In my opinion his best movie, hands-down, by a large margin, is "Fearless." The acting is some of his
best, the martial arts are outstanding, and it reflects a more solid ethic than many martial arts
movies. Also try "Twin Warriors," in which he plays a Tai Chi fighter and "Once Upon a Time in China,"
set during the Boxer Rebellion, in which kung fu fighters battle the forces of Western Imperialism. My
personal opinion is that the films in which he wears a queue tend to better than those in which he
wears jeans and a sidearm, but that opinion has more to do with taste than the relative quality of
the movies. Iron Monkey and Twin Warriors are probably OK for middle school kids. Watch Li's
"modern" movies before letting kids view it. Some of his shoot-'em-up movies are bloody enough that
I won't watch them.

Bruce Lee
He was fast, talented, charismatic, and his early death only added to his mystique. His movies,
however, tend to be kind of flat-footed and plotless. If they're worth watching (and they are), it's
for Lee, not for their cinematic merit. Game of Death, produced after Lee's death from pieces shot as
an experiment, contains fight scenes against Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (yup, the basketball player-- he
was Lee's student), Chuck Norris, and Dan Inosanto (a Kali fighter). Enter the Dragon, his final film is
an early attempt to produce a kung fu film for the American audience. If you're interested in Bruce
Lee, you might also be interested in Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story. Based on Lee's life story, it
depicts Bruce Lee the legend, not necessarily the actual human being. Jason Scott Lee plays Lee.
Bruce Lee's movies aren't really for children and early teens. Even Dragon might be a bit scary for
impressionable or younger children, but it should be fine for a mature middle-schooler.

Michelle Yeoh
A Malaysian actress, dancer, and beauty pageant winner, Michelle Yeoh's martial arts training has all
been "on the job." She began making Hong Kong action films in 1985 and picked up steadily more
martial arts moves with each film. She was introduced to Western audiences as a "Bond girl" in
Tomorrow Never Dies. Her fight scenes in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon are some of the best I've
ever seen on film. She stars in Wing Chun, which is among Hong Kong's more watchable offerings;
plays opposite Jet Li in Twin Warriors; and she joins Jackie Chan in Supercop. Her recent movies,
including Memoirs of a Geisha, which, by the way, has no fight scenes, prove that she is not just an
amazing stunt person but also a good actor, something rare in martial arts films.�

Jean Claude van Damme
First of all, van Damme was trained as a martial artist not as an actor. It is not an accident that
most of his more recent stuff has gone direct to video. But if you want to sit around and make fun of
a martial arts movie, Jean Claude is definitely your man. (For example, it would be tough to come up
with something more peurile than Street Fighter: the Movie without calling on a group of thirteen
year old boys to write the screen play.) The two van Damme movies that might have some value
beyond ridicule are Bloodsport, which is incidentally not misnamed, and Kickboxer. Bloodsport is
probably the better of the two. It's about a southeast Asian precursor to Ultimate Fighting, in which
we see fighters from a wide variety of styles engaging in an ego-fueled gore fest. If, however, you
can get past the carnage, seeing the various styles matched together is fascinating. Keep van
Damme away from the kids, though.

Steven Seagal
Seagal's movies have too many guns, and too much stuff blowing up for my taste; moreover, Seagal,
himself, should get a bit more training before acting even in community theater. He is, however, a�
capable aikido-ka (link-- check it out) and offers an alternative to kung fu and karate flicks. If you're
curious, Under Siege is probably his best. Personally, I can't recommend it, but I'm more than willing
to admit that when it comes to Seagal I might not understand something that's a "guy thing."

Tony Jaa
Jaa is a newcomer to martial arts movies. His acting ability is minimal. In fact, he makes Segal look
like the Royal Shakespeare Company. In one movie, the Protector, he mostly says, "where's my
elephants." Well, that and he fights, which brings us to the main reason to watch a Tony Jaa movie.
The guy can move. He may actually be more athletic than Jackie Chan, and the technique he uses is
some of the most realistic I've ever seen in a movie. So far, his movies are fast-forward-button
movies-- worth hopping through the movie from fight scene to fight scene. But I'll bet you'll use the
reverse button, too, when you try to figure out exactly how we does the stunts he does without
wires.