INSTANT KUNG FU MAN. Stars: John Liu, Hwang Jang Lee, Director: Ng See Yuen, MA rating: 4 Two of the greatest movie kickers ever. Unfortunately, they are sloppier in this film than in others.

  BODYGUARD FROM BEIJING. Stars: Jet Li, Director: Yuen Kwei, MA rating: 5 Modern action film not predominantly martial arts (plenty of guns, SFX and character development, believe it or not), but what Jet does is great. Two ultra fast sequences that look like wing chun. Climax features plenty of Jet wu shu.

  ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA 1, 2, 3. Stars: Jet Li, Director: Tsui Hark, MA rating: 4.5

LAST HERO IN CHINA. Stars: Jet Li, MA rating: 3 Jet's wu shu is magnificent, especially in #2, but over-reliance on special effects and wire tricks . #3 is about lion-dancing, so don't look for too much in that one. Ironically, although the series is about hung-gar master Wong Fei Hung, Jet does little real hung-gar. "Last Hero", Jet's last WFH film, is a spoof and a poor film overall.

  KNOCKABOUT. Stars: Yuen Biao, Leung Kar Yun, Sammo Hung, Director: Sammo Hung, Lau Kar Wing. MA rating: 5 Masterpiece in which everyone shows high skills and precision. Early-period Yuen Biao in absolute prime (tae kwon do kicks, Monkey style, choy lay fut, various other southern Chinese animal styles). Sammo Hung kicks ass, as usual (Monkey, some wing chun). The villain is especially good(southern Chinese hand-based styles).

THE MASTER. Stars: Jet Li, Jerry Trimble, MA rating: 5

DRAGON FIGHT. Stars: Jet Li, MA rating: 5 Almost no special effects in either film. Jet using elements of wu shu, chi na (Chinese joint locks). "Master" pits him against Trimble, a kickboxing/karate champ.

  SHAOLIN TEMPLE 1, 2, 3 (MARTIAL ARTS OF SHAOLIN). Stars: Jet Li. MA rating: 5 (except for 2, which gets 3) These classic films leave no doubt to Jet Li's unparalleled skills. 1 and 2 are pure mainland China productions, and it shows in the very reverent (near-communist propaganda) tone of the productions. Jet and his supporting cast are hand-picked wu shu champions. Chinese scenery is gorgeous. The empty hand/foot and weapons work are unmatched. 1 is a rambling affair that contains and extended demonstration section in which Jet goes wild on solo forms. 2 is a weird "light/happy" installment that concentrates on a bunch of girls and kids (the wu shu doesn't get more serious until the end). 3 ("Northern and Southern Shaolin") is one of the pinnacles of Shaolin wu shu on film, and arguably Jet Li's finest pure martial arts performance and a summit meeting of martial arts talent. Directed by southern siu lum master Lau Kar Leung and full of intricately choreographed duels (large and small, empty hands and weapons). Unlike 1 and 2, he has matured here. Also features northern mantis, pa-kua and wu shu/southern fist.

  PEDICAB DRIVER. Stars: Sammo Hung, MA rating: 5 There are dead spots in this one, but the fight scenes are worth waiting for. Amazing sequence between Sammo and Liu Gar Leung. Sammo is particularly quick throughout the climax, and his kicks are amazingly good for a big dude.

  TAI CHI MASTER 2. Stars: Jacky Wu, MA rating: 2 Some tai chi technique, but not enough MA. A harmless forgettable soap about a teenage romance.

  TAI CHI MASTER. Stars: Jet Li, Michelle Khan, MA rating: 5 Early on, lots of Northern Shaolin and wu shu. Second half, Jet does excellent Chen-style tai chi. Some silly SFX (Jet kicking the bad guy into the air like a soccer ball), but enough technique and philosophy to satisfy a serious martial artist. Michelle's wu shu and weapons techniques are very good.

  TWO GREAT CAVALIERS STRUGGLE THROUGH DEATH FIGHTING ACE SHAOLIN EX-MONK. Stars: John Liu, MA rating: 5 Good showcases for JL's kicks. However, his best performances have been in other films opposite Hwang Jang Lee.

  ADVENTURE AT SHAOLIN. Stars: Polly Sheng, Wong Koon Hung, Taiwanese martial arts actors, MA rating: 4 Prototype of late 1970s Taiwan-produced "Ming patriot vs. Ching Dynasty" epic with complicated intrigue plots. This one is better than most, MA is consistently good.

  EXECUTIONERS. Stars: Michelle Khan, Anita Mui, Maggie Cheung, MA rating: 0 This apocalyptic science fiction story gets written up a lot for its all-star girl martial arts cast, but give me a break. There isn't much MA in this one. Michelle is the only real one in the bunch, and she doesn't get to do anything except get killed by a super villain who sticks his hand through her torso and tear her arm off. Anita and Maggie use doubles and SFX.

  BORN TO DEFENSE. Stars: Jet Li, MA rating: 4 This is an oddity from a young Jet Li (who also directed the film). Li stars as a WWII Chinese army veteran who fights vicious and racist American navy men. Much of the action takes place in a bar, and it is brutal wall-to-wall brawling. While Li's skill, speed and acrobatics are evident (the only reason for a rating of 4), the fight scenes are bizarre and make him look bad. Instead of using a smart strategy, he dukes it out toe to toe with a much larger, stronger, 7' plus (and supposedly equally skilled) villain---very dumb, were the situation real-life and not a movie. And Jet gets beaten up BADLY. What was Jet trying to say

  BLADE OF FURY. Stars: Yip Wing Cho, Sammo Hung, Ni Shing, Ti Lung, Zhao Changjun. MA rating: 5 Rousing Sammo Hung-directed epic full of high-level weapons and hand techniques. The hero is especially adept. Tournament scene in the middle is a magnificent excuse to show off empty hand and foot stuff (pa kua, kicking, southern and northern styles). For Chinese history buffs, this film captures the link between the Boxer Rebellion, warload Yuen Shih-Kai and the Nationalists, and the resulting conflict.

  FIST OF LEGEND. Stars: Jet Li, Billy Chow, Chin Siu Ho, Yasuki Kurata. MA rating:5 Choreographed by Jet himself, an impressive performance. Plenty of Jet Li wu shu, chin na and a slightly more "street" style (more boxing, Bruce Lee-inspired shuffle feet). Jet and Chin perform mi tsung-i the actual style of the Ching Wu Academy that the film is about. The "challenge" with Kurata is a bit wire-enhanced, as is the finale (vs. Chow), but not much to complain about as this is wall-to-wall action.

  FONG SAI YUK 1, 2. Stars: Jet Li, MA rating: 3 Jet is damned good, but these films are silly and use lots of wires.

  HERO AMONG HEROES TIGER CAGE 1 AND 2 CRYSTAL HUNT. Stars: Donnie Yen, MA rating: 5 Trained in wu shu, knowledgable in kickboxing and damned skilled, Donnie is impressive. "Hero" has him as So Hat Yee, the famous drunken fighter. Donnie isn't drunk until the end, and isn't very (you can tell he just wants to kick and hit). He is much better than the guy who plays Wong Fei Hung. "Tiger Cage 2" is a modern HK caper featuring his kickboxing (Robin Shou is the villain). "Crystal Hunt", also kickboxing, but there is a super sequence in which he dazzles with escrima and tai chi.

  KICKBOXER/GHOST FOOT 7. Stars: Yuen Wah, MA rating: 3 Disappointing. This period story coulda/shoulda been a showcase for late-period Yuen Biao to show off some of his old form (use pure kung fu). But he doesn't. Not terrible, but his kicks aren't that high, hand techniques not as sharp as the old days.

  LEGEND OF THE DRUNKEN TIGER. Stars: Alexander Lo, MA rating: 1 Ignore this listless and silly film. The guy's drunken technique is poor.

  NEW LEGEND OF SHAOLIN. Stars: Jet Li, MA rating: 1 This tiresome, complicated movie is all special effects. Jet uses a weapon through the whole thing.

  ANY FILM STARRING BRUCE LI (HO CHUNG TAO). MA rating: 2-3 This guy has made a career impersonating Bruce, not only on film but in his training. The acting, of course, is funny. Let's talk about his skills. His hand techniques don't suck. His kicks, however, are not wonderful. Doesn't get much height going.

  BURNING PARADISE. Stars: Virtual unknowns, Director: Ringo Lam, MA rating: 4 Neat movie in general, some MA. Tiger and crane styles pretty good by main two guys.

  KUNG FU CULT MASTER. Stars: Jet Li, Sammo Hung, Chingmy Yau, MA rating: 5 This is one where the special effects don't detract from the skills. The story is based on an old Chinese fantasy/legend, so it works. Jet does his wu shu, and at the end, he and Sammo show off some excellent tai chi (Chen and Yang).

  WHITE LOTUS CULT SAM THE IRON BRIDGE ONE ARMED HERO. Stars: Do Siu Chun, Zhao Changjun. MA rating: 4.5 Excellent (if not the most original) historical adventure series that captures some of the feeling of Jet Li's "Once Upon A Time" films. Good screen fighters (mostly wu shu trained) in all three. Do Siu Chun's moves smack of choy li fut. Zhao Changjun (wu shu champion) steals the show in the third film.

  BIG BOSS Stars: Bruce Lee. MA rating: 4. His first and worst film, but then again all of Bruce Lee's movies were greater so it's still a great movie.

  ENTER THE DRAGON Stars: Bruce Lee. MA rating: 5. Lots of people give this movie a 4 because Bruce actually doesn't do a whole lot except crack a bunch of unskilled stooges and beat them all, and people feel that dont take much skill. OK well this is how i look at it. The movie is great, Lee's best movie, and what he puts in this is great, NO ONE could of made this movie better then Bruce, it's a great classic and it deserves a 5.

  CHINESE CONNECTION RETURN OF THE DRAGON Stars: Bruce Lee. MA rating: 5. These are THE Bruce films to watch, along with the 15 minutes of GAME OF DEATH (a bit unfinished, weird wrestling and throws but technically interesting). "Return" is just a showcase, especially the Coliseum finale."Connection" is the most Chinese of his movies, including technique-wise. Wing chun is prominent in the finales of both.

MY LUCKY STARS DRAGONS FOREVER WINNERS AND SINNERS WHEELS ON MEALS PROJECT A DON'T GIVE A DAMN Stars: Jackie Chan (except for "Winners" and "Damn"), Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao. MA rating: 4 These "caper" films are almost interchangeable, featuring The Three Amigos, each opera-trained acrobats with (form) training in many styles. You like one movie, you'll like them all. Each ends with fight sequences for each star. Sammo is good in all. Jackie, because of his star power, gets longer fight finales against more interesting villains (including Benny Urquidez, twice). He makes a fair showing, but Sammo's a better fighter. Yuen Biao (late-period in these) is unfortunately spotty and comes off as the little fast guy who can't win against big villains without help, tricks or instruments. Someone really should make him look better for his talents.

  STREETFIGHTER SERIES Stars: Sonny Chiba. MA rating: 2 Chiba and company are vicious, but choreography-wise, sloppy. Very campy films (do you like chubby Japanese chicks with heavy eye liner wearing day-glo mini skirts?)

  SNAKE IN THE EAGLES SHADOW DRUNKEN MASTER Stars: Jackie Chan, Hwang Jang Lee MA rating: 5 Classics. Jackie is good in both, and is true to the styles portrayed in each film. Great forms. Hwang Jang Lee, the supreme kicker, however, is obviously the better fighter to those with learned MA eyes.

  SUPERCOP Stars: Jackie Chan, Michelle Khan, Yuen Wah. MA rating: 5

PROJECT S Stars: Michelle Khan, Yu Rong Gwong. MA rating: 5. This highly entaining modern action film gets a high rating even though it isn't strictly MA. The kickboxing is fast and crisp.

  YOUNG MASTER Stars: Jackie Chan, Yuen Biao. MA rating: 0 What the hell was this travesty? Jackie at his silliest. Very little MA. Yuen Biao (early period) outshines him in a short cameo,using a bench.

  MAGNIFICENT BUTCHER Stars: Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao. MA rating: 5 Showcase for young (late 1970s) Sammo Hung and various southern animal systems. Speed, agility, stances and power unbelievable. Also features cameo by a young Yuen Biao, possibly one of the best sequences in his career (as in "Knockabout", acrobatic, quick, intricate southern styles and tae kwon do kicks).

  DRUNKEN MASTER 2 Stars: Jackie Chan. MA rating: 4 Okay, the stuntwork is brilliant, but in terms of the drunken techniques, Jackie isn't as good as he was in Drunken 1. Nice choy lay fut in the middle, Ken Lo's "crazy legs" kicking is flashy (but he's helped by wires).

  ANY SHAW BROTHERS FILM FROM THE 1970s Stars: Ti Lung, Fu Sheng, Chen Kuan Tai, Chick Kun Kwun, David Chiang or the Venoms. Director: Chang Cheh. MA rating: 2-3. Slow, slow,slow. You can almost count the cadence of the moves, "1...2...3..." Granted, in some of the films, you get to see pure Southern Chinese styles (choy li fut, hung gar, crane, animal styles) the same way you'd see the forms practiced in an older Chinatown (US-based) kung fu school. But these films are generally overrated. Of all the Shaw stars, Lau Kar Leung and his crew (Lau Kar Wing, Liu Chia Hui) and Ti Lung (wing chun trained) are the ones with the real stuff.

  ANY FILM STARRING WANG YU, LO LIEH MA rating: 1 Just how Wang Yu developed a reputation is beyond me. In real life, he's had numerous fights to the death, so he knows how to fight. But on film, his techniques are awful and ugly. He virtually ushered in the bad kung fu films of the pre-Bruce Lee era (agozingly long fights with flailing arms, loud cracks). Lo Lieh is also slow and ugly. "Five Fingers of Death" was a bad film with poor kung fu.

  INVINCIBLE IRON ARMOR SNUFF BOTTLE CONNECTION Stars: Hwang Jang Lee, John Liu. MA rating: 5.

SECRET RIVALS SECRET RIVALS 2 DEATH DUEL OF KUNG FU Stars: Wang Tao, John Liu, Hwang Jang Lee. MA rating: 5. Classics. HJL is the supreme kick master, and his technique is crisp and scary. WT uses mostly southern styles (lot of tiger, some mantis), and JL's kicks are nice (but not as good as WJL). The villain of "Death Duel" is some little dude who is a magnificent martial artist (mostly mantis, and he can kick). Like WJL, makes the stars look bad.

  18 BRONZEMEN Stars: Carter Wong, Polly Sheng. MA rating: 4 This would get a 3, but the overall film is a classic Shaolin story and it started a whole "Bronzemen" craze in the late 70s. (Carter Wong is decent). Carter Wong and Polly Sheng (one of the all-time best girl kung fuers) are pretty sharp, but supporting cast is weak.

  THE HIMALAYAN Stars: Tam Tao Liang, Angela Mao Ying, Chen Sing. MA rating: 5 TTL and Angela in their prime, great kicks. TTL has never been better. Chen Sing's tiger claw very convincing.

  PRODIGAL SON Stars: Yuen Biao, Sammo Hung, Lam Ching Ying. MA rating: 5

WARRIORS TWO Stars: Sammo Hung, Casanova Wong, Leung Kar Yun. MA rating: 3

WING CHUN Stars: Michelle Khan MA rating: 3

STRANGER FROM SHAOLIN Stars: Wong Hang Sau. MA rating: 2 All four are wing chun films but only one is the real thing."Prodigal Son" is the best wing chun film ever made, period, on the strength of Lam's performance. Sammo does more acting than fighting. Yuen's wing chun isn't very good,but the overall movie is strong enough to overlook this. "Warriors" is lousy, and no one in the film does wing chun properly or well. LKY is slow. "Stranger" stars a woman who isn't a real martial artist and looks frail. Her sequences, however, were staged by Leung Ting, a WC master. Not entirely successful. "Wing Chun" is mostly special effects and wu shu.

  SWORD OF MANY LOVES Stars: Leon Lai, Cheung Man. MA rating: 1 (downgraded to 0 in 4/97) Based on the sword novel "The Adventures of Flying Fox" by Jin Yong, this should have been a great adventure flick. Instead, it's a silly waste of time. Leon Lai Ming and Cheung Man goof around and act like "I'm so cute" Hong Kong celebrities. Lousy martial arts (and lots of wires), dumb pee and sex jokes. Pop the tape and move on.

  PAINTED SKIN Stars: Joey Wang, Sammo Hung. MA rating: 0 Oh no. Another Joey Wang wispy girl ghost movie. Don't be fooled by Sammo Hung's co-starring role as a god. He doesn't do anything much except wave around a giant staff and make leaves fly all over the place. Nice production qualities but no martial arts.

  PAINTED FACES Stars: Sammo Hung. MA rating: 0 This film gets praise left and right. It's a docu-drama about Sammo Hung, Jackie Chan and Yuen Biao's brutal childhoods at the Peking opera school. Sammo plays the instructor. Should have been an intense training story full of martial arts. Instead, this disappointing "sensitive" little poem is all acting. Martial arts entirely missing except for leg stretches (big deal).

  STAGE DOOR JOHNNY Stars: Wai Ying Hung, Ken Lo, Wu Ma. MA rating: 5 A soapy drama about a female opera troupe. Martial arts and opera scenes, however, are excellent. Hard to find a better showcase for combination of operat and women fighters than here. Ken Lo does very little and gets shot.

  DREADNAUGHT Stars: Yuen Biao. MA rating: 1 Kwan Tak Hing, Philip Ko and Leung kar Yan don't do anything memorable. Give the movie a zero rating if you're looking for Yuen Biao to fight. He's a miserable guy in this story who can't fight. His mother makes him wash clothes. Ah, but the clothes scrubbing and wringing has given him a kung fu skill that allows him to shred peoples' skin (which he does at the very end)! A waste.

  MARTIAL ARTS MASTER WONG FEI HUNG Stars: Chin Kar Lok. MA rating: 3 CKL's moves don't impress. He's kind of hunched over and goofy-looking. Can't seem to decide if he's trying to do something that looks like Southern-style or Jet Li-like. Lam Ching Ying co-stars as a Japanese villain (and he moves better than CKL).

  SOUTH SHAOLIN MASTER SOUTH SHAOLIN MASTER 2 Stars: Qiu Jianguo. MA rating: 3 Yet more attempts to capture that "Once upon A Time in China" atmosphere. Plenty of action, unfortunately the lead character doesn't impress. Looks mostly like choy lay fut.

  THE ASSASSIN Stars: Max Mok. MA rating: 2 This story is about 18th century "La Femme Nikita"-like assassins, pulled into service from prisons. Martial arts consists of plain old chopping and slicing with not much technique. Vaunted finale is same, only with more effects.

  ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA 4 ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA 5 Stars: Chiu Man Chuk . MA rating: 3 I'm sorry, this replacement for Jet Li doesn't cut it. And what skill he gets to show off is obscured by too many special effects. Terrible stories full of the worst cliches of the Wong Fei Hung films. The opening credits in which CMC gets to move around much.

DUEL IN THE TIGER DEN Stars: unknowns. MA rating: 1 Highest recommendation for laughs. Prototype bad early 70s kung fu film. Hysterically funny, possibly the worst kung fu ever. Fight scenes are never-ending. Your face will hurt from laughing.

  YELLOW FACED TIGER Stars: Wong Tao, Chuck Norris. MA rating: 2 Bruce Lee turned down this script about a San Francisco chinese cop. Wong is passable but his kicking form isn't good in this one (tight flare leg jeans might have restricted his flexibility). Norris clearly kicks his ass in the finale, but Wong gets to smash him in the face repeatedly with blunt instrument.

  TAI CHI CHUAN Stars: Chen Xiao Wang and mainland unknowns. MA rating:3 A few scenes with tai chi master Chen Xiao Wang worth seeing. Three master behind opening credits perform Chen tai chi. The rest of this too-long film are forgettable, a bunch of unattractive precocious teenagers who aren't too good.

  SHE SHOOTS STRAIGHT Stars: Joyce Godenzi. MA rating: 5 Modern HK girl-cop action at its best, directed by Sammo Hung and starring his wife, who kicks ass. Everybody is fast, fights well in this one.

  INVINCIBLE KUNG FU LEGS/LEG FIGHTERS Stars: Tam Tao Liang. MA rating: 3 One of the many TTL flicks of the late 70s. TTL can kick well, but in his later years, lost much of his snap. Oddly, he only seems to kick with his left leg. His hands seem slow. When it comes to TTL, important to pick the film. He usually does better against tougher bad guys ("Himalayan" was his best film in my opinion).

  FEARLESS KUNG FU ELEMENTS STORY OF TEMPLE RED LILY "All Star Cast"(Taiwanese). MA rating: 2 Classic way-the-hell too long "intrigue" epics,the first full of ultra low budget fantasy elements. Entirely forgettable.

  WHEN TAE KWON DO STRIKES Stars: Jhoon Rhee, Angela Mao-Ying. MA rating: 3 This Golden Harvest film was shot in 1973, right around the zenith of the Bruce Lee era, and stars tae kwon do master Jhoon Rhee, a buddy of Bruce who, in real life, was an influence on Bruce's kicking techniques. One would think this movie would be a classic jam-packed with great tae kwon do and a smorgasbord of kicking. It ain't. Rhee's tae kwon do is there, but inexplicably, doesn't look all that great on film. His kicks are surprisingly unspectacular. Angela Mao is her usual self (she's very consistent). She actually has more screen time than Rhee.Rhee can't act(small wonder he never starred in another film after this one). In the finale, instead of looking like an intense, vengeance-minded fighter, he looks like a desperate grimacing crew-cutted kid with cranberry juice cocktail stains on his clothes, about to burst into tears.

  IRON MONKEY 2 Stars: Donnie Yen. MA rating: 3 This would gotten a rating of 4, but for some idiot reason, the director decided to speed up the fight scenes in the last 20 minutes. The results look like Keystone Kop stuff. This is unfortunate because Donnie is good in this one. He does more wing chun-like hands than in anything else I've seen so far. Donnie parts aside, it's not a great film. There is an annoying subplot involving a couple of "silly but lovable con artists" (why HK writers love these characters is beyond me).

  FIST OF FURY-TV SERIES Stars: Donnie Yen. MA rating: 4 Telling the same Ching Wu Academy/Huo Yen Chia/Chen Chen storyline, this TV series strikes a happy medium between its predecessor films, Bruce Lee's classic "Fist of Fury/Chinese connection" and Jet Li's more politically-correct remake. Donnie plays it along Bruce's lines for his role, but the surrounding production feels more like the Jet Li version in terms of historical context. Donnie has skill. If you can stand the incessant racial hostility (can't count the times someone screams, "You Damned Japanese!"), this is worth looking for.

  EASTERN CONDORS Stars: Sammo Hung, Yuen Biao, Joyce Godenzi, Yuen Wah. MA rating: 3 This is a war movie sprinkled with brief martial arts sequences, so unless you're in the mood for a Chinese variation of "Dirty Dozen" (combined with a somewhat silly Hong Kong cast of stars), you'll be disappointed. It was as if Sammo had to make excuses to do the martial arts ("ok, here's a scene where me and Yuen Biao get disarmed, so we have to fight...") These scenes are kick-boxing-oriented. Biao's kicks look pretty good, and Sammo is his versatile self. The finale contains the only sustained martial arts. Here, villain Yuen Wah is excellent and fast. Biao, true to form, gets overpowered. Sammo's moves are nearly as good as in "Pedicab Driver". Way to short to justify the rest of the movie.

  36TH CHAMBER OF SHAOLIN Stars: Liu Chia Hui. MA rating: 4 One of the classic and most entertaining Shaolin training stories. Unfortunately, most of the training is more fantasy-oriented than real. Under Liu Gar Leung's direction, Liu Chia Hui is solid (Southern Shaolin styles and excellent weapons sequences). Certainly among the finest Shaw Brothers films.

  THE SUPER REVERENT MONK Stars: Yu Hei. MA rating: 5 More proof that mainland Chinese martial arts films are superior. This epic has the feeling of a fairy tale, spectacular scenery, an interesting story (about two feuding villages and the monk who comes between them) and top-notch wu shu. Prominently featured are very pure northern Shaolin wu shu, and Shaolin drunken style. Minimal special effects, and the ones used are appropriate for the story.

  ROSA Stars: Yuen Biao, Wai Ying Hung. MA rating: 1 Waste of a decent cast. If you like Yuen Biao's impish smart-talk routine, and Hong Kong slapstick, this movie is 2 hours worth. Otherwise, not much kung fu except the finale, which was choreographed by Sammo Hung. Wai shows off some good moves (not enough of her in this movie). Yuen holds true to his form by almost losing the fight and "winning" in a comedic fashion.