My Favorite Old School Kung Fu Movies
This list is only of movies i've seen so far. There are still a lot of classics i've never seen. I'm always seeing new movies so this list is always changing.
I'm only including the traditional kung fu movies that take place long ago before Phones, Electricity or Cars. But there are a few exceptions like Fist of Fury and Heroes of the East. They have those inventions but feel like they could of taken place before them. Plus they are great movies, so it's hard not to cheat and add them.
I'm having trouble putting these in an exact order of my favorites. It will never be exact and my favorites always change. But it's kind of close.
I'm only including the traditional kung fu movies that take place long ago before Phones, Electricity or Cars. But there are a few exceptions like Fist of Fury and Heroes of the East. They have those inventions but feel like they could of taken place before them. Plus they are great movies, so it's hard not to cheat and add them.
I'm having trouble putting these in an exact order of my favorites. It will never be exact and my favorites always change. But it's kind of close.
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- DirectorJimmy Wang YuStarsJimmy Wang YuTien Wu ChuKang ChinAfter his students are killed by the One Armed Boxer, a vengeful and blind Kung Fu expert travels to a village where a martial arts contest is being held and vows to behead every one armed man he comes across.This movie is bad a$$. The coolness factor is off the charts. Plus tournament fighting galore.
- DirectorSiu-Tung ChingStarsNorman ChuDamian LauFlora Chong-LeenThe best sword master from China vs the best sword master from Japan. Who will win?If you eliminate the ninja subplot this is a movie about honor. The best Chinese fighter vs the best Japanese fighter and there can be only 1 winner
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsKa-Yan LeungChia-Yung LiuBiao YuenTwo brothers and small time crooks Yipao and Taipao convince a martial arts expert to take them on as students, completely oblivious to his sordid past.This movie has some of the best fighting scenes. The comedy is good too. That final fight scene is one of my all time favorites.
- DirectorCheh ChangStarsSheng ChiangChien SunPhillip Chung-Fung KwokThe sixth and final pupil of a dying martial arts teacher is instructed to find the teacher's five former pupils and defeat any evil ones that are among them.This movie actually doesn't have that much fighting in it. But the awesome backstory and plot make up for it and then some. There are plenty of gruesome deaths
- DirectorWei LoStarsBruce LeeNora MiaoJames TienA young man seeks vengence for the death of his teacher.
- DirectorJoseph KuoStarsJack LongYi-Min LiKuan-Wu LungSupposedly dead, embittered former official, The Ghost Face Killer has returned and seeking revenge on those martial arts masters than once opposed him - his name is infamous and his Five Elements fighting style is deadly. Meanwhile, young Ah Pao joins a martial arts school in order to become a great fighter in order to take revenge on the man who killed his father. He gets very good quickly but timing is everything and his arrival at the school in relation to the return of the Ghost Face Killer sees him suspected of being connected and thus put out of the school. He falls under the tutelage of an elderly chess master in the town while all the time the focus of his vengeance kills his way closer and closer.Some of the best choreographed and flashy kung fu moves you'll see and the worst wigs. Nobody messes with the Ghost Faced killer
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsChia-Hui LiuSheng FuLily LiMongols with the help of an insider, ambush the influential Yang Family, defenders of the dynasty. The Mongols must hunt down all Yang survivors so their insidious plot to overthrow the dynasty will not be uncovered.
- DirectorLieh LoStarsChia-Hui LiuLieh LoLung-Wei WangThe monk Hung Wen-Ting fights against the evil priest White Lotus.
- DirectorTaylor WongStarsTung-Shing YeeOn-On YuKara WaiThe Buddha's Palm, a technique by which an ordinary hand is transformed into a formidable force. Ku, a blind recluse living in a cave, knows its secret, which proves to be as much a blessing as a curse as it attracts all manner of mayhem.
- DirectorCheh ChangStarsTien-Chi ChengTien-Hsiang LungMeng LoA Chinese martial arts school is infiltrated and destroyed by ninjas. Tian Hao survives the massacre and seeks to uncover the trickery of ninjutsu in order to beat the Five Element Ninjas and avenge his family.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsKa-Yan LeungHo WangSammo Kam-Bo HungA bank cashier discovers a plot to kill the mayor. His attempt to warn the mayor is foiled, and he almost gets killed, but a mumbling Shaolin disciple rescues him and takes him to his master to teach him a formidable form of kung fu.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsChia-Hui LiuLieh LoYue WongA man studies kung fu at the Shaolin Temple to fight back against the oppressive Manchu government.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsChia-Hui LiuYuka MizunoYasuaki KurataA Chinese man (Liu) marries a Japanese woman through an arranged marriage and manages to insult all of her Japanese martial arts family by issuing a challenge to her that is misinterpreted by the others. He must then prove how good Chinese Kung Fu really is through a series of duels with the seven Japanese martial artists who come to meet the challenge.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsKuan Tai ChenLieh LoYue WongHong Hsi-Kuan devotes years to mastering Tiger style Kung Fu in order to defeat the evil priest Pai Mei. His wife, who is an expert in Crane style Kung Fu, has a feeling training in only one style won't be enough.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsBiao YuenChing-Ying LamSammo Kam-Bo HungA young man discovers that his reputation as a fearsome martial artist is manufactured by his rich father, after meeting a real martial arts master, who's also a master thespian, and is determined to apprentice under him to learn kung fu.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsSammo Kam-Bo HungFat ChungLung ChanA rickshaw driver's wife and his rich client are secret lovers, and they decide to get rid of him without being implicated, so they hire a powerful sorcerer to kill him, but the sorcerer's colleague intervenes to protect him.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsSammo Kam-Bo HungTak-Hing KwanBiao YuenA hot headed young butcher, who is also a kung fu disciple, gets embroiled in a feud with a rival shaolin temple.
- DirectorChia-Liang LiuStarsChia-Liang LiuChia-Yung LiuKara WaiA band of killers from an ailing kung fu and magic society are sent on a manhunt for a former member of the society, whose bad mouthing threatens its existence.
- DirectorCheh ChangStarsChien SunMeng LoFeng LuDirector Chang Cheh reunites the Five Venoms in his second biggest cult hit in the West. It's Lo Meng's most memorable performances whose showdown with fellow Venom Kuo Chue is artistically violent while being graphically artsy.
- DirectorJing WongSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsJet LiSharla CheungChingmy YauA wild, rollicking martial-arts fantasy extravaganza that features prized swords and swordsmen, a crazy monk attached to a rolling boulder (yup!), serious clan and cult rivalries, and lots of magic and flying.
- DirectorKarl MakaStarsKuan Tai ChenFei MengChia-Yung LiuThe story begins with the star Chen Kwan Tai's family being killed by Lau Kar Wing, Leung Kar Yan and Wilson Tong. During the fight that ensues, Chen loses a thumb in the battle and manages to escape and vows revenge. Enter Meng Fei. He's a scam artist of sorts, who fakes a relationship with Chen to thwart the crew of Lau, Leung and Tong. Action packed classic!
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsJackie ChanSiu-Tin YuenJeong-lee HwangWong Fei-Hung is a mischievous yet righteous young man, but after a series of incidents his frustrated father has him disciplined by a master of drunken martial arts.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsShun-Yee YuenSiu-Ming TsuiLung ChanAspiring barber and experienced kung-fu fighter Shang learns that his childhood friend, Siu Ming, has been framed for murder by an unknown villain. When Shang begins looking into the crime, he soon finds himself the target of an assassination attempt. Who is behind all these crimes, and can Shang stop them?
- DirectorChang-hwa JeongStarsLieh LoPing WangHsiung ChaoAs two martial arts schools prepare for an important tournament, one school's master is a dishonorable man, and to ensure his son wins the title, he hires three Japanese samurais, who target the rival school's best fighter.
- DirectorSammo Kam-Bo HungStarsKa-Yan LeungSammo Kam-Bo HungYi ChangChung Yao, a martial arts expert, has long been on the run from his stepbrother, who he caught trying to rape his wife on their wedding night. His brother has never given up the chase however, and Chung Yao lives in constant fear that the vengeful stepbrother will murder him and his wife.
- DirectorCheh ChangStarsSheng FuNiu TienDanny LeeA young man must complete a series of martial art tests and overcome assassins along the way.
- DirectorSee-Yuen NgStarsJohn LiuJeong-lee HwangTino WongA corrupt official frames a man for murder. The man studies a martial arts style that makes his body as strong as iron, so he can counter the official's own incredible fighting skills.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsYat-Chor YuenKa-Yan LeungCheung-Yan YuenFormer Royal Guardsman Kao was forced to be on the run when his superior couldn't tolerate him being a Manchu marrying a Han woman. A young prince was inadvertently killed when he kidnapped the boy to aid in his escape. 14 years later, Kao now a drunkard ridden with guilt, has been living with a young orphan by the name of Shu Geng. Also introduced are two wacky old bickering sorcerer couple, Old Man and Old Spinster, who are always competing with each other over the most trivial matters. Before long, the old nemesis of Kao, the powerful Socerer Bat, found his whereabouts and killed him. Harboring evil ambitions, Sorcerer Bat forces Shu Geng to impersonate the belated prince, with the intention that one day he can ruled alongside the would-be king. Shu Geng manages to escape, amid strange encounters with the clown in-the-jar, and meets the two even stranger bickering magician couple, who teach him their craft. The rest is a typical revenge motivated plot, in which the young prodigy learn the martial arts to defeat the villain. The setting however, is not so typical as the finale takes place in a sorcerer competition where Shu Geng faces not only the evil Bat, but also countless other sorcerers, each possessing his own unique magic and abilities. The choreography and inventiveness of the fights make this early collaboration of the Yuen brothers stand out among the work of Yuen Woo-Ping, who move on to become on of the most sought after action director in the business today.The first in a Trilogy of complete zaniness and crazy magic
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsCheung-Yan YuenLung ChinTin-Shing HoA half man/demon is being guarded by a drunken Shaolin magician named Chan at the Shaolin temple. One day, Chan sneaks out to go on a drinking splurge, and the man/demon escapes. Chan, and his friend Ah Yuen, and his bride-to-be, plus Grandma Yau, help Chan to capture the evil magician and return him back to Shaolin.The second in a Trilogy of complete zaniness and crazy magic
- DirectorCheung-Yan YuenStarsCheung-Yan YuenYat-Chor YuenShun-Yee YuenAn incorrigible drunkard kung fu expert brings to this story all the rites and rituals of religion plus the foibles and cunning of the common men into one glorious long laugh.The 3rd in a Trilogy of complete zaniness, this time minus the magic but we get the infamous Watermelon/Banana monster instead.
- DirectorDan NgStarsCliff LokKien ShihHsing-Tang ChenYu (Cliff Lok) must defeat the Tiger to prove himself.
- DirectorMar LoStarsSiu-Tung ChingChiu-Sing HauFeng KuanA small-time crook goes in search of the other half of a wooden keepsake which will lead him to the legendary kung fu technique of the Gibbon Clan Fist.This movie has the wrong title. I am adding the movie Monkey Kung Fu, but they merged it with Stroke of Death even though it's a separate movie.
- DirectorSum CheungStarsJohn CheungYao Lin ChenPomson ShiThe master of a drunken fist is killed by a deadly snake fist duo in a major battle, so his only student flees and becomes a covert, expert fighter.
- DirectorWu MaStarsKuan-Chun ChiTao-Liang TanHsiao Wen TangShaolin hero Hu Hui-Chien has become the people's champion and the sworn enemy of the Ching government. So enraged are they that they employ the best fighters from the Wu Tang. A master leg fighter named Kao Chin Chung, whose "Flash Northern Legs" are undefeated in the whole of China, travels to Canton at the invitation of the Ching government to kill Shaolin master Hu Hui-Chien. This leads to the classic northern kicks and southern fist duel.
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsSiu-Tin YuenJeong-lee HwangLinda LinDrunken Boxing master Beggar So must train his bumbling son in order to take on a rival Drunken Boxing master and his student.
- DirectorJackie ChanStarsJackie ChanPai WeiBiao YuenA talented martial arts student goes after his expelled brother, who get into bad company.
- DirectorKarl MakaStarsKuan Tai ChenFei MengChia-Yung LiuThe story begins with the star Chen Kwan Tai's family being killed by Lau Kar Wing, Leung Kar Yan and Wilson Tong. During the fight that ensues, Chen loses a thumb in the battle and manages to escape and vows revenge. Enter Meng Fei. He's a scam artist of sorts, who fakes a relationship with Chen to thwart the crew of Lau, Leung and Tong. Action packed classic!
- DirectorWoo-Ping YuenStarsJackie ChanSiu-Tin YuenJeong-lee HwangAn orphan who has been raised at a kung fu school, where he is treated as little more than a dogsbody and practice target for the students, has a life-changing experience after helping an old peripatetic beggar.
- DirectorPhillip Chung-Fung KwokStarsChung-Kuei ChangPeng ChangShen-Lin Chen3 men trained in separate styles by the same teacher are located to stop an assassination attempt by marauding ninjas.
- DirectorCheh ChangStarsLung TiSheng FuPhillip Chung-Fung KwokThe movie involves two stories concerning the original Ten Tigers and their future disciples.
- DirectorChien-Chi ChangStarsAlexander Rei LoAlan Chung San ChuiChi-Ping ChangA young Shaolin boxer is sent to Tibet to learn Lama Kung Fu.
- DirectorChun-Ku LuStarsLeanne LauSiu Chung MokJason Piao PaiA brother and sister seek vengeance for the death of their parents.
- DirectorTak-Cheung TangStarsKuang-Hung ChiPing-Ying HouKara WaiThe lute-demon Chin Mo has reappeared in the world to wreak havoc. Hsiao Feng-ling is ordered to find a special bow and arrow that can counter the demon.