I happened upon the Discovery Channel web site and found their list of the "definitive movies" of the martial arts genre. They claim these are:
Karate Kid
Drunken Master
Fists of Fury
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
Drunken Master
Fists of Fury
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon
I find these to be interesting choices. There is no debating Fists of Fury. It was Bruce Lee's first starring role and launched the entire martial arts movie genre in America. Bruce Lee is the father and Grand Master of popular martial arts culture and Fists of Fury is his defining work.
Drunken Master would also top my list. If Bruce Lee was the Grand Master of popular martial arts culture then Jackie Chan was his disciple. Chan took the genre in a new direction and to new heights. Unlike other imitators, Chan did not try to be another Bruce Lee. Instead, he made fun of himself and showed that a martial artist could also be kind, sensitive and funny. Drunken Master defined Jackie Chan as an actor who excelled in martial arts and didn't take himself seriously.
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon was also a landmark movie for its use of cinematic effects and epic story telling. It was a very good movie that enjoyed worldwide success but I don't know that it is definitive. There are many similar films like Hero and House of Flying Daggers. Still, it did define Chow Yun Fat as a worldwide movie star. He showed that there was room for more than one martial arts movie star at a time. Chow is the classic leading man. He is tall, handsome and suave. Jackie Chan is the comic actor while Jet Li is the character actor. I don't object to
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon being on the list, however it should represent the shift in the martial arts genre as opposed to defining it on its own.
The one movie on Discovery's list that I have a problem with is Karate Kid. Does Ralph Machio belong on a list with the greatest martial arts movie stars of all time?!? No way. The film did raise awareness among American youth but the martial arts in the movie were contrived and hardly realistic. In many ways the movie harmed martial arts by making it look like an after school special. Are martial artists really supposed to believe that Pat Morita was the master? Pat Morita? Loved him in Happy Days but he isn't legit in the martial arts world. I would ask the Discovery Channel to rethink this entry on their list. Then again, they are main stream movie watchers and not martial arts enthusiasts like us.
Drunken Master would also top my list. If Bruce Lee was the Grand Master of popular martial arts culture then Jackie Chan was his disciple. Chan took the genre in a new direction and to new heights. Unlike other imitators, Chan did not try to be another Bruce Lee. Instead, he made fun of himself and showed that a martial artist could also be kind, sensitive and funny. Drunken Master defined Jackie Chan as an actor who excelled in martial arts and didn't take himself seriously.
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon was also a landmark movie for its use of cinematic effects and epic story telling. It was a very good movie that enjoyed worldwide success but I don't know that it is definitive. There are many similar films like Hero and House of Flying Daggers. Still, it did define Chow Yun Fat as a worldwide movie star. He showed that there was room for more than one martial arts movie star at a time. Chow is the classic leading man. He is tall, handsome and suave. Jackie Chan is the comic actor while Jet Li is the character actor. I don't object to
Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon being on the list, however it should represent the shift in the martial arts genre as opposed to defining it on its own.
The one movie on Discovery's list that I have a problem with is Karate Kid. Does Ralph Machio belong on a list with the greatest martial arts movie stars of all time?!? No way. The film did raise awareness among American youth but the martial arts in the movie were contrived and hardly realistic. In many ways the movie harmed martial arts by making it look like an after school special. Are martial artists really supposed to believe that Pat Morita was the master? Pat Morita? Loved him in Happy Days but he isn't legit in the martial arts world. I would ask the Discovery Channel to rethink this entry on their list. Then again, they are main stream movie watchers and not martial arts enthusiasts like us.
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