Comparing the martial arts films of the 70s to the action films of 2009/2010
Red Cliff, Ip Man And true legend are already iconic in the early 2000s “martial arts movies” – although many could argue that they are more action movies than real “kung fu” movies. On the other hand, the 70s did not rely on eye candy influences and were defined more by the real grit of martial arts representatives: Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, Five Venoms, Tomisaburo Wakayama, Jimmy Wong and other real fighters trained in kung fu, real karate and other arts.
Martial arts are becoming mainstream but they are developing into a scene
Cult classics like Enter the dragon Help change Hollywood. Its growing popularity forced filmmakers to adopt martial arts in the “action movie” format. During the 1980s and 1990s, thrillers were expected to offer “fighting moves”, even if they were just some basic moves backed up by some stuntmen and wires. Action films have become spectacles that demand an equal mixture of story, drama, speed, “kung fu”, special effects and improbable plot twists.
In the 21st century, this has become less “equated” with films that rely first on special effects, then improbably plot twists (surprise matters, right?), followed by pacing, martial arts skills, drama and the last and perhaps least likely story of the day. This trend has even extended to hot movies in the past few years, including Kung Fu Panda, Forbidden Kingdom, Ji Go and even transformers.
The Asian film industry threatens to put Hollywood out of its sights
With the full support and weight of China’s cultural industries, Asian film has blossomed into high-demand mainstream scenes, led by CGI shows like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, House of Flying Daggers, and other instant classics. Arguably, Asian films have long since overtaken Hollywood in the realm of fantasy, with Western producers buying the rights to many hugely successful Asian films. With the largest population in the world, there can be no doubt that Chinese films are poised to dominate the film industry in the years to come.
Red Cliff And ip man They may be the most famous of these new classics, but rumor mills and fan sites are abuzz with the latest “coming soon” gossip. The big buzz movies of 2010 is True Legend (Su Qi Er), starring Zhao Wen-Zho as the historical Begger Su, a drunken kung fu master. Donnie Yen returns in both parts of Part 2 ip man The epic is much awaited 14 feathers. Chow Yun Fat breaks the mold and surprises everyone in his role as Confucius.
Both Hollywood and Asia rely on CGI and special effects
The growing spectacle and relevance of the “action movie” is fun for escapism and disturbing for true martial arts fans. While the actors in many movies – particularly Asian ones – are real martial artists (ie, Donnie Yen, Jet Li and Chow Yun Fat) – the over-reliance on CGI and detailed choreography turns the adventure into a comic book. With notable exceptions, such as Ip Man and Tony Jaa in Ong Bak (And to a lesser extent Ong Bak 2 And 3), most action films rely on the “wow” factor of dazzling camera angles and computer-aided “improvements”.
Ninja assassin and crossover
There are, for sure, crossover movies like Ninja assassin, in which actor Rain trained 14 hours a day for several months perfecting real martial arts moves (albeit only a few repetitions), mixed with somewhat Matrix-like special effects. For some, the realistic beauty of CGI takes away from the fun of watching real, well-choreographed martial arts.
Ong Bak, on the other hand, led by real martial arts expert Tony Jaa, got solid martial arts and good choreography. No trick, thank you. Tony Ja has been hailed as the “next Bruce Lee” for this reason, with much fanfare and excitement in the martial arts community, and fans of martial arts movies.
There is no escape
Action movies, by design, are escapist entertainment. They’ve become somewhat of a comic book (excuse me, graphic novel), but that’s what most audiences want. We want to forget reality.
Kill Bill And Kill Bill 2 It was probably the closest thing to the perfect blend for both escapist fans and martial arts fans. Although it was by no means “real,” and contained a brilliant, sparkling mix of satire, comic book, parody, and choreography, it was never unheard of nostalgia for the wondrous days of dragon entry and classic Japanese samarai films of the 1970s.
Japanese film stay true to martial arts traditions?
Perhaps the film industry most attuned to the ancient traditions of martial arts filmmaking is Japan. Zatoichi, the blind swordsmanIt was a low-budget movie that became an instant classic. Zatoichi brought movie audiences back to the classic real sword skills of the decades-old Samarai movies of the previous decades, spawned video games and an entire industry.
Less is more? Where is the real martial arts skill?
Real martial arts actors still abound led by stars like Donnie Yen and Jet Li – and most Chinese martial arts actors are quite adept. In Hollywood, filmmakers choose the four-move choreography (two kick, block and punch), multiple camera angles (especially when the martial artist’s skills are not original), beat music, FX, and stuntmen. With the exit of old hopefuls from the big screen in Hollywood – Chuck Norris, Jean-Claude Van Damme, and other promising real martial artists – there is now a huge difference between Asian film actors – who work in the freezing cold, fourteen hours a day in often primitive conditions, putting together really complex martial arts moves for comparatively little pay – and Hollywood movies that are now computer- and actor-dependent.
Batman now does kung fu
Batman Now he does kung fu, and so does he Ji Joeand even Hellboy. They’re fun, but the martial artist fan misses the iconic characters in martial arts movies who built their careers on the “real thing”: Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan, David Chiang, Sonny Chiba, Chen Kwan Tai, Tomisaburo and Kayama, Jimmy Wong Yu, Tai Lung, and the Liu brothers.