EASTERN CINEMA

Cinema of China Cinema of Hong Kong Cinema of Japan Cinema of Korea Cinema of Malaysia Cinema of Singapore Cinema of Taiwan Cinema of Thailand

The Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong honours many leading figures of Hong Kong action cinema.

Hong Kong action cinema is the principal source of the Hong Kong film industry's global fame. It combines elements from the action movie as codified by Hollywood with Chinese storytelling and aesthetic traditions to create a culturally distinctive form that nevertheless has a wide transcultural appeal. In recent years, the flow has reversed somewhat with American and European action films being heavily influenced by Hong Kong genre conventions. Image File history File links Please see the file description page for further information. ... Eastern cinema (sometimes called Far Eastern cinema or Oriental cinema) is a broad term used in the Western world to refer to the film industry and films produced in, and/or by natives of, East Asia or the Far East. ... The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. ... The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China and Cinema of Taiwan. ... Japanese cinema (映画; Eiga) has a history in Japan that spans more than 100 years. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... The Malaysian cinema experience began in 1933 with the screening of Laila Majnun, a well-known Sanskrit play of two ill-fated lovers. ... After independence, in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s, Singapore had no film industry, being more concerned with the bread-and-butter issues of economic nation-building. ... The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China and Cinema of Taiwan. ... The cinema of Thailand has a history that stretches back to early days of filmmaking, when King Chulalongkongs 1897 visit to Berne, Switzerland was recorded by Francois-Henri Lavancy-Clarke. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 496 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (1600x1200, 496 KB) File links The following pages link to this file: Avenue of Stars, Hong Kong ... Vivid statues on the Avenue of Stars. ... The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China and Cinema of Taiwan. ... // Rise of the Action movie The genre, although popular since the 50s, did not become one of the most dominant forms in Hollywood until the 1980s and 1990s, when it was popularised by actors such as Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bruce Willis and Sylvester Stallone. ... ... A film genre is a rough categorization of films into genres, which describe the typical subject matter—what the film is about: Western films are about the American West, love stories are about love, and so on. ...

An early trend towards wuxia cinema, emphasising mysticism and swordplay, was politically smothered in the 1930s and replaced by films depicting more down-to-earth unarmed kung fu, often featuring folk hero Wong Fei Hung. Post-war cultural upheavals led to a second wave of wuxia films with highly acrobatic violence, followed by the emergence of the grittier kung fu films for which the Shaw Brothers studio is best known. The 1970s saw the rise and sudden death of international superstar Bruce Lee. He was followed in the 1980s by Jackie Chan, who popularised the use of comedy, dangerous stunts, and modern urban settings in action films, and Jet Li, whose authentic wushu skills appealed to both eastern and western audiences. The innovative work of directors and producers like Tsui Hark and John Woo introduced further variety (for example, gunplay, Triads and the supernatural). An exodus by many leading figures towards Hollywood in the 1990s coincided with a downturn in the industry. This article is in need of attention. ... Alternative meaning: Kung Fu (TV series) Kung fu or gongfu (功夫, Pinyin: gōngfu) is a well-known Chinese term used in the West to designate Chinese martial arts. ... Wong Fei Hung (Chinese: 黃飛鴻; Pinyin: ; Yale Cantonese: Wong4 Fei1 Hung4) (July 9, 1847–March 25, 1924) was a healer, martial artist and revolutionary who became a Chinese folk hero often described as the Chinese Robin Hood. Wong Fei Hung museum in Foshan, Guangzhou, China As a healer and medical doctor... The Shaw Studio (邵氏片場), owned by Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. ... Bruce Lee. ... Jackie Chan (born April 7, 1954 in Hong Kong) is a Chinese martial artist, actor, director, stuntman and singer. ... Jet Li Jet Li (Traditional Chinese: 李連杰; Simplified Chinese: 李连杰; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Li Lien-chieh; Cantonese: Ley5 Lin4 Git6; born April 26, 1963) is a Chinese martial artist and film actor. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Kung fu. ... Tsui Hark (Chinese: 徐克; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hsü Ko) (born Tsui Man-kong (徐文光) on February 15, 1950) is a New Wave film director in Hong Kong who is also a highly influential producer, often likened to Steven Spielberg for a similar galvanizing effect on his countrys cinematic scene. ... John Woo (Chinese: 吳宇森; Hanyu Pinyin: ) (born 1 May 1946, in Guangzhou, China) is a Chinese film director known especially for the ballet-like violence in his movies. ... This article needs cleanup. ...

Early martial arts films

The signature contribution to action cinema from the Chinese-speaking part of the world is the martial arts film, most famously as developed in Hong Kong. The genre emerged first in Chinese popular literature. The early twentieth century saw an explosion of what were called wuxia (often translated as "martial chivalry") novels, generally published in serialized form in newspapers. These were tales of heroic, sword-wielding warriors, often featuring mystical or fantasy elements. The genre was quickly seized on by early Chinese film, particularly in the movie capital of the time, Shanghai. Starting in the 1920s, wuxia titles, often adapted from novels (for example, 1928's The Burning of the Red Lotus Monastery and its eighteen sequels) were hugely popular and the genre dominated Chinese film for several years (Chute & Lim, 2003, 14-15). Martial arts film is a film genre that originated in the Pacific Rim. ... This article is in need of attention. ... For other meanings see Fantasy (disambiguation) Fantasy is a genre of art, literature, film, television, and music that uses magic and other supernatural forms as a primary element of either plot, theme, setting, or all three. ... The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. ... Shanghai (Chinese: 上海 pinyin: (help· info); Shanghainese: Zanhe ), situated on the banks of the Yangtze River Delta, is Chinas largest city. ...

The boom was smothered in the 1930s by official opposition from cultural and political elites, especially the Kuomintang government, who saw it as promoting superstition and violent anarchy (Chute & Lim, 2003, 2). Wuxia filmmaking was picked up in Hong Kong, at the time a British colony with a highly liberal economy and culture and a developing film industry. The first martial arts film in Cantonese, the dominant Chinese dialect of Hong Kong, was The Adorned Pavilion (1938). The Chinese Nationalist Party (Traditional Chinese: 中國國民黨; Simplified Chinese: 中国国民党; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chung1-kuo2 Kuo2-min2-tang3; Tongyong Pinyin: Jhōngguó Guómíndǎng), commonly known as the Kuomintang (KMT), is a conservative political party currently active in the Republic of China (ROC) on Taiwan. ... Cantonese (Traditional Chinese: 粵語; Simplified Chinese: 粤语, Cantonese: Yuet6yue5; Mandarin pinyin: Yueyu, Yụet (Guangdong) language) is one of the major dialect groups or languages of the Chinese language or language family. ... Spoken Chinese The Chinese spoken language(s) comprise(s) many regional variants. ...

Postwar martial arts cinema

Scene from an unidentified 1960s wuxia film. The magic qi rays are created using crude hand-drawn animation.

By the late 1940s, upheavals in mainland China - the Sino-Japanese War, the Chinese Civil War and the victory of the Communists - had shifted the center of Chinese-language filmmaking to Hong Kong. The industry continued the wuxia tradition in Cantonese B movies and serials, although the more prestigious Mandarin-dialect cinema generally ignored the genre. Animation and special effects drawn directly on the film by hand were used to simulate the flying abilities and other preternatural powers of characters; later titles in the cycle included The Six-Fingered Lord of the Lute (1965) and Sacred Fire, Heroic Wind (1966) (Chute & Lim, 2003, 2). This article is in need of attention. ... Combatants National Revolutionary Army, Republic of China Imperial Japanese Army, Empire of Japan Commanders Chiang Kai-shek, Yan Xishan, Feng Yuxiang, Zhu De, He Yingqin Tojo Hideki, Matsui Iwane, Minami Jiro, Kesago Nakajima, Toshizo Nishio, Neiji Okamura. ... Combatants Chinese Nationalist Party Chinese Communist Party Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Mao Zedong Strength 3,600,000 circa June 1948 2,800,000 circa June 1948 The Chinese Civil War (Traditional Chinese: 國共内戰; Simplified Chinese: 国共内战; Pinyin: ; literally Nationalist-Communist Civil War) was a conflict in China between the Kuomintang (Chinese Nationalist... The Communist Party of China (CPC) (official name) or Chinese Communist Party (CCP) (Simplified Chinese: 中国共产党; Traditional Chinese: 中國共産黨; Hanyu Pinyin: ) is the ruling political party of the Peoples Republic of China. ... The term B-movie originally referred to a Hollywood motion picture designed to be distributed as the lower half of a double feature, often a genre film featuring cowboys, gangsters, or horror. ... Mandarin, or Guanhua (Traditional Chinese: 官話; Simplified Chinese: 官话; Hanyu Pinyin: ; literally official speech), or Beifanghua (Chinese: 北方方言; Hanyu Pinyin: ; literally Northern Dialect(s)) is a category of related Chinese dialects spoken across most of northern and southwestern China. ...

A countertradition to the wuxia films emerged in the kung fu movies that were also produced at this time. These movies emphasized more "authentic," down-to-earth and unarmed combat over the swordplay and mysticism of wuxia. The most famous exemplar was real-life martial artist Kwan Tak Hing; he became an avuncular hero figure to at least a couple of generations of Hong Kongers by playing historical folk hero Wong Fei Hung in a series of roughly one hundred movies, from The True Story of Wong Fei Hung (1949) through Wong Fei Hung Bravely Crushing the Fire Formation (1970) (Logan, 1995). A number of enduring elements were introduced or solidified by these films: the still-popular character of "Master Wong"; the influence of Chinese opera with its stylized martial arts and acrobatics; and the concept of martial arts heroes as exponents of Confucian ethics. Alternative meaning: Kung Fu (TV series) Kung fu or gongfu (功夫, Pinyin: gōngfu) is a well-known Chinese term used in the West to designate Chinese martial arts. ... Wong Fei Hung (Chinese: 黃飛鴻; Pinyin: ; Yale Cantonese: Wong4 Fei1 Hung4) (July 9, 1847–March 25, 1924) was a healer, martial artist and revolutionary who became a Chinese folk hero often described as the Chinese Robin Hood. Wong Fei Hung museum in Foshan, Guangzhou, China As a healer and medical doctor... 19th century Chinese opera Chinese opera costumes Chinese opera is a popular form of drama in China. ... Shrine of Confucius in Thian Hock Keng in Singapore. ...

"New School" wuxia

In the second half of the 1960s, the era's biggest studio, Shaw Brothers, inaugurated a new generation of wuxia films, starting with Xu Zenghong's Temple of the Red Lotus (1965), a remake of the 1928 classic. These Mandarin productions were more lavish and in color; their style was less fantastical and more intense, with stronger and more acrobatic violence. They were influenced by imported samurai movies from Japan and by the wave of "New School" wuxia novels by authors like Jin Yong and Liang Yusheng that started in the 1950s (Chute and Lim, 2003, 8 & 15). The trend may also have been encouraged by a need to win back local audiences from the newly popularized medium of television. // Overview The Shaw Studio (邵氏片場), owned by Shaw Brothers (HK) Ltd. ... Japanese samurai in armour, 1860s. ... This article is in need of attention. ... Louis Cha, (born June 6, 1924), known to most by his penname Jinyong or Kam-yung, is one of the most influential Chinese-language novelists. ...

The New School wuxia wave marked the move of male-oriented action films to the center of Hong Kong cinema, which had long been dominated by female stars and genres aimed at female audiences, such as romances and musicals. Even so, during the 1960s female action stars like Cheng Pei Pei were prominent alongside male stars like former swimming champion Jimmy Wang Yu and they continued an old tradition of woman warriors in wuxia storytelling. The signature directors of the period were Chang Cheh with The One-Armed Swordsman (1967) and Golden Swallow (1968) and King Hu with Come Drink with Me (1966). Hu soon left Shaw Brothers to pursue his own vision of wuxia with independent productions in Taiwan, such as the enormously successful Dragon Inn (1967, aka Dragon Gate Inn). Chang stayed on and remained the Shaws' prolific star director into the early 1980s. The romance film has as its central plot the beginning, obstruction and eventual, though often tragic, fruition of a romance. ... The musical film is a film genre in which several songs sung by the characters are interwoven into the narrative. ... Jimmy Wang Yu Jimmy Wang Yu (born March 28, 1943, also known as Wong Yu-lung and Wang Yue) was a multi-talented Chinese actor, director, producer, and scriptwriter. ... Chang Cheh (張徹; pinyin:Zhāng Chè) (February 10, 1923 – 22 June 2002) was Shaw Brothers Studios best known and most prolific film director, with such films as the Five Deadly Venoms, the Brave Archer (based on the works of Jin Yong), the One-Armed Swordsman, and other classics of... King Hu (胡金銓, pinyin: Hú Jīnquán, April 29, 1931 - January 14, 1997) was a Hong Kong and Taiwan-based Chinese film director whose wuxia films brought Chinese cinema to new technical and artistic heights. ...

The 1970s kung fu wave

The early 1970s saw wuxia giving way to a new, grittier and more graphic (and Mandarin-speaking) iteration of the kung fu movie, which came to dominate through the decade and into the early 1980s. Seriously trained martial artists such as Ti Lung and Gordon Liu became some of the top stars as increasing proportions of running times were devoted to combat setpieces. The Chinese Boxer (1970), starring and directed by Jimmy Wang Yu, is widely credited with launching the kung fu boom. But remaining at the vanguard, at least initially, were Shaw Brothers and director Chang Cheh. Chang's Vengeance (1970) was another of the first trendsetters and his dozens of contributions included The Boxer from Shantung (1972), The Five Venoms (1978) and Crippled Avengers (1979). Kung fu cinema was particularly influenced by Chang's concern with his vision of masculine values and male friendship; the female warrior figures who had been prominent in late '60s wuxia work were sidelined, with prominent exceptions such as the popular Angela Mao. Alternative meaning: Kung Fu (TV series) Kung fu or gongfu (功夫, Pinyin: gōngfu) is a well-known Chinese term used in the West to designate Chinese martial arts. ... Hawaiian State Grappling Championships. ... This article is on the Chinese dragon. ... Gordon Liu Gordon Liu (Lau Ka-Fai; Liu Chia Hui) (born 1955) is a Chinese martial arts actor. ...

Chang's only competitor as the genre’s most influential filmmaker was his long-time action choreographer, Lau Kar Leung (aka Liu Chia Liang in Mandarin). Lau began directing his own movies for Shaws in 1975 with The Spiritual Boxer, a progenitor of the kung fu comedy. In subsequent titles like Executioners from Shaolin (1977), The 36th Chamber of Shaolin (1978), and Legendary Weapons of China (1982), Lau emphasized the traditions and philosophy of the martial arts and strove to give onscreen fighting greater authenticity and ever greater speed and intricacy. (Logan, 1995) Stage Combat is a specialized method of physical theatre designed to create the illusion of physical combat for theatrical productions (or any form of dramatic production, including film and television). ... Lau Kar-leung (Mandarin: Liu Chia-liang) is a famous Chinese martial arts director and actor. ...

The kung fu boom was partly fueled by enormous international popularity, and not just in East Asia. In the West, kung fu imports, dubbed and often recut and retitled, shown as "B" films in urban theaters and on television, made Hong Kong film widely noticed, although not widely respected, for the first time. African-Americans and other racial minorities particularly embraced the genre (as exemplified by the popular hip-hop group, the Wu-Tang Clan) perhaps as an almost unprecedented source of adventure stories with non-white heroes, who furthermore often displayed a strong streak of racial and/or nationalistic pride. In filmmaking, dubbing refers to the recording of voices for a movie. ... Hip-Hop music is a style of popular music. ... -1...

Bruce Lee

Way of the Dragon (1972) film poster. It was the first Hong Kong film to be shot on location in a Western continent.

No single figure was more responsible for this international profile than Bruce Lee, an American-born, Hong Kong-raised martial artist and actor. Lee completed just four movies before his death at the age of 32: The Big Boss (1971), Fist of Fury and Way of the Dragon (both 1972) and Enter the Dragon (1973). But in this very brief career his unique physical style, onscreen charisma and instinct for self-promotion made him the cinema's first global Chinese superstar. His first three movies broke local box office records and were successful in much of the world. The English-language Enter the Dragon, the first-ever U.S.-Hong Kong co-production, grossed about US$90 million worldwide, making it the most internationally successful Chinese film to that date. Furthermore, his decision at the outset to work for young, upstart studio Golden Harvest, rather than accept the Shaws' notoriously tightfisted standard contract, was a factor in Golden Harvest's meteoric rise and Shaw's eventual decline (Logan, 1995; Teo, 1997). Image File history File links Download high resolution version (436x618, 82 KB) Summary The following is the movie poster from the film Way of the Dragon, starring Bruce Lee. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (436x618, 82 KB) Summary The following is the movie poster from the film Way of the Dragon, starring Bruce Lee. ... Way of the Dragon (《猛龍過江》 released as Return of the Dragon in the U.S.) was the third major film of Martial Arts Legend Bruce Lee. ... Bruce Lee. ... The Big Boss (1971, 唐山大兄, a. ... Fist of Fury (1972) (Simplified Chinese: 精武门; Traditional Chinese: 精武門; Hanyu Pinyin: ; known as The Chinese Connection in the U.S., not to be confused with Fists of Fury) was Bruce Lees second major film after his meteoric rise to stardom in The Big Boss. ... Way of the Dragon (《猛龍過江》 released as Return of the Dragon in the U.S.) was the third major film of Martial Arts Legend Bruce Lee. ... Enter the Dragon (《龍爭虎鬥》 aka. ... Golden Harvest (嘉禾) HKEx: 1132 is a film production, distribution and exhibition company based in Hong Kong. ...

Following Lee's untimely loss, a virtual cottage industry emerged of faux Lee movies featuring either performers who adopted similar screen names (Bruce Li, Bruce Lai, etc.), or outtake footage of Lee, or some combination of both. The fad did little to engender mainstream respect in the West for the relatively new phenomenon of martial arts cinema. But despite such posthumous treatment, Lee continues to cast a long shadow over Hong Kong film. Bruceploitation is a cultural phenomenon mostly seen in the 1970s. ...

Jackie Chan and the kung fu comedy

The only Chinese performer who has ever rivalled Lee's global fame is Jackie Chan. Like many kung fu performers of the day, Chan came out of training in Peking Opera and started in film as a stuntman, notably in some of Lee's vehicles. He was groomed for a while by The Big Boss and Fist of Fury director Lo Wei as another Lee clone, in several movies including New Fist of Fury (1976), with little success. But in 1978, Chan teamed up with action choreographer Yuen Woo-ping on Yuen's directorial debut, Snake in the Eagle's Shadow. The resulting blend of physical comedy and kung fu action provided Chan with his first hit and the rudiments of what would become his signature style. Chan's follow-up movie with Yuen, Drunken Master (also 1978), and his directorial debut, The Fearless Hyena (1979), were also giant hits and cemented his popularity. (Logan, 1995) Jackie Chan (born April 7, 1954 in Hong Kong) is a Chinese martial artist, actor, director, stuntman and singer. ... In Beijing, September 2002 Beijing opera or Peking opera (京剧, pinyin: Jīngjù) is a kind of Chinese opera which arose in the mid-19th century and was extremely popular in the Qing dynasty court. ... A stunt double is a type of body double, specifically, a skilled replacement used for dangerous film or video sequences, in movies and television, (such as jumping out of a building, jumping from vehicle to vehicle, or other similar actions), other sophisticated stunts such as fight sequences, or even in... Yuen Woo-ping (Chinese: 袁和平; pinyin: ; born 1945 in Guangzhou, China) is a martial arts choreographer and director. ... UK DVD cover Drunken Master (醉拳, Zui quan--literally Drunken Boxing) is a movie directed by Yuen Wo Ping, starring Jackie Chan and Hwang Jang-Lee, first released in 1978. ...

Although these films were not the first kung fu comedies, they launched a vogue that helped reinvigorate the waning kung fu genre. Especially notable in this regard were two of Chan's childhood Peking Opera Academy classmates, Sammo Hung and Yuen Biao, who also made careers of this specialty, sometimes co-starring with Chan. Hung, noted for the seeming paradox of his overweight physique and physical agility, also made a name for himself as a director and action choreographer from early on, with titles like Enter the Fat Dragon (1978). Sammo Hung (Chinese: 洪金寶; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Cantonese: Hung4 Gam1 Bou2) (born in Hong Kong on January 7, 1952) is a Kung Fu movies actor, producer and director. ... Yuen Biao (元彪) (born 26 July 1957) is a Chinese actor from Hong Kong. ...

Reinventing action cinema

Chan's clowning may have helped extend the life of the kung fu wave for several years. Nevertheless, he had become a star towards the end of the boom, and would soon help move the colony towards a new type of action. In the 1980s, he and many colleagues would forge a slicker, more spectacular Hong Kong pop cinema that would successfully compete with the post-Star Wars summer blockbusters from America. The cover of the 2004 DVD widescreen release of the modified original Star Wars Trilogy. ...

Jackie Chan and the modern kung fu film

By 1983, Chan branched out into action films which, though they still used martial arts, were less limited in scope, setting and plot. His first film in this vein, Project A, saw the official formation of the Jackie Chan Stunt Team and added elaborate, dangerous stunts to the fights and typical slapstick humor (at one point, Chan falls from the top of a clock tower through a series of fabric canopies). The new formula grossed over HK$19 million. Jackie Chans Project A (aka. ... The Jackie Chan Stunt Team (Sing Ga Ban), also known as Jackie Chans Stuntmen Association is a group of stuntmen and martial artists who work alongside Jackie Chan. ...

Chan continued to take the approach - and the budgets - to new heights in hits like Police Story (1986). Here was Chan dangling from a speeding bus, sliding down a pole covered with exploding light bulbs, and destroying large parts of a shopping centre and a hillside shantytown. The 1988 sequel called for explosions on a scale similar to many Hollywood movies and seriously injured leading lady Maggie Cheung - an occupational risk Chan had already grown used to. Thus Jackie Chan created the template for the contemporary urban action-comedy of the '80s, combining cops, kung fu and all the bodybreaking potential of the modern city with its glass, metal and speeding vehicles. Police Story is a 1985 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by and starring Jackie Chan. ... Maggie Cheung For Maggie Cheung Ho Yee (張可頤) please go to Maggie Cheung Ho Yee. ...

Tsui Hark and Cinema City

Chan's move towards larger-scale action films was parallelled by work coming out of Cinema City, the production company established in 1980 by comedians Raymond Wong, Karl Maka and Dean Shek. With movies like the spy spoof Aces Go Places (1982) and its sequels, Cinema City helped make modern special effects, James Bond-type gadgets and big vehicular stunts part of the industry vernacular (Bordwell 2000). Director/producer Tsui Hark had a hand in shaping the Cinema City style while employed there from 1981-1983 (Teo, 1997) but went on to make an even bigger impact after leaving. In such movies as Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain (1983) and A Chinese Ghost Story (1987, directed by Ching Siu-tung), he kept pushing back the boundaries of Hong Kong special effects. He led the way in replacing the rough and ready camera style of 1970s kung fu with glossier and more sophisticated visuals and ever more furious editing. The James Bond 007 gun logo James Bond, also known as 007 (pronounced double-oh seven), is a fictional British spy created by writer Ian Fleming in 1953. ... Tsui Hark (Chinese: 徐克; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hsü Ko) (born Tsui Man-kong (徐文光) on February 15, 1950) is a New Wave film director in Hong Kong who is also a highly influential producer, often likened to Steven Spielberg for a similar galvanizing effect on his countrys cinematic scene. ... A Chinese Ghost story (Chinese: 倩女幽魂; pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Chien-nü Yu-hun, literal meaning: The Spirit of a Beauty) is a 1987 Hong Kong movie starring Leslie Cheung, Joey Wong and Wu Ma, directed by Ching Siu-tung and produced by Tsui Hark. ... Ching Siu-tung (a. ...

John Woo and the Triad film

Chow Yun Fat in a scene from A Better Tomorrow (1986), a gun in each hand. This style became known as gun fu.

As a producer, Tsui facilitated the creation of John Woo's epoch-making heroic bloodshed movie A Better Tomorrow (1986). Woo's saga of cops and Triads (Chinese gangsters) combined fancifully choreographed (and extremely violent) gunplay with heightened emotional melodrama, sometimes resembling a modern-dress version of 1970s kung fu films by Woo's mentor Chang Cheh. The formula broke another all-time box office record. It also jump-started the faltering career of co-star Chow Yun-Fat, who overnight became one of the colony's most popular idols and Woo's favorite leading man. (Logan, 1995) A Better Tomorrow This is a screenshot of a copyrighted movie or television program. ... A Better Tomorrow This is a screenshot of a copyrighted movie or television program. ... Chow Yun-Fat (周潤發, Jau1 Yeun6 Faat3, Pinyin: Zhōu Rùnfā) (born May 18, 1955 on Lamma Island, Hong Kong) is among a handful of internationally recognized screen actors that Hong Kong has ever produced, along with Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. ... From riches. ... Gun fu is a martial art that primarily exists in Hong Kong cinema and in Western movies influenced by it. ... John Woo (Chinese: 吳宇森; Hanyu Pinyin: ) (born 1 May 1946, in Guangzhou, China) is a Chinese film director known especially for the ballet-like violence in his movies. ... Heroic Bloodshed, or Hong Kong Blood Opera (HKBO), refers to a genre of action film originating from Hong Kong revolving around stylised action sequences and common themes such as brotherhood, honour, violence, and also prevalent themes are the redemption or salvation of the protagonist. ... From riches. ... This article needs cleanup. ... Chang Cheh (張徹; pinyin:Zhāng Chè) (February 10, 1923 – 22 June 2002) was Shaw Brothers Studios best known and most prolific film director, with such films as the Five Deadly Venoms, the Brave Archer (based on the works of Jin Yong), the One-Armed Swordsman, and other classics of... Chow Yun-Fat Chow Yun-Fat (Chinese: 周潤發; Hanyu Pinyin: ) (born May 18, 1955 on Lamma Island, Hong Kong) is among a handful of internationally recognized screen actors that Hong Kong has produced, along with Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. ...

For the remainder of the '80s and into the early '90s, a deluge of films by Woo and others explored similar territory, often with a similar visual style and thematic bent. They were usually marked by a particularly Chinese emphasis on the fraternal bonds of duty and affection among the criminal protagonists. The most notable other auteur of these themes was Ringo Lam, who offered a less romanticized take in such films as City on Fire, Prison on Fire (both 1987), and Full Contact (1992), all starring Chow Yun-Fat. The genre and its creators were accused in some quarters of cravenly glorifying real-life Triads, whose involvement in the film business was notorious (Dannen, Long, 1997). The term auteur (French for author) is used to describe film directors (or, more rarely, producers) who are considered to be artists with their own unique vision. ... Ringo Lam (林嶺東; pinyin: Lin Lingdong; Cantonese: Lam Leng-tung) (born 1955) is a film director known for stylish action thrillers. ... City on Fire (Simplified Chinese: 龙虎风云, Pinyin: Lóng hÇ” fÄ“ng yún) is a gritty and stylish 1987 Hong Kong action film directed by Ringo Lam, and starring Chow Yun-Fat, Danny Lee and Sun Yueh. ...

The wire fu wave

As the Triad film petered out in the early 1990s, period martial arts returned as the favored action genre. But this was a new martial arts cinema that took full advantage of technical strides as well the higher budgets that came with Hong Kong's dominance of the region's screens. These lavish productions were often adapted from the more fantastical wuxia novels, which featured flying warriors in mid-air combat. Performers were trussed up on ultrathin wires to allow them to conduct gravity-defying action sequences, a technique known by Western fans, sometimes disparagingly, as wire fu. This article is in need of attention. ... Wire fu is an action film genre in which the actors use wire-work to perform amazing stunts. ...

As so often, Tsui Hark led the way. He produced The Swordsman (1990), which reestablished the wuxia novels of Jin Yong as favorite big-screen sources (televison adaptations had long been ubiquitous). He directed Once Upon a Time in China (1991), which resurrected oft-filmed hero Wong Fei Hung. Both films were followed by sequels and a raft of imitations, often starring Mainland martial arts champion Jet Li, who had become the biggest new superstar with his portrayal of Wong. The other signature star of the subgenre was Taiwanese-born actress Brigitte Lin. She made an unlikely specialty of androgynous woman-warrior types, such as the villainous, sex-changing eunuch in The Swordsman 2 (1992), epitomizing martial arts fantasy's often-noted fascination with gender instability. Louis Cha, (born June 6, 1924), known to most by his penname Jinyong or Kam-yung, is one of the most influential Chinese-language novelists. ... Wong Fei Hung (Chinese: 黃飛鴻; Pinyin: ; Yale Cantonese: Wong4 Fei1 Hung4) (July 9, 1847–March 25, 1924) was a healer, martial artist and revolutionary who became a Chinese folk hero often described as the Chinese Robin Hood. Wong Fei Hung museum in Foshan, Guangzhou, China As a healer and medical doctor... Jet Li Jet Li (Traditional Chinese: 李連杰; Simplified Chinese: 李连杰; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Li Lien-chieh; Cantonese: Ley5 Lin4 Git6; born April 26, 1963) is a Chinese martial artist and film actor. ... Brigitte Lin (Chinese: 林青霞; Pinyin: ) or Brigitte Lin Ching Hsia (born November 3, 1954) is a Taiwanese actress. ... A eunuch is an infertile human male whose testicles have either been removed (deliberately or by accident) or are otherwise non-functional. ...

Influence in the West

All of these developments not only made Hong Kong the dominant cinema in East Asia, but reawakened Western interest. Building on the reduced but enduring kung fu movie subculture, Jackie Chan and films like Tsui Hark's Peking Opera Blues (1986) were already building a cult following when Woo's The Killer (1989) had a limited but successful release in the U.S. and opened the floodgates. In the '90s, Westerners with an eye on "alternative" culture became common sights in Chinatown video shops and theaters, and gradually the films became more available in the mainstream video market and even occasionally in mainstream theaters. Western critics and film scholars also began to take Hong Kong action cinema seriously and make many key figures and films part of their canon of world cinema. Peking Opera Blues (TC: 刀馬旦, SC: 刀马旦, pinyin: Dāo Mǎ Dàn) is a 1986 movie directed by Tsui Hark. ... The Killer (Simplified Chinese: 喋血双雄; Traditional Chinese: 喋血雙雄; pinyin: ; literally: Bloodshed of Two Heroes) is a 1989 Hong Kong thriller starring Chow Yun-Fat as the hitman Jeffrey, Danny Lee as the cop Little Eagle and Sally Yeh as the singer Jennie. ... Chinese New Year celebrated in a Chinatown in Paris. ...

From here, Hong Kong came to define a new vocabulary for worldwide action cinema, with the aid of a new generation of North American filmmakers. Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs (1992) drew inspiration from City on Fire and his two-part Kill Bill (2003-04) was in large part a martial arts homage, borrowing Yuen Woo-Ping as fight choreographer and actor. Robert Rodriguez's Desperado (1995) and its 2003 sequel Once Upon a Time in Mexico aped Woo's visual mannerisms. The Wachowski brothers' The Matrix trilogy (1999-2003) of science-fiction-action blockbusters borrowed from Woo and wire fu movies and also employed Yuen behind the scenes. Quentin Jerome Tarantino (born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, actor, and Oscar winning screenwriter who rapidly rose to fame in the early 1990s as a stylish auteur whose bold use of nonlinear storylines, memorable dialogue, and bloody violence brought new life to familiar American film archetypes. ... Reservoir Dogs is Quentin Tarantinos 1992 debut as a feature film director. ... City on Fire (Simplified Chinese: 龙虎风云, Pinyin: Lóng hǔ fēng yún) is a gritty and stylish 1987 Hong Kong action film directed by Ringo Lam, and starring Chow Yun-Fat, Danny Lee and Sun Yueh. ... Tarantinos trademark trunk shot. ... Robert Rodriguez (born June 20, 1968) is a Mexican-American film director. ... Laurence Larry Wachowski (born June 21, 1965) and Andrew Andy Wachowski (born December 29, 1967) are Polish-American film directors most famous for the Matrix series. ... The Matrix is a science-fiction/action film first released in the USA on March 31, 1999, written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski. ...

Exit of many leading figures

Due to the new-found international awareness of Hong Kong films during the 1980s and early 1990s and a downturn in the industry as the 1990s progressed, many of the leading lights of Hong Kong cinema left for Hollywood, which offered budgets and pay which could not be equalled by Hong Kong production companies. ...

John Woo left for Hollywood after his 1992 film Hard Boiled. His 1997 film Face/Off was the breakthrough that established his unique style in Hollywood. This effort was immensely popular with both critics and public alike (it grossed over US$240 million worldwide). Mission Impossible II (2000) grossed over US$560 million worldwide but was critically maligned. Since these two films, Woo has struggled to revisit his successes of the 1980s and early 1990s. John Woo (Chinese: 吳宇森; Hanyu Pinyin: ) (born 1 May 1946, in Guangzhou, China) is a Chinese film director known especially for the ballet-like violence in his movies. ... Hardboiled crime fiction is a uniquely American style pioneered by Dashiell Hammett, refined by Raymond Chandler, and endlessly imitated since by writers such as Mickey Spillane. ... Face/Off is a movie from 1997 directed by John Woo and starring John Travolta and Nicolas Cage. ... Mission: Impossible II, or M:I-2 as it is also known, is the 2000 John Woo-directed sequel to Brian De Palmas 1996 Mission: Impossible motion picture, based on the TV series of the same name. ...

After over fifteen years of success in Hong Kong cinema and a couple attempts to crack the U.S. market, Jackie Chan's 1995 film Rumble in the Bronx finally brought him recognition in the U.S. Since then, he has made several highly successful films for U.S. studios including Rush Hour (1998), Shanghai Noon (2000), and their respective sequels. Between his films for U.S. studios, he still makes films for Hong Kong studios, sometimes in English (Mr. Nice Guy and Who Am I?), often set in western countries like Australia or the Netherlands, and sometimes in Cantonese (2004's New Police Story and 2005's The Myth). Because of his enormous U.S. popularity, these films are usually released in the U.S., a rarity for Hong Kong films, and generally attract respectable audiences. Jackie Chan (born April 7, 1954 in Hong Kong) is a Chinese martial artist, actor, director, stuntman and singer. ... Rumble in the Bronx VHS cover Rumble in the Bronx (紅番區; Hong faan kui in Cantonese) is an action-comedy movie starring Jackie Chan and Anita Mui. ... Rush Hour DVD cover Rush Hour is a 1998 martial arts/buddy cop film starring Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker. ... Shanghai Noon poster Shanghai Noon is a 2000 movie starring Jackie Chan and Owen Wilson, and directed by Tom Dey. ... Mr Nice Guy poster Mr Nice Guy (Yatgo ho yan) was a film made in Melbourne in 1997 starring Jackie Chan and directed by Sammo Hung who also makes a cameo as an unfortunate biker, released in 1998 in the United States. ... UK DVD cover Who Am I? (我是谁?; pinyin: Wo3 Shi4 Shei2; Cantonese: Ngo Si Sui) is a Hong Kong film directed by and starring Jackie Chan, released by Golden Harvest in 1998. ... New Police Story (Chinese: 新警察故事) is a 2004 Hong Kong action film, directed by Benny Chan. ... The Myth (神话; Shen hua) is a 2005 film directed by Stanley Tong. ...

Jet Li has reduced his Hong Kong output since 1998's Hitman concentrating on Hollywood instead. After a minor role in Lethal Weapon 4 (1998), he has gone on to star in several Hollywood films which have performed respectably and made a name for him with American audiences. So far, he has returned to Chinese cinema for only two films: Hero (2002) and Fearless (2006). He claimed Fearless would be his last traditional kung fu film. Chow Yun-Fat has also moved to Hollywood. After his 1995 film Peace Hotel, he has made a handful of films in Hollywood which have not seen as much success as Jet Li's: these include The Replacement Killers (1998), The Corruptor (1999), Anna and the King (1999) and Bulletproof Monk (2003). He returned to China for 1999's Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. Jet Li Jet Li (Traditional Chinese: 李連杰; Simplified Chinese: 李连杰; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Li Lien-chieh; Cantonese: Ley5 Lin4 Git6; born April 26, 1963) is a Chinese martial artist and film actor. ... Lethal Weapon 4 is a 1998 film starring Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci, Rene Russo, Chris Rock and Jet Li. ... Hero (Chinese: 英雄; Hanyu Pinyin: ) is a Chinese martial arts and drama film, directed by Zhang Yimou and starring Jet Li. ... Fearless is a 2006 film directed by Ronny Yu. ... Chow Yun-Fat Chow Yun-Fat (Chinese: 周潤發; Hanyu Pinyin: ) (born May 18, 1955 on Lamma Island, Hong Kong) is among a handful of internationally recognized screen actors that Hong Kong has produced, along with Bruce Lee and Jackie Chan. ... The Replacement Killers is a 1998 film, directed by Antoine Fuqua. ... The Corruptor (1999) is a police film starring Chow Yun-Fat and Mark Wahlberg. ... Anna and the King is a 1999 motion picture loosely based on the true story of Anna Leonowens, who was an English schoolteacher in Siam, now Thailand, in the 19th_century. ... Bulletproof Monk is a 2003 motion picture starring Chow Yun-Fat, Seann William Scott, Jaime King, directed by Paul Hunter. ... Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Traditional Chinese: 臥虎藏龍; Simplified Chinese: 卧虎藏龙; Hanyu Pinyin: ) is a wuxia (martial arts and chivalry) film released in 2000. ...

Recent trends

The Twins Effect (2003) film poster. This vampire-action film featured the Twins pop duo and plentiful CGI effects.

The Hong Kong film industry has been in a severe slump since the mid-1990s. The number of local films produced, and their box office takings, are dramatically reduced; American imports now dominate in a way they had not for decades, or perhaps ever. This crisis and increased contact with Western cinema have probably been the biggest recent influences on Hong Kong action cinema. The Twins Effect (千機變) is a Hong Kong movie that was released in Hong Kong on June 23, 2003. ... For the usual meaning of twins, see Twin. ... The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China and Cinema of Taiwan. ...

Luring local and regional youth audiences away from Hollywood is a constant concern. Action movies are now generally headlined by babyfaced Cantonese pop music idols, such as Ekin Cheng and Nicholas Tse, enhanced with wires and digital effects - a trend also driven by the waning of a previous generation of martial arts-trained stars. The late '90s witnessed a fad for Cantopop stars in high-tech, more American-styled action pictures such as Downtown Torpedoes (1997), Gen-X Cops and Purple Storm (both '99). To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Ekin Cheng Yee-Kin (鄭伊健, pinyin: Zhèng Yījiàn) (born October 4, 1967) is a Hong Kong actor and Cantopop singer. ... Nicholas Tse Ting Fung (謝霆鋒) (born on August 29, 1980) is a Hong Kong based singer and actor. ...

Andrew Lau's wuxia comic-book adaptation The Storm Riders (1998) earned a record-breaking gross and ushered in an era of computer-generated imagery, previously little used in Hong Kong film . Tsui Hark's lavish CGI-enhanced efforts Time and Tide (2000) The Legend of Zu (2001), however, were surprisingly unsuccessful. Comedy megastar and director Stephen Chow used digital effects to push his typical affectionate parody of martial arts conventions to cartoonish levels in Shaolin Soccer (2001) and Kung Fu Hustle (2004), each of which also set a new box office record. Andrew Lau Wai Keung (born April 4, 1960) is a Hong Kong film director and cinematographer. ... The pseudopod in The Abyss marked CGIs acceptance in the visual effects industry. ... Tsui Hark (Chinese: 徐克; Hanyu Pinyin: ; Wade-Giles: Hsü Ko) (born Tsui Man-kong (徐文光) on February 15, 1950) is a New Wave film director in Hong Kong who is also a highly influential producer, often likened to Steven Spielberg for a similar galvanizing effect on his countrys cinematic scene. ... Stephen Chow (traditional Chinese : 周星馳 ; simplified Chinese : 周星驰; Cantonese Romanization: Chow Sing Chi ; pinyin : Zhōu XÄ«ngchí) (born June 22, 1962) is a highly popular Hong Kong actor and director, whose expertise in the comedic field led him to be dubbed the king of comedy by the Hong Kong entertainment media. ... The Hong Kong Promotional poster of Shaolin Soccer Shaolin Soccer (Chinese: 少林足球; pinyin: ) is a 2001 Hong Kong comedy directed by acclaimed HK comedian, actor and director, Stephen Chow. ... Kung Fu Hustle (Chinese: 功夫; Hanyu Pinyin: ) is a martial arts film first released in Hong Kong in December 2004. ...

Striking a different note were a series of crime films more restrained and actor-driven than the earlier, John Woo-inspired examples. The Milkyway Image production company was at the vanguard with examples like Patrick Yau's Expect the Unexpected (1998) and Johnnie To's The Mission (1999) and Running Out of Time (2000). Andrew Lau and Alan Mak's blockbuster Infernal Affairs trilogy (2002-2003) has set off a mini-trend of brooding police thrillers. Milkyway Image or Milkyway is a feature film production company of Hong Kong. ... Johnnie To Kei-fung (杜琪峰) (born April 22, 1955) is a Hong Kong film director and producer. ... Infernal Affairs (Chinese: 無間道; Hanyu Pinyin: ) is a stylish 2002 Hong Kong crime thriller. ...

Collaboration with other industries, particularly that of Mainland China, is another increasingly common survival and recovery strategy. Hong Kong stars and other personnel have been involved in international wuxia successes like Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Taiwan, 2000)and Hero (China, 2002). The history of Chinese-language cinema has three separate threads of development: Cinema of Hong Kong, Cinema of China, and Cinema of Taiwan. ... Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (Traditional Chinese: 臥虎藏龍; Simplified Chinese: 卧虎藏龙; Hanyu Pinyin: ) is a wuxia (martial arts and chivalry) film released in 2000. ... Sir Galahad, a hero of Arthurian legend From the Greek cognate , in mythology and folklore, a hero (male) or heroine (female) is an eminent character archetype that quintessentially embodies key traits valued by its originating culture. ...

References

• Bordwell, David. Planet Hong Kong: Popular Cinema and the Art of Entertainment. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2000. ISBN 0-674-00214-8
• Chan, Jackie, with Jeff Yang. I Am Jackie Chan: My Life in Action. New York: Ballantine, 1998. ISBN 0-345-41503-5
• Chute, David, and Cheng-Sim Lim, eds. Heroic Grace: The Chinese Martial Arts Film. Los Angeles: UCLA Film and Television Archive, 2003. (Film series catalog; no ISBN.)
• Dannen, Fredric, and Barry Long. Hong Kong Babylon: The Insider's Guide to the Hollywood of the East. New York: Miramax, 1997. ISBN 0-7868-6267-X
• Logan, Bey. Hong Kong Action Cinema. Woodstock, NY: The Overlook Press, 1995. ISBN 0-87951-663-1
• Teo, Stephen. Hong Kong Cinema: The Extra Dimensions. London: British Film Institute, 1997. ISBN 0-85170-514-6
• Yang, Jeff. Once Upon a Time in China: A Guide to Hong Kong, Taiwanese, and Mainland Chinese Cinema. New York: Atria, 2003. ISBN 0-7434-4817-0