Kung Fu movies have always been a major feature of Chinese film screens.
In 1928, the film "Burning of the Red Lotus Temple" was born, and the concept of "martial arts film" was first put forward in Chinese film circles. With the continuous innovation and development of Chinese-language movies, "Martial Arts Movies" have gradually evolved into two major types, "Martial Arts Movies" and "Kung Fu Movies". After
entered the 1970s, Kung Fu movies ushered in a peak period of development, and once went international, and were loved by many foreign audiences. Many directors behind the scenes of the movie have also been loved and sought after by many fans by virtue of the craze of kung fu movies. What we are going to talk about today are the 8 powerful leaders behind the scenes of Chinese Kung Fu movies.
"Master of Violence Aesthetics" influencing the development of Hollywood movies-Zhang Che
When talking about the development of Chinese Kung Fu movies, "Master of Violence Aesthetics" Zhang Che is definitely one of those who must be mentioned.
Ti Lung and Zhang Che
Most viewers probably know Zhang Che because of his martial arts works. Indeed, Zhang Che has made a significant contribution to the development of Chinese martial arts films. On the screens of martial arts films in the 1960s and 1970s, Zhang Che and Hu Jinquan have been known as the "two founders of the new school of martial arts films." And works such as "One Armed Sword", "Five Poisons" and "The Great Assassin" have also become martial arts classics in the hearts of a generation.
However, in contrast to Hu Jinquan's outstanding performance on the screen of martial arts movies, Zhang Che has two branches of "wuxia" and "kung fu".
In the late 1960s, after filming classic martial arts works such as "One-armed Sword", "Golden Swallow", "The Assassin", "One-armed Sword King" and other classic martial arts works, Director Zhang Che began to try to play down the freehand sword fights and fight against realism. Take a shot. In 1970, Director Zhang filmed the classic Kung Fu film "Vengeance".
"Vengeance" tells a story of revenge. In this movie, Zhang Che combines his "violent aesthetics" concept with traditional Kung Fu elements. The fighting movements designed by Tang Jia and Yuan Xiangren, combined with the makeup effect of flying blood, stimulated the visual nerves of many viewers. The story line of
and revenge, coupled with kung fu fighting, also makes the rhythm of the film appear compact. After "Vengeance", Zhang Che filmed "Duel", "Ma Yongzhen", "Hong Quan and Wing Chun" and other kung fu films. The plot designs of these films are all revenge stories.
In Zhang Che's film shots, "revenge kung fu movies" gradually began to be loved by audiences and gradually became the mainstream in the kung fu movie market.
In the early 1970s, as "The World's First Punch" and "Dragon Fighting Tiger Fight" sold at the North American box office, a large number of Hong Kong Kung Fu movies flooded the North American market. And Zhang Che's "revenge movie with blood flying all over" is also loved by many Hollywood filmmakers and is frequently imitated. "Blood-filled fights" and "Various revenges" have since become enduring themes in Hollywood R-rated films. In the early 1970s, Bruce Lee returned to Hong Kong from the United States and was signed by Zou Wenhuai under the banner of "Jiahe".
, who popularized Bruce Lee and discovered Jackie Chan's "following master"-Luo Wei
. In 1971, Jiahe filmed the Kung Fu film "Big Brother Tangshan" for Bruce Lee.
The film was originally directed by Wu Jiaxiang, but Wu Jiaxiang is not very good at creating kung fu movies. When the film was halfway through, it faced a crisis of suspension due to funding problems. In a difficult situation, the "follow the trend" Luo Wei was ordered to succeed Wu Jiaxiang to complete the filming of "Big Brother Tangshan".
Luo Wei, Bruce Lee
In his early years, Luo Wei was dubbed the "Master of Follower" because he was good at imitating the movie style of others. In this "Big Brother Tangshan", Luo Wei first imitated Zhang Che's "revenge kung fu movie" style and modified the script. Then he agreed to Bruce Lee's request and let him play the fighting scene freely. The structure of the mainstream genre films in the
market, coupled with Bruce Lee's excellent fighting performance, allowed "Big Brother Tangshan" to achieve good box office results after its release. After "Big Brother Tangshan", Luo Wei created another classic Kung Fu film "Jing Wu Men" for Bruce Lee.
Bruce Lee and Luo Wei in "Jing Wu Men"
In "Jing Wu Men", Luo Wei once again imitated Zhang Che's "revenge kung fu movie" and created a story about the apprentice's revenge for his master. However, while imitating Zhang Che, Luo Wei inA lot of my own thoughts have also been added to Wumen. He combined national justice with kung fu movies. Against the background of the times, Chen Zhen's act of revenge for Master has also become a microcosm of national resistance. After
"Jing Wu Men", this kind of "national sentiment kung fu movie" that combines national justice and kung fu elements has become a mainstream idea in the creation of kung fu movies. Films such as "The Thirteen Taibao of Shanghai", "Drunken Master 2", and "Ip Man" are all classics born under the "national sentiment kung fu film" mode.
not only filmed two masterpieces, "Big Brother Tangshan" and "Jing Wu Men" for Bruce Lee. Jackie Chan's early kung fu films "New Martial Arts", "Dragon Fist", "Fist of Fist", "Dragon Teng and Tiger Leap" were also written by Luo Wei.
In 1972, after filming "Jing Wu Men", Bruce Lee began to transform into a director and ended his cooperation with Rowe. In order to find a new partner, Rowe discovered the film rookie Jackie Chan. Jackie Chan was also called Chen Gangsheng.
In order to make Chen Gangsheng famous on the big screen like Bruce Lee, Luo Wei changed his stage name to "Jackie Chan", which means "becoming the second Bruce Lee", and filmed "Dragon Fist" and "Dragon Fist" for Jackie Chan. New Jingwumen" and other works. Jackie Chan, as his name suggests, relied on the craze of kung fu movies, all the way from Hong Kong to Hollywood. After becoming Bruce Lee, the second Kung Fu star to be famous internationally.
The action superstar Bruce Lee who pioneered Kung Fu comedy and heading towards Hollywood-Bruce Lee
Kung Fu movies can go international, and the action superstar Bruce Lee is absolutely indispensable. In 1973, Hollywood Warner Pictures and Hong Kong Golden Harvest teamed up to shoot "Dragon Fighting Tiger" for Bruce Lee. The film was released in North America and received a lot of praise. The international craze of kung fu movies also kicked off.
Before the screen, Bruce Lee was an action superstar loved by the audience. After the screen, he was also an outstanding Kung Fu film director.
's "Jing Wu Men" in 1972, made Bruce Lee famous in Asian film circles. After becoming famous, Bruce Lee also had the idea of transforming into a director, and in the same year filmed the kung fu comedy "The Raptor Crossing the River".
In this "The Raptors Crossing the River", Bruce Lee combines comedy elements with kung fu movies in order to seek innovation. The humorous comedy elements have added a lot of interest to the movie story, and the wonderful fights have also ignited the enthusiasm of many action fans.
After the release of "The Raptors Crossing the River", with a box office record of more than 5.3 million, it took the 1972 Hong Kong box office champion. The structure of the film Kung Fu comedy also brought a lot of creative inspiration to Hong Kong filmmakers. After
"The Raptors Cross the River", Bruce Lee directed and acted in "Game of Death", but before the film was finished, Bruce Lee died. Although only the film "The Raptor Crossing the River" was directed on the big screen, the kung fu comedy style embodied in the film has a profound impact on the subsequent production of "The Shaolin Scaffolding Master" and "Drunken Boxing". Meaning.
Liu Jialiang, a kung fu master from Wuzhi to director
Speaking of Chinese kung fu movies, "Huang Feihong" Liu Jialiang is definitely one of those who cannot fail to mention. If the origin of kung fu comedy is Bruce Lee, then its development and rise must be Liu Jialiang.
was born in Liu Jialiang from a family of martial arts. He is the direct descendant of "Master Hong Quan" Lin Shirong and the orthodox heir of Huang Feihong. In his early years, he entered the film world as a martial arts director, and had a long-term film collaboration with the "master of violent aesthetics" Zhang Che. In the early 1970s, with the booming market of kung fu movies, Liu Jialiang also had the idea of transforming directors.
In 1975, Liu Jialiang succeeded in taking the position of director with his "God Fighting". The subsequent works such as "The Thirty-Six Rooms of Shaolin Temple", "The Master of Shaolin Scaffolding", "Martial Arts Hall", "Rotten Head", "Eighteen Martial Arts", "North and South Shaolin" and other works have made him even more directing. To the top.
Liu Jialiang’s movie style is somewhat similar to that of Bruce Lee. In the design of the play, both of them advocate the display of the real kung fu of the hard bridge and the hard horse; in the plot processing, both of them also introduced a lot of comedy elements to increase the interest of the film. Sex. However, the difference is that Bruce Lee advocated shooting Kung Fu films under a modern background. And Liu Jialiang's kung fu films are basically based on the background of the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China.
With the kung fu film craze in the 70s, Liu JialiangIt has also attracted the attention of many North American filmmakers, and in 1990 went to Hollywood to design the action for the movie "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles". And this also opened the Chinese action guidance, a precedent in the transformation of Hollywood.
The master of action who pushed kung fu comedy to the pinnacle-Yuan Heping
If the origin of kung fu comedy is Bruce Lee and the development is Liu Jialiang, then its peak must belong to Yuan Heping.
In 1978, with the support of producer Wu Siyuan, Yuan Heping transitioned from action to director. His works such as "Snake-Shaped Hands", "Drunken Fist", "Lin Shirong", "The Brave Without Fear" and other works have also pushed the wave of kung fu comedy to its peak.
Bruce Lee and Liu Jialiang’s kung fu comedies have a lot of comedy elements added to the literary performances, but in terms of play, it still presents the audience with true kung fu fights. In order to pursue the perfect fusion of the two elements of kung fu and comedy, Yuan Heping incorporated comedy elements into the fighting design. The comic fighting scene of
further deepens the interest of the film. And "Drunken Fist", "Snake Shaped Hand" and other works have also been loved by many movie fans by virtue of their comedic fighting features. The wave of kung fu comedy, led by Yuan Heping, reached its peak.
Because of his outstanding performance behind the scenes of Chinese kung fu movies, Yuan Heping, like Liu Jialiang, has been favored by Hollywood filmmakers. In 1998, Yuan Heping was invited by Warner Movies to go to Hollywood to act as the action director for the movie "The Matrix." The wonderful action scenes in the "The Matrix" trilogy also made Yuan Heping famous in the international film scene for a while.
can direct and act all-round filmmaker-Sammo Hung
In 1977, with the support of Golden Harvest, Sammo Hung transformed into the position of director. In the history of the development of Chinese Kung Fu films, Sammo Hung also left a strong and colorful stroke.
In 1977, Sammo Hung directed and acted in the Kung Fu film "The Three Virtues Monk and Chowder Six". In this work, Sammo Hung did not experiment with kung fu comedy, but drastically reformed the traditional "revenge kung fu movie".
"The Three Virtues Monk and Chong Mi Liu" tells the story of Chong Mi Liu, who is in a sea of blood and vengeance, went to Shaolin Temple to learn art with the help of the three virtue monks, and then went down the mountain to take revenge. In this film, Sammo Hung discarded the fighting scenes that rely on makeup effects. Rather, it relies on the sturdy movements of punches to the flesh to highlight the intensity of the fight.
In the design of the plot story, Sammo Hung added boxing teaching in the film. In the process of the protagonist learning boxing, Sammo Hung used a lot of close-up shots to analyze and explain the characteristics of boxing and the theory of martial arts.
At the end of the 1970s, traditional Kung Fu movies gradually declined. After the release of the "Three Virtues Monk and the Six", it failed to achieve too outstanding results. In 1978, with the popularity of "Drunken Master", kung fu comedy became popular. Sammo Hung also transitioned to the screen of Kung Fu comedy at this time. Although
has transformed into a kung fu comedy, this "teaching kung fu movie" style has always been accompanied by Sammo Hung. This kind of "kung fu teaching" is also reflected in subsequent kung fu films such as "Mr. Like and Looking for Money", "Miscellaneous Boy", "Prodigal Boy", "Single-handedly Killing Spear".
The "short-lived" Kung Fu comedy master-Jackie Chan
After the great success of "Drunken Fist" in 1978, Jackie Chan also took the position of director in 1979, and filmed "Laughing Fist Strange Trick", "Junior Brother", "Long Master" three kung fu comedies.
In these three works, Jackie Chan imitated Yuan Heping's movie style, combined comedy elements with fighting, and created his own unique juggling fighting style. And this style of action has always accompanied Jackie Chan to the big Hollywood screen.
Although "Laughing Fist Strange Trick", "Junior Brother Going on a Horse" and "Young Master Long" were released, they all achieved good results. But in the early 1980s, the kung fu comedy market declined rapidly. Sammo Hung, Yuan Heping and other people have all transformed into the action cop film screen. Jackie Chan also successfully transformed into a police and criminal film with "Plan A" in 1984. And his career as a director of kung fu films came to an end in a "flash in the pan".
A rising star on the big screen of kung fu movies-Ye Weixin zAfter 1z
entered the 1980s, kung fu movies quickly faded out of the big screen of Hong Kong movies. The popularity of martial arts films, gangster films, and gangster films has also made kung fu films a thing of the past. In 2008, director Ye Weixin and Donnie Yen collaborated in "Ip Man", which once again polished the "golden sign" of kung fu movies. The movie theme that has been forgotten by the audience for a long time also shines on the big screen again.
In "Ip Man", director Ye Weixin combines Luo Wei's "national sentiment kungfu film" with Sammo Hung's "teaching kungfu film". The film contains not only the impassioned national sentiments under the background of the big era, but also a comprehensive analysis of Wing Chun's martial arts theory and stylized fighting design.
The combination of literary and martial arts has made "Ip Man" a favorite of many movie fans. In the subsequent "Ip Man 2" and "Ip Man 3", Director Ye Weixin insisted on this style of combining "national sentiment" and "kung fu teaching". And Donnie Yen's outstanding action performance has also become a highlight of the film.
Of course, there are not only the above 8 famous directors who have left classic Kung Fu films on the big screen. In addition to them, which kung fu film director do you still remember?
