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Lau Kar-leung
Lau Kar-leung (28 July 1934 – 25 June 2013), was a Chinese actor, filmmaker, choreographer, and martial artist from Hong Kong. Lau is best known for the films he made in the 1970s and 1980s for the Shaw Brothers Studio. His most famous works include ''The 36th Chamber of Shaolin'' starring Gordon Liu as well as ''Drunken Master II'' starring Jackie Chan. History Lau began learning kung fu when he was nine years old, under strict tutelage from his father. Before becoming famous, Lau worked as an extra and choreographer on black and white Wong Fei-hung movies. He teamed up with fellow Wong Fei-hung choreographer on the 1963 Hu Peng-directed wuxia film ''South Dragon, North Phoenix''. Their collaboration would continue on until the mid-1970s. His first appearance in a film was in ''Brave Lad of Guangong'' (1950). In the 1960s he became one of Shaw Brothers' main choreographers and had a strong working relationship with director Chang Cheh, working on many of Chang's films as ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Guangzhou
Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kong and north of Macau, Guangzhou has a history of over 2,200 years and was a major terminus of the maritime Silk Road; it continues to serve as a major port and transportation hub as well as being one of China's three largest cities. For a long time, the only Chinese port accessible to most foreign traders, Guangzhou was captured by the British during the First Opium War. No longer enjoying a monopoly after the war, it lost trade to other ports such as Hong Kong and Shanghai, but continued to serve as a major transshipment port. Due to a high urban population and large volumes of port traffic, Guangzhou is classified as a Large-Port Megacity, the largest type of port-city in the world. Due to worldwide travel restrictions at the beginni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Jackie Chan
Fang Shilong (born 7 April 1954), known professionally in English as Jackie Chan and in Chinese as Cheng Long ( zh, c=成龍, j=Sing4 Lung4; "becoming the dragon"), is a Hong Kong actor, filmmaker, martial artist, and stuntman known for his slapstick acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically performs himself. Chan has been acting since the 1960s, performing in more than 150 films. He is one of the most popular action film stars of all time. Chan is one of the most recognisable and influential film personalities in the world, with a widespread global following in both the Eastern and Western hemispheres. He has received fame stars on the Hong Kong Avenue of Stars and the Hollywood Walk of Fame. Chan has been referenced in various pop songs, cartoons, films, and video games. He is an operatically trained vocalist and is also a Cantopop and Mandopop star, having released a number of music albums and sung many of the theme songs for ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Legendary Weapons Of China
''Legendary Weapons of China'' (aka ''Legendary Weapons of Kung Fu'') is a 1982 martial arts wuxia film or wuxia pian directed by Lau Kar-Leung. It takes place during the late Qing Dynasty when Empress Dowager Cixi dispatches her agents to various factions of the Boxer Rebellion in order to find supernatural martial artists that are invulnerable to western bullets. When one of the leaders of these groups disbands his forces, assassins from the remaining factions are sent out to kill him for his apparent treason. As the title of the film suggests, a great variety of fights take place involving the "legendary weapons." Although Lau Kar-Leung is known for showing "real Kung-Fu" in his films, he does take some artistic license by incorporating elements of Taoist Maoshan folk magic with hand-to-hand combat. This is similar to what he did in another of film of his, Heroes of the East (or "Challenge of the Ninja"). Plot Ti Hau is a pupil of Master Ti, a high-ranking member of a boxer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heroes Of The East
''Heroes of the East'' (), also known as ''Challenge of the Ninja'', ''Shaolin vs. Ninja'' and ''Shaolin Challenges Ninja'' is a martial arts film produced in 1978. It starred Gordon Liu and was directed by Lau Kar-Leung. Lau Kar-Leung has a cameo role as So Chan, a master of Zui Quan. It's notable for portraying Japanese martial arts alongside the more typical kung fu used in most Hong Kong martial arts films. Plot In Shanghai about the 1930s, Ho Tao (Gordon Liu) is a kung fu student. His rich father has set up an arranged marriage for him with the daughter of a Japanese business associate. Ho Tao initially objects and feigns illness, but soon thereafter agrees to the marriage when he finds bride to be, Yumiko Kōda ("Kung Zi" in Mandarin), is attractive. After the wedding, he finds out that she is also a martial artist. Ho Tao finds her style of karate to be violent, unladylike, and potentially immodest and tries to persuade her to learn feminine but also effectual styles of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Return To The 36th Chamber
''Return to the 36th Chamber'' (少林搭棚大師, ''Shao Lin ta peng hsiao tzu'', ''Return of the Master Killer'' or ''Master Killer II'') is a 1980 Shaw Brothers Studio Hong Kong martial arts comedy film starring Gordon Liu. It was directed by Lau Kar-leung and written by Ni Kuang. The film is the second in a loosely connected trilogy, following ''The 36th Chamber of Shaolin'' (1978) and preceding ''Disciples of the 36th Chamber'' (1985). In the first and third films in the series, Liu portrays the Shaolin monk San Te, but in ''Return'', he portrays an imposter monk. Plot The story opens at a fabric dyeing mill. The quality of the dyes has noticeably worsened, and the factory owner, Wang, and his subordinate chief, Boss Wa, decide to hire some Manchu overseers to improve the work. Wang decides to cut the workers' salary to pay the mercenaries, and when the workers protest they are viciously thrashed. When sitting in a tea house discussing their problems, the workers are j ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Executioners From Shaolin
''Executioners from Shaolin'' or ''Hung Hsi Kuan'' is a 1977 Shaw Brothers kung fu film based on the life of Hung hsi Kuan directed by Lau Kar-leung. It is released as ''Shaolin Executioners'' outside of Hong Kong and as ''Executioners of Death'' in North America. The film is a multi-generational story of revenge pitting the disciples of Shaolin temple against the historical figure of Pai Mei, founder of Pai Mei kung fu. Later, the movie was released on DVD by Dragon Dynasty. Plot Opening crawl: "Having learned that the revolutionaries were using Shaolin Temple as an undercover, the Manchurian Count ordered Priest Pai Mei and his top disciple Kao Tsin Chung, Governor of Kwangtung and Kwangsi, to raid the shaolin Temple. They surrounded the Temple and set fire to it. In an attempt to rescue his disciples, Priest Chi Shan enter into a crucial duel with Priest Pai Mei." The title scene is a battle between Pai Mei and Master Chi Shan in an empty red backdrop (this type of ope ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eight-Diagram Pole Fighter
''The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter'' is a 1984 Hong Kong film by Shaw Brothers, directed by Lau Kar-leung and starring Gordon Liu, Kara Hui and Alexander Fu (in his final film appearance). It was released as ''The Invincible Pole Fighters'' outside of Hong Kong and ''Invincible Pole Fighter'' in North America. Alexander Fu died in a car accident before the filming of ''The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter'' was finished. The script was partly re-written after his death and Fu's character does not appear in the final showdown as originally written in the script. The film is based on the ''Generals of the Yang Family'' (Yeung family in Cantonese) legends. Plot With help from the treacherous Song dynasty general Pun Mei, the Khitan-ruled Liao dynasty army succeeded in trapping the loyal Song general Yeung Yip and his seven sons at Golden Beach. Yeung Yip and his sons were all killed or captured in the ambush, except for the 5th son and the 6th son who managed to escape. The 6th son r ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dirty Ho
''Dirty Ho'' (爛頭何 ''Lan tou He'') is a 1979 Hong Kong martial arts-comedy film directed by Lau Kar-leung and starring Gordon Liu and Wong Yue. Plot Master Wang is actually the 11th prince of Manchuria in disguise. Posing as a sophisticated jewellery dealer and connoisseur of fine art and wine, the prince is trying to determine which of the other 14 heirs to the throne is trying to assassinate him. A jewel thief, Dirty Ho (Wong Yue) runs afoul of the prince, who uses Ho to help him flush out his enemies. Wang is a martial arts expert, but in order to conceal his identity he systematically hides his skills, even as he deploys them. In the opening sequence of the film proper (after a title sequence which already features two highly abstract fight sequences by the principals) Wang encounters a jewel thief named Dirty Ho at a brothel. They come into conflict by vying with one another for the attentions of the courtesans. Dirty Ho, who is not too bright, can't figure out why ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tsui Hark
Tsui Hark (, vi, Từ Khắc, born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong, is a Hong Kong film director, producer and screenwriter. Tsui has directed several influential Hong Kong films such as ''Zu Warriors from the Magic Mountain'' (1983), the ''Once Upon a Time in China'' film series (1991–1997) and '' The Blade'' (1995). Tsui also has been a prolific writer and producer; his productions include ''A Better Tomorrow'' (1986), ''A Better Tomorrow II'' (1987), ''A Chinese Ghost Story'' (1987), '' The Killer'' (1989), ''The Legend of the Swordsman'' (1992), '' The Wicked City'' (1992), '' Iron Monkey'' (1993) and '' Black Mask'' (1996). He is viewed as a major figure in the Golden Age of Hong Kong cinema and is regarded by critics as "one of the masters of Asian cinematography". In the late 1990s, Tsui had a short-lived career in the United States, directing the Jean-Claude Van Damme–led films ''Double Team'' (1997) and ''Knock Off'' (1998). Both films were commercially unsucc ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Master Of The Flying Guillotine
''Master of the Flying Guillotine'' is a 1976 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film starring Jimmy Wang Yu, who also wrote and directed the film. It is a sequel to Wang's 1971 film ''One-Armed Boxer'', and thus the film is also known as ''One-Armed Boxer 2'' and ''The One-Armed Boxer vs. the Flying Guillotine''. Plot The film concerns Wang's one-armed martial arts master being stalked by an imperial assassin, the master of two fighters (the Tibetan lamas) who were killed in the previous film. The title refers to the assassin's weapon, the " flying guillotine", which resembles a hat with a bladed rim attached to a long chain. Upon enveloping one's head, the blades cleanly decapitate the victim with a quick pull of the chain. The Boxer's adversary is the assassin Fung Sheng Wu Chi, who is blind, is an expert user of the Flying Guillotine, and relies on others to identify one-armed men, whom he then kills. When the One-Armed Boxer is invited to attend a martial arts tournament, his efforts to l ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
The One-Armed Swordsman
''One-Armed Swordsman'' is a 1967 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film produced by the Shaw Brothers Studio. Directed by Chang Cheh, it was the first of the new style of ''wuxia'' films emphasizing male anti-heroes, violent swordplay and heavy bloodletting. It was the first Hong Kong film to make HK$1 million at the local box office, propelling its star Jimmy Wang to super stardom. This film eventually became the first in the ''One-Armed Swordsman'' trilogy. A sequel was released in 1969 called ''Return of the One-Armed Swordsman'', followed by ''The New One-Armed Swordsman'' in 1971, all directed by Chang Cheh. It has since achieved classic status in Hong Kong cinema. In the Hong Kong Film Award's 2005 poll, ''One-Armed Swordsman'' was voted as the 15th best Chinese-language film. Plot The Golden Sword school is attacked by bandits. The servant Fang Cheng sacrifices his life to protect his master Qi Ru Feng. In gratitude, Qi accepts the dying Fang Cheng's son, Fang Kang, as his student ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chang Cheh
Chang Cheh (; 10 February 1923 – 22 June 2002) was a Chinese people, Chinese filmmaker, screenwriter, lyricist and producer active in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. Chang Cheh directed more than 90 films in Greater China, the majority of them with the Shaw Brothers Studio in Hong Kong. Most of his films are action films, especially ''wuxia'' and ''kung fu'' films filled with violence. In the early 1970s he frequently cast actors David Chiang and Ti Lung in his films. In the late 1970s he mainly worked with a group of actors known as the Venom Mob. Chang Cheh is also known for his long-time collaboration with writer Ni Kuang. Career Referred to as "The Godfather of Hong Kong cinema", Chang directed nearly 100 films in his illustrious career at Shaw Brothers, which ran the gamut from swordplay films (''One-Armed Swordsman'', ''The Assassin'', ''Golden Swallow (1968 film), Golden Swallow'') to kung fu films (''Five Shaolin Masters'', ''Five Venoms'', ''Kid with the Golden Arm'') to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
