Lau Kar-leung (; born 28 July 1934 – 25 June 2013) was a

Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the pres ...

, filmmaker,

fight choreographer Stage combat, fight craft or fight choreography is a specialised technique in theatre designed to create the illusion of physical combat without causing harm to the performers. It is employed in live stage plays as well as operatic and ballet p ...

and actor. He is best known for the films he made in the 1970s and 1980s for the

Shaw Brothers Studio Shaw Brothers (HK) Limited () was the largest film production company in Hong Kong, operating from 1925 to 2011. In 1925, three Shaw brothers— Runje, Runme, and Runde—founded Tianyi Film Company (also called "Unique") in Shang ...

, notably those starring

Gordon Liu Gordon Liu Chia-hui (born Sin Kam-hei, 22 August 1955) is a retired Hong Kong actor, martial artist, and filmmaker, best known for his roles in martial arts films. He was one of the biggest male stars of Shaw Brothers Studio's martial arts cinema ...

. He is considered one of the most influential figures in the history of martial arts cinema. In many of his best-known films, Lau was credited as Liu Chia-liang, the

Mandarin Mandarin or The Mandarin may refer to: Language * Mandarin Chinese, branch of Chinese originally spoken in northern parts of the country ** Standard Chinese or Modern Standard Mandarin, the official language of China ** Taiwanese Mandarin, Stand ...

spelling of his name. He was part of a lineage of

Hung Ga Hung Ga Kuen (Cantonese) or Hongjiaquan (Mandarin) ( zh, 洪家拳, link=no, meaning "fist of the Hung family") - alternatively shortened as either Hung Ga () or Hung Kuen () - is an ancient southern Chinese martial art, which roots lie in th ...

practitioners originating from

Wong Fei-hung Wong Fei-hung (born Wong Sek-cheung with the courtesy name Tat-wun; 19 August 1847 – 17 April 1925) was a Chinese martial artist, physician, and folk hero. Though he was considered an expert in the Hung Ga style of Chinese martial arts, his r ...

Early life

Lau was born in

Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...

Guangdong Province ) means "wide" or "vast", and has been associated with the region since the creation of Guang Prefecture in AD 226. The name "''Guang''" ultimately came from Guangxin ( zh, labels=no, first=t, t= , s=广信), an outpost established in Han dynasty ...

in 1934. He had a younger brother, Kar-wing, also a prominent martial arts actor and filmmaker. Lau began learning

kung fu Chinese martial arts, commonly referred to with umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater Ch ...

when he was nine years old, under strict tutelage from his father, Lau Cham. The elder Lau was a well-known practitioner of the

lineage of

, as a disciple of Wong's pupil

Lam Sai-wing Lam Sai-wing (1860 – 1943) was a Hung Gar martial artist. He was a student of the Chinese martial artist, acupuncturist, and folk hero of Cantonese ethnicity, Wong Fei-hung. "Since my young years till now, for 50 years, I have been learnin ...

. He was the headmaster of the Hua Chiang Martial Arts Society in Guangzhou, where he lived with his family until 1948, when they moved to

British Hong Kong Hong Kong was under British Empire, British rule from 1841 to 1997, except for a Japanese occupation of Hong Kong, brief period of Japanese occupation during World War II from 1941 to 1945. It was a crown colony of the United Kingdom from 1841 ...

. Lau became adept in various styles of Southern Chinese martial arts, training rigorously with his father until the age of 28.

Film career

Director and choreographer

Before becoming famous, Lau worked as an extra and choreographer on black and white

movies. He teamed up with fellow Wong Fei-hung choreographer on the 1963 Hu Peng-directed

wuxia ( , literally "martial arts and chivalry") is a genre of Chinese literature, Chinese fiction concerning the adventures of martial artists in ancient China. Although is traditionally a form of historical fantasy literature, its popularity ha ...

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 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 wi ...

, working on many of Chang's films as a choreographer (often alongside Tong Gaai) including ''

The One-Armed Swordsman ''The 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 bloodle ...

'', as well as other Shaw Brothers wuxia films, such as ''The Jade Bow''. After a split with Chang on the set of ''Marco Polo'', Lau evolved into a director during the sudden boom of martial arts films in the early 1970s. He occasionally did choreography work for non-Shaw films as well, such as ''

Master of the Flying Guillotine ''Master of the Flying Guillotine'' is a 1976 Hong Kong ''wuxia'' film directed, written by and starring Jimmy Wang Yu. It is a sequel to Wang's 1972 film '' One-Armed Boxer'', and is also known as ''One-Armed Boxer 2'' and ''The One-Armed Box ...

''. After Shaw Brothers stopped producing movies in 1986, Lau continued directing and choreographing films independently, despite numerous obstacles, among them the fact that Shaw Brothers considered his contract with them still valid despite the fact that they were no longer making movies. This led to a rumored four-film deal with Jackie Chan being canceled when Shaw approached Chan and warned him that Lau was still under contract to them. Additionally, because his last film for Shaw Brothers, ''

Martial Arts of Shaolin ''Martial Arts of Shaolin'' (, lit. "Southern and Northern Shaolin"), also known as ''Shaolin Temple 3: Martial Arts of Shaolin'', is a 1986 action comedy-themed martial arts film. A Hong Kong-Chinese co-production, the film is notable for bein ...

'' (1986), had been filmed in Mainland China, Lau was not allowed to work in Taiwan and no Taiwanese distributors would handle his films. Lau approached Cinema City who agreed to settle his issues with Taiwan if he directed three films for them,
Tiger on the Beat
' (1988),
Aces Go Places V - The Terracotta Hit
' (1989), an
''Tiger on the Beat 2''
(1990). The box office successes of these three films reinvigorated his career. In March 1993, Lau began directing Jackie Chan in ''

Drunken Master II ''Drunken Master II'' () is a 1994 Hong Kong action-comedy kung fu film directed by Lau Kar-leung and starring Jackie Chan as Chinese martial arts master and a Cantonese folk hero, Wong Fei-hung. It was Chan's first traditional style mart ...

'', however, the film's star

Jackie Chan Fang Shilong (born Chan Kong-sang; 7 April 1954), known professionally as Jackie Chan,; is a Hong Kong actor and filmmaker, known for his slapstick, acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, and innovative stunts, which he typically perf ...

and director Lau clashed over the style of fighting, resulting in Lau leaving the set before the shooting of the final fight scene, which was then taken over by Chan. Lau subsequently directed ''Drunken Master III'' and '' Drunken Monkey'' without Chan. His final credit was when he performed acting and choreography work for

Tsui Hark Tsui Hark (, , born 15 February 1950), born Tsui Man-kong (), is a Hong Kong filmmaker. A major director in the Golden Age of Cinema of Hong Kong, Hong Kong cinema, Tsui gained critical and commercial success with films such as ''Zu Warriors from ...

's 2005 film ''

Seven Swords ''Seven Swords'' is a 2005 ''wuxia'' film produced and directed by Tsui Hark, starring Donnie Yen, Leon Lai, Charlie Yeung, Sun Honglei, Lu Yi and Kim So-yeon. An international co-production between Hong Kong, China, South Korea and the Nether ...

''.

Screenplays

Throughout his career, Lau only wrote four screenplays, but they were all for films that he himself directed. Those screenplays/films are ''

My Young Auntie ''My Young Auntie'' aka ''Fangs of The Tigress'' is a 1981 comedy-themed Hong Kong action film from the Shaw Brothers studio. The film is directed by Lau Kar Leung and stars Kara Hui, Hsiao Ho, Wang Lung Wei, and Gordon Liu. In a change from ...

'' (1981), ''

Legendary Weapons of China ''Legendary Weapons of China'' (, ; ''Legendary Weapons of Kung Fu'') is a 1982 martial arts wuxia film or wuxia pian directed by Liu Chia-liang. It takes place during the late Qing Dynasty when Empress Dowager Cixi dispatches her agents to ...

'' (1982), '' Lady Is the Boss'' (1983) and '' Eight-Diagram Pole Fighter'' (1983). All of the films also starred or featured

in some role or capacity.

Collaborations with Gordon Liu

Lau's most frequent collaborator is likely his "god brother"

Chia Hui, and he worked with Liu on a number of films, directing him as a star in the now classic ''

The 36th Chamber of Shaolin ''The 36th Chamber of Shaolin'' ( zh, t=少林三十六房, also released as ''The Master Killer'' and ''Shaolin Master Killer'') is a 1978 Hong Kong martial arts film produced by Shaw Brothers Studio, directed by Lau Kar-leung from a screenplay ...

'' (1978), as well as directing Liu as either a star or cast member in '' Dirty Ho'' (1979), '' Eight-Diagram Pole Fighter'' (1983), ''

Executioners from Shaolin ''Executioners from Shaolin'' () is a 1977 Shaw Brothers kung fu film based on the life of Hung hsi Kuan directed by Lau Kar-leung. It was released as ''Shaolin Executioners'' outside of Hong Kong and as ''Executioners of Death'' in North Amer ...

'' (1977), ''

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 ...

'' (1980), ''

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 ...

'' (1978), ''

'' (1982), ''

Disciples of the 36th Chamber ''Disciples of the 36th Chamber'' (霹靂十傑, ''Pi li shi jie'', ''Disciples of the Master Killer'' or ''Master Killer III'') is a 1985 Shaw Brothers Studio Hong Kong martial arts film comedy written, directed and choreographed Lau Kar-leu ...

'' (1985), '' Tiger on Beat'' (1988), '' Tiger on the Beat 2'' (1990), ''

Shaolin Warrior ''Shaolin Warrior'' (Orig. ''Po jie da shi'') is a 1980 kung fu film directed by Lau Kar-wing Lau Kar-wing (born 1944) is a martial artist, Hong Kong film director, action choreographer and actor. Background Born in the Xinhui District of ...

'' (1980), '' The Spiritual Boxer Part II'' (1979), ''

Cat vs Rat Cat Vs. Rat is a 1982 Shaw Brothers martial arts-comedy film directed by Lau Kar Leung, starring Alexander Fu, Adam Cheng, Kara Hui, and Hsiao Ho. The plot is loosely based on the 19th century wuxia classic novel ''The Seven Heroes and Five Ga ...

'' (1982), '' Lady Is the Boss'' (1983), ''

'' (1981), ''

Challenge of the Masters ''Challenge of the Masters'' ( zh, t=陸阿采與黃飛鴻) is a 1976 Hong Kong action film directed by Lau Kar Leung. Plot After his father refuses to teach him kung fu and he is constantly being beaten by rival school students, a young Wong ...

'' (1976), ''

Shaolin Mantis ''Shaolin Mantis'' ( zh, c=螳螂, j=tong4 long4, l=praying mantis), also released as ''The Deadly Mantis'', is a 1978 in film, 1978 Shaw Brothers film directed by Lau Kar-leung, starring David Chiang and Liu Chia Hui. Plot Wei Fung (David Chi ...

'' (1978), ''

Martial Club ''Martial Club'' (武館) ( ''Instructors of Death'') is a 1981 Shaw Brothers film directed by Lau Kar-leung. It is another of his lighthearted kung fu films starring Kara Hui, Hsiao Ho, Gordon Liu and Wang Lung Wei in a rare hero role. Plot A ...

'' (1981), and '' Drunken Monkey'' (2003). They also appeared together as themselves in the Italian documentary "Dragonland" (2009, directed by Lorenzo De Luca).

Style and techniques

Regarding his style of fight choreography, Lau was generally considered a purist, who sought to portray the various martial arts as authentically as possible. He was also notable for emphasizing both unarmed and armed arts. He avoided overt stylization in his on-screen combat, minimizing the use of wirework and trampolines that would prove the staple of other choreographers like

Yuen Woo-ping Yuen Woo-ping (; alias: Yuen Wo-ping; born 1945) is a Hong Kong people, Hong Kong Stage combat, martial arts choreographer and film director who worked in Hong Kong action cinema and later Hollywood films. He is one of the inductees on the Avenue ...

. "My only aim in making a film is to exalt the martial arts," he said in a ''South China Morning Post'' interview. In the same interview, he stated

"There are four kinds of kung fu. The first one is the one you use to fight, free fighting, kicking the sandbags, running, not much to learn. The second is for strengthening your body –
tai chi is a Chinese martial art. Initially developed for combat and self-defense, for most practitioners it has evolved into a sport and form of exercise. As an exercise, tai chi is performed as gentle, low-impact movement in which practitioners ...
, which strengthens your chi. The third kind is for exhibition – showing off, so even people sitting far away can see it. The fourth kind is my kind – I learned it to fight in movies!"

To that end, he infrequently used low kicks, common in real unarmed combat, for more visible and spectacular

high kicks is the fifth studio album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It was the first album by the band to reach #1 on the Oricon charts. Tracks #"Minagoroshi no Melody" (皆殺しのメロディ ''Massacre Melody'') #"Monkey" (M・O・N・K ...

Teaching

Lau began training students Hung Gar before the age of 5 and was already quite proficient in the style.

Bruce Lee Bruce Lee (born Lee Jun-fan; November 27, 1940 – July 20, 1973) was an American-born Hong Kong martial artist, actor, filmmaker, and philosopher. He was the founder of Jeet Kune Do, a hybrid martial arts philosophy which was formed from ...

treated Lau as an elder uncle and asked him for advice in regard to his film career. Lau opened th
Lau Family Hung Gar academy
in

Fanling Fanling ( zh, t=粉嶺; also spelled Fan Ling or Fan Leng) is a town in the New Territories East of Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the North District. Fanling Town is the main settlement of the Fanling area. The name Fanling is ...

, led by his pupil Mark Houghton. He gave his disciple the permission to spread the art of Lau Family Hung Gar to chosen students. There are already branches in England, Philippines, and Mainland China.

Personal life

Lau's nephew Lau Kar-yung (son of his older sister) is also an actor, choreographer and director. Another nephew, Lau Wing-kin (Lau Kar-wing's son) is also an actor, and assisted Lau Kar-leung with action directing on ''

''. As his acting career went smoothly, his family began to worry about his marriage. On seeing that Liu had reached the marriageable age and there was no suitable woman around him, they introduced him to a woman named Ho Sau-ha (何秀霞). Though Lau only had interest in his acting career, he proceeded with the marriage; they had four daughters and one son. In 1978, Lau first met the then 14-year-old

Mary Jean Reimer Mary Jean Reimer (born 22 May 1964), also known as Yung Jing Jing, is a Hong Kong solicitor and actress. She has American-Chinese-Vietnamese ancestry. Early life and film career Reimer was born in South Vietnam (or the United States) to a Teochow ...

, who was 30 years his junior and a fan of his. Lau helped Reimer in establishing her acting career. After divorcing his first wife and leaving the family, Lau married Reimer in 1984 and they had two daughters, Jeanne and Rosemary Lau.

Death

Lau died on 25 June 2013 at Union Hospital, Hong Kong. He had been battling

leukemia Leukemia ( also spelled leukaemia; pronounced ) is a group of blood cancers that usually begin in the bone marrow and produce high numbers of abnormal blood cells. These blood cells are not fully developed and are called ''blasts'' or '' ...

for two decades.

Filmography

Films

* 1975 '' The Spiritual Boxer'' - Director * 1976 ''

'' - Director * 1977 ''

Executioners From Shaolin ''Executioners from Shaolin'' () is a 1977 Shaw Brothers kung fu film based on the life of Hung hsi Kuan directed by Lau Kar-leung. It was released as ''Shaolin Executioners'' outside of Hong Kong and as ''Executioners of Death'' in North Amer ...

'' - Director * 1978 '' 36th Chamber of Shaolin'' - Director * 1978 '' Deadly Strike / Breakout from Oppression'' - Director * 1978 ''

'' - Director * 1978 ''

'' - Director * 1979 '' The Spiritual Boxer Part II'' - Director * 1979 '' Dirty Ho'' - Director * 1979 '' Mad Monkey Kung Fu'' - Director * 1980 ''

'' - Director * 1980 ''

'' - Director * 1981 ''

'' - Director * 1982 ''

'' - Director, writer * 1982 ''

'' - Director * 1983 '' Lady Is the Boss'' - Director * 1984 '' The Eight Diagram Pole Fighter'' - Director, writer * 1985 ''

'' - Director, writer * 1986 ''

'' - Director * 1988 '' Tiger on the Beat'' - Director * 1989 '' Aces Go Places 5: The Terracotta Hit'' - Director * 1990 '' Tiger on the Beat 2'' - Director * 1994 ''

'' - Director * 1994 ''

Drunken Master III ''Drunken Master III'' is a 1994 Hong Kong martial arts film directed by Lau Kar-leung and starring Andy Lau, Michelle Reis, Willie Chi and Adam Cheng. This film was quickly produced after director Lau and Jackie Chan fell out on the set of ''Dr ...

'' - Director * 2002 '' Drunken Monkey'' - Director

As a martial arts choreographer

As an actor

*''Brave Lad of Guangdong'' (1950) *''Huang Fei Hong yi gun fu san ba'' (1953) - Ah-Biu *''Huang Fei Hong wen zhen si pai lou'' (1955) *''Huang Fei Hong: Da nao Fo Shan'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong huo shao Daoshatou'' (1956) - Monkey Kwong *''Huang Fei Hong san xi nu biao shi'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong yi jiu long mu miao'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong nu tun shi er shi'' (1956) - Chiu Chung Bo *''Huang Fei Hong: Tie ji dou wu gong'' (1956) - Child *''Huang Fei Hong long zhou duo jin'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong Shamian fu shen quan'' (1956) *''Huang Fei-hong gong chuan jian ba'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong yong jiu mai yu can'' (1956) - Hing's Man 1 *''Wu Song xue jian shi zi lou'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong Guanshan da he shou'' (1956) - Thug *''Huang Fei Hong gu si jiu qing seng'' (1956) *''Bi xue en chou wan gu qing'' (1956) *''Bai hao ying xiong chuan'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong shui di san qin Su Shulian'' (1956) *''Huang Fei Hong da nao hua deng'' (1956) - Kwok To *''Huang Fei Hong: Tian hou miao jin xiang'' (1956) - Elder *''Na Zha nao dong hai'' (1957) - 3rd Prince Dragon King *''Huang Fei Hong Henan yu xie zhan'' (1957) *''Huang Fei Hong shi wang zheng ba'' (1957) - Leung-chai *''Huang Fei Hong die xie ma an shan'' (1957) *''Huang Fei Hong da po fei dao dang'' (1957) *''Huang Fei-hong xie jian su po wu'' (1957) - Pirate *''Huang Fei Hong: Ye tan hei long shan'' (1957) *''Huang Fei Hong long zheng hu dou'' (1958) *''Huang Fei Hong lei tai dou wu hu'' (1958) - Shining Tiger *''Huang Fei Hong fu qi chu san hai'' (1958) *''Huang Fei Hong hu xue jiu Liang Kuan'' (1958) *''

Story of the White-Haired Demon Girl ''Story of the White-Haired Demon Girl'' is a three-part 1959 Hong Kong film adapted from Liang Yusheng's novel '' Baifa Monü Zhuan''. The film was directed by Lee Fa and starred Law Yim-hing and Cheung Ying. Cast * Law Yim-hing as Lin Ngai-s ...

'' (1959) *''Huo zang Lan Tou He'' (1959) - Disciple #2 *''Huang Fei Hong bei kun hei di yu'' (1959) *''Huang Fei Hong hu peng fu hu'' (1959) *''Bai fa mo nu zhuan san ji da jie ju'' (1959) *''Huang Fei Hong lei tai zheng ba zhan'' (1960) - Lackey *''Nazha sheshan jiu mu'' (1960) - Mu Cha *''Xing xing wang da zhan Huang Fei Hong'' (1960) - Clawtooth 1 *''Huang Fei Hong yuan da po wu hu zhen'' (1961) - Clawtooth 1 *''Tai ping tian guo nu ying xiong'' (1961) *''Xian he shen zhen'' (1961) *''Kun lun qi jian dou wu long'' (1961) *''Fu gui rong hua di yi jia'' (1962) *''Lian huan mou sha an'' (1962) - Shot Thug (uncredited) *''Ru yan jing hun'' (1962) - Detective Lee *''Huo yan shan'' (1962) *''Na zha san dou hong hai er'' (1962) - Muk Cha *''Yue Fei chu shi'' (1962) *''Huang mao guai ren'' (1962) - Teddy boy *''Xi xue shen bian'' (1963) *''Huo shao gong lian si Shang ji'' (1963) - Lau Chee *''Huo shao gong lian si Xia ji'' (1963) *''Yi tian tu long ji xia ji'' (1963) *''Guai xia yan zi fei'' (1963) *''Nan long bei feng'' (1963) *''Luoyang qi xia zhuan'' (1964) *''Bai gu li hun zhen shang ji'' (1964) *''Bai gu li hun zhen xia ji'' (1964) *''Ru lai shen zhang shang ji'' (1964) *''Wan bian fei gu'' (1964) - Monkey of North Mountain *''Pan Jin Lian'' (1964) *''Qing xia qing chou'' (1964) *''Yi di xia yi xue shang ji'' (1965) *''Da di er nu'' (1965) *''Dao jian shuang lan'' (1965) *''Qing chang yi geng chang'' (1965) *''999 Shen mi shuang shi an'' (1965) - Kidnapper *''Bao lian deng'' (1965) *''Zhui ziong ji'' (1965) *''Temple of the Red Lotus'' (1965) *''Hei mei gui'' (1965) - Rascal *''Yuan yang jian xia'' (1965) *''Tit gim jyu han seung jaap'' (1965) *''Yun hai yu gong yuan'' (1966) *''Nu sha shou'' (1966) *''Bian cheng san xia'' (1966) *''Nu xiu cai'' (1966) *''Sheng huo xiong feng da po huo lian zhen'' (1967) *''Yu nu jin gang'' (1967) *''Duan chang jian'' (1967) *''Nu tan hei tian e'' (1967) - Scoundrel *''Qin Jian En Chou'' (1967) *''Shen jian zhen jiang hu'' (1967) *''Jin ou'' (1967) - Henchman *''

One-Armed Swordsman ''The 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 bloodle ...

'' (1967) - Pa Shuang *''Mi ren xiao niao'' (1967) *''Mao yan nu lang'' (1967) *''Dao jian'' (1967) *''Nu jin gang da zhan du yan long'' (1967) *''Qi xia wu yi'' (1967) - Hsiang brother #1 *''Da ci ke'' (1967) *''Wu di nu sha shou'' (1967) *''Yu mian fei hu'' (1968) *'' Golden Swallow'' (1968) - Golden Dragon Branch Leader *''Fang Shi Yu san da mu ren xiang'' (1968) *''Fei xia xiao bai long'' (1968) *''The Sword of Swords'' (1968) *''Du bei dao wang'' (1969) - 'Ape Arms' Yuan Chen *''Shi er jin qian biao'' (1969) *''The Flying Dagger'' (1969) *''Shen da'' (1975) *''

'' (1976) - Chen Erh-fu *''

'' (1977) - 3-Sectional Staff Fighter *''

'' (1978) - Drunken Master Su (Guest star) *'' Mad Monkey Kung Fu'' (1979) - Chen *''Wu guan'' (1981) - Lion dance instructor *''

'' (1981) - Yu Ching-Chuen *''

'' (1982) - Lei Kung *''Heroic Family'' (1983) *'' Lady Is the Boss'' (1983) - Wang Hsia Yuan *'' Invincible Pole Fighter'' (1984) - Hunter *''

'' (1985) *'' Evil Cat'' (1987) - Master Cheung *''Heng cai san qian wan'' (1987) - Liang *''A Bloody Fight'' (1988) - Leung *'' Pedicab Driver'' (1989) - Gambling House Boss *''Hak do fuk sing'' (1989) - Wong *''New Kids In Town'' (A.K.A ''New Killers In Town'') (1990) - Uncle *'' The Banquet'' (1991) - Master Lau / Uncle Nine *''

The Twin Dragons ''Twin Dragons'' is a 1992 Hong Kong action comedy film directed by Ringo Lam and Tsui Hark, and starring Jackie Chan in a double role as identical twin brothers separated at birth. The plot of the film is adapted from Bengali film ''Shathe Sh ...

'' (1992) - Doctor *''Operation Scorpio'' (1992) - Master Lo *''

'' (1994) - Master Fu Wen-Chi *''

'' (1994) - Uncle Yan *'' Drunken Monkey'' (2002) - Master Man Bill *''

'' (2005) - Fu Qingzhu (final film role)

Awards and nominations

In 2005, Lau won a "Best Action Choreography" award at the

Golden Horse Award The Taipei Golden Horse Film Festival and Taipei Golden Horse Awards () are a film festival and associated awards ceremony held annually in Taiwan. The festival and ceremony were founded in 1962 by the Government Information Office of the Republ ...

for his action choreography work on

's ''

''. He also won another

in 1994, for "Best Martial Arts Direction" in the film ''

'' (or ''The Legend of the Drunken Master''). In 1995, Lau also won a "Best Action Choreography" award at the

Hong Kong Film Awards The Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA; ), founded in 1982, is an annual film awards ceremony in Hong Kong. The ceremonies typically take place in April, and have mostly been held at the Grand Theatre of the Hong Kong Cultural Centre since 1991. The a ...

for his choreography in ''

'' and in 1997, the film won "Best Film" at the

Fantasia Film Festival Fantasia International Film Festival, also known as Fantasia Fest or simply Fantasia, is a genre film festival that has been based mainly in Montreal since its founding in 1996. It focuses on fantasy, horror, sci-fi and cult genre films. Regular ...

. Lau was also nominated for a "Best Action Choreography"

Hong Kong Film Award The Hong Kong Film Awards (HKFA; ), founded in 1982, is an annual List of film awards, film awards ceremony in Hong Kong. The ceremonies typically take place in April, and have mostly been held at the Grand Theatre of the Hong Kong Cultural Cent ...

in 2006 for his work on

's ''

'', and nominated in 1983 for a "Best Action Choreography"

for his work on ''

'' (1982), which he also directed and wrote. In 2010, Lau was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award at the

for his contributions to the martial arts film genre.

External links

*
Hong Kong Cinemagic: Lau Kar Leung

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lau, Kar-Leung 1934 births 2013 deaths Shaw Brothers Studio Chinese Hung Gar practitioners Hong Kong male film actors Hong Kong film directors Hong Kong martial artists Male actors from Guangzhou Sportspeople from Guangzhou Martial artists from Guangdong Male actors from Guangdong Chinese male film actors Chinese male television actors 20th-century Chinese male actors 20th-century Hong Kong male actors